A USB (Universal Serial Bus) communication apparatus includes: a driver circuit connected to a USB bus and configured to transmit a packet onto the USB bus for a packet transmission period which is determined based on a transmission request signal from another unit. A receiver control circuit generates a fixation request signal and a generation control signal in response to the transmission request signal. A receiver circuit connected to the USB bus generates a squelch signal showing that the packet is being transmitting onto the USB bus, and stops generating the squelch signal in response to the generation control signal. A line state signal control circuit is configured to output a specific line state signal based on the squelch signal to notify to another unit that the packet is been transmitting onto the USB bus, and to fix the specific line state signal in response to the fixation request signal.

USB (Universal Serial Bus) is a communication standard when a high speed communication is carried out between computers by using a serial bus. In recent years, examples increase in which a communication apparatus carrying out the USB communication (hereinafter, to be referred to as a USB communication apparatus) is installed in a mobile apparatus such as a digital camera or PDA (personal Digital Assistant). Such a mobile apparatus receives the supply of power from a battery. For this reason, a demand for a smaller power consumption amount is high in the USB communication apparatus installed in the mobile apparatus.
By the way, in a USB2.0 standard that is mainstream at present, there is a UTMI+(USB2.0 Transceiver Macrocell Interface) standard. The UTMI+ standard is prepared for the purpose of unifying the interfaces of a physical layer (PHY) in the USB communication apparatus based on the USB2.0 standard. However, the UTMI+ standard does not define a technique of reducing the power consumption amount. Because the power consumption amount in a circuit for the physical layer is large, the USB communication apparatus installed in the mobile device is requested to reduce the power consumption amount.
Patent Literature 1 (JP 2006-135397A) discloses a data transfer control apparatus that can save the power of the physical layer circuit. The data transfer control apparatus in Patent Literature 1 will be described below with reference to FIG. 1 to FIG. 3B.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a data transfer control apparatus in Patent Literature 1. The data transfer control apparatus is provided with a transceiver 110, a transfer controller 170 and a data buffer (FIFO) 100.
The transceiver 110 transmits or receives a USB packet by using a differential signal line (of lines DP and DM). The transceiver 110 is provided with a logic circuit 120 as a part of a logical layer circuit of the USB, and an analog front-end circuit 130 as a physical layer circuit. The logic circuit 120 executes processes of generating and removing EOP (End Of Packet), SYNC (SYNChronization) and a line state of a differential signal (J, K, SE0 and so on). The analog front-end circuit 130 includes a transmitting circuit 140 and a receiving circuit 150. The transmitting circuit 140 transmits a packet through the USB bus. Specifically, the transmitting circuit 140 drives the differential signal line of the USB bus by using a current source 142 to be described later and consequently transmits the packet. The receiving circuit 150 receives a packet transferred through the USB bus. Specifically, in the USB bus, the line state of the differential signal line is detected, thereby receiving the packet (serial data).
The transfer controller 170 controls the data transfer through the USB bus. The transfer controller 170 is provided with an SIE (Serial Interface Engine) 180 and a buffer controller 190. The SIE 180 executes a packet process, a transaction process, a suspend resume control process and the like. The SIE 180 is provided with a packet analyzing circuit 182, a transaction controller 184 and a packet generating circuit 186. The packet analyzing circuit 182 analyzes the packet received through the USB bus by the receiving circuit 150. The transaction controller 184 executes the transaction process and instructs a transmission of the packet configuring a transaction. The packet generating circuit 186 generates a packet instructed by the transaction controller 184 and outputs it such that the generated packet is transmitted from the transmitting circuit. The buffer controller 190 executes a region reserving process of a data buffer 100 and an accessing process to the data buffer 100.
The data buffer 100 temporarily stores data transferred through the USB.
Next, FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the transmitting circuit 140 in the data transfer control apparatus in Patent Literature 1. The transmitting circuit 140 is provided with a current source 142, a transmission driver 144 and a transmission control circuit 146.
The current source 142 (constant current source) is placed between a power supply voltage VDD and a first node N1. The transmission driver 144 includes transistors TE1, TE2 and TE3 as shown in FIG. 2. Also, the signal line DP is connected to a termination resistor RP1 on a device side and a termination resistor RP2 on a host side. The signal line DMA is connected to a termination resistor RM1 on the device side and a termination resistor RM2 on the host side. Outputs of the transmission driver 144 are connected to the termination resistors RP1 and RM1. Similarly, outputs of the transmission driver on the host side are connected to the termination resistors RP2 and RM2. The transmission control circuit 146 generates transmission control signals GC1, GC2 and GC3 and outputs to the transmission driver 144.
FIG. 3A shows timing charts in the transmission control signals GC1, GC2 and GC3 generated by the transmission control circuit 146. In the above-mentioned configuration, when the transmission control circuit 146 activates the transmission control signal GC1, so as to turn on the transistor TE1. Then, a current from the current source 142 is supplied through the transistor TE1 to the signal line DP. On the other hand, when the transmission control circuit 146 activates the transmission control signal GC2 so as to turn on the transistor TE2. The current from the current source 142 is supplied through the transistor TE2 to the signal line DM. In a packet transmission period, the transmission control circuit 146 controls the transmission control signals GC1 and GC2 in this way and generates the line state of the differential signal line of the USB bus.
Also, in a period except the packet transmission period, the transmission control circuit 146 activates the transmission control signal GC3 so as to turn on the transistor TE3. Thus, the current from the current source 142 is supplied through the transistor TE3 to the ground GND. In this way, since the current continues to be supplied from the current source 142 to the ground GND even in the period except the packet transmission period, the voltage of the node N1 is made stable. However, since the current continues to be supplied even in the period except the packet transmission period, the power consumption amount of the transmitting circuit 140 becomes great.
For this reason, in the transmission control circuit 146 in Patent Literature 1, the output timing of the transmission control signal is changed. FIG. 3B shows timing charts in the transmission control signals GC1, GC2 and GC3 generated by the transmission control circuit 146. As shown in FIG. 3B, the transmission control circuit 146 activates the transmission control signal GC3 at a timing C2 prior to a timing C1 at which the packet is transmitted onto the USB bus.
By the above-mentioned configuration, the appropriate packet transmission is possible in the packet transmission period by using the current source 142, and a useless current can be prevented from being supplied to the ground GND in the period except the packet transmission period. Also, a length of a transmission waiting period TS between the timings C1 and C2 is set to a length enough to stabilize the current of the current source 142 and the voltage of the node N1. Consequently, as soon as the packet transmission is started, the stable current can be supplied from the current source 142 to the signal lines DP and DM.

USB communication apparatus and method of reducing power consumption amount thereof using a squelch signal to indicate the presence of signals on a USB bus are at a predetermined level


This invention relates to large, ie view-cameras and supplants the fixed conventional viewing screen by using instead a focusing frame partly or totally geometrically congruent with the sheetfilm holder for such a camera, said frame being temporarily inserted into this camera for focusing, the conventional sheetfilm-holder partition being replaced in the focusing frame of the invention by a transparent viewing screen of which the focusing surface faces the lens. In this manner the invention achieves coincidence, within a desired and optionally zero tolerance, of film emulsion plane and focusing surface and eliminates the errors related to uncertain positioning of the conventional viewing screen of a large-format camera.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of photography, and in particular to a method and apparatus for sharpening camera-recorded pictures. In a first implementation of the invention, said method and apparatus relate to flattening the film against a reference surface such as the surface of rollfilm pressure-plate or a sheetfilm-holder partition substantially more rigorously than is the case in conventional cameras, and furthermore to a novel focusing screen for view, i.e. large-format, cameras replacing the conventional screen and its conventional accessories and allowing focusing with heretofore unavailable reliability. In a second implementation of the invention, said method and apparatus relate to improved focusing of view cameras.
It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the word "photography" is intended to encompass any application in which an optical image is captured by a light sensitive medium or "film."
2. Description of Related Art
One serious but much neglected problem encountered in photography is that warping of the film will cause the film to deviate from the image plane, and make it impossible to achieve optimal image sharpness. No matter how accurate the optical components of the image capture device or "camera," an ideally geometrically sharp image is, in practice, impossible to obtain using conventional equipment due to warpage of the film and consequently separation of the film from the pressure plate (or sheetfilm holder partition), conventionally provided as film-plane reference-surface means, will take place.
Once normal focusing of the film has been carried out in a camera only conventionally fitted with a pressure plate or sheetfilm-holder partition, the film warp is typically of sufficient magnitude to be the critical parameter in determining image sharpness. The problem is most acute for medium format films such as 120/220 films, but it also significantly affects 35 mm and large-film formats, and it affects all conventional cameras regardless of price.
Aside the intrinsic film warp, the 120 film format in particular is subject to further film detachment due to the sandwiched paper backing used in this format and which during picture taking will be sandwiched between the film support holding the emulsion at its top and the pressure plate or partition. Moreover, even if the paper backing were removed, and palliation achieved to that extent, the bare film still would excessively detach per se from the pressure plate and would still preclude uniform, sharp focusing.
Attempts have been made to address the problem of rollfilm or sheetfilm detachment by providing pneumatic suction devices that will pull the film against the film reference-surface means. Such suction devices, however, are inherently bulky, cumbersome and thereby unsuitable for use, both outdoors and indoors, except in exceedingly circumscribed conditions.
Other attempts to flatten the film in the camera have resorted to compressing the film between a glass plate and the pressure plate. Such configurations however entail the substantive drawbacks of inserting into the imaging path another optical element which, being in contact with the emulsion, moreover will inherently soil quickly. Such "solutions" have long been abandoned.
Consequently, aside from a few unsatisfactory attempts at remedy, the problem of film detachment has as a rule been ignored. Currently, there do not appear to be any significant efforts to address the problem, as evidenced for example by the fact that the text Image Clarity by John B. Williams, 224 pp, Focal Press, 1990, which deals solely with image sharpness, fails to address the problem of film detachment.
It is true that the state of the art already comprises photographic films with layers of magnetic material, and that one aspect of the present invention involves the use of a multilayer laminate affixed to a film (in cooperation with a force-field generating unit). However the mounting of a multilayer laminate on a photographic film as used in the present invention is clearly distinguishable from prior art proposals to provide photographic emulsions with layers of magnetic material spread across the emulsion. These magnetic layers of the films of the prior art are used for magnetic recording, for instance of sound, and would have been recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art as being unsuitable for use, in combination with a force-field generating apparatus, to flatten a photographic film in order to cause the image plane and the film to rigorously coincide and thereby improve the sharpness of the image: the magnetic material of the prior art is unsuitable for the purposes of the present invention because it is diaphanous and permanently in place, whereas the magnetic laminate of the invention is opaque and removed subsequent to exposure, and moreover the prior art arrangements degrade image quality both by light (i.e., the image) being scattered by the magnetic particles and by raising the fog level, whereas the present invention improves image quality without affecting fog levels. Publications disclosing such prior art combinations of film with magnetic layers include:
U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,604,831; 3,782,947; 3,993,488; 4,279,945; 4,341,855; 5,254,449; French patent 1,651,889; Canadian patent 686,172; Japanese patents 57-151,926; 4-214,544.
It may be worthwhile to observe that what may appear to be a potential alternative way to flatten a flexible film, i.e., increasing the tension on the film, while effective where much slack is present, is intrinsically and in practice unable to fully flatten the film and indeed must always fall very short of the goal of removing film warp as a limiting factor in achieving optimal image sharpness.
Considering the efforts and resources conventionally devoted to improving the quality of film and optical components, then by removing said film warp, the present invention shall provide significant benefits by making possible in economical and practical manner substantially higher image sharpness.
Another aspect of the invention relates to a novel focusing screen for "view", i.e. large-format cameras. Conventional view cameras typically comprise a lens connected in light-tight manner to a light-tight bellows itself connected in light tight-manner to a first rear frame that will receive the sheetfilm holder at least during picture taking. This first rear frame is fitted with a second rear frame, often called "back", which holds the focusing screen, usually with one ground glass surface or equivalent on which the lens image is reproduced and its sharpness used as a focusing gauge. This second frame can be pulled back enough from the first frame to allow inserting and holding the sheetfilm holder at least during image exposure.
This configuration assumes that the plane of the ground glass surface for which focusing was carried out also is the same plane occupied by the emulsion of the sheetfilm in the sheetfilm holder when inserted between said first and second frames, and moreover that once such a coincidence were or has been established, it would or shall hold into the future too. However to monitor such coincidence, special apparatus (autocollimators) are required, which are expensive, can be used practically only in a lab, in other words not by the photographer in the field.
Tests run by the inventor on a so-called 4.times.5 camera, the smallest of the view cameras, indicate that, for a "normal" or near-normal lens focussed at infinity, the discrepancy in distance between lens and film plane relative to perfect focus preferably shall be kept within 50 microns (1/20 mm) but that the coincidence of said emulsion plane and ground-glass surface is unlikely to be realized within such a narrow range in typical view cameras. This drawback is compounded by the image resolution of the ground-glass surface being too coarse to detect a focusing shift of some 50 microns.
The invention offers substantial palliations to remedy the just cited drawbacks of view cameras. It does so by bypassing the conventional focusing screen in said rear frame, this rear frame itself being also present in the invention to conventionally hold the conventional sheetfilm holder in place, and using instead of said conventional focusing screen an insertable focusing frame of the invention, outwardly similar to a conventional sheetfilm holder and also having a partition, however in the form of a viewing screen having a focusing surface, as the novel focusing screen. In this manner the photographer is equipped at all times with a highly reliable and very portable reference means allowing him to positively establish congruence between the focusing and the imaging planes without loss of time.
This first above basic design of the novel focusing screen of the invention can be further refined and such additional measures are elucidated further below.

Focusing method and frame for large-format cameras


Disclosed is a garment carrier comprising a base frame in the general shape of a hanger, with a triangular-shaped lower portion integral with an arcuate shaped hand gripping hook-like portion. The base hanger is insertable into the interior of a cover, with the lower triangular-shaped portion of the base hanger residing within the interior of the cover, and the upper arcuate hand gripping portion extending through an opening in the upper end of the cover, residing external of the cover. A support strap, having an upper aperture and a lower aperture, is slidably received onto the base frame by receipt of the arcuate hand gripping portion of the base frame into the upper aperture of the strap. The hooks of the plurality of clothes hangers with their respective garments are slidably received into the lower aperture of the support strap. The garment carrier, with hanger supported garments, may then be transported by gripping the hand gripping portion of the base frame which extends outward of the cover. The upper aperture of the support strap resides at the junction of the upper and lower base frame portions, with the lower aperture of the support strap depending downwardly into the cover interior, and the clothes hangers with their respective garments also residing within the cover.

Garment carriers are well known as an efficient means for transporting garments which are mounted on hangers, and have found widespread use amongst both corporate and personal travelers. Garment carriers are preferable to garment bags in that with garment carriers each of the garments is supported on a respective hanger which keeps the garment relatively wrinkle-free, as compared to garment carriers in which a number of garments are folded and placed in a common bag.
With one type of prior art garment carrier, each of the garments, while supported on their respective hangers, is placed inside a garment cover with the hook portion of each of the individual hangers extending through an opening in the upper end of the cover, and the lower portion of the hangers with garments thereon residing within the cover. The garments are transported by manually grasping the plurality of hangers by their hooks which extend through the upper end of the cover. This design suffers numerous shortcomings, the most particular of which is that the hooks of the hangers dig into the hand, making transport of the garments for any significant time very uncomfortable. The discomfort may become intolerable if the garments have substantial weight.
To alleviate the discomfort associated with gripping and supporting the garments by their hanger hooks, other designs have provided a support hoop permanently affixed to the interior of the cover near its upper end. Each of the hooks of the hangers on which a garment is supported is received in the support hoop with the garments hanging within the cover. A strap is affixed to the upper end of the cover, by which the garment carrier can be lifted to allow the garments to be transported comfortably. This design requires that the upper portion of the cover, at the location of the support hoop and carrying strap, be reinforced to withstand tearing of the cover during transport. The requirement of the reinforcement to the cover adds considerably to the cost of manufacturing garment carriers of this design, as compared with the aforementioned design having simply a cover with an opening in its upper end for passage of the hanger hooks therethrough. The reinforcement also adds undesirable weight to the garment carrier. While the cover may, alternatively, be made heavier to withstand the load of the garments, this also would add considerably to the expense of producing the garment carrier, as well as adding further undesirable weight to the garment carrier. Furthermore, there are additional manufacturing expenses associated with this design attributable to the requirements of affixing the support hoop within the cover, and affixing a support hook to the cover by which the garments can hang from a coat rack or the like in a conventional manner.
It is desirable to provide a garment carrier which combines the beneficial attributes of being simple and inexpensive to manufacture, with allowing for comfortable gripping and transport of the garment carrier.


Provided is an image tagging device including: a first functional unit in which an image including an object that is a target of privacy protection is stored and that removes privacy information by changing part of the master image; a second functional unit that acquires the changed image from the first functional unit and changes a region image of an object that is not to be tagged in the first image; a function that distributes the changed image from the second functional unit to a tagging operation terminal device and receives image tag information from the tagging operation terminal device over a network; and a tagged image generator that generates a tagged image on the basis of the master image and the image tag information. This makes it possible to collect tagged images while achieving both privacy protection and an improvement in efficiency of a tagging operation.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to an image tagging device utilizing a network represented by the Internet.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, general object recognition based on a learning technique using a neural network called Deep Learning has been exhibiting high performance and attracting attention.
However, in order to achieve high recognition performance in general object recognition based on Deep Learning, it is necessary to perform learning processing of a large number of images, as the learning subjects, with which the name, kind, or the like of an object to be recognized is associated as a tag. Note that it is desirable that the tagged images be images in which the object indicated by the tag is located at the center or occupies a large portion.
In general, it is necessary to prepare approximately ten thousand tagged images, as the learning subjects, to achieve high recognition performance. This requires a lot of manpower and a large number of steps. Furthermore, since the number of steps is enormous, it is assumed that crowdsourcing is used for an operation of finding a portion necessary for recognition from an image such as a photograph or a video frame, cutting the portion out from the image, and tagging the portion. In this case, protection of privacy of persons in the images to be tagged is most important.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-213181 discloses a technique for generating a privacy-protected image whose image region for each user can be changed depending on the private policy of the user and that properly satisfies requirements for protection of privacy of an individual.

PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY CORPORATION OF AMERICA


An actuator and control algorithm which provide an operator with the ability to intuitively and responsively maneuver heavy work-pieces with ease and precision. The structure of the apparatus may provide a hoist with a compliant sensing system to measure the weight of the payload. The compliant sensing system may result in smaller dead-bands than are realizable with traditional force sensing methods. At the command of the user, the control algorithm may switch between two distinct operational modes: float mode and manual mode. In float mode, the hoist actively counterbalances the weight of the load, allowing it to feel substantially weightless in the operator's hands. The operator can apply forces directly to the payload to accelerate it in the desired vertical direction. Because of the small dead-band realized with compliant sensing, the payload may be highly responsive to the operators force inputs. As a result, the payload may be intuitively maneuvered at very high speeds, as well as very low speeds. Alternately, the operator may choose to operate in manual mode. While in manual mode, the hoist operates like traditional lifting hoists, responding to velocity commands issued from a remotely controlled pendant.

A traditional hoist consists of a motor connected to a spool, which is used to wind a cable up and down to move a payload vertically. Typically, these devices are remotely controlled with various up/down buttons on a pendant. By attaching the payload to the end of the hoist cable, a human operator can raise and lower heavy payloads by simply pressing the pendant's buttons. This type of hoist can be found in many manufacturing operations requiring movement of payloads that are too heavy for human operators. Though traditional hoists are indispensable for their tremendous load lifting capabilities, their slow, non-variable speeds, and remote controlled operation can be less than ideal for many manufacturing applications.
Consider a simple automotive assembly procedure such as placing an engine block on its engine mounts. During the assembly sequence, the operator raises an engine block from the factory floor, up and over the front fender, into the engine bay and onto the motor mounts. An extremely wide range of speeds would be desirable for this task. While moving from the factory floor to up and over the front fender, it would be desirable to move at quick human-like speeds. Slower speeds would be desired while lowering the engine block into the car's engine bay. Finally, extremely low speeds with regular changes in direction would be most suitable when precisely placing the engine block on the engine mounts. This would be inefficient and frustrating, even with a highly skilled operator using a dual speed hoist. The high speed command would not be fast enough for moving from the factory floor to up and over the fender and the slow speed would not be slow enough for precise placement on the engine blocks.
Poor performance is tolerated in applications requiring super-human strength because there are few alternatives. However, there are countless applications in which a traditional hoist could be used to significantly reduce operator strain (for example placing a 50 pound car seat or 20 pound car battery) but is not used because of the frustration and inefficiency associated with the clumsy and slow operational features of traditional hoists.


A thermoplastic norbornene resin which displays a high degree of toughness, and for which the exhibited retardation and the wavelength dependency of that retardation can be controlled is provided, which is formed from a copolymer with a structural unit represented by a general formula (1) and a structural unit represented by a general formula (2).

Cyclic polyolefin based resins have properties which include a high glass transition temperature due to the rigidity of the primary chain structure, a non-crystalline structure with a high light transmittance due to the presence of bulky groups on the primary chain structure, and a low birefringence due to the small anisotropy of the refractive index, and are consequently drawing considerable attention as transparent thermoplastic resins with superior heat resistance, transparency and optical characteristics.
Examples of this type of cyclic polyolefin based resin are disclosed in Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 1-132625 (JP1-132625A), Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 1-132626 (JP1-32626A), Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 63-218726 (JP63-218726A), Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 2-133413 (JP2-133413A), Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 61-120816 (JP61-120816A), and Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 61-115912 (JP61-115912A).
In recent years, the utilization of the above properties in the application of cyclic polyolefin based resins to optical materials such as optical disks, optical lenses and optical fibers and the like, as well as to fields such as sealing materials for optical semiconductor sealing has been the subject of much investigation.
In terms of the application of cyclic polyolefin based films to optical films, investigations have also been conducted with the aim of improving problems associated with conventional optical films, as described below.
Films of polycarbonate, polyester and triacetylacetate, which have been widely used as optical films, suffer from several problems including a large photoelasticity coefficient which can cause retardation and variations to appear with only minor variations in stress, inferior heat resistance, and deformation on moisture absorption, and consequently the application of films formed from cyclic polyolefin based resins to a variety of different film applications have been reported. Specific examples include the retardation plates formed from cyclic polyolefin based resin films disclosed in Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 4-245202 (JP4-245202A), Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 4-36120 (JP4-36120A), Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 5-2108 (JP5-2108A) and Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 5-64865 (JP5-64865A). The application of cyclic polyolefin based resin films to protective films for polarizing plates is disclosed in Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 5-212828 (JP5-212828A), Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 6-51117 (JP6-51117A) and Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 7-77608 (JP7-77608A). Moreover, a liquid crystal display element substrate formed from a cyclic polyolefin based resin film is disclosed in Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 5-61026 (JP5-61026A).
In the applications described above, a cyclic polyolefin based resin is reported that has a water absorption of no more than 0.05% and which can be produced with relative ease. Such low water absorption values are reported as the special characteristics of the resins, and are described as essential properties. However, if this type of low water absorption cyclic polyolefin based resin film is used as a retardation plate or a liquid crystal display element substrate, then the film may suffer from inferior adhesion to a hard coat, an antireflective film or a transparent conductive layer, or inferior bonding with the polarizing plate and the glass. In cases in which a cyclic polyolefin based resin film is used as a protective film for a polarizing plate, then in addition to the adhesion problems outlined above, an additional problem arises in that the water of the water based adhesive typically used for bonding the film to the polarizer is very difficult to dry.
However, the cyclic polyolefin based resin family includes a wide range of different structures, and not all cyclic polyolefin based resins display a water absorption of 0.05% or less. In order to ensure a water absorption of no more than 0.05%, the cyclic polyolefin based resin must have either a polyolefin structure formed from only carbon atoms and hydrogen atoms, or a structure which incorporates a proportion of halogen atoms.
Consequently, in order to resolve the aforementioned problems relating to low water absorption, optical films incorporating a thermoplastic norbornene resin with a polar group incorporated within the molecular structure have been disclosed in Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 7-287122 (JP7-287122A) and Japanese Laid-open publication (kokai) No. 7-287123 (1P7-287123A). The optical films disclosed in these applications display superior optical characteristics including a high degree of transparency, a low retardation of transmitted light, and a uniform and stable application of retardation to transmitted light upon stretching and orientation. The optical films offer good levels of heat resistance and adhesion and bonding with other materials, and moreover also undergo little deformation on water absorption, but because the toughness of these films is poor, handling problems arise in the processing and use of these films.

Thermoplastic norbornene resin based optical film


A new pressure-only molten metal valving apparatus and method is provided. This novel approach to controlling the flow of liquids eliminates the need for active, moving valve components. Using the natural surface tension properties of liquids, the gas pressure either activates liquid flow when a threshold is overcome or retains the liquid in a head, even when lifted.

Solder processing is known in the art and is exemplified in U.S. Pat. No. 5,244,143 to Ference, et al., entitled "Apparatus and Method for Injection Molding Solder and Applications Thereof" and U.S. Pat. No. 6,527,158 to Brouillette, et al., entitled "Method and Apparatus for Forming Solder Bumps."
C4NP is a new solder technology in the IMS family of solder processing. C4NP is IMS applied to wafer bumping. C4NP uses a solder dispense head under which molds are scanned to fill cavities therein with solder. To date, the prevailing solder dispensing mechanism has been a slot filled with molten solder that is injected into the mold cavities, which are the substrate cavities, under pressure.
This solder dispense mechanism provides for solder filling of individual mold plates, but is not amenable to manufacturing. The reasons for this are as follows:
(1) Since there is always a large volume of solder in the slot in contact with the mold plate, this solder must be contained after the fill is complete or it will spill out. Complex mechanical fixtures called "parking blades" are used that the head travels onto, parks, and then travels off of onto the next mold plate, i.e., substrate, cavities to be filled. With the foregoing required operations, there are several points where solder can leak out of the head which is not desirable for manufacturing; and
(2) The currently prevailing head configuration employs O-rings that can easily be damaged during these operations, thus requiring rework steps which severely limits the fill cycles.
These O-rings also typically have high friction against the mold plates and frequently causes O-ring instabilities in their O-ring grooves. Accordingly, there is an unmet need for a system that eliminates the present solder slot design described herein above and also eliminates the need for using sensitive, high friction O-rings. Such improvements and changes in design are essential if C4NP is to become a successful manufacturing technology.

Pressure-only molten metal valving apparatus and method

International Business Machines Corporation


The present invention relates to a video cassette recorder (VCR) system capable of recording on or reproducing from opposed surfaces of a magnetic video tape for enhancing an effiency of utilization of the tape and for embodying a variety of pictures on the tape. The recorder further comprises a back head drum for using the video tape having opposed front and back surfaces formed with magnetized layers, in addtion to an ordinary front head drum and a drive means for controlling the front and back head drums. The recorder can record and reproduce desired signal on or from the surfaces of the video tape for embodying a variety of pictures.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a video cassette recorder (VCR) system capable of recording on or reproducing from opposed surfaces of a magnetic video tape for enhancing an effiency of the utilization of the tape and for embodying a variety of pictures on the tape.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A video cassette recorder system generally employs a magnetic tape as a recording medium on or from which a variety of picture are recorded or reproduced by the VCR.
The magnetic tape as a typical recording medium has a magnetized layer formed on a surface of a base film, and the magnetized layer is recorded with picture images, audio signals and/or desired character signals. Accordingly, in the conventional video tape, only one-side surface is used in order to prevent the recorded signals from being damaged.
Recently, however, with the development of a magnetic substance and, hence, the enhancement of the quality of the video tape, an effort has been made to place the magnetized layers onto opposed sides of the base film so as to provide signal recordation to or reproduction from the opposed surfaces of the video tape. In this connection, the picture image must be recorded on or reproduced from the tape by a plurality of head mounted on a head drum in order to use the surfaces of the video tape-herefore, it is necessary to a control means and mechanical arrangement for controlling loading of the tape and operating of the head drum. But, practical method and mechanism for using the surfaces of the tape have not provided yet. At this point, an efficiency of utilization of the existing magnetic tape is necessarily decreased. Also, since the signals are recorded only one surface of the tape, the reproduction of a variety of pictures cannot be ensured due to limitation of an amount of data to be recorded on the tape.

Video cassette recorder usable video tape having opposed magnetic recording surfaces and a drum movable means


A networking device replacement system, includes a second networking device coupled to the configuration server system and the first networking device. The second networking device sends a first peer discovery request to the first networking device that includes second networking device identifying information associated with the second networking device and, in response, receives a first peer discovery response that includes third networking device identifying information associated with a third networking device that the second networking device is replacing. The second networking device sends a first configuration server discovery request to the configuration server system that includes the third networking device identifying information and receives a third networking device configuration file associated with the third networking device. The second networking device configures itself using at least one configuration in the third networking device configuration file.

The present disclosure relates generally to information handling systems, and more particularly to replacing networking information handling systems.
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
Information handling systems such as, for example, switches, routers, and/or other networking devices known in the art, are often connected to each another to form a network. In the event one the networking devices in the network fails or experiences degraded performance, that networking device is often replaced with another networking device as a part of Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) replacement operations, which typically include swapping out the networking device with a replacement networking device having a same or similar model/make. When performing the RMA replacement operations, it may be desirable to provide a configuration for the replacement networking device that matches a configuration of the networking device being replaced. However, a Media Access Control (MAC) address and hostname of the replacement networking device will be different than the MAC and the hostname of the networking device being replaced. Thus, in order to provide the configuration of a "previous" networking device on a replacement networking device via a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server, the different MAC address and/or hostname of the replacement networking device needs to be provided to the DHCP server. For example, in the DHCP server, the MAC address of the replacement networking device may need to be mapped with the configuration of the MAC address of the networking device, and/or the hostname of the replacement networking device being replaced may need to be changed to the hostname of the replacement networking device. In either case, manual intervention and configuration is required for RMA replacement operations that replace a networking device with a replacement networking device, which is time consuming and subject to user errors.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an improved networking device replacement system.


A semiconductor packaging technique provides for a semiconductor device with improved electrical and thermal performance. According to one embodiment of the invention, die edges are shaped before encapsulation to move the peripheral area of the die, which is more susceptible to stress and cracking, further inside the molding compound. This results in a device that can better withstand stress as well being more resistant to corrosion and other reliability problems caused by environmental conditions.

The present invention relates in general to packaging of a semiconductor device, and more specifically to low thermal resistance packaging with improved reliability.
Semiconductor devices, such as power switching devices and very high frequency digital devices (e.g., microprocessors with many transistors), continue to generate excessive thermal energy. In measuring thermal performance of a semiconductor device, such as a power MOSFET device, the device is typically characterized by its ability to dissipate internally generated heat and its equivalent operational drain to source on resistance (or RDSON).
While silicon process technology has advanced significantly in recent years, semiconductor package technology remains essentially unchanged. Epoxy or solder die attach along with aluminum or gold wire interconnects is still employed for a great majority of device packages. FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional package and its wiring for an exemplary power MOSFET 100. Wire bonds 104 connect the source and gate terminals of the semiconductor die 108 to electrical conductors, such as conductive single trace comprising copper or the like. Die 108 and wire bonds 104 are encapsulated in body 102 made of, for example, molding compound suitable for power MOSFET applications.
For the exemplary power MOSFET 100, backside 110 of die 108 provides a drain connection. Die 108 is attached to a metal land 112 on a substrate such as a printed circuit board (PCB) 122 using die attach material such as solder that may be thermally and/or electrically conductive. Metal land 112 not only provides an electrical conduit to drain conductor 116 by way of one or more conductive vias 114, it also acts as a heat sink by providing a mechanism to dissipate heat within PCB 122.
Conventional packaging techniques such as that depicted in FIG. 1 tend to perform relatively poorly in terms of device on-resistance as well as thermal resistance. For example, the wire bonds add relatively large resistance to the otherwise low on-state resistance of the high current MOSFET. Also, placement of the wires on the terminals of the device is constrained by wire length, bond size relative to the bond pad area, and vertical clearance inside the molded body, among other factors. Even the relatively thick top metalization at each terminal adds resistance and is compounded by wire interconnect placement limitations. Further, die attach solder 112 adds to the thermal resistance of the device increasing the amount of heat that is generated internally when large current flow through the drain terminal. Another drawback of this type of package relates to the cost-prohibitive and difficult aspects of reworking such a packaged semiconductor device due, in part, to the encapsulated nature of the packaging. Other drawbacks include non-optimized and relatively think package profiles due to loop heights of wires used with conventional wire-bonding technology.
An improved semiconductor packaging technique allows the semiconductor die to protrude from the semiconductor package. The package is configured such that the backside of the die directly contacts a heat sink residing on a PCB. For this type of package, the die is typically singulated and prepared by grinding, lapping, sawing and other mechanical operations. Mechanical operations used to perform die preparation and processing can introduce "micro-cracks" into the die, especially at the die edge. This type of defect can reduce the strength, or "fracture toughness," of the die by as much as 70% if the die is made of, for example, silicon. The edge thus becomes a weakened zone adversely affecting the reliability of the die. In addition, the die edge with such defects may provide a path for moisture penetration between the die and the molding compound of the body. This subjects the device to corrosion and other environmental factors that further decrease the reliability of the device. Also, the metal-semiconductor contact providing the drain contact is close to the soldering surface of the package. The disadvantage of the contact being close to the soldering surface is that delamination of the metal from the silicon is more likely during the soldering process when flux and molten solder can come in contact with the edge of the metal-silicon contact or interface.
There is a need for improved packaging techniques that minimize electrical as well as thermal resistance for semiconductor devices, such as power MOSFETs, while improving reliability and manufacturability.

Packaged semiconductor device and method of manufacture using shaped die


A wrench comprising (a) a catch, including teeth; (b) a fixed part defining a first jaw, the fixed part including two teethed parts permanently attached to the fixed part, the fixed part configured so that the two teethed parts intermesh with the teeth of the catch; (c) a moving part, defining a second jaw, such that the first jaw and the second jaw define the jaws of the wrench; and (d) a spring, whereby: (i) the two teethed parts attached to the fixed part which together serve as a guide for the moving part that is movable inside the fixed part, allowing the catch, the fixed part and the moving part to slide over one another; (ii) the catch is located in, and attached to, the moving part and selectively fixes the moving part to the fixed part; (iii) the spring pushes the catch in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the wrench against the two teethed parts; and (iv) the fixed part serves as a gripping handle with a jaws of the wrench at its end.

1. Field of the Invention
A number of tools exist for which patents have been registered, and that are intended for the same purpose. None of them is identical or similar to the tools referred to above.
2. Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
Not Applicable
The closest tool is a wrench for opening bolts, for which U.S. Pat. No. 6,305,249 B1 has been registered (hereinafter. "the previous invention"). Several other patents in the field of the aforesaid tools, that are totally different from the tool referred to above, appear below.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,636,800
U.S. Pat. No. 2,437,801
U.S. Pat. No. 6,257,100
GB 688328
U.S. Pat. No. 4,967,613
U.S. Pat. No. 6,076,434
U.S. Pat. No. 336,490
Those patents do not meet the following requirements that make the wrench efficient and convenient. They require the use of both hands, the tool does not grip the bolt precisely, firmly, and rigidly, and is awkward to use.

Manganon Special Products Development Ltd.


A method and apparatus are provided for calculating a log-likelihood ratio (LLR) for decoding in a receiver for a mobile communication system, wherein the method and apparatus determine selection bits for distinguishing four quadrants in a constellation representing signal points of transmission symbols, determine domain bits for distinguishing the signal points in each domain of the four quadrants according to a modulation order of the transmission symbols, repeat an operation of dividing a received signal into a real component and an imaginary component according to the number of determined domain bits, calculate and origin-shift absolute values of the real component and the imaginary component, and calculate LLRs for the selection bits. Further, the method and apparatus can subsequently calculate LLRs for corresponding domain bits each time the origin-shifted received signal is received.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a decoding method and apparatus for a receiver in a mobile communication system. More particularly, the present invention relates to a log-likelihood ratio (LLR) calculation method and apparatus for decoding in a receiver for a mobile communication system using Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK) or Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM).
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, modulation refers to a process of converting a signal into a format suitable for a transmission channel using a carrier in order to transmit the signal to a desired destination without error. Among modulation schemes, a modulation scheme of shifting a phase of the carrier according to a digital transmission signal is called "Phase Shift Keying (PSK)". Many communication systems use QPSK having an extended concept of PSK, or Binary PSK (BPSK) in which there is provided a 180°-phase difference between carriers.
While BPSK distinguishes only two kinds of signals, that is '1' and '0', QPSK distinguishes four kinds of signals, including '00', '01', '10' and '11'. Theoretically, QPSK doubles BSPK in terms of the amount of data that can be transmitted for a specific time because QPSK can transmit four kinds of 2-bit digital signals. In other words, while BPSK shifts a phase of the carrier by 180° during transmission, QPSK shifts a phase of the carrier by 90° and transmits 4 signals, thereby increasing the amount of transmission data.
Another typical modulation scheme for transmitting a large volume of data is QAM, which modulates a digital signal by changing an amplitude and phase of the signal. Because QAM, unlike PSK, BPSK and QPSK, uses not only the phase of the signal but also the amplitude of the signal as parameters, it can simultaneously transmit a large amount of digital data and uses as many signal coordinates as a multiplier of 2. The QAM scheme is classified into 16QAM, 64QAM and 256QAM according to the number of signal coordinates.
For example, in the case of 16QAM, digital signals quantized in 16 levels are scattered over 16 signal coordinates in an I/Q plot. That is, 16QAM can transmit 4-bit binary digital signals per coordinate though 16 signal domains which are different in phase and amplitude. A receiver for a communication system using QAM demodulates a received signal into its original signal by observing on which domain the received signal is located on the basis of a boundary distinguishing the signal coordinates.
Due to the increase in the amount of communication data, research into communication systems is being conducted to transmit the increasing amount of data by systems having limited bandwidth. As a result, although the conventional communication system transmits 2 bits per symbol using QPSK, the more recent communication systems can transmit 4 bits per symbol using 16QAM and 6 bits per symbol using 64QAM. That is, the increase in modulation order of QAM increases the number of bits per transmission symbol.
However, the signals transmitted using QPSK or QAM have a high reception error rate, as they are distorted through radio channels. In order to decrease the error rate, a transmitter commonly uses turbo coding. A receiver for a communication system using turbo coding calculates a log-likelihood ratio (LLR) from the received signal modulated with QPSK or QAM, in a decoding process, and performs iterative decoding depending on the calculated LLR, thereby improving decoding reliability.
The LLR, which is a probability value provided as priori information for the next decoding in the iterative decoding process, increases its calculation load as a modulation order of transmission symbols increases, causing an increase in the load on the receiver.
A description will now be made of a conventional LLR calculation method for a QAM decoder by way of example.
An LLR used in the QAM decoder is calculated using Equation (1) below.
                                                        LLR              =                              Log                (                                                                            ∑                      i                                                                                p                                                                    (                                                                              s                            i                            0                                                    |                          r                                                )                                                                                ∑                      i                                                                                p                                                                    (                                                                              s                            i                            1                                                    |                          r                                                )                                                                                )                                                                                =                              Log                (                                                                            ∑                      i                                                                                p                                                                                (                                                          r                              |                                                              s                                i                                0                                                                                )                                                                                p                                                                                (                                                          s                              i                              0                                                        )                                                                                p                                                                          (                          r                          )                                                                                ∑                      i                                                                                p                                                                                (                                                          r                              |                                                              s                                i                                1                                                                                )                                                                                p                                                                                (                                                          s                              i                              1                                                        )                                                                                p                                                                          (                          r                          )                                                                                )                                                                                =                              Log                (                                                                            ∑                      i                                                                                p                                                                    (                                                  r                          |                                                      s                            i                            0                                                                          )                                                                                ∑                      i                                                                                p                                                                    (                                                  r                          |                                                      s                            i                            1                                                                          )                                                                                )                                                                        Equation                                                            (          1          )
In Equation (1), p(si0|r) and p(si1|r) denote aposteriory probabilities when signal points si corresponding to a bit '0' and a bit '1' in signal coordinates of a constellation are transmitted in response to a received signal r. Further, p(si0) and p(si1) denote probabilities that signal points si corresponding to a bit '0' and a bit '1' will occur, respectively. Herein, it is assumed that the probabilities are equal to each other.
In the case of a simple QPSK scheme, a transmitter transmits one of 4 signal points on a constellation per every 2 bits, and a receiver calculates LLRs using the aposteriory probabilities on the assumption that the reception signal and the signal point on the constellation have been transmitted. In this case, one of the two bits defines one of two signal points on a real axis in the constellation, and the other one bit defines the other one of the two signal points on an imaginary axis in the constellation. Therefore, the receiver is allowed to calculate an LLR using only one signal point associated with the corresponding bit in the process of calculating the aposteriory probability for each bit.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a gray-decoded QPSK constellation in a general mobile communication system. When the QPSK constellation of FIG. 1 is used, LLRs for 2 bits of b0 and b1 are expressed as Equation (2) below, in which it is assumed that channel noise is additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN).
                                                                        LLR                b0                            =                              log                                                                                exp                    (                                          -                                                                                (                                                                                RE                                                                                [                                  r                                  ]                                                                                -                                                              s                                0                                                                                )                                                    2                                                                          2                                                                                σ                            2                                                                                )                                                        exp                    (                                          -                                                                                (                                                                                RE                                                                                [                                  r                                  ]                                                                                -                                                              s                                1                                                                                )                                                    2                                                                          2                                                                                σ                            2                                                                                )                                                                                =                                                                            RE                                                                    [                        r                        ]                                                              ·                                          (                                                                        s                          0                                                -                                                  s                          1                                                                    )                                                                            σ                    2                                                                                =                                                                            RE                                                                    [                        r                        ]                                                              ·                                          (                                              -                        2                                            )                                                                            σ                    2                                                                                if                                                                                (                                                                            s                      0                                        =                                          -                      1                                                        ,                                                            s                      1                                        =                    1                                                  )                                                                                LLR                b1                            =                              log                                                                                exp                    (                                          -                                                                                (                                                                                IM                                                                                [                                  r                                  ]                                                                                -                                                              s                                0                                                                                )                                                    2                                                                          2                                                                                σ                            2                                                                                )                                                        exp                    (                                          -                                                                                (                                                                                IM                                                                                [                                  r                                  ]                                                                                -                                                              s                                1                                                                                )                                                    2                                                                          2                                                                                σ                            2                                                                                )                                                                                =                                                                            IM                                                                    [                        r                        ]                                                              ·                                          (                                                                        s                          0                                                -                                                  s                          1                                                                    )                                                                            σ                    2                                                                                =                                                                            IM                                                                    [                        r                        ]                                                              ·                                          (                                              -                        2                                            )                                                                            σ                    2                                                                                if                                                                                (                                                                            s                      0                                        =                                          -                      1                                                        ,                                                            s                      1                                        =                    1                                                  )                                                                        Equation                                                            (          2          )
However, in the case of 16QAM, a transmitter selects 16 4-bit signal points in a constellation, and a receiver calculates LLRs using both of the 2 signal points in the process of calculating aposteriory probabilities, as there are 2 signal points associated with each bit, thereby increasing its calculation load.
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a gray-decoded 16QAM constellation in a general mobile communication system. When the conventional 16QAM constellation of FIG. 2 is used, LLRs for b0, b1, b2 and b3 representing signal points in the constellation are calculated using Equation (3) below.
                                                                        LLR                b0                            =                              log                                                                                ∑                      i                                                                                p                                                                    (                                                                              real                                                                                (                              r                              )                                                                                |                                                      s                            i                            0                                                                          )                                                                                ∑                      i                                                                                p                                                                    (                                                                              real                                                                                (                              r                              )                                                                                |                                                      s                            i                            1                                                                          )                                                                                =                                  log                                                                                exp                        (                                                  -                                                                                (                                                                                real                                                                                (                                      r                                      )                                                                                -                                                                      s                                    0                                    0                                                                                )                                                            2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                                2                                                                                )                                            +                                              exp                        (                                                  -                                                                                (                                                                                real                                                                                (                                      r                                      )                                                                                -                                                                      s                                    1                                    0                                                                                )                                                            2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                                2                                                                                )                                                                                exp                        (                                                  -                                                                                (                                                                                real                                                                                (                                      r                                      )                                                                                -                                                                      s                                    0                                    1                                                                                )                                                            2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                                2                                                                                )                                            +                                              exp                        (                                                  -                                                                                (                                                                                real                                                                                (                                      r                                      )                                                                                -                                                                      s                                    1                                    1                                                                                )                                                            2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                                2                                                                                )                                                                                =                                  log                                                                                exp                        (                                                  -                                                                                (                                                                                real                                                                                (                                      r                                      )                                                                                -                                                                      (                                                                          -                                      3                                                                        )                                                                                )                                                            2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                                2                                                                                )                                            +                                              exp                        (                                                  -                                                                                (                                                                                real                                                                                (                                      r                                      )                                                                                -                                                                      (                                                                          -                                      1                                                                        )                                                                                )                                                            2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                                2                                                                                )                                                                                exp                        (                                                  -                                                                                (                                                                                real                                                                                (                                      r                                      )                                                                                -                                                                      (                                                                          +                                      1                                                                        )                                                                                )                                                            2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                                2                                                                                )                                            +                                              exp                        (                                                  -                                                                                (                                                                                real                                                                                (                                      r                                      )                                                                                -                                                                      (                                                                          +                                      3                                                                        )                                                                                )                                                            2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                                2                                                                                )                                                                                LLR                b1                            =                              log                                                                                exp                      (                                              -                                                                                (                                                                                real                                                                                (                                    r                                    )                                                                                -                                                                  (                                                                      -                                    3                                                                    )                                                                                )                                                        2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                              2                                                                                )                                        +                                          exp                      (                                              -                                                                                (                                                                                real                                                                                (                                    r                                    )                                                                                -                                                                  (                                                                      +                                    3                                                                    )                                                                                )                                                        2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                              2                                                                                )                                                                                exp                      (                                              -                                                                                (                                                                                real                                                                                (                                    r                                    )                                                                                -                                                                  (                                                                      -                                    1                                                                    )                                                                                )                                                        2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                              2                                                                                )                                        +                                          exp                      (                                              -                                                                                (                                                                                real                                                                                (                                    r                                    )                                                                                -                                                                  (                                                                      +                                    1                                                                    )                                                                                )                                                        2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                              2                                                                                )                                                                                LLR                b2                            =                              log                                                                                exp                      (                                              -                                                                                (                                                                                imag                                                                                (                                    r                                    )                                                                                -                                                                  (                                                                      -                                    3                                                                    )                                                                                )                                                        2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                              2                                                                                )                                        +                                          exp                      (                                              -                                                                                (                                                                                imag                                                                                (                                    r                                    )                                                                                -                                                                  (                                                                      -                                    1                                                                    )                                                                                )                                                        2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                              2                                                                                )                                                                                exp                      (                                              -                                                                                (                                                                                imag                                                                                (                                    r                                    )                                                                                -                                                                  (                                                                      +                                    1                                                                    )                                                                                )                                                        2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                              2                                                                                )                                        +                                          exp                      (                                              -                                                                                (                                                                                imag                                                                                (                                    r                                    )                                                                                -                                                                  (                                                                      +                                    3                                                                    )                                                                                )                                                        2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                              2                                                                                )                                                                                LLR                b3                            =                              log                                                                                exp                      (                                              -                                                                                (                                                                                imag                                                                                (                                    r                                    )                                                                                -                                                                  (                                                                      -                                    3                                                                    )                                                                                )                                                        2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                              2                                                                                )                                        +                                          exp                      (                                              -                                                                                (                                                                                imag                                                                                (                                    r                                    )                                                                                -                                                                  (                                                                      +                                    3                                                                    )                                                                                )                                                        2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                              2                                                                                )                                                                                exp                      (                                              -                                                                                (                                                                                imag                                                                                (                                    r                                    )                                                                                -                                                                  (                                                                      -                                    1                                                                    )                                                                                )                                                        2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                              2                                                                                )                                        +                                          exp                      (                                              -                                                                                (                                                                                imag                                                                                (                                    r                                    )                                                                                -                                                                  (                                                                      +                                    1                                                                    )                                                                                )                                                        2                                                                                2                                                                                σ                              2                                                                                )                                                                                Equation                                                            (          3          )
It can be understood from Equation (3) that the conventional LLRs each require two exponential calculations for each numerator and denominator, and the terms increase in number as an order of QAM increases.
Accordingly, a need exists for a system and method for reducing calculations for decoding in a mobile communication system.

Method and apparatus for calculating log-likelihood ratio for decoding in a receiver for a mobile communication system