Embodiments disclosed herein relate to a method and apparatus for generating a three-dimensional surface. In one embodiment, there is a method for generating a three-dimensional surface. The method includes capturing a plurality of images of a target object with at least two cameras, the target object illuminated by at least two sets of red-green-blue (RGB) lights positioned in an array about the target object and generating a three-dimensional surface of the target object by iteratively reconstructing a surface estimate of the target object and aligning images of the target object using motion estimation until the images converge, wherein the images are processed in n-frame intervals.

High-resolution geometry and appearances are invaluable assets in the movie and video game industries. A geometry generally refers to an (three-dimensional) object's structure, i.e., the triangles, lines, or points that compose the object, while an appearance generally refers to the object's shading, including its vertex and fragment shaders, and render state. The quality of a three-dimensional model can make or break the perceived realism of an animation. When it comes to facial models, people have a remarkably low threshold for inaccuracies. Even the smallest details in geometry and appearance are important. A variety of computer vision techniques have been developed for reconstructing high-detail geometry and appearances of real objects. However, each technique for constructing 3D models has its own particular limitations. Even when combined as independent processing stages, the combination of techniques can exacerbate errors introduced by early regularization, such as a smoothness constraint introduced by the early regularization.

Photometric three-dimensional facial capture and relighting


In a method for predicting at least one physical interaction effect between a tire and a pavement, a real profile of the pavement is charted, and the real profile is sectioned into several strata each corresponding to an altitude of the real profile. At least one law of variation of at least one pavement descriptor is determined based on the real profile, as a function of the altitude, and an interaction value of each pavement descriptor is determined at an interaction value of the altitude, for each law of variation. A value of a physical interaction effect is predicted based on an interaction value of at least one pavement descriptor.

A method for modelling the roadway pavement is known from the prior art. In this method, a three-dimensional real profile of the pavement is measured. The real profile comprises real indenters formed by pebbles or gravel chippings incorporated within a matrix, for example tar.
In order to simplify the use of the real profile acquired, real geometric descriptors of the real indenters are determined comprising, for example, a mean height of the indenters, a mean density of the indenters, etc.
Each real indenter is modelled by a virtual indenter, for example a sphere, on the basis of real descriptors. The spheres are described by virtual descriptors, for example a number of spheres per unit area, a radius of each sphere, a position of each sphere, etc. The virtual descriptors thus make it possible to obtain a virtual profile in which the real indenters having a large size are represented by spheres having a large radius while the real indenters having a smaller size are represented by spheres having a smaller radius. The virtual descriptors thus geometrically describe the virtual indenters which, for their part, model the real indenters. The virtual descriptors are thus simplified geometric descriptors of the real indenters.
However, the virtual descriptors thus determined do not take account of the physical reality of the interaction between the pavement and the tyre to describe a given physical effect, for example rolling noise.
It is thus necessary to correct the virtual descriptors with the aid of correction factors, the physical significance of which is ignored most of the time. For example, a PSI (Present Serviceability Index) descriptor is calculated or else a DI (Deterioration Index) descriptor describing, in a complex manner, deterioration of the pavement. Furthermore, these correction factors do not make it possible to predict in a quantitative and precise manner the physical effect under consideration.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method for predicting a physical interaction effect between a tyre and a surface course

Compagnie Generale des Etablissements Michelin


An organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display device and a method of fabricating the same can reduce resistance of a cathode by forming an auxiliary electrode. Also, such OLED display device and method can prevent damage on a pad electrode due to an etchant during patterning of an anode by applying a protective structure to the pad electrode of a pad area and by including the pad electrode exposed from a plurality of pad electrode layers.

1. Field of the Disclosure
This specification relates to an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display device and a method of fabricating the same, and more particularly, a top emission type OLED display device and a method of fabricating the same.
2. Background of the Disclosure
As the interest in information display and demand on the use of portable information media increase, research efforts and commercialization are focusing mainly on display devices such as flat panel displays (FPDs) which are light in weight and thin in thickness.
Specifically, among such displays, liquid crystal display (LCD) devices have seen widespread use in view of its light weight and low power consumption.
As another display device, an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display device emits light by itself and thus exhibits more excellent viewing angle and contrast ratio than the LCD device. Also, the OLED display device does not need a backlight and thus is advantageous in reduced weight, thickness and power consumption. The OLED display device is also current driven based upon a direct-current (DC) low voltage and exhibits a fast response speed.
Hereinafter, the basic structure and operation characteristics of an OLED display device will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a light-emitting principle of a typical OLED.
An OLED display device typically includes an OLED having a structure as illustrated in FIG. 1.
Referring to FIG. 1, the OLED includes an anode 18 as a pixel electrode, a cathode 28 as a common electrode, and an organic compound layer(s) 31, 32, 35, 36 and 37 formed between the anode 18 and the cathode 28.
Here, the organic compound layer(s) 31, 32, 35, 36 and 37 includes a hole injection layer 31, a hole transport layer 32, an emission layer 35, an electron transport layer 36, and an electron injection layer 37. All or some of these layers may be separate or some may be combined together such that one layer is implemented with multiple functions.
With the configuration of the OLED, when positive (+) and negative (−) driving voltages are applied to the anode 18 and the cathode 28, respectively, holes passed through the hole transport layer 32 and electrons passed through the electron transport layer 36 are moved to the emission layer 35 to form excitons. When the excitons transit from an excited state into a base state, namely, a stable state, light with a predetermined wavelength is emitted.
In the OLED display device, sub pixels each having the OLED with the aforementioned structure are arranged in the matrix configuration. The sub pixels are selectively controlled by a data voltage and a scan voltage, to display various colors that collectively form an image.
Here, the OLED display device can be categorized into a passive matrix type and an active matrix type using thin film transistors (TFT) as switching elements. Of those types, in the active matrix type OLED display device, the TFT as an active element is selectively turned on to select a sub pixel and light emission of the sub pixel occurs due to voltage charged in a storage capacitor.
The OLED display device may also be categorized according to a light-emitting direction into a top emission type, a bottom emission type and a dual emission type.
The top emission type OLED display device is configured to emit light in a direction away from a substrate on which the sub pixels are arranged. The top emission type OLED display device is advantageous in that aperture ratio is greater than that of a bottom emission type in which light is emitted toward and through the substrate with the sub pixels arranged thereon.
The top emission type OLED display device includes an anode provided below an organic compound layer and a cathode provided above the organic compound layer through which light is transmitted.
Here, the cathode should be formed thin (˜100 Å) enough to be implemented as a semi-transparent layer with a low work function. However, doing so causes the cathode to have high resistance.
The thusly-configured top emission type OLED display device results in formation of a voltage drop (IR drop) by high specific resistance of the cathode. Accordingly, undesirably different levels of voltages are applied to sub pixels, respectively. This brings about non-uniform luminance or image quality. Specifically, as a size of a panel increases more, the voltage drop (IR drop) problem may become aggravated.
The OLED display device can be divided into a display area and a pad area located outside the display area.
The TFT and the OLED are formed in the display area.
A pad electrode is formed in the pad area to apply a signal voltage from an external power source to the TFT and the OLED.
In this case, pad electrodes formed in the pad area may suffer from corrosion due to moisture and oxygen. In addition, the corrosion may be caused by a specific etchant with respect to the material constituting the pad electrode. When the pad electrode corrodes, the transmission of signals is problematic, and thus the overall device reliability decreases.

Organic light-emitting diode display device and method of fabricating the same


A product has a surface provided with a first coding pattern and a second coding pattern. The coding patterns may include symbols each of which represents at least two different values. Each symbol in the first coding pattern may be defined by one raster point and at least one marking, the raster point being included in a first raster, which extends over the surface. Each symbol in the second coding pattern may also be defined by one raster point and at least one marking, the raster point being included in a second raster. This second raster may be displaced in relation to the first raster and may have a different spatial scale than the first raster. Each symbol in the first and the second pattern may have a value which, for example, can be indicated by the location of the marking belonging to the symbol in relation to a raster point in the first and second raster, respectively.

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for determining a position on a surface containing a coding pattern.
In many situations it is desirable to determine an absolute position on a surface. For example, it may be desirable to determine a position on a surface when recording and digitizing a document such as a drawing or map. It may also be desirable to determine a position of a surface when creating an electronic version of handwritten information.
In these and other situations where position-determination is carried out, it is often desirable to have a computer program, in cooperation with an input device, carry out position-determination calculation and, in particular, to read and process position information and other information that, for example, can be related to the absolute positions read and determined.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,852,434 describes a device for determining an absolute position. The device comprises a writing surface, which has a position-coding pattern for determining X-Y coordinates, a detector, which can detect the position-coding pattern, and a processor, which can determine the position of the detector in relation to the writing surface based on the detected position-coding pattern. The device allows a user to input handwritten or hand-drawn information to a computer at the same time the information is written or drawn on the writing surface.
Generally, the smaller the symbols are, the more difficult it is to produce the patterned writing surface and the greater the risk of incorrect position determinations. On the other hand, the larger the symbols are, the worse the position resolution.
In accordance with the invention, there may be provided a surface comprising a first coding pattern of symbols and a second coding pattern of symbols wherein each symbol of the first coding pattern has at least two different values and each symbol of the second coding pattern has at least two different values. Each symbol of the first coding pattern may be defined by a first raster point and at least one first marking, wherein the first raster point is included in a first raster, which extends over the surface. Each symbol of the second coding pattern may be defined by a second raster point and at least one second marking, wherein the second raster point is included in a second raster which is displaced in relation to the first raster and has a different spatial scale than the first raster.
There may also be provided, a device for reading a position-coding pattern and an information-coding pattern on a surface, wherein the position-coding pattern and the information-coding pattern include symbols which each represent at least two different values, wherein the values depend on position information and other information for the position-coding pattern and the information-coding pattern, respectively. The device may include means for reading a part of the surface and storing the information read in an image, means for determining a first virtual raster with first raster points in the image associated with the position-coding pattern and a second virtual raster with second raster points in the image associated with the information-coding pattern. The second raster may be displaced in relation to the first raster and may have spatial scale other than that of the first raster. The device may also include means for locating a plurality of symbols in the position-coding pattern and the information-coding pattern and means for determining the value of each of said plurality of symbols. Each symbol in the position-coding pattern a first raster point in the first raster and at least one first marking and each symbol in the information-coding pattern may include a second raster point in the second raster and at least one second marking. Further, the device may include means for separating the position-coding pattern in the image into a first position code for a first coordinate for the partial surface and a second position code for a second coordinate for the partial surface by translating the value of each symbol into at least one first digit for the first position code and at least a second digit for the second position code. Still further, the device may include means for calculating the first coordinate based on the first position code and the second coordinate based on the second position code.
Further, there may also be provided a method for producing a position-coding pattern and an information-coding pattern on a surface, wherein the coding patterns comprise symbols, which each represents at least two different values. The values may depend on position information and other information for the position-coding pattern and the information-coding pattern, respectively. The method may also include determining a first raster with first raster points and a second raster with second raster points. The second raster may be displaced in relation to the first raster and may have a different spatial scale than the first raster. The method may also include determining a configuration of the symbols of the position-coding pattern and the information-coding pattern. Each symbol of the position-coding pattern may be defined by a first raster point in the first raster and at least one first marking and each symbol in the second coding pattern may be defined by a second raster point in the second raster and at least one second marking.
The foregoing summarizes only a few aspects of the invention and is not intended to be reflective of the full scope of the invention as claimed. Additional features and advantages of the invention are set forth in the following description, may be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practicing the invention. Moreover, both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.


In accordance with the present invention, a vapor equilibrium apparatus for growing and screening suitable protein crystals is provided which consists of a plastic tray having a plurality of roughly cylindrical chambers that act as reservoirs for vapor equilibrating solutions and include a plurality of rib members having flattened upper ends recessed from the top of the chamber which form retaining levels wherein glass cover slips can be retained horizontally across the chambers in order to carry out the vapor equilibrating process. The upper ends can also be formed in a step-shaped fashion so as to provide multiple retaining levels of differing inner diameters which can retain glass cover slips of different sizes in the same chamber. The crystal growth tray of the invention is particularly advantageous in that it can be used in a variety of different methods for growing crystals using vapor diffusion or equilibration, and the device is sealable with clear plastic tape which avoids the problems associated with the prior use of silicon grease or oil. In addition, the tray of the invention allows for easy visual inspection and rapid removal of the crystals, and is highly effective in allowing the growth of large, high-quality crystals whose structure can be determined using state-of-the-art high resolution X-ray crystallography.

The field of X-ray crystallography involves the determination of the three-dimensional structure of the molecules that make up crystals using bombardment of X-rays and an identification of the crystal structure based on the diffraction of the X-rays by the crystal. Although X-ray crystallographic techniques have been known and used for years, recent advances in this field have allowed for the high-resolution determination of crystal structures to a far greater extent than that which has been previously achievable. In addition, the methodologies that support these studies, including computer graphics, x-ray imaging, computational methods, etc., have all advanced to a level which even furthers the ability of X-ray crystallographic methods to achieve high-resolution pictures of the molecular crystal patterns. In light of the recent advances in this field, X-ray crystallography has proven to be of enormous benefit in applications such as the designing drug-delivery systems (see, e.g., Bugg et al., Scientific American, December 1993, pp. 92-98), and its potential for further breakthroughs in this field is extremely high.
Despite these recent advances in this field, however, one problem that still remains arises because the protein crystals that can be analyzed using state-of-the-art high resolution X-ray crystallography must be grown to a sufficient size in the lab before a high-quality picture of their three-dimensional structure can be achieved. As a result, the high resolution imaging of crystals enabled by the advances in X-ray crystallography is still substantially limited by the inability to successfully grow on a consistent basis high-quality crystals of sufficient size for X-ray analysis. In order for protein crystals to be suitable for structural analysis via X-ray diffraction methods, crystals on the order of about 0.5 mm in diameter or greater must be obtained in order to achieve high resolution of the crystals with diffraction limits of about 3 angstroms or better. This has proved extremely inconvenient and difficult to accomplish on a consistent basis using techniques and crystallization trays known at present.
One of the main techniques available for growing crystals, known as the hanging drop vapor diffusion method, is a method wherein a drop of a solution containing the protein is applied to a glass cover slip and placed upside down in an apparatus such as a vapor diffusion chamber where conditions lead to supersaturation in the protein drop and the initiation of precipitation of the protein crystal. This method is usually troublesome and inefficient because current methods of employing this technique to achieve crystal growth are somewhat primitive, whether conducted manually or through automatic devices, and involve a series of adjustment of the conditions until a suitable experimental regimen is found. In the typical screening methods under this process, it is generally required that the lab technician vary the conditions of pH, buffer type, temperature, protein concentration, precipitant type, precipitant concentration, etc., for each set of experiments, and even adjusting for the myriad of conditions, often only minute samples of the protein can be studied at one time. These variables create an extensive and complex matrix of small experiments, with each experiment requiring another set of protein drops to be affixed to the glass cover slips and inverted and sealed in the vapor pressure chamber. As presently carried out using currently available devices, crystal growth methods such as the hanging drop method are tedious, time-consuming, and hard to carry out successfully and efficiently, and indeed often result in a large percentage of lost crystals and the need to remount the device for additional crystals.
Currently, there are three major sources for vapor diffusion screening trays currently on the market. The first of these screening trays is a conventional 24-chamber culture plate using a tray such as the one disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,495,289 (Lyman et al.), which is generally known as the Linbro plate, and the process using this type of tray involves the tedious steps of inverting and sealing a protein droplet over each individual chamber. This method, which is still most commonly practiced in laboratories growing protein crystals, requires each of the chambers to be sealed tightly using a silicon grease applied to the top of the chamber, and this greasing step causes problems because it is messy and time consuming, and in addition creates problems when the crystal is removed from the greasy cover slip. Another problem resulting from the use of this device arises in that because it operates under conditions of high humidity, associated changes in ambient temperature result in a high percentage of lost runs due to the creation of condensation on the cover slip which dilutes the protein droplet.
The second major vapor equilibration method involves a device such as that depicted in U.S. Pat. No. 5,096,676 (McPherson et al.), which relates to a twenty-four chamber plate generally designed to hold the protein solution in a "sitting-drop" configuration which, unlike hanging-drop trays, allows a protein drop to sit on a central pedestal in the diffusion chamber while the top of the chamber is sealed using thin plastic material such as Mylar. The major problem with this apparatus and method is that the crystallization solutions as used in the McPherson tray are retained in a somewhat deformed plastic pedestal which presents serious limitations with regard to visually screening each experiment, and which interferes with examination of the crystals or other crystalline objects when using polarized light. This is a particular problem because the step involving inspection using polarized light is often the most important part of the screening process in that it is most often used to assess the success of the crystal growing method. Further, when using the McPherson device, the fragile crystals that are grown therein are difficult to see and manipulate because of the angle with which the probes must be manipulated under the microscope, which is necessitated because of the visibility limitations described above with regard to the chamber pedestal of this device. As a result of these drawbacks, the McPherson device results in a greater percentage of lost crystals, which thus causes the user to spend more time and effort in regrowing the crystals for diffraction experiments. Finally, this device also suffers because these trays are more difficult to re-use once each pedestal has been contaminated with protein solution, which often results in additional unwanted microbial growth.
The final method commonly used in encouraging protein crystal growth consists of another twenty-four chamber tray known as the Crystal Plate which is manufactured by Flow Laboratories of McLean, Virginia under license from the American Crystallographic Association. This device is a generally rectangular tray having square chambers which require square cover slips at the top and bottom of each chamber, and in which the reservoir solution is offset from the crystal viewing area. As with most of the prior art devices in this field, the Crystal Plate suffers from drawbacks such as the need to use silicon oil in order to seal both the upper and lower slip covers, which involves the messy and time consuming greasing process which affects the clean and safe removal of the crystal after growth has occurred.
In short, the Crystal Plate and the other prior art devices in this field suffer from a myriad of problems which have limited the use of high-resolution crystallographic techniques in protein analysis. It has thus been highly desirable in light of the recent advances in the field of X-ray crystallography to develop a highly efficient, simple and effective protein crystal growth tray which can be used with a variety of protein growing methods to create protein crystals of sufficient size and stability to be analyzed using X-ray crystallography, and yet which can also avoid the problems associated with the prior art devices.

Vapor equilibration tray for growing protein crystals


A self supporting adjustable support stand for a portable hair dryer HD includes a support base 10 for stabilizing the stand, a telescopically adjustable extension subassembly 20 for selective height adjustment, an elongated flexible connection 40, and a ring shaped holder 50. The extension subassembly 20 includes at least first 22 and second 24 support members and one support locking member 30. The portable hair dryer HD may be positioned within a ring shaped holder 50 at the upper end of the stand, allowing a person to have their hands free during operation. Securing members may be attached to the ring shaped holder 50 to help position the portable hair dryer HD. The flexible extension 40 is selectively positionable with respect to the telescopic extension axis 32 both in a direction parallel to the extension axis, and in directions within a plane perpendicular to the extension axis such that an attached hair dryer may be selectively positionable at multiple locations. The support stand may also include a hairbrush receptacle 70 affixed on top of the support base 10 and having a throughbore 72 in its base for receiving the telescopically adjustable extension subassembly 20.

Hand held, lightweight hair dryers have become extremely popular and are well known in the art. In the common household, these hand held dryers have replaced, the bonnet-type hair dryers now normally only associated with hair salons or similar commercial establishments. Moreover, many hair salons use the bonnet type hair dryers only for special treatments, and increasingly use portable hand held hair dryers to achieve both speed and flexibility for the customer. Initially, the hand held hair dryers could not produce the desired heat generated by bonnet-type hair dryers, but in recent years have been able to produce comparable amounts of heated air.
The obvious advantages to the hand held hair dryers is their portable nature and low cost relative to the bulky bonnet-type hair dryers. Hand held hair dryers commonly have an ergonomic shape to fit in the palm of the hand and, due to plastics technology, are extremely lightweight. However, a primary advantage still accompanied with the bonnet type hair dryers is that the hands are free to utilize the various accessories available for manipulating the hair during drying.
During the recent growth of these hand held hair dryers, users have been trying to incorporate this primary advantage of the bonnet-type hair dryers without losing the portability and low cost of the hand held hair dryers. Numerous inventions have been devised to take the place of the hands while operating the hand held hair dryers. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,225,106, 4,278,223, 4,466,203, 4,712,313, 5,636,815 and 5,737,847 disclose various stands for hair dryers. These stands or holders have several undesirable features and disadvantageous which have limited their acceptance in the marketplace. Most of these stands are complex, employing either a "jaw" type or other clamping device to lock the hair dryer in place. All of these devices are limited in their ability to easily move the hair dryer to a selected position as periodically determined by the user. Some of the devices are dependent on being mounted to a chair or wall, and are thus not self-supporting. Other support stands require a specially configured hair dryer, and are not easily useable with the vast bulk of differently configured hair dryers already in the marketplace.
The disadvantages of the prior art are overcome by the present invention, and an improved self-supporting telescopically adjusting stand for selectively positioning a conventional hand held hair dryer is hereinafter disclosed. None of the prior art disclose or suggest the unique combination of features set forth in the present invention.


A litter scoop for pelleted pet litters is provided. Embodiments include a scoop having a sieved top scoop portion, a solid bottom scoop portion, and a hollow tubular handle in fluid communication with the bottom scoop portion. The bottom scoop portion includes a floor having a back edge proximal to the back end of the scoop and in fluid communication with the handle, and a wall extending upward from the floor's side edges and leading edge. The top scoop portion has openings sized such that unused litter pellets cannot pass through the openings and used litter passes through the openings. The wall of the bottom scoop portion is shaped such that a leading edge and side edges of the top scoop portion are engageable with an upper edge of the wall such that the bottom scoop portion and the top scoop portion are spaced from each other.

Traditional pet litters for cats and other small animals are granular and clump when moistened. Conventional litter scoops are consequently designed with holes or slits to allow clumps and solid waste to stay above the holes or slits to facilitate their disposal. Loose grains of unused litter fall through the holes or slits back into the litter tray.
Alternatively, non-clumping pelleted or tableted litter can be used for cats and other small animals. In general, the pelleted non-clumping litter will absorb moisture, which generally causes the pellet or tablet to expand and become friable, loose wet grains of powder. These grains of loose powdery material cannot be scooped out of the litter box or tray with traditional cat litter scoops, since the holes or slits of conventional scoops allow clumps and solid waste (i.e., used litter) to stay above the holes or slits, and allow loose grains of litter to fall through the holes or slits back into the litter tray.
With pelleted litter, where the pellets expand and become friable or become grains of powder, a scoop system is needed for removing the wet friable powder, while at the same time enabling the return of unused dry pellets to the litter tray.

Litter scoop for non-clumping pelleted litters


A laminate material having nonslip characteristics on one surface and a smooth surface on the other side is provided. The material is created by laminating together a smooth film and a plastic foam surrounding a scrim having nonslip characteristics.

Consumers use a wide variety of sheet materials in and around the home as an underlayment and lining material. Decorative papers have been used for many years to line drawers and shelves. Some decorative papers are provided with an adhesive on one side to provide a more permanent lining. Plastic materials, such as polyvinyl chloride, have also been provided in sheet form for use by consumers as liners. Some of these plastic materials are provided as a simple sheet. Other plastic materials are provided with an adhesive on one side for a more permanent installation. For more than a year, consumers have also been provided with foam plastic materials for use as liners. These materials provide cushioning and are also less prone to slipping. One such material consists of a loosely woven fabric scrim with a foam polyvinyl chloride coating. This material is noncontinuous in that the openings between many of the adjacent scrim fibers remain open after the application of the foam. The foam has a nonslip characteristic but is not an adhesive. This material provides good cushioning and nonslip characteristics. It has been well received in the consumer marketplace and used widely as a lining material and underlayment. Such foam covered scrim sheet material is commercially available in various sizes. Companies such as Griptex Industries, Inc. of Alpharetta, Ga. and American Nonslip produce such materials commercially.
All of the above described materials have negative aspects. Paper or plastic nonadhesive shelf lining can slide around on the surface to which it is applied. In drawers in particular, such linings can become bunched up and pushed to the rear of the area sought to be protected. Such shelf linings do not provide cushioning or protection for things placed on a shelf or in a drawer. Adhesive paper or plastic shelf liners do not normally become bunched up or slide when first installed. However, thereafter, portion of the adhesive may dry out allowing the lining to slide and become bunched up. In other situations, the adhesive sticks to the surface under the lining paper even when the lining paper is removed. This can mar a surface and leave an objectionable, sticky, discolored area on a shelf or in a drawer.
On the other hand, foam plastic covered scrim shelf linings have their own problems. While they do not slide on a shelf or in a drawer and can be removed, they prevent objects placed on them from sliding. A homeowner cannot put a cup on a shelf and slide it along that shelf to a desired position. Rather, it must be picked up and moved. The scrim based shelf linings are also noncontinuous. They have numerous openings forming part of the product. The appearance is therefore often not as pleasing to consumers as what can be achieved on a continuous paper or plastic surface.

Smooth surfaced foam laminate and method of making same


A developing device comprises a rotatable developing sleeve, a magnet member stationarily disposed inside the developing sleeve and a developer restricting member which restricts an amount of developer transported on a peripheral surface of the developing sleeve toward a developing region in accordance with rotation of the developing sleeve. The magnet member has a developing magnetic pole confronting the developing region, an identical polarity magnetic part which is provided between the developer restricting member and the developing magnetic pole and is formed of a plurality of adjacent magnetic poles of an identical polarity, and a magnetic pole which is provided between the identical polarity magnetic part and the developing magnetic pole for transporting the developer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a developing device in an electrophotographic image forming apparatus such as printers.
2. Description of the Related Art
There have been known various types of developing devices in electrophotographic image forming apparatuses. As a typical example, there has been a developing device, wherein there are provided a magnet member, a developing sleeve rotating around the magnet member and a developer restricting member confronting the developing sleeve, and developer is held on the developing sleeve by a magnetic force of the magnet member and is transported to a developing region by the rotation of the sleeve, while restricting a transportation rate or amount by the restricting member.
In the developing device of this type, clogging often occurs at the restricting member due to causes such as solidification of the developer and/or paper dust, in which case the developer is not transported through the clogged portion, resulting in a void in an image.
For example, the Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No.60-146276 has proposed a developing device, in which a magnet member is provided with a magnetic pole portions (forming an identical magnetic polarity part) which are repulsive to each other are disposed between a developer restricting member and a developing magnetic pole of the magnet member.
This developing device of the prior art is designed to correct irregularity in a thickness of a developer layer by flight of the developer at the identical magnetic polarity part in the magnet member, and to prevent the void in the image, which may be caused by the clogging at the restricting member, by filling the void with the flown developer. Naturally, a possibility of the clogging at the restricting member increases as a space between the restricting member and the surface of the developing sleeve decreases.
In the developing device of the prior art, however, the flight of the developer at the identical magnetic polarity part is irregular, so that heights of developer chains are also irregular along an axial direction of the developing sleeve. This causes irregular density in a developed solid image.

Developing roller with an identical polarity magnetic part


An improved system for large scale production of polypeptides in cell culture is provided. In accordance with the present invention, cells expressing a polypeptide of interest are grown in media that contain copper, glutamate or both. The use of such a system allows production of polypeptides in which misfolding and/or aggregation are reduced, and in which total glycosylation is increased. Polypeptides expressed in accordance with the present invention may be advantageously used in the preparation of pharmaceutical, agricultural or other commercial compositions.

Proteins and polypeptides have become increasingly important therapeutic agents. In most cases, these proteins and polypeptides are produced in cell culture, from cells that have been engineered and/or selected to produce unusually high levels of the particular protein or polypeptide of interest. Control and optimization of cell culture conditions is important for successful commercial production of proteins and polypeptides.
Many proteins and polypeptides produced in cell culture are made in a batch or fed-batch process, in which cells are cultured for a period of time, and then the culture is terminated and the produced protein or polypeptide is isolated. Alternatively, proteins or polypeptides can be produced in a perfusion cell culture process in which the culture is not terminated and new nutrients and other components are periodically or continuously added to the culture, and during which the expressed protein or polypeptide is periodically or continuously harvested. The ultimate amount and quality of protein or polypeptide produced can be dramatically affected by the conditions of the cell culture. For example, traditional batch and fed-batch culture processes often result in proteins and polypeptides that are misfolded and/or are in the form of aggregates. Increased levels of misfolded and/or aggregated proteins or polypeptides tend to lead to lower overall yields of correctly folded and/or non-aggregated proteins or polypeptides. Furthermore, traditional batch and fed-batch culture processes often result in proteins or polypeptides with less extensive or otherwise undesirable glycosylation patterns.
A system for producing proteins or polypeptides that fold correctly, aggregate less readily or have a more desirable glycosylation pattern could potentially result in a therapeutic protein or polypeptide agent with greater potency and fewer side effects. Furthermore, such proteins or polypeptides could serve as more effective agricultural or other commercial agents. There thus exists a need for improved systems and compositions that result in a production of a protein or polypeptide that folds correctly, aggregates less and/or has a more desirable glycosylation pattern. There is a particular need for the development of improved systems for producing proteins or polypeptides in a cell culture grown in defined media.

Use of copper and glutamate in cell culture for production of polypeptides


A lumbosacral back support system with interchangeable and positionally adjustable lumbosacral orthopedic support members for supporting the spine of a user during physical activity, specifically for athletes and industrial workers. A back support band is provided with a first releasable attachment mechanism. A lumbosacral support member with second releasable attachment mechanism is provided for engagement with the first releasable attachment mechanism. The first and second releasable attachment mechanisms are arranged for attaching a lumbosacral support member to the back support band at a variety of positions relative to the spine of the user. The releasable attachment mechanism of the present invention provides the user the option to substitute different lumbosacral support members on the back support band. Additionally, the back support band may be releasably attach to a compression-type short to further secure the lumbosacral back support system to the user.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a lumbosacral back support for medical or industrial applications, and more specifically, to a back support with interchangeable and positionally adjustable lumbosacral orthopedic support members.
2. Description of the Art
Lower back disorders and the pain associated therewith have become epidemic in today's society. Such disorders are typically caused by a combination of poor posture, faulty body mechanics, stressful living and working habits, loss of flexibility and a general decline in physical fitness. In general, the best non-surgical management techniques for such disorders include proper strengthening exercises, treatment and rest, and back-care education. However, there are many instances in which orthopedic devices or orthoses in the form of lumbosacral braces can be effectively used to supplement such management techniques or to help prevent injury or re-injury to the lower back. Orthotic devices are particularly useful in reducing mobility of the spine joints so as to reduce the amount of intervertebral bending and intervertebral torsion in the regions where the back support is applied. Orthotic devices also function to lessen the average axial loading and bending loading on the spine, thereby, avoiding or reducing strain and aggravation to the spine during physical activity. Such orthoses (typically referred to as "back-brace") devices are also helpful in reminding the wearer of the fact that an injury has taken place and that he should not make sudden motions that will override the protective mechanisms of his body. Orthopedic devices also provide protection against rapid dynamic motions that occur during strenuous athletic or industrial activity.
Prior orthotic devices also lack the versatility to accommodate a wide range of patient needs. Prior art devices tend to be rigidly structured to provide a particular level of support at a fixed location. However, each patient will have different needs with regard to the level and location of support required from the orthotic device. The required level of support may also vary with the particular activity performed.
Further, some patients may want the option to affix, remove or adjust the orthotic device on short notice. However, since most orthotic devices are worn under clothing, the user must disrobe to make adjustments. For example, athletes and industrial workers may only need to wear the orthotic device for brief periods or need to adjust the level of support quickly.
The need for a particular level and/or location of support may change over time for an individual patient. Therefore, the ideal orthopedic treatment may require a variety of orthotic devices for a particular patient. However, having to substitute different orthotic devices over the course of treatment is extremely costly and inconvenient to the patient.
Another aspect of the above problem is that the need for such orthotic devices is particularly acute for those involved in strenuous athletic or industrial work activities which place abnormal stress and strain on the spine. In performing their required functions, such individuals do not always have the opportunity to observe desired back safety and protection guidelines and often need the additional support and protection provided by an orthopedic orthosis.
A number of styles of lower back support orthoses have been known in the art. Such devices, which are typically configured to provide sacroiliac support or support for the lumbar spine region, have generally been effective for use by those who are not involved in any physical activity involving rapid movement. However, for those activities involving strenuous motion including stretching, twisting or jumping, which may for example be experienced by basketball players, hockey players or golfers, such standard orthotic devices have a tendency to migrate or ride up on the body of the wearer. To be effective in providing relief or support to the lower spine, such devices necessarily partially encircle the pelvis and hips and at least partially overlie the upper buttocks region of the wearer, which naturally tends to urge the orthosis upward on the body during physical activity. On an active wearer, it does not take long for such orthosis to rapidly migrate upward on the body, thereby decreasing its effectiveness and becoming very uncomfortable for the wearer. In such instances, the orthosis becomes more of an impediment to the wearer than an aid.
Efforts have been made in the art to maintain the desired position of the orthosis on the body. Crotch, groin and leg straps secured to the lower edges of the orthotic device have been used in an attempt to keep the device from riding up on the wearer's body. Shoulder straps are often used to prevent the orthotic device from moving downward on the patient during times of inactivity.
Such retaining structures, however, have been largely unacceptable to active wearers such as athletes and industrial workers, due to discomfort and irritation. These retaining structures make it extremely, inconvenient and time consuming for the user to affix, remove or adjust the orthotic device to their body. Because of the inconvenient retaining structures of prior art devices, active users are often left with the option of wearing the orthotic device for extended periods, even when it is not required, or not wearing it when it is required.
Finally, in addition to the requirements for lower back support, active athletes also have a need for support of their upper thighs (i.e., hamstring and quadriceps muscles), their abdomen muscles and their groin area muscles. While earlier techniques typically required individual support structures for each such set of muscles, modern "compression" shorts or liners constructed of nylon/Spandex.RTM. or cotton/poly/Lycra.RTM. fabrics have been found to be effective in simultaneously providing graduated compression and support to the hamstring, quadriceps, groin area and abdominal muscles, while yielding superior flexibility and comfort over prior art individual support techniques. Heretofore, however, no attempt has been made to combine an interchangeable and positionally adjustable orthotic support with the benefits offered by compression shorts.
The present invention provides a back support band with interchangeable and positionally adjustable orthotic lumbar support straps. Alternatively, the back support band may be releasably attached to a compression-type short which holds the support band in place during strenuous activity and simultaneously provides support to the upper thigh, groin area and abdominal muscles.

Back support system with interchangeable and positionally adjustable orthotic supports


Systems and methods for beamforming audio signals received from a microphone array. One method includes receiving, with an electronic processor communicatively coupled to the microphone array, a plurality of audio signals from the microphone array. The method includes generating a plurality of beams based on the plurality of audio signals. The method includes detecting that an electronic device is in a body-worn position. The method includes, in response to the device being in the body-worn position, determining at least one restricted direction based on the body-worn position. The method includes generating, for each of the plurality of beams, a likelihood statistic. The method includes, for each of the beams, assigning a weight to the likelihood statistic based on the at least one restricted direction to generate a weighted likelihood statistic. The method includes generating an output audio stream from the plurality of beams based on the weighted likelihood statistic.

Some microphones, for example, micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) microphones, have an omnidirectional response (that is, they are equally sensitive to sound in all directions). However, in some applications it is desirable to have an unequally sensitive microphone. A remote speaker microphone, as used, for example, in public safety communications, should be more sensitive to the voice of the user than it is to ambient noise. Some remote speaker microphones use beamforming arrays of multiple microphones (for example, a broadside array or an endfire array) to form a directional response (that is, a beam pattern). Adaptive beamforming algorithms may be used to steer the beam pattern toward the desired sounds (for example, speech), while attenuating unwanted sounds (for example, ambient noise).
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.
The apparatus and method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.


Color image reproduction apparatus includes a video monitor for displaying a reproduced image (a soft copy) to appear on any of a variety of image-receptive output media (reversal film or negative film to print material or reversal film to print material) in which color of the reproduced image may vary from one type of output medium to another. A computer-based workstation, having a series of look-up tables for transforming imaging data to a variety of monitor-dependent RGB color spaces, enables the video monitor to show a series of displays of the reproduced image with each version of the reproduced image being visually matched to the reproduced image as it would appear on a particular one of the image-receptive output media.

1. Field Of The Invention
The present invention relates generally to color image reproduction apparatus. More particularly, the invention relates to reproduction apparatus that visually matches a reproduced image on a video display with the reproduced image to appear on any of a plurality of image-receptive media.
2. Description Of The Related Art
Color image reproduction systems known in the art permit an operator to edit the color and composition of an original image to form a reproduced image. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,500,919 discloses an image reproduction system of one type in which an electronic reader scans a positive color image, which may be in the form of a transparency or a print, and converts it to an electronic image. A computer workstation and an interactive operator interface, including a video monitor, permits an operator to edit the image by means of displaying it on the monitor. When the operator has composed a desired image on the monitor, the workstation causes an output writer device to make an inked output of the reproduced image.
A color imaging apparatus is most valuable if the reproduced image shown on a video display, i.e. the soft copy proof, visually matches the hard copy produced by the output writer. Soft copy proofing provides capability to preview color manipulations, photocomposition and retouching operations.
The problem of producing a soft copy proof which visually matches a hard copy of a reproduced image is demonstrated when an image-bearing signal is sent to a video display and an output writing device. The reproduced images will not visually match each other since the phosphor spectral characteristics and other image reproduction properties of the video display differ from the image colorant characteristics and other image reproduction properties of the output writing device and image-receptive material. Furthermore, the intended viewing environments for the reproduced images may greatly differ, depending on the hard copy medium chosen.
The problem of visually matching a soft copy and a hard copy is amplified when a color image reproduction system is capable of forming a hard copy of a reproduced image on a variety of image-receptive output media of different types. This is because each type of hard copy output medium has unique color reproduction properties.

Color imaging apparatus producing visually matched displays of perceptually distinct reproduced images


The present invention relates to providing a system clock signal that is based on either a first clock signal that is capable of being frequency-corrected or a second clock signal that is not capable of being frequency-corrected, depending on system needs. When the system clock signal is based on the second clock signal, all or part of the circuitry that provides the first clock signal may be disabled or powered-down to reduce power consumption. A multiplexer may be used to select either the first or the second clock signal to provide the system clock signal to system circuitry. The system circuitry may be intolerant of phase-jumps in the system clock signal; therefore, before the multiplexer transitions between the first and the second clock signals, the first clock signal may be phase-adjusted to bring it into phase-alignment with the second clock signal.

As technology progresses, portable devices tend to integrate more features. For example, portable devices may include features associated with personal digital assistants (PDAs), cellular telephones, wireless internet access devices, music players, such as MP3 players, global positioning system (GPS) receivers, and the like. Such portable devices may support one or more wireless communications protocols, such as third (3G), fourth (4G), or later generation cellular telephone protocols, GPS protocols, wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) protocols, Bluetooth®, and the like.
Some wireless communications protocols send a reference timing signal embedded in an RF signal to a portable device for the purpose of correcting internal clock signals within the portable device. These corrected internal clock signals may be used to provide frequency-accurate transmit signals from the portable device, or may be used in frequency-accurate applications, such as GPS navigation. Generating frequency-corrected clock signals may require frequency synthesizer circuitry, which may have significant power requirements when enabled. Therefore, disabling the frequency synthesizer circuitry may be desirable when frequency-corrected clock signals are not needed, particularly in battery-powered devices.
System circuitry may need a frequency-corrected clock signal for certain applications, such as wireless communications, and may get by with a non-frequency-corrected clock signal for other applications, such as playing music. Thus, there is a need for clock circuitry that can provide a system clock signal that is frequency-corrected when needed and is not frequency-corrected when not needed to reduce power consumption, reduce noise, or the like.

Phase-aligning corrected and uncorrected clocks


In a triboelectric powder spray gun in which a charge is imparted to the powder triboelectrically by repeated impacts of the powder with contact surfaces, the charging effectiveness of the gun is enhanced by using an electrode to produce corona treatment of the contact surfaces. The corona treatments discharge the contact surfaces and eliminate the need for adjacent grounds with the powder flow path.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to electrostatic powder coating systems, and more particularly, to the triboelectric charging of powder material for use in powder spraying systems.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In electrostatic powder spraying, particulate powder material is fluidized in a powder hopper and pumped through a hose to a spray gun which electrically charges the powder and sprays the powder onto a product to be coated. The powder particles sprayed from the gun are electrostatically attracted to the product being coated which is generally electrically grounded. Once these electrostatically charged powder particles are deposited onto the product, they adhere there by electrostatic attraction until the product is conveyed into an oven where the powder particles are melted to flow together to form a continuous coating on the product.
The spray gun typically charges the powder in one of two ways-either the gun has a high voltage charging electrode which produces a corona to charge the powder, or the gun has means to charge the powder by friction, i.e., triboelectrically. This invention relates to triboelectric powder spray guns.
Generally, in triboelectric powder guns contact surfaces are provided within the gun, typically constructed from an electrically insulating material, such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) or nylon, and the powder particles impact these surfaces numerous times to frictionally charge the particles. The powder particles are then sprayed from the front of the gun, where they are electrostatically attracted to the product to be coated which has been electrically grounded.
Triboelectric powder spray guns may be used to produce either a positive or negative charge on the powder depending upon the material being sprayed. The tribocharging preferences of certain materials are well known. For example, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and nylon have well known tribocharging tendencies which represent tribocharging extremes, with PTFE exhibiting strong negative tribocharging properties and nylon exhibiting strong positive tribocharging properties. Materials that exhibit a strong positive charging tendency and a weak negative charging tendency, such as nylon and some epoxy materials, are used as powder materials in a positive triboelectric spraying system. Materials that exhibit a strong negative charging tendency and a weak positive charging tendency, such as PTFE and some polyester materials, are used as powder in a negative tribocharging spraying system.
Materials which would be used as powders in a positive triboelectric spraying system can be used as contact surfaces in a negative triboelectric spraying system and vice versa. Thus materials that exhibit a strong negative charging tendency, such as PTFE, are used as contact surfaces in a positive triboelectric spraying system, and materials that exhibit a strong positive charging tendency, such as nylon, are used as contact surfaces in a negative tribocharging spraying system.
Various designs for triboelectric spray guns are known, such as those shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,399,945 and application Ser. No. 07/956,615. These guns and other similar guns are also commercially available, such as the guns available as Tribomatic.RTM. guns from Nordson Corporation, Amherst, Ohio. In these guns, the powder can be triboelecrically charged in various ways, such as in a bundle of curved PTFE tubes which are wrapped around a core, or through a wavy undulating path formed in an annular gap between an outer cylinder and a central core each having PTFE contact surfaces. As the powder passes through the flow path, it impacts the contact surfaces several times and picks up charge upon each contact. The contact surfaces are provided with a ground path to bleed the charge on the surfaces to ground and avoid a buildup of charge on the contact surfaces during operation of the gun. In addition, grounding of the gun is needed for reasons of safety to prevent the gun from storing a capacitive charge which could shock an operator or produce a spark, causing a fire or explosion.
In normal tribocharging with a positive tribocharging powder, such as many epoxy materials, the powder impacts the contact surface made of a material such as PTFE. As the powder becomes tribocharged, it gives up electrons to the PTFE, and the powder becomes positively charged. When the concentration of negative charges builds up on the PTFE contact surface to a certain level, the negative charges find the nearest ground to discharge the electron buildup. If the electrons cannot be discharged, the tribocharging process is disrupted, and no additional powder can be charged.
In order to facilitate the discharge of electrons from the contact surface, it has always been important to provide an effective grounding path in triboelectric powder spray guns. Various solutions to providing an effective grounding path have been proposed. However, all of these solutions must prevent inadvertent grounding of the powder, either through buildup of powder around the ground or through direct grounding of the contact surfaces themselves. Ground paths must, therefore, be somewhat complicated, and grounding of prior art guns sometimes involves time-consuming and complicated manufacturing processes.

Triboelectric powder spray gun with internal discharge electrode and method of powder coating


Semiconductor films include insulating films including contact holes in semiconductor substrates, capacitors comprising lower electrodes formed on conductive material films in the contact holes, high dielectric films formed on the lower electrodes and upper electrodes formed on the high dielectric films, and barrier metal layers positioned between conductive materials in the contact holes and the lower electrodes, the barrier metal layers including metal layers formed in A-B-N structures in which a plurality of atomic layers are stacked by alternatively depositing reactive metal (A), an amorphous combination element (B) for preventing crystallization of the reactive metal (A) and nitrogen (N). The composition ratios of the barrier metal layers are determined by the number of depositions of the atomic layers.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of forming a metal layer using atomic layer deposition and a semiconductor device having the metal layer as a barrier metal layer or the upper or lower electrode of a capacitor.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the integration density of semiconductor devices increases, high dielectric materials having a large dielectric constant have been developed to obtain large capacitance in a small area. For example, a BST (BaSrTiO3) film having a perovskite crystal structure has a dielectric constant of about several hundreds through one thousand in a bulk state, which is different to a silicon nitride film, a silicon oxy-nitride film and a tantalum oxide (Ta2O5) film which are conventionally used for a capacitor. A BST film is advantageous in that a thin dielectric film can be implemented such that an equivalent oxide thickness is less than 10 xc3x85 even when the thickness of the BST film is more than 500 xc3x85. An electrode such as platinum (Pt) which is not oxidized may be used for a BST electrode. An electrode such as ruthenium (Ru) or iridium (Ir), which holds the characteristics of a conductor even if it is oxidized and forms oxide ruthenium (RuO2) or oxide iridium (IrO2), may also be used for a BST electrode.
To obtain a high dielectric BST film having excellent capacitance and leakage current characteristics, a thermal process needs to be performed at a high temperature after depositing BST film. At this time, a barrier metal layer needs to be formed to prevent oxidation of an ohmic layer and a polysilicon plug due to diffusion of oxygen. The barrier metal layer is interposed between the polysilicon plug and a lower electrode.
Conventionally, a titanium nitride (TiN) film is usually used for the barrier metal layer, but the TiN film is oxidized at a temperature of more than 450xc2x0 C. When a high temperature thermal process is performed in an oxygen atmosphere after depositing a BST film, a TiN film and a polysilicon plug are oxidized because platinum (Pt) lets oxygen easily pass through. Especially, a non-conductive TiO2 film is formed when the TiN film is oxidized. In addition, platinum (Pt) and silicon (Si) is diffused into the TiN film, and thus the TiN film cannot act as a barrier metal layer. It is known that the diffusion of Pt and Si is caused by the columnar structure of TiN. Accordingly, it is necessary to restrain the diffusion of oxygen by implementing an amorphous structure which dose not have a grain boundary acting as a path of diffusion.
From this necessity, compounds containing a refractory metal have been studied. A barrier metal layer formed of a compound containing a refractory metal has a problem that adjustability and reproducibility of composition is decreased when the compound is deposited by chemical vapor deposition, due to the complexity of the composition. Accordingly, a reactive sputtering process is usually performed in a nitrogen atmosphere when forming a barrier metal layer of a compound containing a refractory metal. However, a barrier metal layer formed by a sputtering process has a poor step coverage so that it cannot be suitable for a barrier metal layer in a capacitor, the structure of which becomes more complex as the integration density of a semiconductor device increases, for example, a barrier metal layer which is formed at the lower portion of a trench having a high aspect ratio in a trench type capacitor.
To solve the above problems, it is the first object of the present invention to provide a method of forming a metal layer using atomic layer deposition, which has an excellent step coverage and prevents diffusion of oxygen, by which method the composition of the metal layer can be appropriately adjusted so as to easily provide a desirable resistance and conductivity.
It is the second object of the present invention to provide a semiconductor device having the metal layer formed by the above method as a barrier metal layer or the upper or lower electrode of a capacitor.
Accordingly, to achieve the first object, the present invention by a first aspect provides a method of forming a metal layer having an A-B-N structure in which a plurality of atomic layers are stacked by individually injecting pulsed source gases for a reactive metal (A), an amorphous combination element (B) for preventing crystallization of the reactive metal (A) and nitrogen (N), and nitrogen (N) and allowing the source gases to be chemically adsorbed to a semiconductor substrate.
In particular, the source gases are alternately injected in a predetermined order to alternately arrange the atomic layers, and the number of injection pulses of each source gas is adjusted to determine the composition of the metal layer.
The reactive metal (A) may be titanium (Ti), tantalum (Ta), tungsten (W), zirconium (Zr), hafnium (Hf), molybdenum (Mo) or niobium (Nb). The amorphous combination element (B) for preventing crystallization of the reactive metal (A) and the nitrogen (N) may be aluminum (Al), silicon (Si) or boron (B). In addition, the electrical conductivity and resistance of the metal layer may be determined by adjusting the number of injection pulses of a source gas for the amorphous combination element. The content of Al with respect to Ti may be 10-35% in a TiAlN layer when the metal layer is the TiAlN layer.
Further, according to a second aspect of the present invention, a plurality of oxygen diffusion preventing layers, e.g., aluminum oxide layers, may be formed in alternation with a plurality of metal layers so as to form a multiple metal layer including a plurality of metal layers and a plurality of oxygen diffusion preventing layers. Here, the oxygen diffusion preventing layer may be formed by alternately applying pulsed injections of source gases for a metal element and oxygen to the semiconductor substrate including the metal layer. The oxygen diffusion preventing layer may be formed by performing the steps of forming a material layer containing oxygen on the metal layer using atomic layer deposition and thermal-processing the semiconductor substrate including the metal layer and the material layer.
To achieve the second object, the present invention also provides a semiconductor device including an insulating film including a contact hole in a semiconductor substrate, a conductive material film formed on the bottom of the contact hole, and a capacitor including a lower electrode formed on the conductive material film in the contact hole, a high dielectric film formed on the lower electrode and an upper electrode formed on the high dielectric film.
In particular, the semiconductor device has a barrier metal layer between the conductive material film in the contact hole and the lower electrode. The barrier metal layer may be a metal layer formed in an A-B-N structure in which a plurality of atomic layers are stacked by alternately depositing a reactive metal (A), an amorphous combination element (B) for preventing crystallization of the reactive metal (A) and nitrogen (N), and nitrogen (N). The composition ratio of the barrier metal layer may be determined by the number of depositions of each atomic layer.
The reactive metal (A) may be titanium (Ti), tantalum (Ta), tungsten (W), zirconium (Zr), hafnium (Hf), molybdenum (Mo) or niobium (Nb). The amorphous combination element (B) for preventing crystallization of the reactive metal (A) and the nitrogen (N) may be aluminum (Al), silicon (Si) or boron (B). In addition, the electrical conductivity and resistance of the barrier metal layer may be determined by the number of injection pulses of an atomic layer of the amorphous combination element (B) to the total number of injection pulses used for the barrier metal layer.
The semiconductor device of present invention may also include an oxygen diffusion preventing layer, e.g., an aluminum oxide layer, on the metal layer. Accordingly, the barrier metal layer may be formed of a multiple metal layer including a plurality of metal layers and a plurality of oxygen diffusion preventing layers. In addition, a material layer containing oxygen may be formed on the oxygen diffusion preventing layer.
Further, to achieve the second object, the present invention provides a semiconductor device including a semiconductor device having a capacitor including a lower electrode formed on a predetermined material film on a semiconductor substrate, a high dielectric film formed on the lower electrode and an upper electrode formed on the high dielectric film.
In particular, the lower electrode may be formed in an A-B-N structure in which a plurality of atomic layers are stacked by alternately and sequentially depositing atomic layers of a reactive metal (A), an amorphous combination element (B) for preventing crystallization of the reactive metal (A) and nitrogen (N), and nitrogen (N). The composition of the lower electrode can be determined by the number of depositions of each atomic layer. The upper electrode may be formed in the same manner as the lower electrode.
The reactive metal (A) may be titanium (Ti), tantalum (Ta), tungsten (W), zirconium (Zr), hafnium (Hf), molybdenum (Mo) or niobium (Nb). The amorphous combination element (B) for preventing crystallization of the reactive metal (A) and the nitrogen (N) may be aluminum (Al), silicon (Si) or boron (B). In addition, the electrical conductivity and resistance of the lower electrode may be determined by the number of injection pulses of an atomic layer of the amorphous combination element (B) to the total number of injection pulses used for the lower electrode.
As described above, a metal layer (a multiple metal layer) formed by atomic layer deposition of the present invention has a high thermal resistant and high oxidation resistant characteristics. Since the metal layer is formed by individually depositing atomic layers, the step coverage thereof is excellent even in a very compact region. In addition, since individual atomic layers are adsorbed and formed in a predetermined order, the composition ratio of each element contained in the metal layer can be easily adjusted. A metal layer formed by atomic layer deposition of the present invention may be employed as a barrier metal layer, a lower electrode or an upper electrode in a semiconductor device.

Semiconductor devices having metal layers as barrier layers on upper or lower electrodes of capacitors


An apparatus, method and computer program product for network client-server multiplexing. The apparatus is implemented within an interface unit connecting a plurality of servers to the Internet, which is connected to a plurality of clients. According to a “connection pooling” aspect of the invention, the interface unit opens and maintains connections with the servers and handles the opening and closing of connections with clients accessing the servers, thereby freeing the servers of the processing load incurred by opening and closing connections. According to a “connection distribution” aspect of the invention, the interface unit examines the path names within requests received from clients and selects the server hosting the requested information according to the path names.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to Internet client-server applications, and more specifically to multiplexing connections between clients and servers over the Internet.
2. Related Art
The importance to the modern economy of rapid information and data exchange cannot be understated. This explains the exponentially increasing popularity of the Internet. The Internet is a world-wide set of interconnected computer networks that can be used to access a growing amount and variety of information electronically.
One method of accessing information on the Internet is known as the World Wide Web (www, or the "web"). The web is a distributed, hypermedia system, and functions as a client-server based information presentation system. Information that is intended to be accessible over the web is stored in the form of "pages" on general-purpose computers known as "servers." Computer users can access a web page using general-purpose computers, referred to as "clients," by specifying the uniform resource locator (URL) of the page. FIG. 1 is a network block diagram showing a plurality of clients and servers connected to the Internet.
When a client specifies a URL, a part of the URL known as the Domain Name is passed to a domain server (DNS) to be translated to a network address. The network address specifies the Internet protocol (IP) address of the intended server. The client request is passed to the server having the network address. The server uses the path name in the URL to locate the web page requested by the client. A copy of the web page is then sent to the client for viewing by the user.
The client-server paradigm described above has served the Internet well. However, there are some problems. One problem is server connection loading.
Servers are designed to do certain things well. Servers are typically general-purpose machines that are optimized for general tasks such as file management, application processing, database processing, and the like. Servers are not optimized to handle switching tasks such as opening and closing network connections. Under certain load conditions, these tasks can represent a considerable overhead, consuming a large percentage of the server's processing resources, often on the order of twenty percent and sometimes up to fifty percent. This problem is referred to herein as "connection loading."
To further explain loading, the client and server must typically exchange three packets of information to setup a connection. Once the connection is established a client sends a URL (page) request to the server, this consists of one packet. The server will then send one or more packet responses back to the client. Once a request and response is exchanged from the client and server, both client and server will close their respective connections. The closing of the connection takes an additional four packets of information exchange. As demonstrated above, there is a significant amount of overhead (i.e., seven packets) involved to download one URL. A page typically consists of multiple URL's.
Additional problems associated with connection loading include:
Each packet that reaches the server interrupts the server's CPU to move that packet from the Network Interface Card (NIC) into the server's main memory. This results in loss of productivity on the server's CPU. Thus what is needed is a way to avoid wasting valuable CPU time at the server side. As a consequence, the same resource can be applied to process more URL (page) requests. This will thus improve the servers URL processing capacity.
As discussed above, it takes three packets for connection establishment. Furthermore, connection establishment uses up significant server resources related to the CPU/memory. To establish a connection at the server side, the packet needs to be processed by the driver layer, where Ethernet specific information is handled. The driver layer sends the packet to the IP layer for more processing, where all the IP (Internet Protocol) related processing is handled. After this, the packet is passed to TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) layer, where the TCP related information is processed. The TCP layer consumes significant server resources to create a connection table, etc. Thus, what is needed is a way of avoiding connection processing to thereby save significant CPU/memory resources.
The Web server needs to create a thread for each incoming connection to be processed. After the connection and URL request are processed, the thread will be closed. A thread is a Light Weight Process (LWP) that is a type of process. Even though threads are efficient it takes significant CPU and memory resources to create and destroy the threads. Thus, by avoiding thread creation, a significant amount of server resources can be preserved, which in turn can be used to process more web requests.
Servers with more than one CPU are called SMP (Symmetric Multi Processing) systems, these systems have a common memory architecture. The SMP systems also have a single Operating System (OS) managing the multiple CPUs. Single OS implies single Networking/Protocol stack. When multiple CPUs access data structures in the kernel protocol stack, it is important to protect against the data corruption, since more than one CPU can read/write on that data structure. The protection code imposes additional per-packet overhead on SMP systems.
Finally, the throughput of an individual server is limited. Therefore, data providers wishing to serve a high volume of Internet requests frequently resort to an approach of replicating the content on multiple servers and then distributing the requests between these servers. This approach requires content to be replicated in its entirety to each one of the replica servers, even the content which is infrequently accessed. This represents a waste of server resources.


Multi-threaded processing with reduced context switching is disclosed. Context switches may be avoided through the use of pre-emption notification, a pre-emption wait time attribute and a no-context-save yield.

A major advance in electronic computation has been the development of systems that can perform multiple operations simultaneously. Such systems are said to perform parallel processing. One type of parallel processing system, known as a Cell processor, has been developed to implement parallel processing on electronic devices ranging from handheld game devices to main frame computers. A typical Cell processor has a main memory, power processor element (PPE) and up to 8 additional processor elements referred to as synergistic processing elements (SPE). Each SPE is typically a single chip or part of a single chip containing a processor known as a synergistic processor unit (SPU) and a local memory. All of the SPEs and the PPE can access the main memory, e.g., through a memory flow controller (MFC). The SPEs can perform parallel processing of operations in conjunction with a program miming on the PPE. The local memory associated with each SPU is relatively small, currently about 256 kilobytes in one common implementation. This memory must be managed by software to transfer code and data to/from the local SPE memories.
The SPE have a number of advantages in parallel processing applications. For example, the SPE are independent processors that can execute code with minimal involvement from the PPE. Each SPE has a high direct memory access (DMA) bandwidth to RAM. An SPE can typically access the main memory faster than the PPE. In addition each SPE has relatively fast access to its associated local store. The SPE also have limitations that can make it difficult to optimize SPE processing. For example, the SPE have no coherent memory and no hardware cache. In addition, many common programming models do not work well on SPE.
A typical SPE process involves retrieving code and/or data from the main memory, executing the code with the SPU to manipulate the data, and outputting results of the manipulation of the data to main memory or, in some cases, another SPU. To achieve high SPU performance it is desirable to optimize the above SPU process in relatively complex processing applications. For example, in applications such as computer graphics processing SPUs typically execute tasks thousands of times per frame.
One prior art task management system used for Cell processors and other types of processors is based on a software concept referred to as "threads". A "thread" generally refers to a part of a program that can execute independently of other parts. Operating systems that support multithreading enable programmers to design programs whose threaded parts can execute concurrently. When a thread is interrupted, a context switch may swap out the contents of an SPE's local storage to the main memory and substitute 256 kilobytes of data and/or code into the local storage from the main memory where the substitute data and code are processed by the SPU. A context switch is the computing process of storing and restoring the state of a SPE or PPE (the context) such that multiple processes can share a single resource.
A typical context switch involves stopping a program miming on a processor and storing the values of the registers, program counter plus any other operating system specific data that may be necessary to the main memory. For example, to prevent a single process from monopolizing use of a processor certain parallel processor programs perform a timer tick at intervals ranging from about 60 ticks per second to about 100 ticks per second. If the process running on the processor is not completed a context switch is performed to save the state of the processor and a new process (often the task scheduler or "kernel") is swapped in. As used herein, the kernel refers to a central module of the operating system for the parallel processor. The kernel is typically the part of the operating system that loads first, and it remains in main memory. Typically, the kernel is responsible for memory management, process and task management.
Frequent context switches can be quite computationally intensive and time consuming, particularly for processors that have a lot of registers. As used herein, a register refers to a special, high-speed storage area within a processor. Typically, data must be represented in a register before it can be processed. For example, if two numbers are to be multiplied, both numbers must be in registers, and the result is also placed in a register. The register may alternatively contain the address of a memory location where data is to be stored rather than the actual data itself. Registers are particularly advantageous in that they can typically be accessed in a single cycle. Program compilers typically make use of as many software-configurable registers as are available when compiling a program.
One prior art task management system used for cell processors is known as SPU Threads. A "thread" generally refers to a part of a program that can execute independently of other parts. Operating systems that support multithreading enable programmers to design programs whose threaded parts can execute concurrently. SPU Threads operates by regarding the SPUs in a cell as processors for threads. A context switch may swap out the contents of an SPU's local storage to the main memory and substitute 256 kilobytes of data and/or code into the local storage from the main memory where the substitute data and code are processed by the SPU. A context switch is the computing process of storing and restoring the state of a SPU or PPE (the context) such that multiple processes can share a single resource. Context switches are usually computationally intensive and much of the design of operating systems is to optimize the use of context switches.
Unfortunately, interoperating with SPU Threads is not an option for high-performance applications. Applications based on SPU Threads have large bandwidth requirements and are processed from the PPU. Consequently SPU-threads based applications are not autonomous and tend to be slow. Because SPU Threads are managed from the PPU, SPU context switching (swapping out the current miming process on an SPU to another waiting process) takes too long. Avoiding PPU involvement in SPU management can lead to much better performance for certain applications
To overcome these problems a system referred to as SPU Runtime System (SPURS) was developed. In SPURS, the memory of each SPU has loaded into it a kernel that performs scheduling of tasks handled by the SPU. Groups of these tasks are referred to as Tasksets. SPURS is described in PCT Application Publication number WO2007020739 to Keisuke Inoue and Seiji Murata entitled "SCHEDULING METHOD, AND SCHEDULING DEVICE", and in US Patent Application Publication No. 20050188373, to Keisuke Inoue, Tatsuya Iwamoto and Masahiro Yasue entitled "METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TASK MANAGEMENT IN A MULTI-PROCESSOR SYSTEM", and in US Patent Application Publication No. 20050188372 to Keisuke Inoue and Tatsuya Iwamoto entitled "METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PROCESSOR TASK MIGRATION IN A MULTI-PROCESSOR SYSTEM" and in US Patent Application Publication No. 20060190942 to Keisuke Inoue and Masahiro Yasue entitled "PROCESSOR TASK MIGRATION OVER A NETWORK IN A MULTI-PROCESSOR SYSTEM", the disclosures of all four of which are incorporated herein by reference.
In traditional Multi-Threading an operating system (OS) scheduler will pre-empt any running thread to make a scheduling decision. The OS may manage any number of software threads that are configured by applications. Processors have a fixed number of hardware threads that is often fewer than the number of software threads in an application. Consequently, the hardware threads must be shared by the software threads, e.g., by time-slicing or cooperative yielding. The number of hardware threads determines how many software threads can run concurrently. One hardware thread can only process one software thread at a time. The number of hardware threads is dependent on the type of processor hardware involved. For example, the PPE of the Cell Processor has two hardware threads. Co-processors and cache may be shared among different software threads. Each thread has associated with it a context, which contains information relevant to the state of execution of the thread. Such information may include the values stored in registers, a program counter value, and the like.
Current implementations of SPU Threads (also referred to as SPE Threads) for the Cell processor apply a traditional thread model to SPUs. The overhead for context switching these SPU Threads can be very high compared to traditional threads because the entire SPE Local Store (currently 256 KB) and SPU registers (currently about 2 KB) must be saved and restored by the PPE. Certain SPU threads need to run on a regular basis, e.g., in certain Cell processor-based video game applications a high priority SPU thread runs every 16 ms. Currently, if a group of ganged SPU threads are running on all available SPUs the entire gang must be swapped out even though the high priority SPU thread may only require one SPU. The purpose of the ganged SPU Thread Group is so that the SPU Threads can safely communicate between each other's SPU Local Stores. If they were split up into individual SPU Threads, communication between SPU Local Stores is not supported by certain Operating Systems.
In addition to being detrimental to performance, context switches are often unnecessary. For example, an application often has its context resident in main memory. The space available in SPU Local Store is usually not big enough to store everything an SPU will need. Consequently some data and/or code may be stored in main memory where it is managed by the application. It is therefore often redundant for the operating system to do the context switch.
It is within this context that embodiments of the present invention arise.


In a method for the secure, distributed generation of an encryption key for a cryptographic method, where the encryption key, as well as a public key are generated using deterministic methods from a large random number (seed), the seed (S) is generated on the user side by consulting variables known only to the user, and a public key (V) that is transmitted in advance from the trust center. Generation information suitable for generating the seed and, on the basis of which, the seed is able to be derived deterministically from the trust center, by consulting information known only to the center, is produced on the user side, and transmitted to the trust center to create the seed in parallel.

To secure communications data and stored data, it is becoming increasingly prevalent to use the cryptographic technique of encryption. In this context, the data are enciphered under the control of a cryptographic key. The data can also be deciphered again using the same key. Marketable products and software libraries are available for this purpose.
In encryption operations, a so-called hybrid method is mostly used. In this method, the actual message is encrypted using a randomly selected symmetric key (session key) and a preselected symmetric encryption method (e.g., Data Encryption Standard (DES), International Data Encryption Algorithm (IDEA)). The session key is then encrypted, in turn, in each case using the public key of the receiver (a plurality of receivers is possible) and using a predefined asymmetric or public key method (e.g., Rivest, Shamir, Aldeman Code(RSA), EIGamal (a public key encryption algorithm)). The session key encrypted using this process is included with the encrypted message for each receiver. A description of this procedure and of the algorithms employed is found, for example, in William Stallings: "Cryptography and Network Security: Principles and Practice", Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, N.J., 1998.
To decode a message, the receiver must first decipher the session key using his private key, which belongs to his public key, and a preselected public key algorithm, to then decrypt the message using this session key.
Besides encrypting messages, cryptographic methods are also used to encrypt stored data, e.g., on one's own personal computer. Here as well, one typically employs a hybrid method, where the user first encrypts the data using a randomly selected symmetric key (session key) and a predefined symmetric encryption method (e.g., DES, IDEA). The session key is then encrypted, in turn, using the user's public key and a preselected asymmetric or public key method (e.g., RSA, EIGamal).
Using his or her private key, which belongs to his or her public key, and a predefined public key algorithm, the user first encrypts the session key and then, a using this session key, the stored data.
In the following, the term "encryption key" is used in each case to refer to the private key of the user, i.e., of the receiver.
The encryption key is either stored on a smart card, access to the smart card being protected by a personal identification number (PIN) known only to the user, or it is stored on another storage medium (for example a hard disk or diskette), in which case it is protected preferably by a long password.
It can happen that the encryption key is lost. For example, if the storage medium where it was located is destroyed, or if the user forgets the PIN number or the password which he or she used to secure the encryption key, then it is no longer possible to use it to access the encrypted data.
To be able to make encrypted data accessible again in the event the encryption key is lost, mechanisms are needed to enable the encryption key to be regenerated in a secure manner. For this purpose, the encryption key is typically generated nowadays at a trust center or a confidential central location and securely stored. As a rule, the encryption key is produced by initially generating a large random number (seed) using a statistically valid random process. From this random number, the key pair made up of the public key/private key is then generated with the aid of a deterministic method. This seed is subsequently deleted. If necessary, a copy of his or her encryption key is then delivered to the user for use.
In the process, the user does not have any influence on how his or her encryption key is generated and further handled by the generator. It is expensive to securely transport the copy of the encryption key to the user. As a transport medium, the smart card mentioned above can be used, for example, which is sent to the user.

Method for the secure, distributed generation of an encryption key