A device for treating a substrate with laser radiation is described. The device has a rotating polygon mirror with N reflecting surfaces which are used to direct a laser beam via a system of converting focusing lenses, whereby the focal planes of the lenses are located on a surface of the substrate. Active reflecting surfaces direct the laser beam onto the converging lens system, and subsequently on the substrate, while inactive reflecting surfaces have a different inclination to the active reflecting surfaces in relation to the converging lens system. The laser beam from the surfaces is directed onto an absorber. The large number of inactive reflecting surface helps to reduce serial hole density. When the laser is switched on and off while the inactive reflecting surfaces are being scanned, further reduction of serial hole density can be achieved.

Field of the Invention
In the case of the application of lasers for treating or processing substrates, it is frequently necessary to apply lasers to the substrate in a plurality of target zones simultaneously or virtually simultaneously. The prior art discloses various refinements for this purpose in which in each case an incoming laser beam is swiveled with the aid of a rotating polygonal mirror over a row of juxtaposed, focusing elements, an appropriate number of target points being affected sequentially (see Published, French Patent Application FR 2 130 698 A, European Patent EP 0 028 615 B1, Published, Non-Prosecuted German Patent Application DE 195 11 393 A1). The known devices can be used to produce a plurality of tracks of perforated holes next to one another in a web-shaped material. The low level of energy that is required to produce a perforated hole permits the use of very high rotational speeds for the polygons. The hole densities within a perforation track are therefore very high, being up to 30 holes per centimeter of material, as is required, for example, in perforating cigarette tip paper.
However, substantially lower hole densities, that is to say much larger hole spacings, are required for perforating packaging materials such as, for example, plastic films, without aiming at a substantial change in the web speed and energy per hole. The lower hole densities serve the purpose of a higher tear resistance and a lower permeability.
It would certainly be possible in the case of the devices, known from the prior art, for treating substrates to achieve the desired large hole spacings in conjunction with low rotational speeds of the polygons, but the pulse energies would then be much too high while still achieving a clean hole. Counteracting this would require a reduction of the output power of the lasers, but this is not possible, or not possible to the required extent. It is not presently possible to manage an increase in the hole spacing by increasing the winding rate of the web-shaped material of the web to be perforated, because speeds of several thousand meters per minute would be required.
For specific applications, the prior art also discloses polygonal mirrors that are inclined in a specific way and with reference to the respective application. Published, Non-Prosecuted German Patent Application DE 40 09 113 A1 discloses a rotating polygonal mirror for a laser printer in the case of which the flat mirrors disposed around the axis of rotation and with their surfaces parallel to the axis of rotation are separated from one another by small connecting faces which have a surface, preferably a reflecting surface, which does not run parallel to the axis of rotation. As a result of this, the light reflected from the connecting faces does not impinge on the light-sensitive layer of the laser printer, but only the light scanned by the genuine reflecting faces. The aim is for the small connecting faces to reduce the air resistance resulting from the abutting edges between adjacent reflecting faces, and to reduce the noise produced during rotation. The inclination of the connecting faces results in that the light scanned on these faces cannot form ghost images on the light-sensitive bodies, and so the print quality of the laser printer is not worsened. Published, Non-Prosecuted German Patent Application DE 197 13 826 A1 describes a radar device which has a rotating polygonal mirror with a plurality of reflecting surfaces, of which each has a different inclination with reference to the axis of rotation of the polygonal mirror. A horizontal scanning operation is executed by rotating the polygonal mirror, while a vertical scanning operation is carried out by the reflecting surfaces with the various inclinations. At any time at which an incident beam is emitted toward a different reflecting surface, the horizontal scanning operation is repeated at a different height level that is proportional to the angles of inclination of each reflecting surface.
It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a device for treating a substrate by laser radiation which overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages of the prior art devices of this general type, in which the perforation patterns with a larger hole spacing than previously possible can be produced without the need to vary substantially the web speed and energy per hole.
With the foregoing and other objects in view there is provided, in accordance with the invention, a device for treating a substrate. The device contains a laser beam source outputting a laser beam, a system of focusing positive lenses disposed next to one another and having focal planes lying on a surface of the substrate to be treated, and a rotating polygonal mirror with N reflecting faces disposed upstream of the system of focusing positive lenses. The rotating polygonal mirror swivels the laser beam coming from the laser beam source over the system of focusing positive lenses and the system of focusing positive lenses providing various output beam paths. The rotating polygonal mirror has a number of active reflecting faces from which the laser beam is directed onto the system of focusing positive lenses. The rotating polygonal mirror has inactive reflecting faces with a different inclination than the active reflecting faces.
The main advantage of the present invention resides in the fact that a specific, preferably small, number of active reflecting faces are provided, of which the laser beam is reflected in the direction of the substrate. That is to say the active face of the polygonal mirror which is used for treating substrates is of comparatively small dimensions. A further advantage of the invention resides in the fact that during the time when the inactive reflecting faces are being swept over, the possibility arises for switching on and off the laser. The switching behavior of all commercially available CO2 lasers does not permit the laser light to be switched on and off in the case of transition at the abutting edges of adjacent reflecting faces without the production of irregularities in the perforation. With the aid of these pauses, which become available owing to the inactive reflecting faces, a time domain is entered which is longer temporally by powers of ten and within which it is possible to switch CO2 lasers on and off without delays and transient phenomena becoming visible in the perforation track.
Depending on the application, it can also be provided that a plurality of working planes are defined, that is to say there is a plurality of rows of positive lenses disposed next to one another, and each row is assigned a specific, preferably equal, number of active reflecting faces, the active reflecting faces having a different inclination for each row.
In accordance with an added feature of the invention, an absorber is disposed downstream of the rotating polygonal mirror and onto which the laser beam reflected from the inactive reflecting faces is directed.
In accordance with an additional feature of the invention, the system of focusing positive lenses contains a plurality of rows of focusing positive lenses disposed next to one another, and in that each row is assigned a specific number of the active reflecting faces, the active reflecting faces having a different inclination for each row.
In accordance with another feature of the invention, at least one of the inactive reflecting faces is disposed between adjacent ones of the active reflecting faces.
In accordance with a further feature of the invention, N is an even number, and in that two mutually opposite active reflecting faces are provided.
In accordance with another added feature of the invention, N is an even number, and in that two mutually opposite inactive reflecting faces are provided.
In accordance with another additional feature of the invention, there is an optical measuring device for detecting positions of the active and the inactive reflecting faces.
In accordance with another further feature of the invention, the optical measuring device contains a light source for emitting a measuring beam onto the polygonal rotating mirror, and a photodetector for detecting a measuring beam reflected from the polygonal rotating mirror.
In accordance with a further added feature of the invention, the optical measuring device has a slotted diaphragm disposed in front of the photodetector, and a position of the slotted diaphragm or the photodetector can be varied parallel to an axis of rotation of the polygonal rotating mirror.
In accordance with a concomitant feature of the invention, there is an electronic control connected to the laser beam source for switching on and off the laser beam when it sweeps over the inactive reflecting faces.
Other features which are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in the appended claims.
Although the invention is illustrated and described herein as embodied in a device for treating a substrate by laser radiation, it is nevertheless not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims.
The construction and method of operation of the invention, however, together with additional objects and advantages thereof will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.

Device for treating a substrate having a rotating polygonal mirror with inclined faces and a system of adjacent focusing lenses


A weft knitted upholstery fabric having an aesthetic surface and incorporating a ground yarn (preferably with a count between 550 and 900 decitex) and a chenille yarn (preferably having a decitex in the range 2000 to 5000), the chenille yarn being knitted into the fabric as full loop stitches to leave the chenille yarn evident on the aesthetic surface of the fabric.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an upholstery fabric and to a method of manufacturing an upholstery fabric, and has particular reference to a fabric having a soft touch or velour type feel.
2. Description of the Related Art
Woven velour fabrics are well known for upholstering purposes, particularly for upholstery in motor vehicles such as cars. Such velour fabrics have an attractive feel and are regarded as a high quality fabric for use in car upholstery. A velour fabric is characterised by the fact that it has a very short pile and has a comparatively soft touch compared to a conventional woven fabric. The softness of the touch is associated with a rocking action of the pile when the velour is stroked or the fingers of a hand are rocked backwards and forwards on the velour.
Velour fabrics were initially produced by forming a complex weave from two warps which were interconnected by transverse fibres. On cutting the transverse fibres to separate the two warps, the remains of the interconnecting fibres form a short pile which gives the velour its characteristic feel.
More recently, such velour fabrics have been produced with a nylon or polyester pile by the use of a twin needle bar Raschel warp knitting machine, again to produce two interconnected layers of fabric which are sliced apart to produce two separate velour fabric pieces.
With a woven or warp-knitted velour fabric, a seat is upholstered in a conventional manner by the so-called cut-and-sew route. Individual panels of the fabric are cut to shape out of a piece of fabric and then the panels are sewn together to produce an upholstery cover. This is positioned over an upholstery core--typically a foam bun or other suitable core--to produce the seat.
More recently, proposals have been made to produce a three-dimensional knitted structure whereby a knitted upholstery fabric can be produced in a shaped form so that the knitted structure can be used immediately to upholster a core without need for expensive cutting and sewing operations. Such three-dimensional knitting of fabric structures for upholstery is described, for example, in EP-A-0518582, GB-A-2223034, GB-A-2223035 and GB-A-2223036, the contents of all of which specifications are incorporated herein by way of reference. Essentially, all such prior references utilise a flat V-bed weft knitting machine having a pair of opposed needle beds, the needles of which may be actuated by a plurality of cams, in a preferred arrangement under the control of a computerised cam actuating and needle selection mechanism.
To date, however, all the fabrics which have been produced in accordance with such three-dimensionally knitted structure systems have had a hard wearing external surface. Although the surface may be formed of a plurality of different coloured threads, so as to give an attractive pattern or other appearance on the surface, the feel of the surface of a prior art three dimensional knitted fabric has always been relatively hard.
The present invention is concerned with a knitted upholstery fabric, but one having a velour-like soft touch aesthetic surface. By "aesthetic surface" as used herein is meant a surface which, in use, is on the visible exterior of an upholstered structure or is so positioned as to be in visible or tactile relationship with a consumer or user of such a surface.
A single jersey fabric, namely a fabric which can be produced on a single row of needles, has a technical face side, which is produced in contact with the needle bed, and a technical reverse side which is away from the needle bed. Where such a fabric is produced on a V-bed machine the technical reverse side of the fabric is the side of the fabric nearer the centre line of the V-bed. In conventional knitted garment production, the technical face of the fabric is the face seen by the user and is normally the face on the exterior of the garment.
A double jersey structure, by comparison, is produced on both beds of a V-bed knitting machine, and has in effect a pair of faces interconnected by inter-engaging loops of knitting. It will be appreciated, therefore, that double jersey structures tend to be heavier in weight than single jersey structures.
The application of the present invention permits the production of both knitted single jersey fabrics having a velour-like feel as well as knitted double jersey fabrics having a velour-like feel. A further advantage of the invention is that, in its preferred form, it maximises the use of comparatively expensive "effect" yarns, namely relatively expensive chenille yarns.
By "chenille yarn" as is used herein is meant a yarn having a elongate core extending continuously in the direction of the yarn and a pile extending substantially at right-angles to the core so as to give the chenille yarn its characteristic appearance and properties.

Upholstery fabric incorporating chenille yarn on one face


The present invention provides a serum separating device and an apparatus for use in serum separation which is capable of completely separating serum and clot during the separation of a blood sample into serum and clot by means of a centrifugal separation operation. The serum separating device in accordance with the present invention is provided with a cylindrical member, which fits to an opening of a blood collection tube and which has an inner diameter which is slightly smaller than an inner diameter of the opening, and a movable member, the movable member comprising: a member main portion which is inserted into the cylindrical member and which presses against inner walls of the cylindrical member, and an annular isolating member which fits to an outer circumferential portion of the member main portion; wherein: the movable member has a specific gravity between that of serum and that of clot; and the annular isolating member comprises at least one of a material possessing elasticity and liquid permeability, and a material possessing the quality of swelling in response to immersion in liquid.

The present invention relates to a serum separating device and an apparatus for serum separation which are used at the time of the separation of a blood sample into serum and clot by means of centrifugal separation and the like.
Conventionally, since diagnostic tests for blood samples are primarily conducted using serum (plasma), a preprocessing operation prior to testing is required in which a blood sample which is collected in a blood collection tube is separated into a serum or plasma (hereinafter referred to as serum) and a clot or blood cells (hereinafter referred to as a clot).
Commonly, in such a serum separation operation, the whole blood sample which is collected is placed in a blood collection tube, this is subjected to centrifugal separation, and the serum which comprises the sample is separated therefrom. However, in such centrifugal separators, the state of the separation of the serum and the clot is extremely unstable, and if the slightest shock is applied, the blood cells present in the clot which is sedimented contaminates the serum, so that extremely careful operations are required in the handling of the blood sample after separation.
Various devices have been proposed in order to improve this unstable separation state of the blood sample after centrifugal separation, and to simplify the testing operation; an example thereof is a method employing a sealant possessing thixotropic characteristics and having a specific gravity between that of serum and clot.
This sealant has, for example, a synthetic resin of low molecular weight such as silicone oil or the like as a primary component thereof, and possesses a stable specific gravity and thixotropic characteristics; during centrifugal separation, this sealant becomes liquid and forms a strong partition above the clot.
However, the following difficulties are present in this sealant.
(1) In the case in which the material in the clot is abnormal, it is impossible to form a strong partition. For example, in the case in which the specific gravity of the clot is small and the clot is soft, as is seen in dialysis patients, it is impossible to completely separate the serum from the clot. PA0 (2) Since the sealant is water insoluble, the sealant is mutually dissolvable with lipid-soluble drugs which are difficult to dissolve in water. Accordingly, in the case in which the drug concentration present in the blood is to be measured, there are cases in which the drugs dissolve in the sealant, and the values obtained by diagnostic tests are thus incorrect. PA0 (3) In the case in which blood coagulation factor is the object of test, the sealant activates the blood coagulation factor, so that it is impossible to employ such a sealant. PA0 (4) Blood properties vary from person to person. In particular, the generation of fibrin is a hindrance to the diagnostic test of serum after centrifugal separation, so that it is necessary to screen this fibrin which is thus generated; however, when a sealant is employed, it is impossible to screen this fibrin. Fibrin is particularly readily generated in the blood of dialysis patients, so that it is impossible to prevent the generation of fibrin when a sealant is employed.
The use of, for example, a serum filtering piston such as that shown in FIG. 9 is proposed to solve these difficulties with the use of the sealant (Japanese Patent Application, First Publication, Laid-Open No. Sho 51-105890).
This serum filtering piston 1 comprising a disc-shaped filter 2 with a diameter which slightly larger than the inner diameter of the blood collection tube, and a cylindrical weight 3 which attaches to the center of filter 2 and a diameter which smaller than that of filter 2; as shown in FIG. 10, after the collected blood 5 is placed in the blood collection tube 4, the serum filtering piston 1 is inserted into the blood collection tube 4, and by means of subsequently conducting centrifugal separation, as shown in FIG. 11, this serum filtering piston 1 moves to the boundary between serum 6 and clot 7, and since the filter 2 is in tight contact with the inner wall 4a of the blood collection tube 4, serum 6 and clot 7 are completely separated, and it is possible to obtain the serum by means of decanting.
An evacuated blood collection tube, in which a rubber stopper is inserted in an evacuated state into the mouth of a conventional blood collection tube, is employed as the vessel used in serum separation; however, recently, the use of an evacuated blood collection tube, in which a gas-barrier-type film such as aluminum laminate or the like is heat-sealed onto the mouth of a blood collection tube in an evacuated state, and a thin rubber flap is attached to the center of this film, has been proposed in order to increase air-tightness.
However, the serum filtering piston 1 described above has a construction in which the filter 2 is fastened to the weight 3 by a pin, so that there is some danger that the filter 2 will be torn off. Furthermore, in piston 1, filter 2 is drawn downward in a sliding manner, so that it is necessary that filter 2 possess a certain degree of strength, so that it bends and moves downward while sliding along the inner wall 4a of the blood collection tube 4. For this reason, the clot which adheres to the inner wall 4a is scraped, and this leads to blood cell breakage, so that as an effect thereof, inaccurate test values of LDH (lactic acid dehydrogenase) or the like occur. Furthermore, filter 2 moves easily from side to side, so that accordingly, it is difficult to continuously support the filter 2 horizontally in a balanced manner, and there are problems in that during the recovery of serum after centrifugal separation, the blood cells present in clot 7 pass through the gap between the inner wall 4a of blood collection tube 4 and filter 2 and contaminate serum 6, and the clot becomes attached above filter 2.
An attempt has been made to employ a rubber sheet possessing elasticity in place of the serum filtering piston 1; however, because the resistance of the rubber sheet to sliding is large, it is difficult to move this sheet smoothly down the inner wall of the blood collection tube, and in particular, in the case in which there is a variation in the inner diameter of the blood collection tube such that the diameter becomes smaller toward the bottom of the tube, as is the case in plastic blood collection tubes, it is extremely difficult to move the rubber sheet downwards in a smooth manner, and there is a problem in that it is difficult to completely separate the serum and the clot.
Furthermore, in evacuated blood collection tubes employing rubber stoppers such as those described above, there are problems in that in order to maintain air-tightness, the surface area of the blood collection tube and rubber stopper which are in contact is enlarged, and it is necessary to force this rubber stopper into the tube in a considerably forceful manner, and the rubber stopper itself becomes large, and furthermore, it is not easy to remove the rubber stopper. Furthermore, when a rubber stopper is employed, there is a problem in that it is impossible to prevent the occurrence of the so-called "pop-up" phenomenon. What is meant by the "pop-up" phenomenon is a phenomenon which occurs when the stopper has been removed from the vessel and is then reinserted; as a result of the reinsertion of the stopper, the air within the vessel is compressed, and as a result of the expansion of this compressed air, the stopper comes out.
Furthermore, when an evacuated blood collection tube is employed onto which a gas-barrier-type film is heat-sealed, when centrifugal separation is completed and the serum is to be moved to another vessel, the time-consuming removal of the film must be performed by hand.

Serum separating device and apparatus for serum separation


Some exemplary embodiments include an electrically driven cooling system for cooling non-engine components of a vehicle. The electrically driven cooling system includes a closed loop coolant flowpath including an electrically driven coolant pump and a radiator connected to the closed loop coolant flowpath, and one or more components connected in parallel and/or in series in the closed loop coolant flow path that receives the coolant. An electrically driven radiator fan is also operable to cool the coolant in the radiator. The electrically driven cooling system is flow isolated from any mechanically driven cooling system that provides coolant to the engine for vehicles that include an engine.

Vehicles conventionally use a mechanically driven coolant pump that is integrated with the engine to cool the engine and other sub-systems on the vehicle. These mechanically driven coolant pumps are typically tied to the engine speed by a gear ratio so that when the engine is running the coolant flow is greater at higher speeds than when the engine is at lower speeds. In addition, no coolant flow is provided when the engine is shut down.
For certain vehicles, components other than the engine are connected to the coolant system so that the coolant flow also provides cooling of these components. These components retain heat when the engine is shut down and thus are subject to various heat related conditions, such as heat soak, thermal meltdowns, and reduced durability.
There is also increased use of electrified systems on vehicles. One example is a typical hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) which includes an engine and a number of electric components like electric generators, electric motors, power electronics like DC/AC inverters, DC/DC converters, and energy storage technologies like super capacitors and/or batteries. Other vehicles may employ an on-board generating system that includes electric generators and power electronics like DC/AC inverters and/or DC/DC converters. There are several other examples of vehicles that employ electric accessories including the motors and power electronics to drive the accessories. Also, there are completely electrified vehicles like battery electric vehicles (BEV) or fuel cell vehicles (FCV) that do not have any engine cooling loop available to cool any of their components.
Such electrified systems and other components of the vehicle have substantially different cooling needs than the engine (if provided), and the mechanically driven coolant system often struggles to satisfy these needs. For example, electric components have different cooling requirements such as different temperature thresholds and coolant flow rates than the engine and even different requirements among one another, and may be required to operate when the engine is shut down. Mechanical components such as air compressors, exhaust gas recirculation valves, and turbochargers also have cooling requirements that differ from the cooling requirements of the engine, and also often have to operate when the engine is shut down, or retain heat after the engine is shut down. Therefore, further improvements are needed to enable non-engine components of vehicles to operate at higher efficiencies, improve performance, and/or improve the operating life and durability.

Electrically driven cooling system for vehicular applications


A packing apparatus includes a sealing mechanism, a timing sensing section, and a control section. The sealing mechanism affixes tape continuously on portions of a cardboard box transported with major flaps thereof folded. The sealing mechanism includes an affixing roller to press the tape against a first side surface and the major flaps. The timing sensing section senses the timing at which the affixing of the tape on the first side surface is initiated. The control section controls pressing force exerted by the affixing roller, based on a result of the sensing performed by the timing sensing section, in such a way that the pressing force is reduced after the affixing of the tape on the first side surface is initiated.

Packing apparatuses including a sealing mechanism to affix a tape on a cardboard box, which is transported in a state where flaps are folded in and closed, to seal the lid of the cardboard box are known in the art, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-20027.
The sealing mechanism disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-20027 first affixes a tape on a side surface of the cardboard box that is arranged on the downstream side with respect to the transportation direction, then affixes the tape on the folded-in flaps that form the lid of the cardboard box, and finally affixes the tape on a side surface that is arranged on the upstream side with respect to the transportation direction. When the sealing mechanism affixes the tape on the cardboard box, a pressing member of the sealing mechanism exerts, on the cardboard box, pressing force that presses the tape against the cardboard box so that the tape is caused to be in intimate contact with the cardboard box.


A vehicle interior illumination device includes: illumination parts respectively provided in a plurality of positions in a vehicle; and a control part which controls turning on and off operations and illuminating colors of the illumination parts. The control part allows the illumination parts respectively to emit lights by different colors of a same type relating to a theme selected by the control part.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle interior illumination device.
2. Description of Related Art
A motor vehicle includes an illumination device which illuminates an interior of the vehicle. In recent years, there are vehicle interior illumination devices provided for the purpose of decoration of the vehicle interiors (for example, see JP-A-2011-110977).


A self-configuring startup procedure for communications devices, including telecommunications adapters, provides unambiguous identification of the telecommunications adapter, or other communications device, connected to a serial port. The procedure does not interfere with the operation of other existing I/O devices that might be connected to the serial port, such as network, MIDI, or other serial I/O devices. The I/O device is connected to a computer through a serial interface and a serial link. When the I/O device exits a reset state, the I/O device sends across the serial link to the computer a "beacon" signal identifying the I/O device. In particular, during the beacon phase, the I/O device communicates identification and configuration parameters. Preferably, the beacon phase may be instigated by the computer using the same serial-link communications channel.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to serial dam communications and more particularly to identification and configuration of serially-connected communications devices.
2. State of the Art
In computer design and engineering, whereas technical benchmarks were once the prime differentiator among competing products, more recently, ease of use has assumed singular importance. Considerable research and development effort has been focused on the human engineering aspects of computers, particularly the user interface. Graphical user interfaces have now become the de facto industry standard.
Despite these developments, telecommunications has remained, at least to the uninitiated, a daunting aspect of computing. To the novice computer user, the numerous specifications required to establish a high-speed connection present an often insuperable challenge. At the same time, the range of available telecommunications services is rapidly expanding, offering, for example, seamless remote network access, online services with audio feedback, and transparent reception of faxes and voice messages. In order to provide easy, affordable access to these and other emerging telecommunications services, a need exists for high-performance, low-cost telecommunications platforms that support global fax, data and voice data streams in an intuitive way.
In the past, in order to enable a computer to operate with a particular communications device ("telecom adapter") attached to the serial port, the computer user has had to identify to the computer, and then configure, the communications device. If the user did not configure the telecom adapter properly, communications could not be established. Also, dedicated hardware circuitry has typically been required to exchange device identification between the telecom adapter and the host computer during the configuration phase. This special-purpose configuration hardware (including, for example, DIP switches, ID ROMs or ID wheels, and jumpers for circuit boards) contributes to the cost of the telecom adapter.

Serial I/O device identifies itself to a computer through a serial interface during power on reset then it is being configured by the computer


A mounting substrate includes a substrate, a connection electrode, which is formed on a front surface of the substrate and on which an electronic component is mounted via a conductive bonding material, a resist film, formed on the front surface of the substrate so as to cover a peripheral edge portion of the connection electrode, and a receiving portion, formed in the resist film so as to expose a portion of the peripheral edge portion of the connection electrode and arranged to receive an excess portion of the conductive bonding material.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mounting substrate, a method for manufacturing a mounting substrate, and a mounted structure including an electronic component.
2. Description of the Related Art
A mounting substrate, including a mounting substrate main body (substrate), a plurality of mounting pads (connection electrodes) provided on the mounting substrate main body, and a solder resist (resist film) provided on the mounting substrate main body in a manner where the plurality of mounting pads are exposed, is disclosed in US 2013264105 A1. The plurality of mounting pads include those that are entirely exposed from the solder resist and those with which a peripheral edge portion thereof is covered by solder resist.

Mounting substrate, method for manufacturing a mounting substrate, and mounted structure including an electronic component


A procedure for control of a scanning antenna including:. a central modulation-management unit (OBS) incorporating an external angular scanning and packet-synchronization bus (BRC), PA1 at least N modulation-control devices (MOD.sub.1, . . . MOD.sub.N), PA1 at least one beam-forming device (BFN), PA1 at least one network comprising M antenna elements (A.sub.1, . . . A.sub.M), the central management unit (OBS) incorporating N first terminals connected respectively to N second terminals of the beam-forming device (BFM) through the N modulation-control devices (MOD.sub.1, . . . MOD.sub.N), and the beam-forming device (BFN) incorporating, on the one hand, M third terminals connected respectively to the M antenna elements respectively (A.sub.1, . . . A.sub.N), and, on the other, a scanning and synchronization terminal connected to the external bus (BRC). Scanning is effected by aiming the beam in different preferred directions at the packet rate of a multiplex, so as to address the packets in the directions and to ensure continuity of synchronization.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns a procedure for controlling a scanning antenna, in order to transmit and/or receive at least one beam in a given tracking direction.
2. Description of the Background Art
Satellite-transmission networks for stationary ground users have been designed for creating telecommunications systems producing medium or high data rates, while meeting the following criteria:
use of small ground terminals (V.SAT); PA1 high total capacity of the system; PA1 high degree of efficacy of the radio-frequency-conversion device on board the satellite; PA1 dynamic allocation of the resource. PA1 coverage of the service zone by a plurality of beams, e.g., between six and twelve beams for Europe, PA1 increased capacity of the system by reuse of frequencies, through implementation of different linear polarizations, PA1 establishment of a variable capacity by using one or several temporal multiplexes per beam, although, in this case, granularity is weak, and PA1 time division multiple accesses (TDMA) to avoid blockage of the up-link. PA1 a) any point of the nominal synchronization zone can receive packets transmitted by the antenna when this point is located in a nominal coverage zone lying in at least one preferred direction and can ensure continuity of packet synchronization at reception when said point is not situated in one of said zones; and/or PA1 b) for any point of transmission located in the nominal synchronization zone, the antenna is capable of receiving packets transmitted by said point of transmission when it is located in a nominal coverage zone lying in at least one preferred direction and can ensure continuity of said packet synchronization at reception when said point of transmission is not located in one of said zones. PA1 a) any point of the nominal synchronization zone can receive packets transmitted by the antenna when this point is located in a nominal coverage zone lying in at least one preferred direction and can ensure continuity of packet synchronization at reception when said point is not situated in one of said zones; and/or PA1 b) for any point of transmission located in the nominal synchronization zone, the antenna is capable of receiving packets transmitted by said point of transmission when it is located in a nominal coverage zone lying in at least one preferred direction and can ensure continuity of said packet synchronization at reception when said point of transmission is not located in one of said zones. PA1 a central modulation-management unit incorporating an external angular scanning and packet-synchronization bus, PA1 at least N modulation-control devices, PA1 at least one beam-forming device, PA1 at least one network comprising M antenna elements, PA1 the central management unit incorporating N first terminals connected respectively to N second terminals of the beam-forming device through said N modulation-control devices, and the beam-forming device incorporating, on the one hand, M third terminals connected respectively to said M antenna elements, and, on the other, a scanning and synchronization terminal connected to said external bus. PA1 a central modulation-management unit containing an external packet-synchronization bus, PA1 M' groups of elements in series, each comprising a modulation-control device, a beam-forming device, a power amplifier, a Butler matrix, and a sub-group of P antenna elements, each modulation-control device having a terminal connected to a terminal on the central management unit, and each beam-forming device having a scanning/synchronization terminal connected to said external bus, PA1 and by the fact that it comprises a reflector working in conjunction with the N' sub-groups of P antenna elements in order to produce focused scanning.
These criteria entail complex compromises between the design of the multi-beam antenna, the transmission subsystem, and the switching and processing subsystem.
A number of known solutions yielding improved design of these systems include, in particular:
One solution also proposed involves the beam-jump technique, in which different packets of a temporal multiplex can be channelled to different beams, instead of being addressed continuously to a single beam. The disadvantage of this technique is that, in this instance, the link to the ground receiver becomes a link of the temporary division multiple access TDMA type (in contradistinction to a temporal multiplex TDM link), because of the fact that ground users work in the pulsed, and not the continuous, mode. This implies the use of more complicated demodulators and, furthermore, a reduction of the efficacy of the frame, since signalling flags must be added at the top of the frame to allow synchronization acquisition by the receiver.
Moreover, all of the aforementioned solutions presuppose the availability of fixed, predetermined beam positions, which overlap with a degree of overlapping of between 3 and 4.5 dB for most antennae. The required on-board radio/frequency RF power is determined by user demand in the EOC border coverage zones which "see" the lowest satellite antenna gain. The result is a loss of system output. Another output loss results from the granularity problem, i.e., the price which must be paid in power in order to increase the capacity of a beam by a quantity less than the transmission rate of a temporal multiplex.
In addition, a temporal multiple access (TDMA) implementing an antenna using multiple beams, each of which scans one dimension, has been described in the article of Anthony S. Acampora et al., in IEEE TRansactions on Communication Vol. COM27 No. 10, October 1979, entitled "A Satellite System with Limited Scan Spot Beams." In this system, each of the different beams scans parallel lines, and the beams are mutually isolated while alternating their polarizations. This system, of complicated design, allows coverage of a very large surface-area (all of the United States) using a relatively small number of beams, but at the cost of restricting very significantly accessibility to the device by ground receiving stations, because of the dilution of the time of access available to these stations resulting from scanning of lines of large amplitude.


The invention shows a travelling deburrer for cutting burrs (2) developing when steel strands are subdivided by oxygen cutting. The deburrer achieves safe deburring with high deburring rates with the help of cost and space reducing designs regarding drive, control and tools, by increased deburring energy and by a more advantageous blade design.

In continuous casting plants the continuously cast strands are subdivided into strand pieces by oxygen cutting machines. During the oxygen cutting process cutting burrs of iron oxides which are developing on the lower edges of the cut surfaces, gradually turn into a connection zone of pure steel.
These cutting burrs are a quality-reducing and cost increasing source of annoyance for further treatment. Therefore they have to be removed as soon as possible in the fabrication process by gastechnical or mechanical means.
Preferably the burrs are removed mechanically, for this advantageous proposals are given in EPA 94 103 765.7 and 94 119 274.2.

Deburrer for continuous steel casting installation


A solid state sensor to sense pressure includes a semiconductor substrate having a crystallographic design axis, and an odd number of identical inverter modules coupled in series to form a ring oscillator on the semiconductor substrate. Each inverter module includes a pair of structurally identical CMOS inverter stages. A logic input circuit starts oscillation of the ring oscillator and select a signal propagation path therein, either through CMOS inverter stage more affected by the induced mechanical stress or through CMOS inverter stages less affected by the pressure, using two logic command signals. The ring oscillator allows a reading of a frequency of oscillation based on the two logic command signals.

The piezoresistive behavior of integrated resistors and of piezo MOS transistors on silicon substrates is known, as disclosed in F. Fruett and G. C. M. Meijer, titled "The Piezojunction Effect In Silicon Integrated Circuits And Sensors," by Kluwer Academic Publishers. Sensitivity to stress is ordinarily investigated through measurements performed with special devices, designed ad hoc, like traditional resistor and transistor devices placed in a circular configuration, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, respectively.
Theoretical and experimental results on different diffused structures on silicon have been analyzed to provide design guidance for calculating and minimizing the sensitivity of traditional analog circuits to mechanical stress that is inevitably induced at many steps of any fabrication process of integrated circuits (ICs), and during the packaging processes. The packaging processes include die attachment and encapsulation. The induced stress can affect the behavior of both analog and digital circuits leading to malfunctioning of the devices.
A straightforward analog structure based on an NMOS differential pair is shown in FIG. 3. The drain current variation for parallel and orthogonal channel orientations with respect to the crystallographic axis of silicon has been measured. The effect of a load applied onto the (100) plane of the silicon crystal is illustrated in the figure. Reference is directed to the article by R. C. Jaeger et al., titled CMOS Stress Sensors on (100) Silicon, IEEE JOURNAL OF SOLID-STATE CIRCUITS, VOL. 35, NO. 1, JANUARY 2000 85 m. An analog amplifier is used to manage the signal coming from the sensor.
Though effective, the proposed solid state sensor circuits have non-negligible current absorption which make them hardly useful for close and far field EM coupling excitation of sensors intended to be permanently embedded in stress structures. Moreover, as disclosed in R. C. Jaeger et al., the alternative use of intrinsically low power absorption CMOS structures has the drawback of the marked influence of stress induced in the semiconductor crystal on carrier mobility. This interferes with a correct measurement of stress-induced drain current variations. Laborious correction algorithms would be required. A further drawback is the limited signal-to-noise ratio.
On a different account, important real-world applications of compression induced stress measurements in reinforced concrete structures may require transducer sensitivity from 30 to 500 kg/cm2 and beyond with a good linearity of response. Generally, solid state pressure sensors are based on the use of MEMS structures (micro-machined silicon sensing elements) that make them relatively bulky and expensive.
Use of piezo MOSFETs as compressive stress detectors in devices containing near or far field powering and communication circuits to be embedded in concrete pillars has been proposed and is the subject of growing literature. Unfortunately, a reliable quantitative measure is hardly achievable and utility of these solid state permanently embedded devices is generally in providing an indication of an intervening shift from a previously recorded value gathered from the same compressive stress detector, when stimulated by a powering and reading external exciter-recorder instrument. This IT architecture may require a large database for storing information about the numerous sensors deployed for monitoring a large structure, like a building or a bridge.


A needle head structure of a safety syringe includes a protecting cover, a first sleeve, a second sleeve, a syringe holder and a plunger. The first sleeve, second sleeve and syringe holder are structures with mutually latched embedding protrusion and latch portion. The plunger includes a guide channel, and is operated with the syringe holder to reduce a remaining liquid. The first sleeve, second sleeve and syringe holder are latched with one another to fix an end of the syringe holder. After the use of the syringe, a first sleeve is pulled towards a an end to link the second sleeve, so that the first sleeve is latched to an end of the second sleeve, and the other end of the second sleeve is fixed to the syringe holder, so as to provide a convenient operation to users and reduce the risk of being pierced by the needle head structure accidentally.

To reduce the risk and danger of being pierced by a needle head of a syringe accidentally and protect us by separating the needle head, a "safety syringe" as disclosed in R.O.C. Pat. No. M339311 adopts a combination of a sleeve and a telescopic tube, wherein a sliding groove is formed at the external periphery of the sleeve and a combining groove is concavely formed at the sleeve, and the telescopic tube comprises an elastic member, a sliding pipe with an embedding hole, and a pushing member, and the elastic member is configured to be corresponsive to the combining groove, and the sliding pipe is installed outside the sleeve, so that the tubes are sheathed and configured to be corresponsive to the elastic member, and a fixing member and a bump are provided to users to pull and rotate the telescopic tube to fix and hold the sleeve in order to protect the syringe body and preventing it from being exposed to the outside.
In addition, a "disposable safety syringe covering apparatus" as disclosed in R.O.C. Pat. No. 595482 comprises a cylindrical base unit and a sleeve unit, and the cylindrical base unit has a protrusion, and the sleeve unit has a T-shaped sliding groove, and the front end of the sleeve unit has an opening, wherein the cylindrical base unit is sheathed on an end of a needle to sheath the sleeve on the cylindrical base unit, so that the sleeve may slide back and forth along the longitudinal sliding groove, and the transverse sliding groove is fixed, so as to constitute a telescopic syringe covering apparatus.
The aforementioned two patented inventions are provided for protecting used needle heads to reduce the risk of being pierced by the needle head accidentally. Since these prior arts constitute various types of structures and apply the method of rotating the transverse sliding groove to fix the sleeve or cylindrical base unit, but they also increase the risk of loosening components. Therefore, the present invention provides another needle head structure of a safety syringe that improves the safety and secured connection of the needle head structure that are latched by a pulling and positioning method, so as to provide a more convenient use to medical professionals.


In order to close or cover micropipes, which generally are formed in SiC bulk material, one sputters or deposits or grows a layer of silicon on the backside of a micromachined silicon carbide diaphragm. This is followed by an oxidation process. In this approach, the deposition of silicon reduces or completely plugs the micropipes. After the silicon deposition, the wafer is oxidized which completely closes the otherwise reduced micropipes. Since the oxidation process is significantly faster than silicon and SiC, it is significantly easier to close even the largest of micropipes. The thickness of the silicon, the processing for depositing or growing silicon, and the process of oxidation can be adjusted to close micropipes in different SiC materials.

This invention relates to semiconductor materials and in particularly to silicon carbide and techniques for reducing micropipes in silicon carbide semiconductor material.
As one can ascertain, silicon carbide (SiC) is an excellent material for high temperature applications. For example, the use of silicon carbide in a pressure transducer application is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,058,782 entitled, xe2x80x9cHermetically Sealed Ultra High Temperature Silicon Carbide Pressure Transducers and Methods for Fabricating the Samexe2x80x9d, which issued on May 9, 2000 to A. D. Kurtz et al. and is assigned to the assignee herein, Kulite Semiconductor Products, Inc. It has also been established that SiC is an excellent piezoresistive material. This can be ascertained also by reference to the above-noted patent.
Also, see U.S. Pat. No. 6,034,001 entitled, xe2x80x9cMethod for Etching a Silicon Carbide Semiconductor Using Selective Etching of Different Conductivity Typesxe2x80x9d which issued on Mar. 7, 2000 to A. D. Kurtz et al. and is assigned to the assignee herein.
Thus, in view of the above art, silicon carbide can be, and is presently being used for forming mechanical diaphragms and piezoresistive sensing elements. The piezoresistive sensing elements can be grown directly on a bulk SiC substrate forming a p-n junction type device. These devices are known in the prior art and are shown, for example, herein in FIGS. 1A and 1B.
Other piezoresistive elements can be bonded to a dielectrically isolated bulk silicon carbide material using any one of conventional bonding and etch back techniques. Such devices and techniques are shown in FIG. 2, for example see FIGS. 2A, 2B and 2C. These techniques produce a dielectrically isolated type of device. For a dielectrically isolated device, one normally uses 6Hxe2x80x94SiC, 4Hxe2x80x94SiC, 3Cxe2x80x94SiC or any other type of SiC available to form piezoresistors and then uses a separate 6Hxe2x80x94SiC or 4Hxe2x80x94SiC for micromachining diaphragms. The micromachining of diaphragms is also well known and reference can be made to the above-noted patents, for example.
See also a co-pending application entitled, xe2x80x9cHigh Temperature Sensors Utilizing Doping Controlled, Dielectrically Isolated Beta Silicon Carbide (SiC) Sensing Elements on a Specifically Selected High Temperature Force Collectin Membranexe2x80x9d, filed on Nov. 2, 2001, having Ser. No. 10/008,313, wich specification is incorporated herein by reference.
In any event, all of the 6Hxe2x80x94SiC and the 4Hxe2x80x94SiC material produced contains a certain amount of micropipes. A micropipe is a very small hole about 0.5 to 10 microns which actually projects through the wafer. These micropipes are dispersed per unit area. Three techniques for producing SiC are: 1) Lely growth, 2) Seeded sublimation growth, and 3) CVD or chemical vapor deposition. All of these techniques result in a certain amount of micropipes in the produced bulk SiC material. The high temperature CVD (HTCVD) process is used for growing bulk SiC material of improved quality, but does not eliminate micropipes.
The presence of micropipes in the semiconductor material presents a number of problems. The first problem is electrical in nature, where the electrical performance of the semiconductor suffers as a result of the micropipes. This problem is especially troublesome in the making of minority carrier devices, but does not present a serious problem in the making of majority carrier devices, such as piezoresistive pressure sensors.
The second problem is mechanical in nature, where the presence of micropipes in the sensing membrane enables air and other gases to penetrate through the bulk material. This is a serious problem in the fabrication of pressure sensors where the sensing diaphragm micromachined in SiC cannot allow any gases to penetrate through at all. The presence of micropipes also introduces stress raisers in the material, thus leading to the premature fracture of formed diaphragms.
In order to enable the use of bulk SiC as a diaphragm material for different pressure measurement, the problem of micropipes must be solved. One technique previously developed and presently used is to drastically oxidize the SiC to a point at which the micropipes effectively close. The ability to close micropipes using oxidation is attributed to the fact the during the oxidation process about half of the oxide is formed within the silicon carbide while the other half grows on top of the silicon carbide material. The part that grows on top of the SiC effectively shrinks the diameter of the micropipe to the point at which gases cannot get through.
The oxidizing technique, although enabling one to close the micropipes, does have a number of limitations. First, it is very difficult to oxidize SiC, since it takes a very long time to close even the smallest of the micropipes. Second, the bigger micropipes may never be closed by oxidation, thus leaving a fraction of the expensive SiC wafer unusable.
In the present invention, one sputters or otherwise deposits or grows a layer of silicon on the backside of the micromachined diaphragm. This is followed by an oxidation process. In this approach, the deposition of silicon, in itself, reduces or completely plugs the micropipes. After the silicon deposition, the wafer is oxidized, which completely closes the otherwise reduced micropipes. Since the oxidation process is significantly faster in silicon than in SiC, it is significantly easier to close even the largest of the micropipes. The thickness of the silicon, the process of depositing or growing silicon, and the process of oxidation can be adjusted to close micropipes in different SiC materials.
The unanticipated advantage of the present invention is that one can sputter, or otherwise deposit silicon on both sides of the micromachined SiC material and then perform the oxidation process. Once the SiC substrate is oxidized, and the silicon converted into oxide, the front side oxide is used as an insulating layer suitable for the dielectrically isolated process stated above. The silicon, which is converted into oxide on the backside will close the micropipes. Then a preprocessed piezoresistive pattern formed from 3C on silicon, 6H, 4H or other type of silicon carbide can be used to bond to the front side oxide layer. Once the bond takes place, the backside of the pattern wafer can be thinned down, using either lapping and polishing or etching techniques, until only the thin piezoresistive 3C, 6H or 4H pattern layer remains on bonded to the oxide below. This results in a dielectrically isolated piezoresistor pattern on SiC diaphragms, as well as having a completely sealed back surface. This provides an improved high temperature device.

Closing of micropipes in silicon carbide (SiC) using oxidized polysilicon techniques


A foodstuff seed sorting endless belt conveyor apparatus for sorting out premium quality seeds from a seed mixture having both premium and inferior grade seeds on the basis of seed physical characteristics develops an orbital motion that is superimposed upon the normal longitudinal motion of the apparatus endless belt to thereby increase sorting selectivity, efficiency, and rates of product throughput.

Increasingly, customers for food-stuff seeds in the United States such as soy beans, black beans, garbanzo beans, etc. especially insist or require that the delivered end-product food-stuff seeds be of a "premium grade"—a grade that is visually, very nearly totally-free of included imperfectly formed (misshapen) seeds such as those seeds having flat surface areas, surface indentations and deformities, etc., and also be totally free of undersized seeds, of plant stems, rocks, stones, pellet-sized clumps of soil, and other matter. The unacceptable end product constituents are considered herein to be in the general category of "trash".
Both longitudinally and upwardly-pitched endless belt sorting conveyor apparatus and longitudinally and transversely downwardly-pitched endless belt sorting conveyor apparatus have been used in the United States for food-stuff shape-sorting purposes but such have not achieved adequate efficiency in achieving total removal of misshapen seeds from the delivered "premium grade" end-product to thereby satisfy market quality requirements.
I have discovered that by superimposing an orbital motion (i.e., circular, elliptical, etc. motion) upon the longitudinal motion of a longitudinally and transversely tilted endless belt seed sorter apparatus both the efficiency of misshapen seed removal from raw food-stock seed and the rate of seed processing may be significantly increased. Also, I have discovered that varying the surface finish of the sorter conveyor endless belt can in some instances further enhance sorting efficiency as in the case of meeting specific minimum seed size requirements.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent during consideration of the detailed drawings, descriptions, and claims which follow.

Food-stuff physical characteristic sorting apparatus and method


A catheter has a tubular plastics body and an insulated metal wire extending along the bore of the catheter through an aperture close to its patient end. The exposed end of the wire is covered by and connects with an electrically-conductive plastics material injection molded about the tubular body to form an electrode with a convex surface projecting from the surface of the catheter.

This invention relates to medico-surgical devices.
The invention is more particularly concerned with medico-surgical catheters or probes having electrodes.
Conventionally, medico-surgical catheters provided with an electrode have a metal wire extending along the catheter which is insulated along its length such as by the material of the catheter along which it extends. The electrode may be formed by a separate metal member welded or soldered to the wire and is located on the surface of the catheter where it is exposed for contact with adjacent tissue. Examples of such devices are described in EP 0366127, U.S. Pat. No. 3,951,136, EP 0334086 and WO 92/17150.
There are several problems with using metal electrodes. Many metals suitable for use as electrodes are not very biocompatible. Although in some circumstances they can be used satisfactorily, where the electrode has to have a large surface area or is inserted in the body for prolonged periods, it can lead to adverse reactions. Inert metals which are biocompatible, such as gold or platinum, are expensive and, therefore, only suitable for use on reusable catheters. Because of the risk of cross infection, it is preferable in most circumstances to use disposable, single-use catheters which must be of low cost. Also, it is often desired for the main body of the catheter to be of a plastics material because of its flexibility and softness but these plastics materials are often unsuitable for the repeated sterilization required in reusable catheters.
Another problem with using metal electrodes on a plastic catheter, probe or similar body is the difficulty of providing a secure mount. The difference between the physical properties of metal and plastics increases the risk that the electrode will separate from the body on flexing or other deformation. In medical applications, it is clearly very important that there is no risk of the electrode coming away from the catheter or of damaging the catheter itself in such a way that a part of the catheter becomes detached. Furthermore, it can be difficult to assembly a metal electrode into a plastics body without damaging the plastics body. Where it is desired to produce a flexible catheter or probe with an electrode, the hard, rigid nature of metal materials can compromise the overall flexibility of the catheter.

Method of making medico-surgical devices

Smiths Industries Public Limited Company


The apparatus for detecting a perforated postage stamp on envelopes travelling in a given direction comprises a light source to illuminate the teeth of a perforated edge of the stamp at a right angle to the given direction; a scanning device receiving light from the iluminated edge of the stamp and producing a high frequency pulse train responsive to scanning the teeth of the illuminated edge of the stamp; and an evaluating circuit responsive to the pulse train to provide an indication of the presence of the stamp.

The present invention relates to apparatus for detecting normal, perforated, untreated postage stamps on envelopes in a machine, in which the letters are moved in one direction, comprising a light source for illuminating the envelopes at a small angle and a photoelectric scanning device.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,780,310, issued to H. Hudler, the applicant of the present application, describes an optical method by which normal, untreated postage stamps can be detected just as reliably as treated stamps can be detected by known methods. This is accomplished in accordance with the cited patent by the utilization of a feature which is common to all postage stamps, namely, the presence of perforations at the edge of the stamp. That feature can be utilized for detection because it constitutes a reliable code and the perforations can be provided by up-to-date machines with a substantially exact pitch. In the apparatus according to the cited patent, the light source is so arranged that the light rays make an acute angle with the plane in which the envelopes are conveyed so that the stamps are illuminated from the side with a scanning spotlight beam in such a manner that the sides of the teeth of the perforated edges are brightly illuminated and the evaluating device which controls a switching device can detect the illuminated edge of the postage stamp as an indication of the presence of the stamp.
The apparatus according to the cited patent is used to scan that perforated edge of the postage stamp which extends parallel to the direction of travel of the stamp and when the teeth of the postage stamps which succeed each other in the direction of travel move past the scanning device the latter generates a low-frequency pulse train, which indicates to the evaluating circuit the presence of a postage stamp. Because the location of the adhesively fixed postage stamp is not exactly known, it is necessary to scan a wide strip. For this reason, the scanning device consists of a relatively large number of photodiodes, which are connected in parallel to each other and to respective amplifier channels. During the scanning, a signal which indicates the perforate edge is transmitted only by one channel and the other channels may transmit interfering signals which may be due to folded edges or rough paper of the envelope or to similar causes. A considerable electronic expenditure is required to decrease this high susceptibility to interference.

Apparatus for detecting postage stamps on envelopes


In a method for warning the driver of a motor vehicle in the event of lack of attention, in order to improve the acceptance of such systems among drivers, it is provided to monitor the driver with regard to lack of attention and also to ascertain the instantaneous driving situation of the vehicle, and, if lack of attention of the driver has been determined, to output a warning signal only in certain driving situations, but not in others.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and a device for warning the driver of a vehicle in the event of lack of attention.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various systems for monitoring and warning the driver of a motor vehicle in the event of lack of attention are known from the related art. Some of these systems employ an in-car camera which monitors the eyes of the driver or his/her head position and is capable of recognizing whether a microsleep occurred or the driver has moved his/her head to one side and therefore cannot sufficiently observe the traffic. Other systems employ, in turn, different sensors, e.g., a steering wheel sensor or a brake and/or accelerator pedal sensor whose sensor signals are evaluated with regard to certain patterns which indicate that the driver is inattentive. If such a behavioral pattern occurs and the system accordingly recognizes that the driver is inattentive, a warning signal, e.g. a visual or an acoustic signal, is generated which is to warn the driver and prompt him/her to focus more on steering the vehicle.
The systems for monitoring the driver's attention known from the related art generate warning signals relatively frequently and thereby easily reach the driver's acceptance limit. If the system warns the driver too frequently—even if the driver was in fact inattentive—the driver will either get used to the warning and ignore it more or less, or the driver will turn the warning function off completely if it annoys him/her.
In any case, the actual main purpose of the warning function, i.e., warning the driver in the event of inattention, can no longer be fulfilled.

Method and device for warning the driver of a motor vehicle in the event of lack of attention


A process for cracking hydrocarbon feedstock containing resid comprising: heating the feedstock, mixing the heated feedstock with a fluid and/or a primary dilution steam stream to form a mixture, flashing the mixture to form a vapor phase and a liquid phase which collect as bottoms and removing the liquid phase, separating and cracking the vapor phase, and cooling the product effluent, wherein the bottoms are maintained under conditions to effect at least partial visbreaking. The visbroken bottoms may be steam stripped to recover the visbroken molecules while avoiding entrainment of the bottoms liquid. An apparatus for carrying out the process is also provided.

Steam cracking, also referred to as pyrolysis, has long been used to crack various hydrocarbon feedstocks into olefins, preferably light olefins such as ethylene, propylene, and butenes. Conventional steam cracking utilizes a pyrolysis furnace that has two main sections: a convection section and a radiant section. The hydrocarbon feedstock typically enters the convection section of the furnace as a liquid (except for light feedstocks which enter as a vapor) wherein it is typically heated and vaporized by indirect contact with hot flue gas from the radiant section and by direct contact with steam. The vaporized feedstock and steam mixture is then introduced into the radiant section where the cracking takes place. The resulting products comprising olefins leave the pyrolysis furnace for further downstream processing, including quenching.
Pyrolysis involves heating the feedstock sufficiently to cause thermal decomposition of the larger molecules. The pyrolysis process, however, produces molecules that tend to combine to form high molecular weight materials known as tar. Tar is a high-boiling point, viscous, reactive material that can foul equipment under certain conditions. In general, feedstocks containing higher boiling materials tend to produce greater quantities of tar.
Conventional steam cracking systems have been effective for cracking high-quality feedstock which contain a large fraction of light volatile hydrocarbons, such as gas oil and naphtha. However, steam cracking economics sometimes favor cracking lower cost feedstocks containing resids such as, by way of non-limiting examples, atmospheric residue, e.g., atmospheric pipestill bottoms, and crude oil. Crude oil and atmospheric residue often contain high molecular weight, non-volatile components with boiling points in excess of 590° C. (1100° F.). The non-volatile components of these feedstocks lay down as coke in the convection section of conventional pyrolysis furnaces. Only very low levels of non-volatile components can be tolerated in the convection section downstream of the point where the lighter components have fully vaporized.
In most commercial naphtha and gas oil crackers, cooling of the effluent from the cracking furnace is normally achieved using a system of transfer line heat exchangers, a primary fractionator, and a water quench tower or indirect condenser. The steam generated in transfer line exchangers can be used to drive large steam turbines which power the major compressors used elsewhere in the ethylene production unit. To obtain high energy-efficiency and power production in the steam turbines, it is necessary to superheat the steam produced in the transfer line exchangers.
Cracking heavier feeds, such as kerosenes and gas oils, produces large amounts of tar, which leads to rapid coking in the radiant section of the furnace as well as fouling in the transfer line exchangers preferred in lighter liquid cracking service.
Additionally, during transport some naphthas are contaminated with heavy crude oil containing non-volatile components. Conventional pyrolysis furnaces do not have the flexibility to process residues, crudes, or many residue or crude contaminated gas oils or naphthas which comprise non-volatile components.
To address coking problems, U.S. Pat. No. 3,617,493, which is incorporated herein by reference, discloses the use of an external vaporization drum for the crude oil feed and discloses the use of a first flash to remove naphtha as vapor and a second flash to remove vapors with a boiling point between 230 and 590° C. (450 and 1100° F.). The vapors are cracked in the pyrolysis furnace into olefins and the separated liquids from the two flash tanks are removed, stripped with steam, and used as fuel.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,718,709, which is incorporated herein by reference, discloses a process to minimize coke deposition. It describes preheating of heavy feedstock inside or outside a pyrolysis furnace to vaporize about 50% of the heavy feedstock with superheated steam and the removal of the residual, separated liquid. The vaporized hydrocarbons, which contain mostly light volatile hydrocarbons, are subjected to cracking.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,190,634, which is incorporated herein by reference, discloses a process for inhibiting coke formation in a furnace by preheating the feedstock in the presence of a small, critical amount of hydrogen in the convection section. The presence of hydrogen in the convection section inhibits the polymerization reaction of the hydrocarbons thereby inhibiting coke formation.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,580,443, which is incorporated herein by reference, discloses a process wherein the feedstock is first preheated and then withdrawn from a preheater in the convection section of the pyrolysis furnace. This preheated feedstock is then mixed with a predetermined amount of steam (the dilution steam) and is then introduced into a gas-liquid separator to separate and remove a required proportion of the non-volatiles as liquid from the separator. The separated vapor from the gas-liquid separator is returned to the pyrolysis furnace for heating and cracking.
Co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 10/188,461 filed Jul. 3, 2002, Patent Application Publication US 2004/0004022 A1, published Jan. 8, 2004, which is incorporated herein by reference, describes an advantageously controlled process to optimize the cracking of volatile hydrocarbons contained in the heavy hydrocarbon feedstocks and to reduce and avoid coking problems. It provides a method to maintain a relatively constant ratio of vapor to liquid leaving the flash by maintaining a relatively constant temperature of the stream entering the flash. More specifically, the constant temperature of the flash stream is maintained by automatically adjusting the amount of a fluid stream mixed with the heavy hydrocarbon feedstock prior to the flash. The fluid can be water.
In using a flash to separate heavy liquid hydrocarbon fractions containing resid from the lighter fractions which can be processed in the pyrolysis furnace, it is important to effect the separation so that most of the non-volatile components will be in the liquid phase. Otherwise, heavy, coke-forming non-volatile components in the vapor are carried into the furnace causing coking problems.
Increasing the cut in the flash drum, or the fraction of the hydrocarbon that vaporizes, is also extremely desirable because resid-containing liquid hydrocarbon fractions generally have a low value, often less than heavy fuel oil. Vaporizing some of the heavier fractions produces more valuable steam cracker feed. This can be accomplished by increasing the flash drum temperature to increase the cut. However, the resulting vaporized heavier fractions tend to partially condense in the overhead vapor phase resulting in fouling of the lines and vessels downstream of the flash/separation vessel overhead outlet.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a process for converting materials in the liquid phase in the drum to materials suitable as non-fouling components for the vapor phase.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Process and apparatus for cracking hydrocarbon feedstock containing resid


An encoder generates an estimate of apparent inter-image motion utilizing a dense motion field in a sequence of video frames or other images. The estimate in an illustrative embodiment includes a motion vector for each pixel of the dense motion field. The estimate is generated at least in part as a solution to a constrained optimization problem based on a multiscale data model characterizing the motion between pixels of the dense motion field and designated neighbor pixels. The estimate is used for motion compensation in encoding the corresponding images, and is itself encoded for transmission to a decoder for use in decoding the encoded images. In the illustrative embodiment, the multiscale data model characterizes spatial, temporal and scale coherence properties of the motion as a Markov random field (MRF), thereby ensuring that the resulting motion vectors can be efficiently coded for transmission to the decoder.

Motion video sequences typically contain a significant amount of intra-frame or "spatial" redundancy as well as inter-frame or "temporal" redundancy. Video compression techniques take advantage of this spatial and temporal redundancy to reduce significantly the amount of information bandwidth required to transmit, store and otherwise process video sequences. For example, in the well-known MPEG-2 video encoding standard, described in greater detail in International Telecommunications Union, "Generic Coding of Moving Pictures and Associated Audio," MPEG-2, 1994, discrete cosine transform (DCT), quantization and variable-length coding operations are used to remove spatial redundancy within a given frame in a sequence of video frames. Temporal or inter-frame redundancy is removed through a process of block-based inter-frame motion estimation and predictive coding.
MPEG-2 video frames may be either intra-coded (I) frames, forward-only predictive (P) frames or bidirectionally-predictive (B) frames. An I frame is encoded using only the spatial compression techniques noted above, while a P frame is encoded using "predictive" macroblocks selected from a single reference frame, where a macroblock corresponds to a 16×16 block of pixels. A given B frame is encoded using "bidirectionally-predictive" macroblocks generated by interpolating between a pair of predictive macroblocks selected from two reference frames, one preceding and the other following the B frame.
In a conventional MPEG-2 encoder, the output of the above-noted quantization operation is applied to an inverse quantizer and then to an inverse DCT generator. The output of the inverse DCT generator is processed over one or more frames by a motion estimator and motion compensator. The motion compensator computes motion vectors which are combined with a subsequent frame so as to reduce inter-frame redundancy and facilitate encoding. The motion vectors are explicitly transmitted as so-called side information to the decoder, for use in decoding the corresponding encoded video bitstream.
MPEG-2 and other conventional block-based motion-compensated video encoding techniques are used in a wide variety of video signal processing applications, including, e.g., video teleconferencing systems, video storage and retrieval systems, and satellite-based digital television systems.
Although it has been found in practice that acceptable video coding performance can be obtained using the above-described block-based motion estimation and compensation, there are inherent problems with this approach. One significant problem is that since physical motion is not piecewise constant, inaccurate compensation can occur at the boundaries of moving objects. As a result, there may be pixels within blocks containing non-uniform motion that are incorrectly compensated, and therefore a significant energy increase in the prediction error signal occurs, with a consequent increase in the bit rate necessary to encode this signal. In addition, at low bit rates, when high quality coding of the prediction error is not possible, blocking artifacts may become clearly visible in the reconstructed video frames. Furthermore, substantial efforts have been devoted over many years to optimizing block-based motion estimation and compensation, making it unlikely that significant performance gains remain to be achieved within that framework.
A need therefore exists for improved motion estimation and compensation techniques, for use in video coding systems and other image sequence processing applications, which overcome the problems associated with the conventional block-based techniques.

Method and apparatus for dense motion field based coding


A properly-focused image can be constantly obtained even when a cameraman takes a picture of an object which is located within a defocusing area of a zoom lens. A video camera having a zoom lens (10) detects a distance up to an object by a microcomputer (20) on the basis of position informations (S13), (S14) of a variable power lens (12) and a focusing lens (13) of the zoom lens (10). When this distance enters the defocusing area of the zoom lens in accordance with the movement of the variable power lens (12), the variable power lens (12) is fixed under the properly-focused state, and image data representing an object in the properly-focused state is stored in a memory (34). The image data representing the object is decimated, read out from the memory (34) and also interpolated to thereby form image information corresponding to a desired zoom magnification.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to video cameras and, more particularly, to a video camera in which an image can be constantly focused even when a picture is taken of an object located within a defocusing area of a zoom lens.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, consumer video cameras have become popular because they have become miniaturized and light in weight by using a solid state imaging device, such as a CCD (charge-coupled device), and a small video tape recorder (VTR) recording unit, such as an 8-mm VTR in one body. Further, an optical system of the imaging unit uses a zoom lens so that a picture of an object can be taken under various lens conditions from a wide angle lens mode to a telephoto lens mode by way of a single zoom lens. Therefore, recent consumer video cameras have become very easy to use.
As is well known, the zoom lens is a lens system that can continuously change a focal distance without changing an image point. The zoom lens is fundamentally comprised of a lens group comprised of a focusing lens unit, a variable power or variator lens unit and a fixed lens unit.
The focusing lens unit is fixed when a zoom lens is operated, and moved when the zoom lens is focused. The variable power lens unit changes the focal length by moving a plurality of sets of lenses separately by using cams, for example, and also constantly keeps a focal surface at a predetermined position. The fixed unit corrects aberration generated in the focusing lens unit and the variable power lens unit determines the range of the focal distance.
A ratio between the maximum focal distance and the minimum focal distance of the zoom lens is referred to as a zoom ratio and consumer video cameras generally use a zoom lens whose zoom ratio is about 6 to 10.
Once focused, the zoom lens has an image point that is not moved even when a zoom magnification is changed. Therefore, the zoom lens can constantly obtain a properly-focused image when a picture is taken of an object that is located at a relatively distant position under a so-called zoom-up mode.
As is well known, lenses have intrinsic minimum object distances corresponding to focal distances and therefore cannot focus an object which is located at a distance which is less than the minimum object distance.
In a zoom lens having a zoom ratio of n, as shown in FIG. 1, the minimum object distance is monotonically increased in response to a zoom magnification in a range of from a minimum object distance Dz1 in which a zoom magnification is one time (maximum wide angle lens state) to a minimum object distance Dzn in which a zoom magnification is n times (maximum telephoto lens Adf in which an object cannot be focused is defined by a curve Lz passing through the minimum object distances Dz1 and Dzn of the maximum wide angle lens state and the maximum telephoto lens state.
A minimum object distance of a zoom lens used in a consumer video camera becomes about 1 cm with the aid of a micro-closeup mechanism when a zoom lens has a zoom ratio of 8 and the zoom lens is set in the maximum wide angle lens mode in which the zoom magnification is one time, and becomes about 100 cm when the zoom lens is set in the maximum telephoto lens mode in which the zoom magnification is 8 times.
Therefore, when a picture is taken of an object which is located at the position greater than the minimum object distance of the maximum wide angle lens state and the position ahead of the minimum object distance of the maximum telephoto lens state by this zoom lens, if the zoom lens is operated from the wide angle lens mode to the telephoto lens mode in a zoom in fashion, then an image can be focused in the beginning because the zoom lens is located outside the defocusing area. Then, the zoom lens soon enters the defocusing area so that an image cannot be focused.
Furthermore, European laid-open patent publication No. 0475840 describes a lens driving apparatus of an inner focusing type in which a velocity sensor coil is wound around a coil of a voice coil type linear actuator in an overlapping fashion. According to European laid-open patent publication No. 0485302, a zoom lens portion in an inner focusing type quartet zoom lens is driven by a stepping motor. The stepping motor is driven in a micro-step driving fashion having low noise and low vibration when the zoom lens is moved at a low speed and also is driven in a high torque pulse driving fashion when the zoom lens is moved at high speed. Therefore, the driving system can be made in high speed, long in lifetime and low in noise and vibration. This previously-proposed technique is for use with a small camcorder (camera-recorder). European laid-open patent publication No. 0560549 describes a camcorder in which, when an optical viewfinder zoom and an electronic zoom are used together, a picture frame whose size is changed in response to a magnification of an electronic zoom is displayed within a viewfinder so that an actual shooting range can be accurately displayed within the viewfinder.

Video camera in which an image is constantly focused


An improved envelope for a vacuum device circuit interrupter of the type having a pair of relatively movable electrodes within a vacuum envelope and including magnetic field arc suppression. The envelope includes end portions which support the electrodes and an intermediate insulating portion which surrounds and is spaced from the electrodes. Means for producing a magnetic field is outside the envelope. The insulating portion is of a shape which provides a greater distance between the electrodes and the surrounding insulating portion in the direction in which an interelectrode arc is deflected by the magnetic field. In the preferred embodiment the insulating portion is substantially cylindrical in shape with a pair of protruding side tubes. The interrupter envelope is oriented so the arc is deflected down the inside of the side tubes.

The invention relates to current interrupters of the vacuum-type for use in controlling fault currents associated with transmission lines in power distribution systems. In particular, the invention relates to the shape of the vacuum envelope employed in the current interrupter portion of a current limiting circuit.
Increases in electric power demand has led utility systems to use higher voltages in the transmission of power. Fault currents, due to ground shorts for example, can rapidly become enormous on high voltage power distribution lines and can cause serious equipment damage. Therefore, as transmission voltages rise, there is a continuing need in the electric power industry for improved current limiting devices capable of rapidly controlling fault currents.
Current limiters generally employ a current-suppressive impedance in parallel with some type of current interrupter. The interrupter opens under a fault condition and the current is diverted through the impedance, which limits the current to a safe level. A vacuum-type current interrupter generally comprises a pair of relatively movable electrodes in a vacuum envelope. The electrodes can be placed in electrical contact to provide a free path for current flow. Means are associated with the interrupter to separate the electrodes when a fault current is detected. When the electrodes separate, arcing occurs across the gap between the electrodes as soon as the last point of contact has been broken. Since the arc continues to carry substantially the full fault current it becomes necessary to extinguish the arc if the current is to be successfully diverted through the current-suppressive impedance.
In the past it has been possible in alternating current power systems to permit the interelectrode arc in an interrupter to burn until a normal current zero is reached, at which time the arc disappears. Reignition of the arc is prevented if the dielectric strength across the electrode gap is sufficient to withstand the subsequent transient voltages. In present high-voltage lines, fault currents can build up to such a high value that even a single current half-cycle can cause damage to the transmission system. Instead, it is necessary to immediately suppress the arc. One method of extinguishing the arc is by application of a transverse magnetic field across the interelectrode gap of the vacuum device. The magnetic field causes a space charge in front of the anode which in turn causes a large voltage drop across the interrupter. This high voltage can then be used to force the current into the parallel current-suppressive impedance.
Arcing which occurs in vacuum causes the release of a cloud of metallic vapor containing conductive ions of electrode material. This metallic vapor forms a metallic deposit upon any surface it reaches. After repeated interruptions, this deposit can build into a continuous current path which can seriously degrade interrupter performance. For example, if the arc is driven by the magnetic field into the wall of the envelope when it is coated with metallic arc deposit, an arcing path will likely arise from one electrode to the wall and then back to the other electrode. This can prevent arc extinction because the magnetic field cannot divert an arc carrying current in a direction parallel to the lines of magnetic force. A magnetic field creates a Hall electric field which diverts an arc in the J X B direction and, unless the arc cuts across the lines of magnetic force, there is no resultant diverting force. When arcing initiates between the electrodes and the envelope wall, the arc tends to align itself with the magnetic field lines. If this happens, the arc is unaffected by the magnetic field and will continue to burn. It is therefore highly undesirable to have arcing proceed between the electrodes and the envelope wall.
It is preferable to have the wall of the vacuum envelope spaced far from the electrodes so as to discourage arcing between the electrodes and the wall. Most commonly this is done by increasing the diameter of the envelope. This greatly increases the cost of the interrupter. It also necessitates larger separation between the exterior magnetic field coils used to suppress the arc. Interelectrode field strength is thereby lowered, resulting in reduced performance.