An LCD device is disclosed, which prevents optical sheets from being wrinkled. The LCD device includes an LCD panel displaying images, a back light unit including optical sheets for irradiating light to the LCD panel, and a support main receiving the LCD panel and the back light unit, partially overlapping side portions of the optical sheets, and having inclined edge surfaces at four corners to obtain a gap with the optical sheets.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display (LCD) device, and more particularly, to an LCD device that prevents optical sheets from being wrinkled.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Generally, an LCD device includes an LCD module, a driving circuit for driving the LCD module, and a case.
The LCD module includes an LCD panel and a back light unit, wherein the LCD panel includes liquid crystal cells and switching devices, and the back light unit irradiates light to the LCD panel. The liquid crystal cells are arranged in a matrix arrangement and inject a liquid crystal between two glass substrates bonded to each other with a certain gap, and the switching devices respectively switch signals supplied to the liquid crystal cells.
Furthermore, the LCD module includes optical sheets arranged to vertically raise light forwarded from the back light unit to the LCD panel.
The LCD panel, the back light unit and the optical sheets should be fixed to one another in a single body to avoid light loss and also should be protected from damage caused by external impact.
To this end, a case top for LCD device has been provided to encircle the back light unit and the optical sheets including the edge of the LCD panel.
As described above, since the LCD module includes the glass substrates, it is likely that the LCD module may be damaged by external impact. To prevent the LCD module from being damaged by external impact, the case top has been used to protect the outside of the LCD module.
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a general LCD device.
As shown in FIG. 1, the general LCD device includes an LCD panel 30 displaying images, a fluorescent lamp 31 generating light, a lamp housing 32 encircling the fluorescent lamp 31 in a U shape, a diffusion plate 38, a first prism sheet 37, a second prism sheet 36, a protective sheet 35, a light guide plate 33, and a reflection plate 34. The diffusion sheet, the first prism sheet 37, the second prism sheet 36, the protective sheet 35, the light guide plate 33, and the reflection sheet 34 are sequentially fixed to one surface of the LCD panel 30.
The LCD device further includes a support main 39 receiving and fixing the LCD panel 30 and the back light unit.
The fluorescent lamp 31, the lamp housing 32, the diffusion plate 38, the first prism sheet 37, the second prism sheet 36, the protective sheet 35, the light guide plate 33, and the reflection sheet 34 are referred to as the back light unit.
Meanwhile, the back light unit serves to irradiate light to a display area A of the LCD panel 30. Although not shown, the display area A of the LCD panel includes two transparent substrates provided with polarizers on outer surfaces, and a liquid crystal injected between inner surfaces of the two transparent substrates.
The LCD device further includes a driving circuit 40 driving the display area.
The operation of the back light unit will be described below. If the fluorescent lamp 31 provided on one end of the light guide plate 33 is turned on, light generated from the fluorescent lamp 31 is reflected by the lamp housing 32, and the reflected light is transferred to the end of the light guide plate having no fluorescent lamp through the end of the light guide plate. The light is scattered over the whole surface of the light guide plate 33, and the light is irradiated to the display area of the LCD panel through the diffusion plate 38.
In the LCD device, a thin film transistor formed in the LCD panel controls pixels in accordance with a signal of the driving circuit to selectively pass through the light irradiated to the display area. Images are displayed in the display area of the LCD panel by the pixels which have selectively passed through the light.
Hereinafter, a related art LCD device will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 2 is a plane view illustrating the related art LCD device and FIG. 3 is an exploded sectional view illustrating the LCD device, taken along line II˜II′ of FIG. 2.
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the related art LCD device includes a support main 2, a back light unit, an LCD panel 10, a cover bottom 14 encircling the bottom and a side of the support main 2, and a case top 16 formed to encircle the edge of the LCD panel 10 and the cover bottom 14. The back light unit and the LCD panel are stacked inside the support main 2.
The support main 2 is a mold and its sidewall is formed by a stair shaped edge surface. The back light unit is provided at the lowest layer inside the support main 2, and the LCD panel 10 is provided on the back light unit.
Also, the LCD panel 10 includes a lower substrate 10b packaged with switching devices (TFTs), and an upper substrate 10a provided with a color filter. A liquid crystal is injected between the lower substrate 10b and the upper substrate 10a. Lower and upper polarizers 22 and 24 are provided below and above the LCD panel 10.
The lower polarizer 22 provided below the LCD panel 10 polarizes light beams supplied from the back light unit and supplies the polarized light beams to the LCD panel 10. The upper polarizer 25 provided above the LCD panel 10 polarizes light beams supplied from the LCD panel 10 and emits the polarized light beams to the outside.
Furthermore, the cover bottom 10 is provided to encircle the bottom and the side of the support main 2. The case top 16 is provided to encircle the top and the side of the support main 2 to fix the support main 2 and the LCD panel 10 to each other.
The back light unit includes a lamp housing 18 provided with a light source 20, a light guide plate 6 converting light emitted from the light source 20 into surface light, optical sheets 12 fixed onto the light guide plate 6 to improve efficiency of the light emitted to the LCD panel 10, and a reflection plate 4 fixed to a rear surface of the light guide plate 6 to reflect the light emitted to the rear surface of the light guide plate 6 toward the LCD panel 10.
Furthermore, the light source 20 corresponds to a power source supplied from an outer power generator and supplies predetermined light to the light guide plate 6. At this time, light beams emitted from the light source 20 to the opposite side of the light guide plate 6 are reflected by the lamp housing 18 and enter the light guide plate 6.
In this case, the light guide plate 6 uniformly distributes the light emitted from the light source 20 over its whole area. In other words, the light guide plate 6 allows uniform light to enter the LCD panel 10 by uniformly distributing the light emitted from the light source 20.
Furthermore, the reflection plate 4 reflects the light emitted to the lower side of the light guide plate. In other words, the reflection plate 4 reflects the light emitted from the light guide plate 6 and thus allows the light to be supplied to the LCD panel 10.
The optical sheets 12 include upper/lower diffusion sheets and upper/lower prism sheets. The optical sheets 12 scatter the light emitted from the light guide plate 6 to allow the light to be uniformly distributed over the surface of the light guide plate. Also, the optical sheets 12 refract and condense the scattered light to increase surface luminance and diffuse the light, thereby obtaining a wide viewing angle.
The support main 2 partially overlaps side portions of the optical sheets 12 to fix the optical sheets 12.
In the aforementioned related art LCD device, the support main 2 has a rectangular shape so that the back light unit including the optical sheets 12 can be inserted thereto.
The light guide plate 6 provided in the support main 2 supplies the light supplied to a light incident portion 30 to the LCD panel 10, so that predetermined images are displayed on the LCD panel 10.
A recent trend of the LCD device is toward a thin and lightweight size. Particularly, the LCD device packaged in a notebook computer essentially requires a thin and lightweight size to allow a user to easily carry it.
However, the support main sagged due to a hook fitting structure with the cover bottom interferes with the optical sheets 12. For this reason, the optical sheets are wrinkled under a high temperature.
A gap between the optical sheets 12 and the support main 2, but if the gap has a too large size, a defect such as wrinkle occurs, which causes another side effect.
Furthermore, the support main supporting the panel in an area excluding an active area corresponding to an image display area is susceptible to bending in view of its structure. Such bending of the support main occurs more seriously in four corners.


An external intra-pelvic fundus vesicae support disposed at the outer fundus vesicae position and fixing the front end to the pelvic pecten pubis position to lift internal organs. An injection channel is provided inside an external intra-pelvic fundus vesicae support structure, and a screw hole is formed at an input hole, so that the support can be connected to an in-vitro device. According to the external intra-pelvic fundus vesicae support, a tomoscan three-dimensional modeling technology is used to generate a model file which completely conforms to physiological shapes of the pelvic pecten pubis and the outer fundus vesicae and the spatial form of the abdominal cavity of a typical person, and the external intra-pelvic fundus vesicae support of a frame structure and medical material quality is obtained using 3-D printing technologies. Before a surgery is conducted, a virtual reality technology is used to simulate and verify a surgical safety scheme.

In modern traditional Chinese medicine, the understanding for the insufficiency of splenogastric qi generally stays in the principle of "man taking foodstuff as his major source of life" in "Neijing" which is based on the thought that "people are based on stomach qi" to illustrate the pathogenesis theory that "internal damage of the spleen and stomach causes all kinds of diseases" and initiate the therapeutical principles of invigorating the spleen and reducing yin fire. A systematic theoretical system for treatment based on syndrome differentiation for the case of internal injury of spleen and stomach is formed. Splenogastric qi defined in Spleen Gastric Theory from Li Dongyuan refers to the stage of qi of the spleen and stomach, and the stage of insufficiency of splenogastric qi caused by asthenia of splenogastric qi in physiological features from old age to death stage is not sufficiently recognized.
Using a treatment method by pulse addition and subtraction in the known Chinese ancient classical proved recipe "Recipe of Invigorating Spleen-Stomach and Replenishing Qi", qi of the latter heaven can be used to invigorate the consumed qi of the former heaven, so as to improve and retard the degree of lowering of internal organs for many years and delay the incurable stage. Age will eventually lead to insufficiency of splenogastric qi and asthenia of splenogastric qi of qi of the former heaven and will irreversibly result in lowering of the internal organs, which will seriously reduce the life quality of the old people to a helpless pain stage. Because the westernization conclusion is denied by modern traditional Chinese medicine theory in the verification research of splenogastric qi, a solution of using a method of implanting and decompressing the external intra-pelvic fundus vesicae support to recover the bladder position and eliminate the urological disorder in cluster of lesions is not used.
The known "Urinary Surgery" from Wu Jieping in physiological anatomy of western medicine has described "newborns have a higher bladder position than adults. The internal urethral orifice may reach the upper margin of pubic symphysis, and is generally positioned in the abdominal cavity. Even if the internal urethral orifice is at the top of the emptied bladder, the internal urethral orifice is still above the upper margin of pubic symphysis. With age, the bladder will gradually drop into the pelvis, reaching the human position around puberty . . . . The pelvic fascia and ligament formed by it around the bladder play a role of supporting the bladder and can maintain the bladder to be at a normal level." Only the objective law that the position of bladder moves down with age is found, and the acting force of this law is explained using fascia and laxity of ligament. it is not recognized that the objective law that the position of bladder moves down is caused by insufficiency of splenogastric qi in the body like classical traditional Chinese medicine, and it is also not recognized that the internal organs simultaneously drop with the age and treatment can only be conducted for the uropoiesis system. After prostate is excised, the functions still cannot be recovered. Autonomous functions are still replaced by inserting a catheter into urethra and bladder for manual micturition or using a support inside the urethra, which damages autonomous ecology step by step. Because western medical community does not correctly recognize the cluster of lesions in lowering of visceral organs in the abdominal cavity before the present invention, a method for implanting the external intra-pelvic fundus vesicae support is not used in surgical support implantation technology. The solution of recovering the bladder position for eliminating the disorder of the excretory system and remedying fascia and laxity of ligament is not used.
A technology for implanting a support inside the urethra in the medical record of the urinary system is closest to the present invention. The technology and the method directly implant a metal support into the urethra from an external orifice of urethra to expand the prostate and the urethra inside the internal and external physiological sphincter to achieve assisted micturition, and have the following defects: the functions of the prostate and the internal and external physiological sphincter are lost, strange feeling is obvious, infection is easy to appear, the cluster of lesions in the lowering of the visceral organs in the abdominal cavity cannot be eliminated, and the continuous deterioration of autonomous ecology cannot be improved. The technology of implanting the support into the urethra does not involve the abdominal surgical technology and method. The present invention implants the external intra-pelvic fundus vesicae support to lift the bladder, prevents the internal and external sphincter, the prostate and the urethra from being extruded, recovers the original physiological function, improves and recovers the autonomous ecological function of other organs, effectively eliminates the cluster of lesions and corrects the errors in the recognition of senile syndrome defined in western medical pathology.
The known technology of implanting the support into the body in western medicine is mature. However, there is no patented technology identical with or similar to the external intra-pelvic fundus vesicae support and the method for implanting same in the present invention.
The known technology of implanting the metal support into the urethra of the fundus vesicae completely loses the contraction and closure functions of the urethra and the urethra is open and is prone to infection. Occupying expansionary force enables male prostate to extrude the rectum and enables female urethra to directly extrude the rectum, which may cause difficult excretion of excrement and urine and proctoptosia. The technology of implanting the metal support into the urethra only plays the role of manually expanding the urethra to release urine.
The known virtual reality technology provides basic theory and basic hardware for the external intra-pelvic fundus vesicae support and the method for implanting same in the present invention to simulate and verify a bladder resetting surgical scheme through a virtual pelvic environment of the abdominal structural three-dimensional data of a typical person.

Intra-pelvic fundus vesicae support and method for implanting same

Liaoning Weng Ling Medical Technology Co., Ltd.


A method of manufacturing an electrode to be used in a plasma torch includes the steps of providing an insert formed from an electrically-conductive, heat-resistant material, depositing a metal by physical vapor deposition to form a coating on the insert, the metal selected from the group consisting of silver, silver alloy, gold, and gold alloy, providing a holder having a surface with a recess formed therein to receive the insert, placing the insert into the recess, and securing the insert to the holder.

A plasma torch is a device which uses an electrical discharge generated in a space or gap between two oppositely charged bodies to heat and to ionize a stream of gas flowing through the gap. The negatively charged body is referred to as an electrode, while the positively charged body is referred to as an anode. The stream of ionized gas produced when the electrical discharge passes through the gas in the gap from electrode to anode is referred to as a plasma jet.
The plasma torch technology described above has presently been put to a number of different uses. For example, the plasma torch has been used both as a welding tool and a cutting tool in high speed manufacturing processes. The plasma torch may also be used as a tool for developing heat resistant materials. Further, this plasma torch technology has been utilized in high temperature furnaces for the incineration of dangerous waste materials, such as medical waste.
One disadvantage of plasma torch technology is the extremely high temperature environment in which the electrode must operate. These high temperatures lead to rapid electrode erosion, as the electrode material melts, evaporates, or is otherwise transported away from the electrode. The immediate consequence of electrode erosion is a degradation of the plasma jet generation. A further consequence of rapid electrode erosion is that users of this plasma torch technology must factor in the costs of providing numerous replacement electrodes, as well as the sizeable cost of the down-time required to replace the electrodes.
In an attempt to control electrode wear through increased dissipation of heat from the operative portion of the electrode, it is common to fabricate the electrode using a heat-resistant insert embedded in a water-cooled holder. The insert is conventionally selected from the group of electrically conductive materials having high melting point temperatures, such as tungsten (W), molybdenum (Mo), tantalum (Ta) and carbon (C).
If the working gas used is air or oxygen, however, an oxidation reaction can occur where the working gas contacts the surface of the insert. As the melting temperature of the oxidation product of those insert materials mentioned above is typically lower than the melting temperature of the insert material, this oxidation reaction may promote and accelerate the rate of melting of the electrode. As a consequence, the erosion of the electrode may still occur at a rapid rate, and the life of the electrode may be correspondingly relatively brief.
Consequently, to reduce the rate of electrode erosion it is also known to use an electrode material with an oxidation product which has a melting point temperature which is equal to or higher than the melting point temperature of the electrode material. Such materials include zirconium (Zr) and hafnium (Hf).
Even with these further precautions, the electrode may fail rapidly because of the heat transfer resistance of the holder material and the heat transfer resistance existing at the insert-holder interface. When the amount of heat generated during the creation of the plasma jet and transferred to the insert exceeds the capacity of the holder, commonly manufactured from copper, to carry the heat away from the insert, the material of the holder surrounding the insert may begin to melt. As a consequence, some of the holder material melt may flow towards the insert, and contaminate the insert material. The impurities thus created in the insert material have a tendency to cause melting of the insert to accelerate, increasing the rate of degradation of the electrode and reducing the life of the electrode.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,930,139 to Bykhovsky et al. describes that the life of an electrode formed using a hafnium or hafnium insert and a water-cooled holder may be increased by placing a spacer between the insert and the holder. Specifically, Bykhovsky et al. suggest that the spacer be formed from aluminum or an aluminum alloy with a radial thickness of 0.01 to 0.2 mm. However, use of aluminum in an oxidizing atmosphere can result in an oxidation product of aluminum being formed, which oxidation product may make the spacer unstable and reduce the durability of the electrode.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,097,111 to Severance describes that the life of an electrode in an oxidizing atmosphere may be increased through the introduction of a sleeve between an insert made, for example, of hafnium and a holder made from copper or a copper alloy. Severance discloses that the sleeve has a radial thickness of at least about 0.01 inches. Severance also discloses that the sleeve is formed of a material having a work function which is greater than that of the material of the holder and the insert, for example, silver.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,198,932 to Weatherly describes that the stability of an electrode in a reactive gas atmosphere may be improved by silver-brazing a zirconium insert into a recess in a silver holder. Specifically, Weatherly discloses a method whereby the insert is first dipped in molten silver, thus applying a silver coating to the insert. Silver is then melted in the holder recess, whereupon the insert is inserted into the recess and the holder and insert are heated until silver flows around the insert.
However, both Severance and Weatherly suggest the use of a sleeve or coating which requires a substantial amount of silver to fabricate. Given the cost of silver, and the fact that erosion of the electrode will necessarily require replacement electrodes to be purchased, there is still a major cost consideration for the user of this plasma torch technology.

Method of manufacturing a plasma torch eletrode


A tension control device (50) for a printing press (10) having an adjustment roller (52), a device (64 and 66) for measuring the tension on opposed sides of a web (14) passing downstream from the adjustment roller (52), and a device (82) responsive to the measuring device (64 and 66) for automatically approximately equalizing the tension of the web (14) on the adjustment roller (52) on opposed sides of the adjustment roller (52).

The present invention relates to tension control devices for a printing press.
Before the present invention, multi-color printing units have been used in a printing press to print colored images on a paper web. The webs used in the press unwind the web from a supply roll. Due to the relatively fast speed of the press, the rolls have been completely unwound in a relatively short period of time, such as 15 minutes.
In accordance with prior practice, a new roll of the web is pasted onto the web of the previous roll when it is almost depleted. However, the rolls each have different characteristics, such as different manufacture and different winding tensions. As a result, the tension on opposed sides of the new web becomes significantly different, causing loss of registration in the press, and flapping of the web which may cause a web break.
Adjustments must be made to the press in the event of loss of registration, and due to the relative frequency of web pasting This factor results in loss of press time, wasted product, and inconvenience to the operator of the press.

Tension control device for a printing press


There is disclosed an information reporting system comprising a communication host apparatus including a database storing a plurality of data sets each concerning predetermined position, and a host computer, and at least one portable terminal including a data processing unit for executing predetermined processing based upon data received from a communication unit via a communication networks, and a display unit displaying images obtained by the data processing. The portable terminal further includes a current position detecting unit for detecting its current position, and is adapted to transmit position information data indicative of the current position. The host computer is responsive to read out from the database one of the data sets concerning the position corresponding to the provided position information data and supplies the portable terminal with the data set.

There are known techniques for enabling remote terminal apparatuses to utilize data processing functions, databases and the like of a host computer by connecting the host computer and the portable terminals via a communication network using dedicated lines, public telecommunication lines or the like. The portability of the terminal apparatuses is particularly enhanced when high mobility is achieved through connection for radio communication between the terminals and the host computer. Such apparatuses will be referred to as "portable terminals".
Current position calculating apparatuses for detecting the position of mobile units such as motor vehicles based upon information from satellites have recently become available. Systems with portable terminals equipped with such current position calculating apparatuses have been developed. For example, (1) Japanese Patent Application laid open No. 4-295995 discloses a system capable of transmitting position information provided by a navigation system through a telephone terminal to a predetermined receiving equipment, (2) Japanese Patent Application laid open No. 5-327604 discloses a system which automatically sends to a control office in control of a radio communication network information including data indicative of the current position of a mobile station at predetermined time intervals, and (3) Japanese Patent Application laid open No. 6-338848 discloses a system which transmits position information of a telecommunication device to an emergency information receiving center in case of emergency.
In these systems, however, the portable terminal, such as telecommunication devices, merely transmits information indicative of its position and the user of the portable terminal cannot obtain information related to the circumstances at his or her location.
For example, in case of disaster such as an earthquake or a fire, although the information on the position of the portable terminal is transmitted from the portable terminal to a message handling system or an emergency information receiving center at a police facility, the user is not supplied with appropriate information such as advice on taking refuge. He or she, therefore, cannot obtain important information regarding, for example, where to find a shelter at his or her location.
Even under ordinary circumstances there are likely to be times when the user would like to obtain proper information related to his or her location.
The object of the present invention is to provide an information reporting system which allows a user of a portable terminal to obtain information regarding circumstances at his of her current position.


An optical navigation sensor receives light that is produced by a light source and reflected from a surface. The optical navigation sensor has a silicon substrate having a plurality of photo-sensing regions, each of which receives a portion of the reflected light, and each of which provides a pixel of navigation information. At least one layer of material is deposited on the photo-sensing regions of the silicon substrate during a silicon wafer fabrication process. Each layer has a thickness that causes it to serve as an anti-reflection coating and reduce a percentage of light that is reflected away from the photo-sensing regions of the silicon substrate. A circuit biases each of the photo-sensing regions with a current, the current providing a given responsivity, and the current being less than a current that would be required to provide the given responsivity absent the at least one layer of material.

The optical navigation sensors used in optical mice detect the changing patterns of light that are reflected from microscopic textural features of the surface over which they navigate. The responsivity of a navigation sensor plays an important part in how well a mouse tracks the features of a surface. This is especially so in the case of surfaces having few surface features, such as glass surfaces.
Typically, the responsivity of an optical navigation sensor is adjusted by changing the doping level of a phototransistor's emitter, or by changing the width of a phototransistor's base, to increase the phototransistor's beta value (i.e., current gain). However, there is a limitation to increasing the beta value of a phototransistor, as its doping level or width cannot be changed beyond certain "threshold" values, beyond which the fundamental transistor action is adversely affected. For instance, the base width could not be narrowed too greatly such that it affects the matching among the pixels. In addition, the gain improvement rendered by this method is limited by shot noise. In other words, even though a desired current gain may be attainable, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) may remain the same or become worse in that the noise floor may increase inadvertently with the increase of the beta/current gain.

Optical navigation device, and method for manufacturing same


Pads and methods of making the pads for applications such as polishing substrates and chemical mechanical planarization of substrates are provided. The pads include a substantially smooth surface for improved performance.

Processes employing chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) or polishing techniques have been widely used to planarize the surface of wafers during the various stages of device fabrication in order to improve yield, performance, and reliability of the fabrication process. In fact, CMP has become essentially indispensable for the fabrication of advanced integrated circuits.
Integrated circuits are chemically and physically integrated into a substrate by patterning regions in the substrate and layers on the substrate. To achieve high yields, it is usually necessary to recreate a substantially flat substrate after processing steps that leave topographic features on the surface of the wafer, features such as surface irregularities, bumps, troughs, and trenches.
One type of commonly used pad for applications such as polishing and CMP of substrates is a felt pad. The felt pad is a composite of fibers impregnated with a resin. Felt pads offer many unique advantages compared to non-fiber pads like pure polyurethane pads. Some examples of the advantages are low cost of ownership and good non-uniformity for the CMP process. However, for some applications, felt pads may not be the ideal choice. Particularly, felt pads may not be able to provide optimum performance for applications such as those that require good planarization.
A need remains for improved polishing pads which provide effective planarization and improved planarization efficiency for substrates such as electronic device substrates. In addition, there is a need for new pads that can be used for longer periods of time before the pad must be replaced: in other words, pads having longer operational life for processes such as CMP.

Smooth pads for CMP and polishing substrates


Data-processing systems and methods are disclosed, including an I/O interface for managing the transfer of data between a processor and at least one memory. A processor can be associated with the I/O interface, such that the processor generically assembles a first or prior frame from among a plurality of frames, transmits the first or prior frame from among the plurality of frames over the I/O interface and thereafter processes and assembles a subsequent or second frame from among the plurality of frames while the first frame is transmitting, thereby providing enhanced flexibility and speed for the assembly and transmission of the plurality of frames across the I/O interface. The methods and systems disclosed also permit processor (i.e., software control) flexibility in managing the overall order and priority of frame transmission and protocol management, while enhancing hardware performance with respect to the sending of frames and control sequences without requiring real time interaction from the processor.

In a conventional data-processing system, such as a computer and/or a computer network, one or more processors may communicate with input/output (I/O) devices over one or more buses. The I/O devices may be coupled to the processors through an I/O interface such as an I/O bridge, which can manage the transfer of information between a peripheral bus connected to the I/O devices and a shared bus connected to the processors. Additionally, the I/O interface may manage the transfer of information between a system memory and the I/O devices or the system memory and the processors.
An I/O interface can also be utilized to transfer information between I/O devices and main storage components of a host processor. An I/O channel, for example, may connect the host directly to a mass storage device (e.g., disk or tape drive). In the case of a mainframe host processor, the channel is usually coupled to one or more device controllers. Each device controller can in turn be connected to a plurality of mass storage devices.
One example of an I/O interface that is become widely utilized in the data-processing and computer arts is the so-called "Fibre Channel." In general, features of both channels and networks have been incorporated into a network standard known as "Fibre Channel," which has been defined by American National Standards Institute (ANSI) specifications, such as X3.230 (1994). Fibre Channel systems attempt to combine the speed and reliability of channels with the flexibility and connectivity of networks.
In general, data in a Fibre Channel network can be transported in packets, which may be two kilobytes or smaller. These packets of data can be referred to as "frames." "Sequences" include one or more frames. Frames in a sequence are generally assembled at the receiving device in a predetermined order before the sequence can be considered complete.
Fibre Channel is a campus-wide interconnection standard that is designed primarily to interconnect peripherals, mass storage systems such as redundant arrays of inexpensive disks (RAID), imaging and archiving systems, mainframes, engineering workstations, and other high speed devices. Often seen as the successor to the Small Computer Serial Interface (SCSI) standard, Fibre Channel is a high-speed channel that typically uses fiber optics to interconnect computing devices in a relatively local environment, such as a laboratory or a campus. Thus, the Fibre Channel focuses more on providing bandwidth between devices than a completely flexible network. Fibre Channel is a switched technology.
The Fibre Channel interface dedicates circuits for transferring data while allowing other devices to access the channel when it is free. The Fibre Channel interface supports variable length transmissions; it can transmit large blocks of data without dividing the blocks into smaller packets. The speed of Fibre Channel is in the range of 133 Mbit/sec-1062 Mbit/sec. While multimode optical fiber is used most often, single mode optical fiber, coaxial cable, and shielded twisted pair wire are also occasionally used in practice. An example of a Fibre Channel method and system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,721,320, which issued on Apr. 13, 2004 to Hoglund et al and is assigned to LSI Logic Corporation based in Milpitas, Calif. U.S. Pat. No. 6,721,320 is incorporated herein by reference.
Another well-known I/O interface is Serial Attached SCSI (SAS). SAS incorporates feature of Small Computer System Interface (SCSI), also known as "skuzzy", which is a bus protocol that allows various internal and external devices to be connected to personal computers, workstations, servers, and/or other data-processing systems. SAS is a is a point-to-point architecture, distinct from parallel technologies in which devices are connected utilizing shared-access topologies, such as a Fibre Channel arbitrated loop of the SCSI bus. As such, a point-to-point architecture establishes a link directly from the controller to a disk drive or through an expander switching matrix. In shared-access topologies, only two devices can communicate at once. As well, as throughput needs increase, the shared-access medium can become a bottleneck and slow down communication. Shared access topologies also are typically more complex and have arbitration schemes that are more time consuming than point-to-point architectures.
Despite recent advances in such I/O interface technologies, users of I/O interfaces are still faced with some inherent difficulties. For example, when assembling frames for transmission over an I/O interface (e.g., SAS, Fibre Channel, and the like), a user requires flexibility and speed to assemble and transmit the frame data. Conventional I/O methods and systems handle frame transmission utilizing hardware or state machines to assemble and transmit a frame. Custom hardware, on the other hand, is fast, but is not flexible and does not adapt well to changing requirements in assembling a frame. This is one of the advantages of custom hardware, such as, for example, a custom state machine.
Alternative I/O methods and systems permit the processor to manually assemble and transmit each frame. Current hardware solutions do not offer the flexibility required for new interface protocols, because such solutions change quickly or are not defined completely. In practice, much variation exists in how the I/O protocols are handled, thus flexibility is important. Also, utilizing a processor for assembly and transmission of a frame is very slow, inefficient, and produces poor performance results. Additionally, processor interactions can cause poor protocol performance. A slow processor, for example, may be tied directly to the performance of the protocol.
It is therefore believed that a solution to such drawbacks lies in the development of a processor that can actually assemble frames in a completely generic fashion and then send the frames over a link, while processing and assembling the next frame for transmission. Such features are not known in conventional frame management methods and systems, but are inherent to the embodiments disclosed herein.

Task queuing methods and systems for transmitting frame information over an I/O interface


A system, apparatus and a method are described that provide a voltage clamp for a single-supply system. In particular, a negative voltage clamp prevents a negative over-voltage in a system having only a positive independent voltage source. For example, certain analog-to-digital converters and other circuits allow input signals below the negative supply, or ground in single-supply systems, either by direct sampling or using input attenuation resistors. The negative clamp allows the circuit to provide accurate negative over-voltage protection and the absence of this claim would result in over-voltage protection in positive voltage directions only.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of single-supply integrated chips, and more particularly to a voltage clamping device within a single voltage-supply system to protect against over-voltage scenarios.
2. Background of the Invention
Numerous electrical devices, circuits, components and systems are designed to operate at or below a certain maximum voltage or current threshold. If the voltage or current should exceed this threshold, the device may be damaged or otherwise function improperly. A typical cause of an over-voltage or over-current scenario is a supply voltage or reference voltage malfunctioning and providing a voltage that is too high. Typically, an electrical device, such as an electrical circuit, has a voltage rating that refers to this maximum voltage or current threshold and provides information on the circuit's voltage sensitivity.
Over-voltage protection is oftentimes employed within a circuit to prevent voltage or current being supplied that exceeds this maximum supply voltage threshold. Over-voltage protection is usually triggered when a voltage or current, above a safe threshold level, is supplied to a circuit. Effectively, the over-voltage protection either reduces the amount of voltage or current being delivered to the circuit or completely isolates the circuit from the voltage or current supply. This over-voltage protection also allows a circuit to operate in a desired voltage range while protecting the circuit from large voltage or current swings on a supply that would otherwise damage the circuit.
Currently, over-voltage protection circuits use external supply voltages as a reference and the inclusion of these supplies into a system and on an integrated circuit may be both expensive and complicated.
Several techniques are currently being employed to protect integrated chips from over-voltages by external sources. These techniques include current or voltage attenuation. For example, input attenuation resistors may be implemented within a voltage or current source path to protect circuits from over-voltage or over-current conditions. However, these attenuation resistors draw static current from the input source resulting in both inefficiencies within the circuit as well as introducing unwanted design parameters such as noise, linearity, gain and offset error.
Therefore, what is needed is a device and method that allows a reduction in the number of independent voltage or current sources for a circuit and that provides over-voltage protection therein.

Input voltage clamp for a single-supply system


A process is provided for minimizing moisture accumulation in a product package that is sprayed with a cool water shower. The product is placed in a container, and a closure is installed on a container. The product is heated before it is placed in the container or during its placement in the container, or after it is placed in the container, or while the closure is being installed on the container, or after the closure has been installed on the container. The internal atmosphere within the closed closure is allowed to expand from the heat and to vent through a vent channel. The package is cooled with a cooling water shower, and the vent channel minimizes the transient pressure differential so as to minimize the amount of water infiltration into the closure.

The upper portion of a conventional package 30 is shown in FIG. 1, and the package includes a container 32 which has been filled with a fluent product (not visible). The container 32 has an upper opening 33 (FIGS. 2 and 5), and the top of the container 32 is covered or closed with a closure system or closure 36 (FIG. 1) which is mounted to the top of the container 32.
An optional "liner" seal member 38 (FIGS. 2 and 5) may be employed as part of the closure system. Typically, such an optional liner 38 is a membrane that includes at least one layer of thermoplastic material that can be heat-sealed to the top rim of the container 32 around the container opening 33. In FIG. 5, such a heat seal is schematically illustrated by the small triangles 40. If such an optional heat seal 38 is employed, the user of the package 30 (FIG. 1) must initially remove the closure 36 from the top of the container 32 and cut away or peal away the liner 38. Then the user can reinstall the closure 36 on the top of the container 32.
The illustrated form of the conventional closure 36 is mounted on the container 32 with a threaded engagement system. To this end, the container 32 typically includes a conventional thread 44 (FIGS. 2 and 5) for being threadingly engaged by the closure 36.
As shown in FIG. 4, the closure 36 includes a closure body or base 46 which has a peripheral skirt 48 depending downwardly from a deck 50. The center of the deck 50 merges into a upwardly projecting spout 52 which defines a dispensing orifice 54.
As can be seen in FIG. 5, the skirt 48 of the closure body 46 has an interior surface on which is formed a thread 58 for threadingly engaging the container thread 44. The closure body 46 could be mounted on the container 32 with other attachment systems, such as cooperating, releasable beads, or beads and grooves, so as to retain the closure body 46 and container 32 together in a sealing relationship. In other designs, the closure body 46, although separately manufactured from the container 32, could be subsequently permanently attached to the top of the container 32 by means of induction bonding, ultrasonic bonding, gluing, or the like, depending on the materials employed for the container and the closure body 46. In some applications, the closure body 46 may be molded as a unitary part, or extension, of the top of the container 32.
In the type of conventional closure 36 illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 5, the closure body 46 includes a pressure-actuatable, flexible, slit-type valve 60 which is held inside the spout 52 by means of an annular retainer ring 62 that is snap-fit into the spout 52. The valve 60 may be of the well-known type sold in the United States of America by Liquid Molding Systems, Inc., 2202 Ridgewood Dr., Midland, Mich. 48642, U.S.A.
The particular form of the valve 60 illustrated is molded as a unitary structure from material which is flexible, pliable, elastic, and resilient. This can include elastomers, such as a synthetic, thermosetting polymer, including silicone rubber, such as a silicone rubber sold by Dow Corning Corp. in the United States of America under the trade designation D.C. 99-595-HC. Another suitable silicone rubber material is sold in the United States of America under the designation Wacker 3003-40 by Wacker Silicone Company. Both of these materials have a hardness rating of 40 Shore A. The valve 60 could also be molded from other thermosetting materials or from other elastomeric materials, or from thermoplastic polymers or thermoplastic elastomers, including those based upon materials such as thermoplastic propylene, ethylene, urethane, and styrene, including their halogenated counterparts.
The design configuration of valve 60, and the operating characteristics thereof, are substantially similar to the configuration and operating characteristics of the valve designated by the reference number 3d in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,409,144. The description in that patent is incorporated herein by reference to the extent pertinent and to the extent not inconsistent herewith.
The valve 60 includes a recessed, central head which is flexible and which has an outwardly concave configuration (as viewed from the exterior of the valve 60 when the valve 60 is mounted in the spout 52). The head defines two, mutually perpendicular, intersecting slits of equal length extending through the head to define a normally self-sealing, closed orifice. The intersecting slits define four, generally sector-shaped, flaps or petals in the head. The flaps open outwardly from the intersection point of the slits in response to an increasing pressure differential of sufficient magnitude in the well-known manner described in the above-discussed U.S. Pat. No. 5,409,144.
The valve 60 has an interior side for facing generally into the spout 52 and an exterior side for facing generally outwardly from the spout 52. The interior side of the valve 60 is adapted to be contacted by the fluid product in the container 32, and the exterior side of the valve 60 is exposed to the ambient external atmosphere when the lid 70 is opened.
The valve 60 includes a thin skirt which extends axially and radially outwardly from the central, recessed valve head. The outer end portion of the skirt terminates in an enlarged, much thicker, peripheral flange which has a generally dovetail-shaped, transverse cross section and which is clamped by the retainer ring 62 to hold the valve 60 in the closure.
When the valve 60 is properly disposed in the spout 52, with the valve head in the closed condition, the valve head is recessed relative to the end of the spout 52 (FIG. 5). However, when the valve head is forced outwardly from its recessed position by a sufficiently large pressure differential across the valve, the valve 60 opens. More specifically, after the closure lid 70 (described in detail hereinafter) has been opened, and when the pressure on the interior side of the valve 60 exceeds the external ambient pressure by a predetermined amount, the valve head is forced outwardly from the recessed or retracted position to an extended, open position (not shown).
During the valve opening process, the valve head is initially displaced outwardly while still maintaining its generally concave, closed configuration. The initial outward displacement of the concave head is accommodated by the relatively, thin, flexible, skirt. The skirt moves from a recessed, rest position to a pressurized position wherein the skirt extends outwardly toward the open end of the spout 52. However, the valve 60 does not open (i.e., the slits do not open) until the valve head has moved substantially all the way to a fully extended position. Indeed, as the valve head moves outwardly, the valve head is subjected to radially inwardly directed compression forces which tend to further resist opening of the slits. Further, the valve head generally retains its outwardly concave configuration as it moves forward and even after the sleeve reaches the fully extended position. However, when the internal pressure becomes sufficiently great compared to the external pressure, then the slits in the extended valve head quickly open to dispense product.
As can be seen in FIG. 4, the closure 36 includes a lid 70 which, in a typical conventional arrangement, is hingedly connected to the closure body 46 with a snap-action type hinge 72. One form of such a snap-action type hinge 72 is described in the U.S. Pat. No. 6,321,923. Other types of hinges could be used. In some applications, the hinge could be omitted, and the lid need not be connected to the body at all.
As can be seen in FIG. 4, the lid includes a peripheral skirt 74 which depends from a top wall 76. Projecting form the inside of the top wall 76 is a sealing collar 78 which has a radially inwardly projecting, annular, sealing bead 80. The sealing bead 80 is an uninterrupted, convex structure which is adapted to engage the exterior of the spout 52, and the exterior of the spout 52 may be characterized as defining a first engaging surface 82 (FIG. 4). The lid sealing collar 78 may be characterized as an occlusion member for closing the spout 52 and having a second engaging surface of the lid sealing collar 78 for engaging the spout first engaging surface 82. In the illustrated embodiment, the second engaging surface is the annular sealing bead 80.
The lid 76 of the conventional closure 36 also includes a downwardly projecting member 86 (FIGS. 4 and 5). When the lid 76 is closed, the member 86 is spaced just above the central head of the valve 60. If the package is subjected to an over-pressure condition when the lid is closed (such as if the container 32 is impacted or squeezed after the liner 38 has been removed), then the upward, outward movement of the head of the valve 60 caused by such an internal over-pressure condition will be limited by engagement with the lid member 86 so as to prevent the valve 60 from opening inside the closed lid 70.
The above-described package 30 may be used for packaging a variety of products. However, it has been found that such a package 30 may be less desirable with some types of products that undergo certain kinds of processing. In particular, some products are packaged in a thermally hot condition. That is, prior to the closure 36 being installed on the open container 32, the open container 32 is filled by the product manufacturer with product that is thermally hot, and then subsequently, the liner 38 is installed on the container, and the closed closure 36 is mounted on the container 32. In other packaging processes for some types of food products, the product is not heated before it is introduced into the container; rather, after the closure is installed on the filled container, the entire package is moved to a pasteurizing station wherein the package is subjected to heat from an external source so as to raise the temperature of the product within the package to a sufficient magnitude and for a sufficient amount of time to effect pasteurization of the food product.
In any event, whether the product is hot-filled into a container that is subsequently closed with a closure, or cold-filled into a package that is subsequently closed with a closure and then heated as part of a pasteurization process, the heat can cause the interior atmosphere in the package to expand. Even where a sealing liner 38 and valve 60 are employed, as shown in FIG. 5, the internal atmosphere in the closure between the lid sealing collar 78 and the valve 60 can become heated so that the pressure increases and the internal atmosphere seeks to expand. It has been found that in a conventional, inexpensive, disposable, thermoplastic closure, a conventional sealing engagement between the closure lid and closure spout is not air-tight during such over-pressure conditions. Even an annular sealing bead, such as the sealing bead 80 (FIG. 5), does not provide air-tight sealing between the closure lid and closure body spout when there is a differential pressure across the sealing region as a result of a heat-induced, transient pressure increase in the closed region within the sealing collar 78. The pressure under the lid 70 on the exterior of the sealing collar 78 is substantially the same as the ambient atmospheric pressure around the exterior of the closure 36 owing to the significant gaps existing in the region of the hinge 72 at the hinge ends (designated in FIG. 3 by reference numbers 90). The heated, expanding internal atmosphere within the lid collar 78 leaks out between the lid annular seal 80 and spout exterior surface 82 (FIG. 5). The pressure around the lid collar 78 under the lid 70 remains substantially equal to the exterior ambient atmospheric pressure outside of the closure 36 owing to the significant openings at each edge 90 of the hinge 72 (FIG. 3).
The heated package (whether heated from initial hot filling of the product or subsequent pasteurization of a cold-filled product), typically is rapidly cooled in a subsequent step of the process. It is desirable to rapidly cool the package in order to facilitate subsequent processing operations, such as applying a label to each package and/or stacking the packages for further handling or shipping. If the package container 32 is made of a thermoplastic material, the heated container material loses much of its strength when it is hot, and the container wall can easily buckle or collapse during labeling processes or stacking processes. Thus, in typical high-speed, packaging process lines, the heated packages are quickly moved to and through a station which rapidly cools the packages prior to labeling and/or stacking.
The typical station used for cooling such packages incorporates a cooling tunnel wherein a cool water shower is sprayed onto the packages. The cool water shower reduces the temperature of the packages. However, as the temperature of a package decreases, the internal atmosphere within the closed spout cools, and the internal pressure begins to decrease. When a conventional package such as package 30 shown in FIG. 5 is cooled, there is a decrease in the temperature of the package interior, including in the temperature of the spout internal atmosphere in the region below the valve and in the region between the valve 60 and the closure lid sealing collar 78. This temperature decrease causes the pressure of the internal atmosphere within the closed spout 52 to decrease. This causes a partial vacuum (i.e., lower pressure) to be created inside of the closure lid sealing collar 78 relative to the external ambient atmosphere. However, the pressure differential between the higher pressure of the external ambient atmosphere and the lower pressure of the internal atmosphere draws some external ambient atmosphere past the sealing surfaces between the lid collar 78 and spout 52. Because the external ambient atmosphere in the cooling tunnel includes moisture in the form of water and water vapor, such water and/or water vapor can be drawn under the lid 70 and into the interior space inside the lid sealing collar 78. Further, some water may have been sprayed directly through the hinge open edges 90 and into the lid 70 and on the exterior of the spout 52 outside of the lid collar 78. Even when the package 30 has exited the cooling tunnel, water from the cool water shower can remain on and around the package closure exterior surfaces, especially at the closure hinge open edges 90 (FIG. 3). As the internal atmosphere within the lid collar 78 cools and contracts, the differential between the greater atmospheric pressure outside of the lid collar 78 and the lower pressure in the internal atmosphere inside of the lid collar 78 tends to draw in the moisture or water vapor past the annular seal bead 80 and into the internal volume within the lid sealing collar 78. Some of the moisture or water vapor being pulled in from the external ambient atmosphere may collect as water on the top surface of the deck 50 under the lid 70, and some is pulled all the way past the sealing collar 78. Some of the moisture or water vapor that is pulled past the sealing collar 78 could then eventually accumulate as liquid water in and around the spout opening 54, and also on the outwardly facing surface of the valve 60. If the package is of the type that does not have a valve 60, such infiltrating water and water vapor might reach the region directly above, or on, the liner 38. If no liner 38 is employed, then the water and water vapor could contact the product within the container 32.
The cooling spray water that has been pulled past the closure lid 70 (and that is deposited on the deck 50 and/or in other areas of the package inwardly of the lid sealing collar 78) presents an undesirable packaging condition. Cooling tunnel shower water is typically treated to inhibit growth of mold, bacteria, etc. However, the presence of water or water vapor on the deck 50 under the lid 70 and also inwardly of the lid spout seal region is undesirable from the standpoint of consumer perception when the consumer later opens the package by lifting the lid 70. Water under the closure lid in the dispensing orifice region may be regarded by the consumer as a problem with product quality or sanitary conditions. If a product manufacture had not properly treated the cooling spray water to inhibit the growth of mold, bacteria, etc., then the presence of water within the internal portion of the closure could lead to growth of mold, bacteria, etc.
The inventor of the present invention, and others, have investigated ways in which to minimize or eliminate the infiltration of cooling tunnel shower water onto the surface of the deck 50 under the lid 70 as well as into the interior of a closure beyond the closure lid seal. For a typical low-cost, disposable, dispensing closure molded from thermoplastic material, the inventors have been unable to design a readily manufactured closure that is easily openable by the consumer and that has an essentially 100% leak-tight seal to prevent cooling water ingress in response to a partial vacuum within the package during package cool-down.

Packaging process employing a closure orifice seal vent


Embodiments of the disclosure disclose a method and an apparatus for calibrating a vehicle control parameter, an on-board controller, and an autonomous vehicle; one embodiment of the method comprises: executing a calibrating step in response to reaching a preset update condition, the calibrating step comprises: obtaining a current offset data set, wherein the current offset data in the current offset data set are determined in a period of time including a current time point; determining a current offset data reference value for characterizing a value feature of the current offset data set; and performing offset correction for the vehicle control parameter based on an offset between the current offset data reference value and a historical offset data reference value. This embodiment implements autonomous calibration of the vehicle parameter based on changes of vehicle offset, such that the vehicle may accurately follow a corresponding control indicator.

In the field of automatic driving, autonomous control of a vehicle is generally done through a vehicle brain when the vehicle is in a self-driving state. Specifically, a control module in the vehicle brain may also generate a control instruction based on ambiance parameters collected by sensors and vehicle control parameters to thereby meet a corresponding control indicator, e.g., causing the vehicle to accurately follow a planning trajectory.
Therefore, the vehicle control parameters are fundamental for the control module to accurately follow a planned route.
However, in the prior art, calibration of the vehicle control parameters is usually carried out manually offline. For example, parameters such as zero drift numerical values of a vehicle steering wheel are manually collected at intervals.

Method and apparatus for calibrating a vehicle control parameter, vehicle controller and autonomous vehicle

BAIDU.COM TIMES TECHNOLOGY (BEIJING) CO., LTD.


A package for consumable wrapped products, such as cereal bars, power bars, granola bars or other snacks. The package may include an elongated body and a fin seal on the elongated body that folds to the left side of the package. The fin seal may be located near the center of the package or on an edge of the package and may include one or more nicks on an edge of the fin seal. The package may include a top seal and a side seal. The package may also include a tear notch for propagating a tear across the package. The package may include one or more score lines extending across the package. The package may include a vertical score that prevents further tearing of the package.

Generally, packaging for consumable wrapped products, such as cereal bars, power bars, granola bars or other snack bars include a fin seal that folds to the right. When tearing open a package, the tear often catches on the fin seal, making it difficult to open the package to obtain access to the consumable product. Thus, a need exists for an improved packaging for consumable wrapped products.


A reach forklift comprises: a forklift body; left and right straddle arms; a pair of load wheels supported in a steerable manner in the vicinity of front ends of the left and right straddle arms, respectively; driving means for steering the load wheels, the load wheels and the driving means being housed in the straddle arms; a drive wheel disposed in a rear portion of the forklift body; and a steering wheel for steering the drive wheel; steering angle detecting means for detecting steering angles of the left and right load wheels and the drive wheel. Each of the left and right straddle arms comprises: a bracket which rotatably supports a steering shaft, the center of the steering shaft being positioned at an outer position in the width direction of the forklift body, the bracket being fixed to a lower face of the steering shaft, supporting the load wheels at an outer position of the forklift body, and rotatably supporting the center of the load wheel in the width direction of the load wheel, the center of the load wheel being separated from the center of the steering shaft by a predetermined distance; a gear which is fixed to the bracket and formed into a sector shape, the arc portion of the sector gear being directed to the center of the forklift; and a driving gear which engages with the sector gear and is driven by the driving means, the driving gear being positioned in the side of the center of the forklift.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a reach forklift, and more particularly to a reach forklift which has steerable load wheels and is mainly intended to attain an improvement in the efficiency of cargo work.
2. Prior Art
Conventionally, a multi-directional vehicle shown in FIGS. 57 and 58 is proposed. When the vehicle travels in the directions indicated by arrow A, caster wheels p and m are turned and then fixed in these directions so that they cannot make a turn, and a caster wheel n is allowed to turn, by hydraulically controlling cylinders provided for these wheels. In this state, a steered and driving wheel 1 is turned toward a desired direction, so that Ackerman steering can be effected.
When the vehicle travels in the directions indicated by arrow B, the caster wheels p and n are turned and then fixed in these directions so that they cannot make a turn, and the caster wheel m is allowed to turn, by hydraulically controlling the cylinders. In this state, the steered and driving wheel 1 is turned toward a desired direction, so that Ackerman steering can be effected in the same manner as described above.
In the above-described vehicle, however, the cylinders s1 and s2, link levers and the like are housed in straddle arms, so that the left and right straddle arms become larger in width. The large width of straddle arms is quite inconvenient because such a forklift is required to travel along very narrow pathways in a warehouse.
When the travel direction is to be changed from A to B or vice versa, the vehicle a is first stopped, and then a button switch or the like is pressed. The necessity of individually performing such mode switching operations makes it impossible to continuously change the travel direction. When the vehicle is steered according to the theory of Ackerman-Jeantaud, the travel direction is limited to those indicated by A or B, and the attitude of the vehicle cannot be changed with respect to other directions (for example, directions inclined at 45 degrees away from the directions of arrow A). Furthermore, the steering of the vehicle cannot be controlled in such a manner that the turning center thereof is continuously changed and located on the approximate center of the body of the vehicle. Thus, the vehicle cannot make a small turn.


A power electronic system with a cooling device, and a method for producing the system, comprising a plurality of submodules, each submodule having a first planar insulating material body, one first conductor track cohesively connected thereto, one power switch arranged on the conductor track, at least one internal connecting device composed of an alternate layer sequence of at least one electrically conductive film and at least one electrically insulating film, wherein at least one electrically conductive layer forms at least one second conductor track, and comprising external connection elements. In this case, the submodules are arranged cohesively or in a force-locking manner and in a manner spaced apart from one another with their first main surface on the cooling device. At least one second conductor track at least partially covers first conductor tracks of two submodules, electrically connects them to one another and covers an interspace between the submodules.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a power electronic system with a cooling device, preferably for forming a circuit arrangement realized therewith in the form of a converter, for example of a three-phase inverter. Such systems are known, for example, as power semiconductor modules having a baseplate or as arrangements of a power semiconductor module without a baseplate comprising a cooling device.
2. Description of the Related Art
German Published Patent Application DE 10 2009 045 181 A1 discloses such a power electronic system, such as discussed here, from a rectifier and an inverter in a common housing. To meet different requirements, the prior system has two substrates, which are in each case formed from an insulating material body with metal laminations on both main surfaces. The respective side of the substrate which faces the interior of the system has a structuring of the metal lamination, which thus forms a plurality of conductor tracks.
A fundamental requirement for all power electronic systems is that the heat resulting from power loss in the power semiconductor components must be dissipated from the system to or via the cooling device. In this case, it should also be taken into consideration that the systems are subjected to cyclic temperature changes during operation. These temperature fluctuations stress the connections of different components of the power electronic system with respect to one another, particularly if these have different coefficients of thermal expansion.
It is therefore an object in the construction of such power electronic systems to compensate for thermally induced mechanical loads and thus to increase the durability, and alternatively or preferably simultaneously, the thermal loading capacity thereof. For this purpose, German Published Patent Application DE 10 2006 011 995 A1 discloses segmenting, in part also completely interrupting, the baseplate of a power semiconductor module in various ways to thereby improve the linking to a further cooling device. German Patent No. DE 197 07 514 A1 additionally proposes, with respect to segmentation, providing the additional baseplate sections with a preliminary bend.

Power electronic system with a cooling device


The memory apparatus according to the invention and having a cell 14 has a high electrical resistance in a first state and a low electrical resistance in a second state. The cell 14 has an edge area 16 and a core area 15, in which the electrical resistivity in the edge area 16 is higher than in the core area 15 in the second state.

Memory cells are characterized, inter alia, by their cell size, volatility of the stored information and reading reliability. In this case, there is a desire to develop memory cells which occupy a smaller volume, in order to achieve an increased integration density with the generally known advantages; to replace conventional volatile memory cells such as DRAMs by non-volatile memory cells, and to improve the reading reliability by increasing the signal difference between the binary states (high, low).
Although the present invention is described with reference to phase change memory cells (PC-RAM, phase change RAM), which are also referred to as ovonic unified memory (OUM) cells, the present invention is not restricted to them but relates in general to memory apparatuses and production methods.
One concept of memory cells which is superior in terms of the characteristics mentioned above to conventional memory cells in DRAM, SRAM or flash memory cells, is so-called OUM memory cells, which are also referred to as phase change random access memory (PCRAM). The configuration of a PC-RAM will be described schematically with reference to FIG. 1. A memory cell 4 which is formed from Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST) is arranged between two contact areas 5 and 6. The information in this memory cell 4 is coded in the form of the electrical resistance, with a high resistance corresponding, for example, to a logic zero and a correspondingly low resistance corresponding to a logic 1. The resistivity of GST in the amorphous phase is higher than in the crystalline phase. By heating GST to a crystallization temperature of about 420° C., the GST changes from the amorphous phase state to the crystalline phase state. The reverse process is achieved by heating GST to above its melting temperature of about 620° C., with the amorphous state phase being formed when it is cooled down rapidly. GST is expediently stable for more than 10 years both in the glass phase and in the crystalline phase up to temperatures of 100° C. Memory cells composed of GST are thus suitable for non-volatile memory components which can be read in a simple manner by determination of their resistance. The heat power required to change between the two phases is expediently provided by means of a heating current which flows through the memory cell and is controlled by means of a transistor. In order to achieve the required melting temperature, the transistor must be designed such that it can switch the heating current that is required for this purpose. In this case, it has been found that the dimensions of the corresponding transistor limit the integration density of a memory component.
The heating of the memory cell up to the melting temperature does not take place homogeneously across the memory cell 4. GST is less thermally conductive than the materials surrounding the memory cell in the contact-making areas and in the embedding 2. This means that the edge areas of the memory cell are cooled down by the thermal contact with the embedding 2, while the thermal balance within the memory cell is only to a limited extent, owing to the low thermal conductivity. This means that, if a relatively small current pulse is used for heating, the melting temperature is reached only in an inner area of the memory cell 4. The outer radial edge areas which are in contact with the embedding 2 do not reach the temperature which is required to change to the amorphous phase. This reduces the maximum achievable resistance of the memory cell, since there are low-resistance crystalline edge areas in parallel with the high-resistance inner area that is in the form of glass. This disadvantageously results in a decreased signal difference between the two resistance values of the memory cell, and thus in reduced reading reliability. Because of the problems that have already been explained relating to the integration density of the transistor that controls the heating current, the heating current cannot be increased indefinitely in order to heat the outer areas above the melting temperature.

Integrated circuit including a memory apparatus and production method


There is disclosed a soldering alloy which prevents an iron tip of a soldering iron from being deteriorated. The soldering alloy comprises: 0.3 to 3% by weight of Cu; 0.01 to 0.1% by weight of Fe; 0.001 to 0.004% by weight of Ga; and a remainder including Sn and unavoidable impurities.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a soldering alloy which prevents an iron tip of a soldering iron from being deteriorated.
2. Background Art
A lead-free solder containing a main component of Sn and having enhanced wettability has heretofore been proposed in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication Laid-Open No. 2002-18589 which is a lead-free soldering alloy obtained by adding 0.005 to 0.2% by weight of Ga to the Sn main component, or a lead-free soldering alloy obtained by adding 0.005 to 0.2% by weight of Ga to the Sn main component. Furthermore, to enhance mechanical properties of the lead-free solder, Cu, Sb, Ni, Co, Fe, Mn, Cr, Mo and the like are added. To lower a melting point, Bi, In, Zn and the like are added. Alternatively, to prevent oxidation, P, Ge and the like can be added.


A printed circuit board for an electronic circuit, especially for the ultra-high frequencies located in the GHz range that comprises at least one conductor layer, which is arranged on top of an insulating layer and which is flatly joined to said insulating layer. Improved mechanical, thermal and electrical properties are attained by virtue of the fact that the insulating layer is a thin glass layer.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a printed circuit board, a method for producing such a printed circuit board, and a layer composite material for such a printed circuit board.
2. Prior Art
In present-day electronic circuit technology concerning, in particular, computer technology and the communication and processing of data in communications technology, development is tending toward an ever greater integration and packing density and toward ever higher clock frequencies, which are normally already in the GHz range. Under these circumstances, increasing importance is being attached to the printed circuit boards or printed circuits in the construction of functionally reliable and, at the same time, cost-effective circuits. On the one hand, such a printed circuit board, in particular for relatively large series, must be simple and cost-effective to produce and process (cut, drill, populate, etc.). On the other hand, the printed circuit board must have a sufficient thermal and mechanical stability and the best possible thermal conductivity, because a considerable amount of heat is generally to be expected owing to the high integration density and high frequencies during operation. Furthermore, it is desirable for the printed circuit board to be adapted to the ubiquitously used semiconductor components (made of Si or else GaAs) with regard to thermal expansion, because this enables direct mounting of the semiconductor chips on the printed circuit board (Direct Chip Attach DCA) with all its advantages.
However, the dielectric properties of the insulation material used within the printed circuit board are particularly important with regard to the high frequencies. Thus, a printed circuit board used in the extremely high frequency range should have an insulating layer between the conductor layers with the lowest possible (relative) permittivity εr and a small dielectric loss factor tanδ in order to keep down the losses that increase with the frequency.
Finally, at the high clock rates and with very fine conductor tracks, it is becoming more and more important for the printed circuit board material to be distinguished by a high degree of homogeneity in the dielectric and a high uniformity in the external dimensions (small thickness fluctuations, etc.) because otherwise, in adjacent regions of the printed circuit board, undesirable propagation time differences are produced during the signal propagation and impair the functionality of the circuit constructed therewith.
All the requirements presented are satisfied only poorly or not at all by conventional epoxide-based substrate materials. Therefore, various proposals have already been made in the past in respect of using, for single or multilayer printed circuit boards, insulating intermediate layers made of a sintered glass ceramic which, at the same time, have good dielectric properties and are adapted to GaAs circuits, for example, in terms of their thermal expansion coefficient (see e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 6,017,642). However, such sintered glass ceramic substrates are complicated to produce and, as ceramic plates, have only a limited mechanical strength, so that they allow the realization of, in particular, thin single-layer printed circuit boards only with difficulty.
Another proposal relates to the use of a "glass paper"—produced from glass fibers—as dielectric for printed circuit boards (JP-A-9208252). Although such a fiber material should be less at risk of fracture compared with the glass ceramic, the irregular fibrous structure of the material results in a local inhomogeneity in the dielectric properties, which can lead to the abovementioned propagation time problems with high line densities and at high frequencies.
Finally, a whole class of substrate materials for printed circuit boards is known which comprise fluoropolymers filled with additives (ceramic particles, glass fibers) (see e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 5,149,590). Although such materials, which are commercially available for example from the US company Rogers Corp. under the designations RT/DUROID 5870–5880 and RO3000, exhibit relatively good and homogeneous dielectric properties and are therefore well suited to extremely high frequency applications, such a material is comparatively expensive on account of the complicated production and, moreover, has an unfavorable thermal expansion coefficient which is significantly higher than that of silicon.

Printed circuit board and method for producing a printed circuit board


A surgical imaging system can comprise a light source, configured to generate an imaging light beam; a beam guidance system, configured to guide the imaging light beam from the light source; a beam scanner, configured to receive the imaging light from the beam guidance system, and to generate a scanned imaging light beam; a beam coupler, configured to redirect the scanned imaging light beam; and a wide field of view (WFOV) lens, configured to guide the redirected scanned imaging light beam into a target region of a procedure eye.

Technical Field
Embodiments disclosed herein are related to improved visualization for vitreo-retinal, glaucoma, or other ophthalmic surgeries. More specifically, embodiments described herein relate to a microscope-less wide-field-of-view surgical optical coherence tomography (OCT) visualization system.
Related Art
Developing techniques to assist ophthalmic surgery with imaging and visualization is one of the hottest areas of development and innovation. One class of ophthalmic surgeries, the vitreo-retinal procedure, involves vitrectomy, the removal of the vitreous body from the posterior chamber to access the retina. The successful execution of vitrectomy requires an essentially complete removal of the vitreous, including the most challenging regions near the vitreous base. Using imaging techniques and devices can be of substantial help to improve the efficiency of the vitreous removal.
However, assisting vitrectomy with imaging is particularly challenging for several reasons. One of them is that the vitreous is transparent. Another challenge is that visualization of the periphery requires imaging beams with a high angle of obliqueness. Similar visualization issues exist during membrane peeling procedures. At present, typically microscope or video-microscope imaging is used to address the former challenge, and wide angle contact-based or non-contact based lenses are used to address the latter challenge, in each case with limited success.
Improvement of the imaging can be achieved by using optical coherence tomography (OCT), a technique that enables visualization of the target tissue in depth by focusing a laser beam onto the target, collecting the reflected beam, interfering the reflected beam with a reference beam and detecting the interference, and measuring the reflectance signature within the depth of focus of the beam. The result is a line scan in depth, a cross-sectional scan, or a volumetric scan.
OCT has become common practice in the clinic as a diagnostic tool. Surgeons take pre-op images into the operating room for reference. OCT scanning is currently not available in the operating room, and thus does not support decision making during surgery. Pre-op images have limited utility following morphologic modifications to the target during a procedure.
Efforts to develop real-time intra-surgical OCT systems are being made by multiple companies ranging from startups to large corporations. The approaches to intra-surgical OCT to date have been microscope-based or endoprobe-based. However, standard surgical microscopes are designed for visible wavelength and, therefore, may not provide satisfactory near-infrared (NIR) performance for OCT imaging. Accordingly, integrating OCT into standard surgical microscopes can require substantial modifications of the microscope. Further, these modifications can be microscope specific dependent on the particular features and optical elements of each microscope.
Accordingly, there is a need for improved devices, systems, and methods that facilitate real-time, intra-surgical, wide-field of view OCT imaging by addressing one or more of the needs discussed above.

Microscope-less wide field-of-view surgical OCT visualization system


A system, including, associating a wireless tracker with an asset, wherein the wireless tracker emits a tracker identification and a sensor payload including a fixed identification, receiving by at least one of a plurality of mobile devices the tracker identification, the sensor payload and an associated location of the at least one of the plurality of mobile devices and monitoring the tracker identification and the associated location of the at least one of the plurality of mobile devices.

Conventional inventory management relies upon human input and intervention in tracking the location and movement of assets. Human tracking lends itself to errors which in turn lead to inefficiencies in the management and movement of inventory.
Conventional truck load tracking does not provide automated feedback of movement, location or the condition of the shipment in transit such as if the shipment is not within its shipping temperature, humidity, moisture limits, or if the shipment was moved from one transport carrier to another, or the shipment was not handled properly.
Accordingly, there is a need for systems, methods, and devices for improved techniques to track inventory utilizing multiple mobile devices listening for wireless signals from inventory affixed wireless trackers without the need for human intervention.


A lithium primary battery including a positive electrode, a negative electrode, an organic electrolyte, and a separator interposed between the positive electrode and the negative electrode: the negative electrode including a negative electrode active material; the negative electrode active material being at least one selected from the group consisting of lithium metal and a lithium alloy; at least a surface layer portion of the negative electrode including a composite of amorphous carbon material and the negative electrode active material; and the surface layer portion facing the positive electrode with the separator interposed therebetween.

Since a lithium primary battery using a lithium metal or its alloy for the negative electrode active material has a high voltage and high energy density compared with conventional aqueous solution-type batteries, achieving downsizing and weight reduction is easy. Therefore, lithium primary batteries are applied for various usages, such as for a main power source of small electronic devices and for a back-up power source.
For the positive electrode active material of lithium primary batteries, generally, a metal oxide such as manganese dioxide, and graphite fluoride are used. The lithium primary battery using graphite fluoride is especially excellent in long-term storage and stability in high temperature range, and can be used in a wide temperature range, compared with those batteries using manganese dioxide.
However, as electronic devices becoming more multi-functional and small-sized, a further improvement in lithium primary battery performance is demanded. Particularly, in the case of a main power source for electronic devices to be mounted on automobiles and a back-up power source, sufficient discharge performance is required in a temperature range from low temperature to high temperature (about −40° C. to about 125° C.). When discharged at a large current, lithium primary batteries show characteristic drop in voltage in the initial stage of discharge and then gradual increase in voltage. In the lithium primary battery using graphite fluoride, the degree of voltage drop in the initial stage is high especially in the discharge in low temperature range.
One of the factors of the decline in discharge performance at low temperature is changes in viscosity of the organic electrolyte. The viscosity of γ-butyrolactone (γBL) used as the solvent of the electrolyte increases at low temperature. Therefore, ion conductivity of the electrolyte decline at low temperature. There has been proposed a usage of a solvent mixture in which 1,2-dimethoxyethane having a low boiling point and a low viscosity and γBL are mixed in a volume ratio of 1:1. In this case, there is an increase in the discharge voltage at a low temperature range of about −20° C., showing the effects of improvement. However, in such batteries, the degree of gas generation is high when stored at high temperature of about 100° C. Thus, there is a drawback in that batteries expand during storage at high temperature and normal discharge is disabled.
Further, in lithium primary batteries, the internal resistance is increased by storage at high temperature. Thus, when a battery stored at a high temperature of for example about 125° C. is discharged, the voltage drop immediately after the discharge becomes intense.
When the positive electrode polarization and negative electrode polarization are measured by a low temperature discharge −20° C. or less, in the early stage of discharge, the degree of polarization becomes higher in the negative electrode than in the positive electrode. In the batteries after a high temperature storage as well, the degree of polarization in the negative electrode becomes high. Therefore, by reducing the reaction over-voltage of negative electrode, low temperature characteristics and storage characteristics at high temperature can be improved greatly.
In the field of lithium secondary batteries, for an improvement in charge and discharge reaction, researches have been conducted on surface modification of a negative electrode comprising a lithium metal. Particularly, to reduce dendrite generation, there has been proposed a formation of a cover layer comprising carbon on the negative electrode surface (Patent Documents 1 and 2).
However, in primary batteries, which are not charged, the dendrite generation is not a great problem in the first place. Additionally, lithium metal melts from its surface by discharge. Therefore, even though a film or a layer is formed for the surface modification of the negative electrode, these are separated at the time of discharge. Thus, there is substantially no attempt to apply the surface modification techniques in the negative electrode of lithium secondary batteries to primary batteries.
[Patent Document 1]
    Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. Hei 6-168737[Patent Document 2]    Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. Hei 10-172540

Lithium primary battery and manufacturing method therefor


A polypropylene composition suitable for foaming having improved processability but maintained strain hardening and the process to produce the polypropylene composition comprising combining a linear polypropylene having a melt strength within a range from 10 to 40 cN (190° C.) with an organic peroxide to obtain a branched polypropylene having a melt strength within a range from 20 to 80 cN (190° C.), wherein the melt strength of the branched polypropylene is greater than the melt strength of the linear polypropylene; and combining the branched polypropylene having a melt flow rate within a range of 0.1 to 20 g/10 min and an Mw/Mn of at least 5 with within a range from 5 to 40 wt % of a low molecular weight polyolefin having a melt flow rate of at least 50 g/10 min and an Mw/Mn of less than 5 to obtain the polypropylene composition.

The applicability of polypropylene in industrial extrusion processes that involve both shear and extensional flows has been limited. This is partially due to its low melt strength and lack of strain hardening. Multiple approaches have been attempted in the industry to improve the melt strength and strain hardening of polypropylenes including increasing the molecular weight, broadening of the molecular weight distribution (Mw/Mn), addition of an ultra-high molecular weight tail and/or the addition of long chain branching (LCB).
While polypropylenes having improved melt strength and strain hardening have been made, these polypropylenes tend to have very high shear viscosity, making them difficult to process. It would be useful to find a polypropylene with high melt strength and strain hardening, but with a broadened process operating window for applications such as foaming and thermoforming. One way this is accomplished is to reduce the process temperature via addition of a low molecular weight additive to reduce the viscosity. However, a challenge with this approach is the reduction of strain hardening at higher concentrations of the low molecular weight additive. A better approach is needed.
Related publications include US 2015/0018463; US 2010/222470; US 2003/0119996; U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,897,452; 6,103,833; 9,410,034; EP 1 159,309 B1; EP 2 325 248 A1; EP 2 386 601 A1; EP 2 433 982 A1; WO 2010/049371; WO 2014/070384; WO 2015/200586; WO 2016/053468; and JP 2010-043162 A; and M. E. Shivokhin, L. Urbanczyk, J. Michel, and C. Bailly, in "The influence of molecular weight distribution of industrial polystyrene on its melt extensional and ultimate properties", 56(9) POLYMER ENGINEERING & SCIENCE, 1012-1020 (September 2016).

High melt strength polypropylenes with improved processability


Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer storage media, for using a surfel map to generate a prediction for a state of an environment. One of the methods includes obtaining surfel data comprising a plurality of surfels, wherein each surfel corresponds to a respective different location in an environment, and each surfel has associated data that comprises an uncertainty measure; obtaining sensor data for one or more locations in the environment, the sensor data having been captured by one or more sensors of a first vehicle; determining one or more particular surfels corresponding to respective locations of the obtained sensor data; and combining the surfel data and the sensor data to generate a respective object prediction for each of the one or more locations of the obtained sensor data.

This specification relates to automatic planning of autonomous vehicle driving decisions.
Autonomous vehicles include self-driving cars, boats, and aircraft. Autonomous vehicles use a variety of on-board sensors in tandem with map representations of the environment in order to make control and navigation decisions.
Some vehicles use a two-dimensional or a 2.5-dimensional map to represent characteristics of the operating environment. A two-dimensional map associates each location, e.g., as given by latitude and longitude, with some properties, e.g., whether the location is a road, or a building, or an obstacle. A 2.5-dimensional map additionally associates a single elevation with each location. However, such 2.5-dimensional maps are problematic for representing three-dimensional features of an operating environment that might in reality have multiple elevations. For example, overpasses, tunnels, trees, and lamp posts all have multiple meaningful elevations within a single latitude/longitude location on a map.


There is provided a document processing system in which a print image is stored into a memory and can be handled as output data by forming a document. The system comprises: a memory to store document data in a bit map style; a converter for converting the document data including characters, figures, images, etc., based on the result of the document formation into data of bit map style to be stored into the memory; an image output device corresponding to a page description language; and a circuit for making the data of bit map style stored in the memory correspond to the data format of the page description language, suitable for the particular image output device. With this system, data of substantially the same style as that in the local printing characters can be obtained from an external printing system in accordance with a request of the user.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a document processing system in which a print image is stored into a memory and can be handled as output data.
2. Related Background Art
In recent years, owing to the development of the techniques of image processing using a computer, a document can be formed, edited, and arranged by a computer, an image such as character data, figure data, image data, or the like included in the document is stored into a memory, and a printer output can be obtained from a bit image. Such a system has data of a specific image pattern (hereinafter, referred to as font data) of each character and its set width. A system called a WYS-WYG (What You See Is What You Get) which in editing can execute operations while displaying on a CRT the result of the same form (indicative of the electronic form in the present invention) as that upon printing, is main-stream. Upon printing, the font data is stored in the memory on the basis of the result of the form. On the other hand, a figure is drawn and image data is stored at a designated position on the basis of figure data (vector information). The image data is output by a printer which can execute a digital control based on the bit image in the memory.
The above system has font data, a form logic, an image memory printer, and the like in the system and can solely execute total document processes. In recent years, such a system is called a DTP (desk top publishing system) and has been highlighted.
However, the performance of the above DTP shown as a conventional example is inferior to that of a large-scale system having a computer-aided phototypographic composing machine or the like.
The following reasons are considered as causes.
First, there is a difference between resolutions of final outputs. The resolution of the DTP is set to about 400 dpi and that of the large-scale system is set to a value of 1200 to 2400 dpi or more. A bit image of 400 dpi of the A4 size requires 2 Mbytes even in the case where the bit image is constructed by binary data. To raise the resolution of 1200 dpi, 18 Mbytes, nine times as much as 2 Mbytes, are needed. Such a large capacity results in high costs of the memory and, as the quantity of data which is handled by the CPU used in the existing DTP, is a larger burden. In addition, local installation of such a printer is expensive.
Second, there is a difference between the kinds of font data. In the DTP, a few kinds, e.g., Ming-style type, Gothic type, and the like are provided. The large-scale system has a large number of various font data.
Therefore, the data which results from the form of the DTP is converted into data of the input form for the large-scale system and is output. On the large-scale system side, substantially the same form and style are derived, while an output of a high resolution is obtained by using a large number of various font data. However, it is difficult for the DTP to obtain substantially the same style as that of the result which was locally output because of differences between the form logics or between the font data. There is a drawback that editing or checking of work on the large-scale system side for the above adjustment is inevitable.

Document processing with flexible resolution and output style