An improved process for the production of ultralow density, high specific surface area gel products is provided which comprises providing, in an enclosed chamber, a mixture made up of small particles of material suspended in gas; the particles are then caused to aggregate in the chamber to form ramified fractal aggregate gels. The particles should have a radius (a) of up to about 50 nm and the aerosol should have a volume fraction (fv) of at least 10−4. In preferred practice, the mixture is created by a spark-induced explosion of a precursor material (e.g., a hydrocarbon) and oxygen within the chamber. New compositions of matter are disclosed having densities below 3.0 mg/cc.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is broadly concerned with new processes for the formation of low-density, high surface area gel products. More particularly, the invention is directed to such methods and the novel gel products themselves, wherein the gel products are formed in an enclosed chamber containing a mixture including particles of material suspended in gas under conditions to cause the particles to aggregate within the chamber and form a gel. Products may be produced having unprecedentedly low densities below 3.0 mg/cc. Gel products can be formed from virtually any starting material, provided that appropriate gelling conditions are established within the chamber.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Aerogels are a class of solid materials, produced through the sol-gel process, that are generally characterized by a fragile skeletal structure defining highly-accessible, branched mesopores. In contrast to other mesopore materials, aerogels represent a very unique and exciting class of solid materials exhibiting amorphous structures, extremely low apparent densities (with up to 95% of their volume occupied by air), high inner surface areas, and the potential to be formed into monoliths. Husing and Ulrich present a working definition of aerogels as ". . . materials in which the typical structure of the pores and the network is largely maintained while the pore liquid of a gel is replaced by air." Aerogels have very unusual properties. For example, SiO2 aerogels have a high transparency that is close to that of glass, a thermal conductivity corresponding to that of polystyrene or polyurethane foams, and very high specific surface areas. The unique feature of aerogels is the combination of these physical properties in one material. Aerogels are made via a liquid phase sol-gel process. In order to remove the solvent liquid from the pores of the wet gel (produced during the sol-gel process) without damaging the fragile skeletal network, very special drying techniques must be employed. This is typically accomplished through a supercritical drying process, in which the wet gel (immersed in the solvent material) is placed and sealed in a pressure vessel (autoclave). The temperature and pressure of the autoclave are then increased and adjusted to a point above the critical point of the solvent. The solvent material is then vented out of the pressure vessel while holding the temperature constant. Although significant shrinkage of the network typically occurs during the supercritical drying process, the remaining 3-D solid aerogel monolith remains structurally intact, Regardless of the specific processes used, the current state of the art of aerogel production is critically dependent on the liquid-based sol-gel process and, more importantly, the complex supercritical drying process necessary to remove the gel liquid without damaging the network structure.
Silica aerogels are by far the most well-developed and extensively studied of all aerogel materials. Traditionally, silica aerogels are produced via a base-catalyzed reaction of TMOS (tetramethoxysilane) or TEOS (tetraethoxysilane), usually with ammonia as the catalyst. Once gelation is complete, the resulting liquid in the wet gel is then removed via supercritical drying. The type and concentration of the precursors, the relative concentrations, the type of solvent, the temperature, and the pH of the sol-gel process all have a definitive effect on the resulting structure and properties of the silica aerogel.
A relatively new class of aerogel materials, organic aerogels, are formed through the polymerization of resorcinol/formaldehlyde (RF) or melamine/formaldehlyde (MF) precursors via the sol-gel process, followed by supercritical drying. The key variables determining the structure and properties of organic aerogels are the catalyst concentration and the pH of the solution. Carbon aerogels are then prepared by pyrolysis of organic aerogels in an inert gaseous environment at temperatures ranging from 600 to 1100° C., producing a solid carbon aerogel monolith. Carbon aerogels represent a unique and exciting class of aerogel materials due to the fact that they are the first electrically conductive aerogel materials. For example, carbon aerogels have densities (mg/cm3) of 100-600, surface areas (m2/g) of 400-1,000, average pore sizes (nm) of 4-30, and electrical conductivities (W/cm2) of 1-10.
The excellent electrical conductivities of carbon aerogels, along with their high inner surface areas, make them candidates for electrodes in electrical and electro-chemical applications. Currently, one of the most promising of these applications is in the development of electro-chemical double-layer capacitors (EDLCs), also known as supercapacitors or ultracapacitors. These devices are characterized by moderate energies and high power densities and are used in such applications as backup power supplies and on-demand peak power sources, where it is required to reversibly capture a large quantity of electric charge. Due to their high inner surface areas and highly interconnected network structures, carbon aerogels are currently the most promising new material for this application.
In addition to their superior electrical conductivity properties, carbon aerogel materials also show great promise in certain applications as thermal insulators. Although materials such as silica aerogels have long been identified as perhaps the best thermal insulators available, carbon aerogels are also very attractive in this arena. Total thermal conductivity is comprised of solid, gaseous, and radiative conductivities. The extremely low overall thermal conductivities of all aerogel materials is due partly to their high pore contents causing their solid thermal conductivities to be very low. On the other hand, the very small sizes of their pores cause their gaseous conductivities to also be quite low. Black (or highly opaque) carbon aerogels, in contrast to their silica-based counterparts, have very high IR extinctions and therefore possess much lower radiative thermal conductivities. This thermal feature of carbon aerogels makes them prime candidates for a wide variety of thermal insulation applications.
In 1998 Sorensen and coworkers demonstrated for the first time that aerosols could gel. The system was a simple acetylene/air diffusion flame in which the carbonaceous soot formed a macroscopic gel network. Soot is composed of ca. 50 nm spherical monomers, or primary particles. In a flame, these particles are at a high number density so that aggregation to fractal aggregates occurs rapidly. These aggregates form by a process called diffusion limited cluster aggregation (DLCA) and have a fractal dimension of D>1.8. Such aggregates are usually the final product in most flames, but Sorensen et al. showed that the heavily sooting acetylene flame had a volume fraction of soot roughly two orders of magnitude higher than flames for most other fuels. Thus they concluded that the rate of soot growth in the acetylene flame was five orders of magnitude faster, fast enough to form a gel in the flame.
Background references describing low-density aerogels include: U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,150,101; 5,313,485; 5,601,938; 6,296,678; 6,485,805; and 7,005,181; U.S. Published Patent Applications Nos. 2003/0022389; 2004/0029982; 2004/0159849; 2005/0064279; 2005/0131163; 2006/0116463; and foreign references EP 884376; JP 09202610; JP 2000265390; JP 2001072408; WO 2004/009673; and WO 2005/045977.

Kansas State University Research Foundation


A medication injector assembly has dual functionality in that it can be configured as a needle syringe injector for intramuscular injections and the like or as a blunt injector for injection at a Y-site in an intravenous line and the like. A cartridge for holding a volume of injectable liquid medication has an injector fitting integral with the cartridge at one end. The injector fitting forms a blunt, elongate injection tip suitable for use as a blunt injector at the Y-site. The cartridge has a second, open end for receiving a hand-operable plunger for forcing the injectable liquid from the cartridge through the injection tip. A needle subassembly has an injection needle integrally mounted to a base. The needle subassembly has a socket to form a fluid-tight, operationally secure interconnection with the injection tip of the injector fitting, and means for locking attachment to the injector fitting.

Currently, hospitals and other medical facilities stock syringes for intramuscular injections. The syringe assembly typically includes a vial or cartridge which is open-ended at one end, a hand-operable plunger which is received into the cartridge at the open end, and a needle or "sharp" subassembly. The needle subassembly typically includes the thin, elongate, hollow bore needle secured in a fluid-tight fashion to a base. The needle subassembly may be provided separately from the cartridge. The needle base can be attached to a fluid port at the end of the cartridge opposite its open end. In that regard, it is of growing importance that the needle subassembly attach to the cartridge with a positive locking feature to prevent its disengagement from the cartridge during or after use in the patient, for example, as the needle is withdrawn from the patient. At this time the needle is contaminated and should not be handled directly by the nurse, doctor, or others. While a friction fit has been employed to attach the needle subassembly to the cartridge, more preferably a positive lock such as a Luer Lock (trademark) threaded connection or the like is required.
Many hospitals and other medical facilities also now stock so-called blunt injectors. Blunt injectors employ a cartridge fitted with a hand-operable plunger and a blunt-ended injection tip. The injection tip is elongate, although typically much shorter than a standard syringe needle. It is adapted to be inserted into a self-sealing injection port at a Y-fitting in an intravenous line. An intravenous line extending from a needle which is semi-permanently installed in the patient for delivering medication, saline, etc. has a Y-fitting at some distance from the needle to present an auxiliary injection site. The blunt injector is inserted through a self-sealing membrane at such auxiliary injection site. The self-sealing membrane is slit or otherwise adapted to receive the blunt injector tip. Since a sharp needle is not needed for such injections, a blunt injector tip is used to enhance the safety of the medication administrator.
It is a significant cost burden that hospitals and other medical facilities must maintain a stock supply of both needle syringe injectors and blunt injectors. This duplicate stocking of two different types of injector assemblies involves not only undesirably high inventory costs, but also larger than desirable storage space requirements. Moreover, injection assembly cartridges often are stocked pre-filled with medication. In those cases, the cost of the medication may greatly exceed the cost of the injector assembly. Hence, redundant stocking of both blunt and sharp injector assemblies involves even much greater inventory costs. It is an object of the invention to reduce the inventory redundancy of stocking of both blunt and sharp injector assemblies. Additional objects of the invention will become apparent from the following disclosure of the invention and detailed discussion of certain preferred embodiments.

Dual function syringe and blunt assembly


A server is connected to an Ethernet port via a network and is further connected to a copier via video interface ports. The server is capable of subjecting image data read in by the copier or obtained from the network to processing for character recognition, coding and translation by a character recognition circuit, image coding/decoding circuit and translating circuit. Furthermore, image data is capable of being generated by a page-description-language interpreter based upon data, which is in the format of page description language, received from the network. Conversely, a character in the image data is capable of being recognized, coded and converted into page description language so that the amount of data sent to the network can be reduced.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an image processing method and apparatus for controlling input/output of a scanner/printer or the like, which is a combination of an image scanner and a printer. The invention relates also to an image processing system constructed using this apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Networking has made great progress in recent years and large-scale networks in which a LAN is deployed throughout the entirety of an intelligent building are now being set up. Furthermore, a nationwide network in which LAN's are connected directly by public switched telephone networks and sophisticated information networks such as ISDN's are being established.
These networks are making it possible for a user at one location to utilize a computer on another floor or in another building and enable a host computer in Osaka to be utilized from Tokyo. This in turn makes it possible for a printer server to be utilized over an extremely wide range rather than in the comparatively narrow range heretofore.
In order for a printer to be shared as a common resource of a conventional network of the abovementioned kind, the printer is connected to the network via a printer server. However, a scanner for reading in an image is not shared.
In a situation in which inputs are made utilizing a scanner, all of the input data is handled as bitmap data. Consequently, if a scanner were to be adopted as a common resource on a network, data that has been read would pass through the network and the amount of data involved would not only lower the efficiency of the network but would also necessitate a large storage area when the data is handled by a file server that is managing network files. Further, since the input data is handled as bitmap data, even a read original that is text cannot be edited as text.
Accordingly, a problem encountered in the prior art is that even if a scanner/printer having a scanner and a printer is connected to a network, the scanner cannot be utilized effectively as a shared resource of the network unless the image data read in by the scanner is subjected to appropriate processing.

Image processing apparatus method and system for converting character codes of character images extracted from an original image and positions of the images for transmission


A mobile wireless communication device, and methods therein, including producing a user-configurable sensory output (620) upon the occurrence of some event on the device, for example, the transition between sleep and active modes, or the mechanical actuation of a portion of the device. In some embodiments, the user-configurable sensory output terminates (630) after a specified time period. In other embodiments, a service provider selects the sensory output and associates it with a particular event that occurs on the device, whereupon the sensory output is produced on the device upon the occurrence of the event, for example, to communication information from the service provider.

As consumers in the competitive wireless cellular communications handset market become more sophisticated, the successful marketing of cellular handsets depends upon the ability of manufacturers and network providers to offer more than basic features. Cellular handsets are now viewed by many consumers as an apparel accessory item integrated as a part of the individual being. Consumers also increasingly desire the ability to customize and personalize their handsets, for example, as a form of self-expression, to reflect changes in mood or psychological disposition, to differentiate from others, to associate with peers, etc.
It is known to generate audio sounds upon the occurrence of specified events on cellular telephone handsets. The Motorola Timeport 280, for example, produces a sound when a charger cable is connected thereto. However, the user has no control over this signal. The Motorola V60 cellular handset enables the association of different user specified audio alerts with different incoming communications including calls and e-mail.
The various aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more fully apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon careful consideration of the following Detailed Description with the accompanying drawings described below.

User-specified outputs in mobile wireless communication devices and methods therefor


Systems and techniques are described for using a memory cache of predetermined size to map values in a source file to a result file. In general, in one implementation, the technique includes determining values in the source file called for in the result file. The called-for values are ordered in a hierarchical order of usage in the result file from a first called-for value towards a last called-for value. The source file is sequentially parsed to locate called for values and the values are stored in memory cache locations. The called-for value with the lowest priority in the cache may be replaced by a newly found called-for value having a higher priority.

The present application relates to mapping values from a source file into a result file.
Documents, referred to as result documents, may use values from other documents that may be referred to as source documents. For example, a result document may be a listing of customer names: first name then last name. The values for the first and last names may be located in a source document of customer information that includes the first and last names of customers and may also include other information such as a customer address and number, for example.
The values in the source document may not be in the same order that the values are used, or called-for, in the result document. Continuing with the example, the customer's name in the source document may be first name then last name. The first and last name values in the source document also may be separated by other values. The result document may call for the value for last name followed by the first name.
Some document types only may be accessed, also referred to as parsed, sequentially. An extensible mark-up language (XML) document is an example of a document that may only be parsed sequentially. Sequentially accessible files may only be parsed in one direction, from beginning to end, for example. The value for first name in the source document is sequentially before the value for last name in the example above. The result file first calls for the value of customer last name. The source document may be parsed sequentially until the value for customer last name is located. The value for last name then may be provided for use in the result document. The result document next calls for the value of first name from the source document. Because the source document may only be parsed sequentially and the value for the customer first name has been passed, the parser, in this example, must restart parsing from the beginning of the document to locate the customer first name. In order to reduce the re-parsing of the source document, the values called for by the result document may be stored in a values storage cache until they are needed. In the example, the value for the customer first name may be stored in the value storage cache until the value for the customer last name is located. The values for last name and first name may both be stored in the values storage cache and provided to the result document when called for.


A syntax checker that simultaneously provides real-time feedback to the user regarding more than one syntactic requirement is disclosed. The syntax checker can be configured by the user to provide feedback about certain rules or rule sets and to omit feedback for other rules or rule sets. Also disclosed is a password validation mechanism that checks a submitted password string against the requirements of more than one password-protected resource and provides visual feedback to the user regarding success or failure. This visual feedback is provided using three different visual cues.

Computer systems vary to a large degree, but a common trait shared by user-based computer systems is the ability to receive information from a user, manipulate it somehow, and present the information back to the user. Generally speaking the information presented to the user by the computer system varies based upon the information provided by the user as input. This input information comes in many forms. It may be nothing more than a double click with a pointing device or it may amount to pages and pages of typewritten text for a paper or a book. In some cases it is important for the user to format the information in a specific way. For example, a computer user who sets a password or who submits a database query must take care to ensure that the input information follows a particular format. If care is not taken, the user password will not be set or the database query will not be valid. This patent involves how a computer system provides feedback to a user when receiving information that has been formatted incorrectly.
Present day feedback mechanisms do inform the user of the improperly formatted password. More sophisticated mechanisms may even be specific about the particular rule that has been violated. The problem, though, is that passwords, like many format-specific items, often have format requirements involving several different rules, and the rules may vary depending upon anticipated uses. For example, a password may be valid on for one resource, but not for another. This means, of course, that the user is told only that there is a format problem, or in the best case that there is a specific formatting problem, but the user is not told whether other formatting rules have been violated. The user, then, may correct one formatting problem only to learn later that the solution to the first problem causes one or more errors relative to other formatting requirements. Naturally, this can make for a very frustrating experience for the user.
Without a way to better inform users regarding formatting problems, user frustration regarding format-specific information entry will persist.

International Business Machines Corporation


A Primary Force Ring for magnetohydrodynamic propulsion of a vehicle including: an endless closed loop vehicle housing; a plurality of spaced pairs of positive and negative electric field plates coupled to at least one voltage source and mounted in the housing for generating a plurality of discrete spaced electric fields within the housing; and, a plurality of electromagnetic field coils mounted in the housing with one field coil intermediate each pair of field plates for generating an endless segmented closed loop magnetic field contained within the housing and intersecting the discrete electric fields at substantially right angles.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to a magnetohydrodynamic propulsion system for a vehicle; and, more particularly, to a propulsion system for aircraft and/or aerospace vehicles suitable for use in either point-to-point intra- and/or intercontinental travel--i.e., between spaced points of embarkation and destination points located on the same continent and/or different continents on earth--or in connection with interplanetary or deep space travel.
More specifically, the present invention relates to methods and apparatus comprising a magnetohydrodynamic propulsion system which is highly fuel efficient and environmentally neutral or safe. To this end, the present invention employs an efficient ion generation system capable of use with a wide range of fuels, but which finds particularly advantageous use with hydrogen/oxygen fuels--viz., fuels that are economical and in plentiful supply since they can be readily extracted from seawater and the like. The arrangement is such that water is broken down by electrolysis into hydrogen and oxygen which are then stored in separate collector tanks mounted within the vehicle. In operation, hydrogen and oxygen are introduced into a plasma generator in the form of a conventional hydrogen/oxygen rocket motor having a combustion chamber where they are ignited to form a plasma of positively charged water molecules (H.sub.2 O.sup.+) and electrons (e.sup.-). The plasma is then passed through a small deflection magnetic field coil where the positively charged water molecules (H.sub.2 O.sup.+) and electrons (e.sup.-) are, due to Lorentz forces, separated and directed along opposite paths--e.g., the electrons (e.sup.-) may move in a clockwise direction while the positively charged water molecules (H.sub.2 O.sup.+) move in a counterclockwise direction. In essence, the electrons (e.sup.-), which have a very small mass, are attracted to, and attached to, the nozzle of the hydrogen/oxygen rocket motor where they are conveyed via the vehicle frame, or other suitable conductive transmission line, to a point suitable for later recombination with the positively charged water molecules (H.sub.2 O.sup.+) after the latter have been accelerated at high velocity through an electromagnetic field to create the forces necessary to propel the vehicle.
As a second significant aspect of the invention, the propulsion system of the present invention employs means comprising what is herein termed a "Primary Force Ring" for generating a segmented toroidal magnetic field. To this end, the illustrative and exemplary form of the invention includes an endless, or closed-loop, housing which is here ring-shaped and which is subdivided into one hundred and twenty (120) adjacent segment openings. An electromagnetic field coil is positioned within every other segment opening with such field coils alternating with pairs of positive and negative electric field plates disposed within the intermediate segment openings--i.e., there are sixty (60) electromagnetic field coils alternating with sixty (60) pairs of positive and negative electric field plates in the exemplary form of the invention, with the positive and negative electric field plates in each pair being parallel to the magnetic field and radially spaced from one another. As a consequence of the foregoing construction, the magnetic field is, except for negligible fringing effects, entirely confined within, and extends centrally through, the Primary Force Ring, while the electric field generated by each pair of positive and negative electric field plates intersects the magnetic field at ninety degrees (90.degree.)--i.e., the magnetic field extends circumferentially about the vertical center line passing through the vehicle, while the electric fields extend radially through the circular magnetic field.
As the ensuing description proceeds, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the particular number of segment openings in the Primary Force Ring and, therefore, the number of electromagnetic field coils and alternating pairs of positive and negative electric field plates, is not critical to the present invention and may vary widely from significantly fewer to significantly more than the illustrative one hundred and twenty (120) segment openings dependent upon such variables as the size of the vehicle to be propelled. Moreover, while the invention finds particularly advantageous results can be achieved using a circular ring-shaped Primary Force Ring which is readily comformable to a saucer-shaped vehicle, the invention is not so limited; and, the Primary Force Ring can take other configurations such, for example, as rectilinear or polygonal provided only that the structure defines an endless or closed loop configuration.
Thus, the arrangement is such that the positively charged water molecules (H.sub.2 O.sup.+) exiting the ion generation system or rocket motor are: i) introduced into the magnetic field intermediate each pair of spaced electric field plates; ii) acted upon by Lorentz forces; and iii), accelerated through such field, exiting the Primary Force Ring beneath the vehicle where they are recombined with the electrons (e.sup.-) and discharged into the environment as innocuous neutral water droplets. And, because the resulting Lorentz forces applied to the positively charged water molecules (H.sub.2 0.sup.+) result in the application of an equal and opposite reaction force to the magnetic field, and therefore to the Primary Force Ring and the vehicle, all in accordance with Newton's Law, such reaction force, when uniformly applied about the periphery of the vehicle, serves to propel the vehicle through the atmosphere and/or in space along a line coincident with the vehicle's vertical center line. Alternatively, the reaction force can be controlled such that it is non-uniformly applied about the vehicle periphery for the purpose of changing its attitude such that the vertical axis of the vehicle is disposed in an attitude other than vertical with respect to earth. Moreover, vehicles propelled by the present invention can be equipped with a YAW controller such that the reaction force generated can be employed to turn the vehicle about its vertical axis and/or to propel the vehicle in any desired direction normal or at an acute included angle to the vehicle's vertical axis.
The present invention is characterized by the economic production of large quantities of ions or positively charged particles--preferably, but not necessarily, positively charged water molecules (H.sub.2 0.sup.+)--and the generation of significant thrust at high specific impulse. Indeed, specific impulse on the order of equal to, and even greater than, 36,000 is readily achieved with the present invention as contrasted to specific impulse in the range of 360 to 400 for a standard hydrogen/oxygen rocket motor. Moreover, because the Primary Force Ring comprises a continuous, but segmented, toroid, essentially all magnetic and electric fields--except for minor fringing effects--are maintained internal of the Primary Force Ring, thereby substantially eliminating the presence of such fields external to the vehicle. This fact, for all practical purposes, precludes attraction of ferrous or other magnetic materials from the surrounding environment, minimizes pitting and corrosion of the vehicle hull, and substantially eliminates other undesirable effects of environmental magnetic fields.
In carrying out the present invention, the vehicle configuration is unimportant provided only that it permits of usage of a closed loop, segmented, toroidal Primary Force Ring lying in the horizontal plane of the vehicle normal to a vertical axis passing through the vehicle. Thus, the present invention finds particularly advantageous use with disk or saucer-shaped vehicles; and, it has herein been disclosed in an exemplary embodiment with such a vehicle. However, as the ensuing description proceeds, and as previously noted, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the actual vehicle configuration can be other than saucer-shaped--for example, the vehicle can have an ellipsoidal, elongate, polygonal or even rectilinear configuration when viewed in plan--provided only that the vehicle configuration permits inclusion of a closed loop, continuous, segmented, toroidal Primary Force Ring employing spaced positive and negative electric fields plates interposed in the segment openings in the toroidal or closed loop segmented magnetic field establishing a series of spaced electric field intersecting the segmented toroidal magnetic field at substantially right angles with respect thereto.
2. Background Art
The prior art is replete with disclosures of proposed systems for generating and accelerating charged particles; and, in some instances, for using variations of such conventional systems for vehicle propulsion purposes. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,322,374 issued to J. F. King, Jr. in 1967, discloses a magnetohydrodynamic propulsion system including means for ionizing the fluid medium surrounding the vehicle and through which the vehicle is moving. To this end, King provides a series of electrically conductive, inductive, driving rings or coils surrounding the vehicle and spaced along its axis of movement. The driving rings are excited by applying AC currents thereto so as to produce a moving or pulsating magnetic field of varying intensity external to the vehicle and wherein the point of maximum fluid density travels progressively from the leading end or top of the vehicle to the trailing end or bottom of the vehicle, thereafter switching back to the leading end and repeating its travel. An air ionizer is provided at the leading end or top of the vehicle to highly ionize the air surrounding the vehicle and provide a surrounding field or cloud in which eddy currents may be induced by the magnetic field generated by the series of driving rings. It is stated that such traveling field serves to generate or induce an eddy current flowing between finite particles of atmosphere which co-act with the flux of the field to set up a force on the conductor tending to cause the conductor to move with the traveling field. Hence, a powerful thrust is said to be exerted on the vehicle in the desired direction of travel by the oppositely directed travel of the conductor--i.e., the ionized or plasma medium.
It is believed that the King propulsion system is, theoretically, operative; but, that it is not a practical system capable of independent self-flying operation. That is, the system is believed to require a very large separate and independent power source that must be cabled to the vehicle. The system is further environmentally disadvantageous because it employs magnetic fields pulsating into the external atmosphere surrounding the vehicle.
Boden U.S. pat. No. 3,279,176 assigned to North American Aviation, Inc. discloses a conventional rocket engine propulsion system for aerospace vehicles utilizing electrically accelerated cesium ions to develop rocket engine thrust. The patent states that usage of electrical energy for generating ions and accelerating such ions between positive and negative charged electrodes in a high potential electrical field enables the weight of the vehicle to be greatly reduced. Again, however, it is believed that the system, although practical and in use, is highly inefficient, requiring an extremely large power source for the accelerating grids in order to maintain the electric field; and, of course, the quantity of ions generated will be relatively low for a given power input.
In Hendel et al U.S. Pat. No. 3,279,175, apparatus is disclosed for generating and accelerating charged particles. Thus, the patentees propose using an R.F. generator to create a moving electric field for ionizing a plasma which is set in motion and directed by magnetic coils as shown in Hendel et al FIG. 4. As in the King patent, the magnetic field created is environmentally external to the apparatus. Because the ions are generated by radio frequencies, it is believed that the number of ions generated is relatively small; and, since the charged particles are constrained for movement parallel with the magnetic field, they have a tendency to spin.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,243,954 issued to Electro-Optical Systems, Inc. as the assignee of G. L. Cann discloses a plasma accelerator using Hall currents to achieve extremely high gas velocities. An arc jet is utilized to heat and partially ionize a gas stream which is passed through a sonic orifice and expanded in a supersonic nozzle. A second electric discharge is maintained along the length of the nozzle by striking a discharge from a ring cathode at the nozzle outlet to the anode of the first arc. An axisymmetric magnetic field is applied throughout the volume of the nozzle such that the field strength drops to a very small value at the nozzle outlet. The arrangement serves to induce a tangential Hall current that interacts with the applied magnetic field to produce axial and radial forces on the gas. As shown in FIG. 4 of the Cann patent, an accelerator comprising a plurality of magnetic field coils encased within a metal tube is employed for accelerating the plasma.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,232,046 issued to the Aerospace Corporation as the assignee of R. X. Meyer, the patentee discloses a magnetohydrodynamic high-specific-impulse engine said to be suitable for space operation. The system employs means for ionizing a gas which is moved through the device by electrostatic and magnetic means. An external magnetic field generating means is employed to establish a magnetic lens which serves to direct the charged particles through an ejection nozzle.
U.S Pat. No. 3,177,654 issued to Ryan Aeronautical Company as the assignee of V. Gradecak discloses what is purported to comprise an electric aerospace propulsion system. As here shown, the patentee employs spaced charged screens through which air is passed and ionized. Magnetic coils surround the ionization chamber and are employed to squeeze the ion plasma out in a jet. Again, since the ions are electrically generated, a significant power source is required imposing severe limitations on the quantity of ions that can be generated. No means are provided for confining the magnetic field to the interior of the vehicle; and, therefore, the system is again environmentally undesirable.
Lary et al U.S. Pat. No 3,155,858 assigned to United Aircraft Corporation discloses an ion accelerator for generating thrust for propulsion in space. Hot cesium gas is introduced into an annular opened-ended chamber through a porous tungsten ring to produce a supply or source of ions through contact ionization. A magnetic element extends axially through the chamber and is surrounded by a magnetizing coil. Under the influence of both the magnetic field and the electric field from an external power supply, the ions are moved along the chamber and ejected from the nozzle end thereof. Because the ions are electrically generated, thrust is limited.
In Kunen U.S. Pat. No. 3,032,978 assigned to Republic Aviation Corporation, a magnetic compression engine is disclosed employing charged plates which serve to electrically ionize the plasma. The ionized plasma is directed through an outlet nozzle as shown in FIGS. 3 through 5 by means of electrodes and magnets which act upon the stream.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,997,013 issued to W. A. Rice is of interest for its disclosure of a propulsion system for use with a vehicle traveling in either salt water--an electrolyte--or in ionic space. The outer skin of the hull of the vehicle is provided with a series of magnets and a series of electrodes that carry high current. The magnetic flux and electric field generated act on the electrolytic and/or ionic environment to propel the vessel. The system is environmentally disadvantageous because both the electromagnetic fields and the electric fields are external to the hull of the system, thereby creating a corrosive effect and attracting environmental metallic materials.
In summary, prior art systems of the type disclosed in the Rice patent and the other prior art patents discussed above generally employ magnetic and/or electric fields external to the vehicle body which tend to, or are required to, interact with the environment. For the most part, ions are generated employing electric methods. Such systems tend to be highly inefficient and require exorbitant amounts of electric power to generate a relatively small quantity of ions.

Primary force ring for magnetohydrodynamic propulsion system


A control system comprising a powertrain relay diagnostic module that determines a single continuous period that a powertrain relay voltage is less than an ignition relay voltage, that compares the single continuous period to a single predetermined period, and that diagnoses a powertrain relay out of correlation (OOC) error when the single continuous period is greater than or equal to the single predetermined period, and an ignition relay diagnostic module that diagnoses an ignition relay OOC error when the ignition relay voltage is less than the powertrain relay voltage for a first predetermined cumulative period within a first predetermined total period.

The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.
Internal combustion engines combust an air-fuel mixture to generate drive torque. Powertrain components inject air and fuel into cylinders to create the air-fuel mixture. Ignition components ignite the air-fuel mixture. A power supply provides power to the powertrain components and the ignition components through a powertrain relay and an ignition relay, respectively.
A powertrain relay voltage and an ignition relay voltage are monitored to ensure that the powertrain relay and the ignition relay are functioning properly. Generally, the powertrain relay voltage and the ignition relay voltage are equal. Powertrain and ignition relay errors may occur due to open relay coils, poor relay contacts, blown fuses, shorted relay coils, shorted or open relay control drivers and wiring, and shorted or open feedback wires.

Powertrain and ignition diagnostic system and method


Example embodiments of the present invention relate to an organic insulator composition, an organic insulating film having the organic insulator composition, an organic thin film transistor having the organic insulating film, an electronic device having the organic thin film transistor and methods of forming the same. Other example embodiments of the present invention relate to an organic insulator composition including a fluorinated silane compound that may be used to improve the charge carrier mobility and hysteresis of an organic thin film transistor. An organic insulator composition including a fluorinated silane compound and an organic thin film transistor using the same is provided. The hysteresis and physical properties, e.g., threshold voltage and/or charge carrier mobility, of the organic thin film transistor may be improved by the use of the organic insulator composition. The organic thin film transistor may be effectively used in the manufacture of a variety of electronic devices including liquid crystal displays (LCDs) and/or photovoltaic devices.

1. Field
Example embodiments of the present invention relate to an organic insulator composition, an organic insulating film having the organic insulator composition, an organic thin film transistor having the organic insulator composition, an electronic device having the organic thin film transistor and methods of forming the same. Other example embodiments of the present invention relate to an organic insulator composition including a fluorinated silane compound that may be used to improve the charge carrier mobility and hysteresis of an organic thin film transistor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Flat panel displays (e.g., liquid crystal displays and/or organic electroluminescence displays) may include a number of thin film transistors (TFTs) for driving the devices. Thin film transistors may include a gate electrode, a gate insulating layer, source and/or drain electrodes and a semiconductor layer activated in response to the driving of the gate electrode. Amorphous silicon (a-Si) and polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) may be currently used as channel materials for semiconductor layers of thin film transistors (TFTs). Recent developments in various conductive organic materials have led to a great deal of research on organic thin film transistors (OTFTs) using organic semiconductor materials (e.g., pentacene, polythiophene and/or any other suitable material). OTFTs may have lower charge carrier mobility, higher driving voltage and/or higher threshold voltage when compared to transistors using amorphous Si. In order to simplify fabrication and reduce fabrication costs, OTFTs may be fabricated by an all-printing and/or all-spin process on plastic substrates. There has been research into increasing the charge carrier mobility at the interface between gate insulating layers and organic semiconductor layers and forming gate insulating layers by a simplified procedure.
According to the conventional art, a gate insulating layer may be made of an inorganic metal oxide (e.g., BaxSr1-xTiO3 (barium strontium titanate (BST)), Ta2O5, Y2O3, TiO2 and/or any other suitable inorganic metal oxide) or a ferroelectric insulator (e.g., PbZrxTi1-XO3 (PZT), Bi4Ti3O12, BaMgF4, SrBi2 (Ta1-xNbx)2O9, Ba(Zr1-xTix)O3 (BZT), BaTiO3, SrTiO3, Bi4Ti3O12 and/or any other suitable ferroelectric insulator) and may be formed by chemical vapor deposition, physical vapor deposition, sputtering, and/or sol-gel coating. Although the driving voltage of the OTFTs may be reduced to as low as about −5V, the charge carrier mobility may still be about 0.6 cm2/Vs or less. Because most fabrication processes require a relatively high temperature of about 200° C.˜about 400° C., plastic substrates suitable for use in the manufacture of flexible displays may not be used. Common wet processes (e.g., simple coating and/or printing) may not be applied to fabricate the devices. The conventional art may also suggest the use of polyimide, benzocyclobutene and photoacryls as materials for organic insulating films. The characteristics of organic insulating films formed using the materials may be insufficient to replace inorganic insulating films.

Organic insulator composition, organic insulating film having the same, organic thin film transistor having the same and electronic device having the same and methods of forming the same


The present disclosure provides a method for providing a voice prompt and a text prompt using a mobile phone client and a corresponding mobile phone client. The method uses software locally installed in the mobile phone to answer an incoming call automatically, provide a voice prompt including a plurality of options to the caller, and according to a selection of the caller, provide a user of the mobile phone with a text prompt corresponding to the selection from the caller. The present disclosure may advantageously achieve voice prompts and quick text feedbacks by using local software functions in the mobile phone, so that the user of the mobile phone can quickly learn intention of the caller.

Currently, with development of smart mobile phones, there are many ways for a mobile phone to handle an incoming call, such as interception or filtering an incoming call. Personalized options for the mobile phone provide more humanized handlings to users. For example, the mobile phone may be set to refuse any incoming call when its user is asleep, has a meeting, or drives.
Generally, a function of interception or filtering an annoying call can prompt a user that an incoming call is an annoying call. However, if a personalized setting for refusing an incoming call has been set up by the user, a rejection record merely shows numbers and times of refused calls.
Similarly, if the mobile phone is set to refuse any incoming call when a user is asleep, the user may see prompts of showing numbers and times of refused calls only. Nevertheless, the user cannot know intention and content of the missed calls. If there are a plurality of missed calls, the user cannot distinguish importance levels and priorities of these calls.
There are voice mailbox services in prior art, such as a pay voice mailbox service operated by a telecommunication operator. However, the function of the voice mailbox is implemented by recording voice information at a server of the telecommunication operator and prompting a user of a mobile phone via a short message or the like. A prompt received by the user of the mobile phone may include a number of an incoming call dialing the voice mailbox and a time length of recorded voice information, etc. The prompt does not include an importance level or a priority of voice information. If the user of the mobile phone receives multiple pieces of voice information, the user of the mobile phone has to dial a dedicated number for the voice mailbox of the telecommunication operator and listens to the multiple pieces of voice information one by one, so as to learn the importance level or priority of the voice information.
Accordingly, a solution in which importance levels of missed calls can be distinguished by a user and it is not needed for the user to spend a lot of time to dial the missed calls or listen to voice mails one by one.

Method using mobile-phone client side to provide voice option and text prompt and corresponding mobile-phone client side


The invention provides a material coated with an organic film which exhibits excellent corrosion resistance and lacquer adhesion. The invention includes an electroconductive substrate coated with an electrolytically polymerized coating film containing chromium. Particularly, a zinc-type plated steel sheet coated with an electrolytically polymerized coating film containing chromium in accordance with the invention is well suited for application in vehicle bodies. The invention further provides a method of making a material coated with an organic film which involves forming organic coating material containing chromium on an electroconductive substrate acting as an electrode by electrolytically polymerizing an organic monomer in an electrolyte solution containing chromium. The method provides a monolithic composite structure comprising chromium compounds and an organic coating film, and avoid the problems associated with passivation after chromium plating of steel. The method of the invention can also reduce processing by two-thirds in relation to conventional methods.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to organic coated materials having excellent corrosion resistance and lacquer adhesion, and methods of economically making the same. In particular, the present invention relates to electroconductive substrate with an electrolytically polymerized coating film containing chromium formed thereon, and a method of making the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to steel or zinc-type plated steel substrate, suitable for vehicle bodies, having an electrolytically polymerized coating film containing chromium, and relates to a method of making the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Application of various surface-treated steel sheets to vehicle bodies are increasing every year in response to the demand for high corrosion resistance. A zinc-type plated steel sheet is a typical example of a surface treated steel sheet.
However, steel sheets for vehicle bodies require more corrosion resistance at concealed and hemming portions at the inner sections of the body which are exposed to high humidity, because coating after body assembly is not always sufficient at such portions.
In response to such demand, organic composite coated steel sheets, of which a chromate layer and an organic polymer resin layer containing silica and having a thickness of several .mu.m or less are coated on a zinc-type-plated steel sheets, have been proposed, as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication Nos. 91-130,141 and 90-258,335, for example. Such organic composite coated steel sheets are widely used for the interior of the body, because these exhibit excellent corrosion resistance even through noncoated after body assembly.
Cost reduction has been continuously required in the vehicle industries. Since the organic composite coated steel sheets are made with use of a chromate layer coating step and an organic layer coating step after plating, each step needs a coater station and an oven for baking, resulting in increased facility costs and operation costs. Further, mechanical properties of organic composite coated steel sheets may worsen after baking.
Electrodeposition and electrolytic polymerization can provide an organic coating film on a steel sheet which does not pass through coating steps using coaters.
In electrodeposition, a polymer and a pigment are migrated to and deposited on a steel sheet under high voltage in an aqueous electrodeposition solution or dispersion containing a polymer (or resin) and a pigment. The uniformity of the film coated by the electrodeposition is inferior to that obtained by using a coater. Thus, a uniform thin film having a thickness of several .mu.m can be barely deposited on the steel sheet. Further, the use of high voltage power and an inevitable baking step after electrodeposition causes high production costs.
In electrolytic polymerization as an alternative coating method, a monomer is electrolytically polymerized to form an organic coating film on a substrate. The polymerization can be carried out under relatively low voltage. Electrolytic polymerization has been applied to electronic materials, such as capacitors, as disclosed in Japanese Examined Patent Publication Nos. 91-65,008, 91-61,314, and 92-7,521, in which the coated film primarily requires electroconductivity, and thus none of these references refer to achievement of corrosion resistance of the coated substrate.
Surface treatment for directly depositing an electrolytic polymer film on a metallic substrate is disclosed in Japanese Examined Patent Publication No. 75-15,485 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 80-16,075, in which only an electrolytically polymerized coating film is formed on an aluminum or iron sheet, and no chromium layer is deposited. Therefore, the sheet after coating exhibits insufficient corrosion resistance at poor adhesion portions in electrodeposition performed after the electrolytic polymerization. When forming a thicker coating film, spot weldability of steel sheets deteriorates to an impractical level for use in vehicles.

Organic coated material having an electrolytically polymerized coating film containing chromium and method


An example semiconductor device is capable of preventing a buried diffusion region formed near the bottom surface of a source trench from diffusing to the extent that it contacts a gate trench in the vicinity of that buried diffusion region even if the accuracy of the photographic step of trench formation is not so high. A side wall is formed on the circumferential side of the source trench and then impurities are injected to the bottom surface of the source trench. When the impurities are heated and diffused, the buried P+-type diffusion region is formed with a width almost identical to the width of the opening of the source trench or smaller than the width of the opening of the source trench. Thus, even when irregularities are generated in the manufacturing step and the buried diffusion region becomes larger than is necessary, it is possible to prevent contact of the buried diffusion region with the gate trench.

Power MOSFET semiconductor devices having a trench gate have recently been applied to a wide range of various types of power supply devices such as DC-DC converters. An example of this type of semiconductor device is shown in FIGS. 38A and 38B. FIGS. 38A and 38B are explanatory views showing an example of a semiconductor device having the constitution of a power MOSFET pertaining to the prior art, with 38A being a view showing an example of a semiconductor device having a gate trench, and 38B being a view showing an example of a semiconductor device having a gate trench and a source trench. In the figures, reference symbol 111 indicates a N+-type silicon substrate, 112 indicates a N−-type epitaxial layer, 113 indicates a P-type body layer, 114 and 143 indicate source trenches, 115 indicates an N+-type source region, 116 indicates a gate insulating film, 117 indicates a gate electrode film, 119 indicates a source electrode film, 120 indicates a gate trench, 121 indicates a P+-type diffusion region, 125 indicates a drain electrode film, 126 indicates an insulating film, 140 and 142 indicate buried P+-type diffusion regions, and 141 indicates an insulating film.
As shown, for example, in FIG. 38A, a semiconductor device like that described above forms a drain layer in the form of N−-type epitaxial layer 112 on N+-type silicon substrate 111, and forms P-type body layer 113 on N−-type epitaxial layer 112. P+-type diffusion region 121 and N+-type source region 115 are formed within P-type body region 113. P+-type diffusion region 121 and N+-type source region 115 comprise a single cell. A large number of such cells are formed, and are arranged in the form of a lattice or staggered lattice in a planar constitution. Alternatively, P+-type diffusion region 121 and N+-type source region 115 are formed into a striped pattern by continuing the cross-sectional structure shown in FIG. 38A.
Moreover, gate trench 120 is formed extending to N−-type epitaxial layer 112 through P-type body layer 113. Gate insulating film 116 is formed and closely adhered to the top surface and bottom surface of gate trench 120, and gate electrode film 117 is formed in the space surrounded by gate insulating film 116. In addition, insulating film 126 is formed so as to cover gate insulating film 116 and gate electrode film 117, and a separate insulating film 141 is formed on the surface of N+-type source region 115 and insulating film 126.
Moreover, source electrode film 119 is formed on insulating film 141 and P+-type diffusion region 121, and on a portion of N+-type source region 115. In addition, drain electrode film 125 is formed on the other side of N+-type silicon substrate 111.
In this semiconductor device, when a voltage is applied between source electrode film 119 and drain electrode film 125, and a voltage greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold value is applied between gate electrode film 117 and source electrode film 119, an inversion layer is formed in the boundary region with gate insulating film 116 of P-type body layer 113 that serves as a channel. Current then flows through this channel from drain electrode film 125 to source electrode film 119.
However, in a semiconductor device having this type of constitution, in the case of attempting to reduce the size of the device, it is necessary to make the cell size smaller by reducing mesa width E. Therefore, the structure shown in FIG. 38B is known as a way to reduce cell size. Namely, a source trench 114 is formed within the cell, and a source electrode film 119 is formed within source trench 114. Moreover, a structure is also known in which, after injecting impurities such as boron in the vicinity of the bottom of source trench 114, those impurities are heated and diffused to form buried P+-type diffusion region 140. According to this structure, as a result of a portion of source electrode film 119 being buried in source trench 114, mesa width F can be made to be smaller than mesa width E of FIG. 38A.
However, when cell size is made considerably smaller, due to limitations on the accuracy of the photographic step of trench formation, the source trench is not formed at a predetermined location, but rather as indicated for source trench 143, for example, is frequently formed in close proximity to gate trench 120. In such cases, when a certain degree of variation occurs in the diffusion range of buried P+-type diffusion region 140, there is diffusion to the extent to contact gate insulating film 116 as indicated for buried P+-type diffusion region 142. Since buried P+-type diffusion region 142 ends up being formed so as to be interposed P-type body layer 113 and N+-type source region 115, a shift occurs in the predetermined threshold value previously mentioned.
In order to solve the aforementioned problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor device capable of preventing a buried diffusion region formed near the bottom surface of a source trench from diffusing to the extent that it contacts a gate trench in the vicinity of that buried diffusion region even in the case the accuracy of the photographic step of trench formation is not that high.

Shindengen Electric Manufacturing Co., Ltd.


A method for referencing an image comprises the steps of displaying the image on a first display device, receiving selection of at least a portion of the image via the first display device, receiving content, wherein the content is associated with and digitally linked to at least the portion of the image for which selection was received, transmitting the image as part of a message included in a continuous stream of messages from the first display device to a second display device, displaying at least a portion of the message on the second display device as part of the continuous stream of messages, and displaying the content on the second display device and indicating that the content is associated with the specific portion of the image.

Electronic communication, including messaging, provides a very efficient manner of information exchange. In such forms of electronic communication, messages are exchanged between multiple parties in order to convey information. In one known form of messaging, two users operate respective client devices and effectively engage in conversation by transmitting messages between each other. Such communication may be in the form of a single continuous stream of back and forth messaging. Also, in some situations, more than two users (operating, for example, more than two respective client devices) may be communicating in a single continuous stream. While a single stream of messages may be transmitted in an ongoing sequence, it is also possible to have multiple channels, each with their own respective stream of messages.
A "conversation" of messages may be short or it may occur over an extended period of time. Such a period of time can last for hours, days, or even years. During the process of such a conversation, a large quantity of messages may be transmitted between multiple users. As an example, these messages may contain images. It is known to scroll through (or otherwise visually traverse) messages to view an image associated with an earlier message.
The above Figures may include accompanying text that provides explanation regarding what is shown. It is understood that the accompanying text is being provided merely for explanatory purposes, is with regards to exemplary embodiments of the present invention, and should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present invention.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Apparatus and method for message image reference management


An efficient error correction processor is disclosed for correcting a multi-dimensional code comprising a first set of codewords that intersect with a second set of codewords. The error correction is carried out by performing iterative passes over the first and second set of codewords. The individual codewords are corrected using error syndromes which are computed as a function of the codeword data. In the preferred embodiment, the individual codewords are encoded according to a Reed-Solomon code and the error syndromes are computed as the modulo division of the codeword polynomial by the factors of a generator polynomial. To increase the throughput of the error correction processor, a syndrome buffer is employed to facilitate generating the error syndromes for both the first and second set codewords concurrently. In this manner, after a pass over the first set of codewords, the error syndromes for the second set codewords are available for immediate processing. In one embodiment, the syndrome buffer stores the error syndromes for both the first and second set codewords so that only one pass over the codewords is necessary to generate the error syndromes. In subsequent passes, the error syndromes are available immediately; they are not regenerated as in the prior art.

In storage devices for computer systems, a digital stream of data modulates the operation of a write transducer (e.g., the current in a coil or intensity of a laser beam) in order to write a series of transitions onto the surface of a rotating magnetic or optical disk in the form of concentric or spiral data tracks. Reading the recorded data entails positioning a read transducer over a data track, sensing the surface transitions, and demodulating the resulting analog read signal into an estimated data sequence representing the originally recorded data.
This process of recording and reading data to and from a disk storage medium is similar to a communication channel where digital data is transmitted through a noisy communication medium such as a cable or the atmosphere. In both communication and recording systems, the goal is to receive/read the transmitted/recorded data reliably and efficiently. Reliability is a measure of how accurate the data is received or, alternatively, the bit error rate in the estimated data sequence detected from the channel signal after having been corrupted by noise inherent in the recording/communication process. Efficiency is a measure of the source data rate; that is, how fast the source data can be transmitted through the communication medium and still maintain a specified bit error rate. In computer storage systems, efficiency is a measure of the linear data density in a given track and the number of concentric tracks per inch (tpi).
In what is known as the "noisy channel coding theorem", Shannon showed that the reliability and efficiency parameters of a communication system are related: the basic limitation that noise causes in a communication channel is not on the reliability of the communication, but on the speed of communication. The maximum rate that data can be transmitted over a discrete-memoryless channel and still make the error probability approach zero is called the channel capacity which is ultimately a function of the channel bandwidth and the signal-to-noise ratio or SNR.
A well known method for increasing the SNR in a communication system, and therefore increase the reliability and efficiency of the system, is to encode the source data according to an error correction code (ECC). Error correction codes increase the effective SNR by increasing the system's immunity to noise. Block error correcting codes are commonly employed in disk storage systems, particularly the Reed-Solomon block code due to its excellent error correction properties and low implementation cost and complexity.
Block codes encode a k-symbol input block of the source data stream into an n-symbol output block or codeword where n-k is the number of redundancy symbols and k/n is referred to as the code rate. The codewords are then transmitted through (stored to) the communication medium and decoded by the receiver. The encoding process performs a mathematical operation over the input block such that the output codewords are different from one another by a parameter referred to as the minimum distance of the code d.sub.min. The minimum distance d.sub.min between codewords determines the amount of noise that the system can tolerate before a received codeword is decoded erroneously.
With Reed-Solomon codes, each symbol of the data stream is typically selected from a finite field GF(2.sup.w) where w is the number of binary data bits in a symbol. Each symbol of the k-symbol input block represents the coefficients of a data polynomial D(x). The redundancy symbols (which are also represented as a polynomial W(x)) are then computed as the modulo division of the input data polynomial D(x) by a generator polynomial G(x): EQU W(x)=(x.sup.m .cndot.D(x)) MOD G(x)
where m is the degree of the generator polynomial which equals the number of redundancy symbols. The redundancy polynomial W(x) is then added to the data polynomial D(x) to generate a codeword polynomial C(x):
ti C(x)=(x.sup.m .cndot.D(x))+W(x).
The encoder circuitry for performing the above operations can be implemented simply as a linear feedback shift register (LFSR).
After encoding, the codeword C(x) is transmitted through the noisy communication channel, wherein the received codeword C'(x) equals the transmitted codeword C(x) plus an error polynomial E(x). The received codeword C'(x) is corrected according to the following steps: (1) compute error syndromes S.sub.i ; (2) compute the coefficients of an error locator polynomial using the error syndromes S.sub.i ; (3) compute the roots of the error locator polynomial, the logs of the roots are the error locations L.sub.i ; (4) compute the error values using the error syndromes S.sub.i and the roots of the error locator polynomial.
The error syndromes S.sub.i are computed as the modulo division of the received codeword polynomial C'(x) by the factors of the generator polynomial G(x): EQU S.sub.i =C'(x) MOD (x+.alpha..sup.i)
when ##EQU1## where .alpha. is a primitive element of the finite field GF(2.sup.w). Techniques for performing the other steps of the decoding process, computing the error locator polynomial, computing the roots of the error locator polynomial, and computing the error values, are well known by those skilled in the art and are not necessary to understand the present invention. See, for example, the above referenced U.S. Pat. No. 5,446,743 entitled "COEFFICIENT UPDATING METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR REED-SOLOMON DECODER."
Another technique known in the prior art to further increase the error tolerance of the system is to arrange the codewords into what is known as a multi-dimensional or product code. Optical disk storage systems, for example, commonly employ a two-dimensional product code as shown in FIG. 2. The codewords are arranged into intersecting horizontal (or row) and vertical (or column) codewords and the decoding process is carried out in iterative passes. First a pass over the horizontal codewords is performed to correct as many errors as possible; any uncorrectable horizontal codewords are left unmodified. Then a pass is made over the vertical codewords to correct as many errors as possible, where a symbol corrected in a vertical codeword also corrects the corresponding symbol for the intersecting horizontal codeword. Consequently, the horizontal codeword may be correctable during the next horizontal pass. Similarly, a symbol corrected during a horizontal pass may render a previously uncorrectable vertical codeword correctable during the next vertical pass. This iterative process continues until the entire product code is corrected, or deemed uncorrectable.
Although the multi-dimensional aspect of a product code significantly increases the error tolerance, the iterative passes over the horizontal and vertical codewords requires a significant amount of compute time. In an optical disk storage device, this compute time translates into latency in reading data from the disk and may also prevent transferring the data on-the-fly in a continuous stream. This can be highly undesirable, especially in multi-media applications which require smooth, uninterrupted audio/video streaming. The above referenced U.S. patent application entitled "A METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR EFFICIENTLY PROCESSING A MULTI-DIMENSIONAL CODE" discloses a method for reducing the processing time of a product code by processing only the horizontal and vertical codewords that have been flagged as containing errors (i.e., error free codewords are skipped). Still, there is a significant latency in reading the codewords from the data buffer in order to regenerate the error syndromes during each of the horizontal and vertical passes.
There is, therefore, a need for a faster, more efficient error correction processor for decoding a multi-dimensional code.

Concurrent row/column syndrome generator for a product code


A nanoporous-nanocrystalline film, comprising a nanoporous-nanocrystalline, semi-conducting metal oxide having a redox active material or redox chromophore attached thereto, wherein the redox active material or redox chromophore comprises at least one of an isocyanate, a silane, and a siloxane attachment promoting moiety.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to nanocrystalline metal oxide films and, more particularly, to nanocrystalline metal oxide films having a redox active material or redox chromophore attached thereto, wherein the redox active material or redox chromophore includes an attachment promoting moiety to, in turn, enhance durability of associated devices using the same.
2. Background Art
Nanocrystalline metal oxide films have been known in the art for several years and are the subject of a plurality of United States Patents, including, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,605,239 B2 entitled "Electrochromic System," and U.S. Pat. No. 6,301,038 B1 entitled "Electrochromic System," both of which are issued to Fitzmaurice et al., and both of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety, including the references cited therein.
As is disclosed in the above-referenced patents, attachment of a redox chromophore (which in many cases comprises an organic dye, such as a viologen) to a nanocrystalline metal oxide conventionally occurs utilizing a phosphate or carboxylate moiety.
While attachment of a redox chromophore to a nanocrystalline metal oxide using a phosphate or carboxylate moiety has been disclosed, durability of the same in devices, such as electrochromic devices, solar cells, etcetera, remains largely problematic, or at least, less than desirable for commercial applications.
It has now been surprisingly discovered that nanocrystalline metal oxide films for use in associated electrochromic devices, solar cells, etcetera, can be fabricated which exhibit increased durability by utilizing a redox active material or redox chromophore which comprises an enhanced attachment promoting moiety.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide nanocrystalline metal oxide films having a redox active material or redox chromophore attached thereto, which remedies the aforementioned detriments and/or complications associated with the durability of conventional nanocrystalline metal oxide films and associated devices.
These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent in light of the present specification, claims, and drawings.

Nanocrystalline metal oxide films and associated devices comprising the same


A system and method for delaying the activation of a powered device, such as a battery powered device. The activation of the device is triggered by contact with a particular environmental characteristic encountered by the device. For example, the system can be configured to activate upon contact with a particular pH value. Upon contact with the particular environmental characteristic, the restraining component (such as a magnetic field or a separating member) that prevents activation of the device is moved, modified, or caused to yield such that the device is activated.

The invention generally relates to delaying activation of a powered device until its activation is desired. In some embodiments of the invention, an endoscopic camera incorporates a system for delaying activation of the camera in a human body until it is properly situated for use. Different embodiments can involve a wide variety of different devices and different operating environments.
Colon cancer is the second leading cause of death in humans. It is curable if it is detected early. The current method of choice for early detection of colon cancer is a colonoscopy. Unfortunately, for many, colonoscopy is an expensive and uncomfortable procedure. Also, there is a risk that the colon may be punctured during the procedure. Consequently, many people opt to avoid or postpone the procedure. As a result, thousands of people die every year because they do not get a colonoscopy.
A less intrusive and cheaper method for early detection of cancer has been developed. It is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,604,531 to Iddan, et al. that issued on Feb. 18, 1997. In this method, a small endoscopic capsule is swallowed. The capsule contains, inter alia, a means for illumination, a video camera, a lens arrangement and a transmitter. The capsule travels through the body, taking pictures along the alimentary canal and transmitting them to a receiver attached to a belt worn by the patient. Patients are permitted to move around normally during the approximately eight hour procedure. Since the device must be small enough to be swallowed, the size of its power source, a battery, and the amount of power it can provide are severely limited. Further, the capsule must be turned on before it is swallowed. Therefore, the principal disadvantage of this device is that the power source is depleted before it completes an investigation of the small intestine and colon. Consequently, the device is unable to investigate for cancer and other abnormalities in these parts of the body. The present invention solves this problem by delaying activation of devices, such as this capsule, until the capsule enters a particular part of the body.
There are several patents covering methods used to delay activation of electrically powered devices until they are needed. U.S. Pat. No. 5,057,824 to Stokes that issued on Jul. 30, 1990, uses a normally closed switch held open by a removable spacer. It is designed to be used in security systems to conserve battery power until the device is ready for use. Upon manual removal of the spacer the switch closes and power is supplied. The principle disadvantage of this method is that it must be activated manually, and thus cannot be activated while in an environment that is not directly accessible, such as the human alimentary canal. If the removable spacer method were used to delay activation of the endoscopic capsule in U.S. Pat. No. 5,604,531, it would need to be activated prior to being swallowed; accordingly, the device would still run out of power prior to completing an investigation of the small intestine and colon.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,278,077 to Mizumoto that issued on Jul. 14, 1981 uses an induction system to energize an electromagnetic field in a coil around a permanent magnet located in the device. This method energizes the device when it is needed. The principal disadvantage of this device is that it requires the patient to remain in a stationary position during the entire 8 hour process. Furthermore, this method cannot be used to energize the endoscopic capsule described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,604,531 to Iddan, et al. due to size constraints.

System and method to delay activation of a powered device


An adhesive composition for polarizing plates includes a (meth)acrylic copolymer and a biphenyl group-containing photocuring agent. A polarizing plate includes an adhesive layer formed of the adhesive composition An optical display includes the polarizing plate.

1. Field
Embodiments relate to an adhesive composition for polarizing plates, a polarizing plate including an adhesive layer formed of the adhesive composition, and an optical display including the polarizing plate.
2. Description of the Related Art
Polarizing plates may be disposed on both sides of a liquid crystal cell to control an oscillation direction of light in order that a display pattern of a liquid crystal display (LCD) may be visible. Polarizing plates may be attached to an LCD by an adhesive.

Adhesive composition for polarizing plate, polarizing plate including the same and optical display including the same


A ceiling hanger includes: a first plate fixed to a ceiling surface; a second plate forming a first rotation axis in the up-down direction after fitted to the first plate, and allowing control in the horizontal direction; a third plate forming a second rotation axis in the front-rear direction after fitted to the second plate, and allowing control in the left-right direction; and a fourth plate fixing a projector, forming a third rotation axis in the left-right direction after fitted to the third plate, and allowing control in the up-down direction.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a ceiling hanger for a projector.
2. Related Art
A ceiling hanger for a projector known in the art is positioned on a ceiling or other places to fix a projector thereto. The projector thus fixed connects to various types of cables for connection with an image device, a personal computer, a network or the like. This structure allows the projector to project an image inputted through the cable onto a screen placed on a wall surface, a standing-type screen or others.
This type of ceiling hanger, including the cable, is designed to become inconspicuous so as to meet the demands for inconspicuousness of the ceiling hanger from the market or for other reasons. Therefore, the ceiling hanger is so configured as to allow attachment of the projector as close to the ceiling surface as possible, with the cable wired in the least visible manner from the outside, so as to improve the external appearance.
There is disclosed in JP-A-2005-172935 a fixing device for a video projector, that includes a fix side member attachable to a support body which fixes and supports a video projector, and a main body side member to which the main body of the video projector is attached, and changes the attachment posture of the main body side member with respect to the fix side member by using a posture change mechanism provided between the fix side member and the main body side member before fixing the video projector. The posture change mechanism contains a ball connected and fixed to either the fix side member or the main body member, a pressed member connected and fixed to the other of the fix side member and the main body member, and a pressing member which presses the ball against the pressed member to fix the ball, and further has an operation lever operated to press the pressing member.
There is disclosed in JP-A-2011-13267, a ceiling hanger which includes a first board provided with a pair of guides and a pair of first holding units disposed at the ends of the guides, and a second board which supports a projector and has a first holding member fitted to areas near both the ends of the guides and sliding with respect to the guides in such a manner as to be rotatably supported by the first holding units.
There is disclosed in 2004-347835, a hanger which includes a unit having legs disposed at the left and right front ends of the main body bottom of the unit to control the height of the hanger placed on a table, and a hanger metal fitting which hangs the unit from a ceiling. The hanger metal fitting has insertion portions at the left and right front ends, and support portions at the left and right rear ends. At the time of hanging from a ceiling, the hanger metal fitting is attached to the ceiling, and the legs are inserted into the insertion portions. In this condition, the right and left rear ends of the main body bottom are positioned in such a manner as to be rotatably supported by the support portions, and the depression angle is controlled by adjustment of the legs.
There is disclosed in JP-A-2009-204902, a projector ceiling hanger which includes a ceiling side fixing member attached to a ceiling, a projector side fixing member attached to a projector, a connection member connecting the ceiling side fixing member and the projector side fixing member, and a direction/posture control unit which controls the direction and posture of the projector.
According to the fixing device for a video projector in JP-A-2005-172935 which controls the position of the projector by using the ball, however, fine adjustment of the position is difficult. Moreover, at the time of fixation of the ball using the operation lever after the control, the controlled position easily shifts, in which case a projection image moves accordingly. In the case of the ceiling hanger disclosed in JP-A-2011-13267, three axes of the horizontal direction, the roll direction (left-right direction), and the up-down direction are adjustable. According to this structure, however, the position control of the projector, and the fixation of the projector by fastening screws after the control are both carried out while holding the projector by hand. In this case, time and labor are required for the control, and fine adjustment becomes difficult. According to the hanger disclosed in 2004-347835, the depression angle of the unit is controlled by using the legs for height control. However, this hanger is exclusively used for devices provided with legs for height control, and therefore offers low flexibility. Moreover, this hanger controls only one axis (depression angle), and cannot adjust a larger number of control axes.
Furthermore, the fixing device shown in JP-A-2005-172935 and the ceiling hanger shown in JP-A-2011-13267 do not clarify the storage channel of the cable. In this case, there is a possibility that the whole cable is exposed to the outside in the space between the ceiling (ceiling surface) and the projector. In addition, the components constituting the fixing device or the ceiling hanger are exposed to the outside. Accordingly, the external appearance of the fixing device or the ceiling hanger becomes undesirable when the device is used at home or installed in offices, for example.
The ceiling hanger disclosed in JP-A-2009-204902 has a hollow area inside a pipe-shaped portion of the connection member. The inside of the pipe-shaped portion corresponds to the wiring channel of the cable. However, when the inside diameter of the pipe-shaped portion is decreased for the purpose of reduction of the thickness of the ceiling hanger or for other reasons, insertion of a plurality of cables becomes difficult.
Moreover, according to the ceiling hanger shown in JP-A-2009-204902, the components constituting the ceiling hanger are exposed to the outside similarly to the devices shown in JP-A-2005-172935 and JP-A-2011-13267. Therefore, the external appearance of the ceiling hanger similarly becomes undesirable when the ceiling hanger is used at home or installed in offices. In addition, dust adheres to the components constituting the ceiling hanger when the components are exposed to the outside. In this case, there arises not only the problem of the deteriorated appearance but also the problem of difficult removal of the adhering dust.
Accordingly, such a ceiling hanger has been demanded which can easily and securely achieve fine adjustment of the position (posture) of the projector in the horizontal direction, left-right direction, and up-down direction, can save the space required for attachment and detachment of the projector, and can reduce the thickness of the projector. In addition, such a ceiling hanger capable of improving the external appearance including the cable wiring has also been demanded.


A micro-fluid ejection head assembly having improved assembly characteristics and methods of manufacturing a micro-fluid ejection head assembly. The micro-fluid ejection head includes a fluid supply body having at least one fluid supply port in a recessed area therein. A reinforcing member circumscribes the fluid supply port. A micro-fluid ejection head is attached with an adhesive to the supply body in the recessed area so that cracking of the ejection head during adhesive curing is substantially reduced.

Micro-fluid ejection heads for micro-fluid ejection devices such as ink jet printers continue to be improved as the technology for making the ejection heads continues to advance. New techniques are constantly being developed to provide low cost, highly reliable micro-fluid ejection head structures that can be manufactured in high yield with a relatively low amount of spoilage or ejection head damage.
In order to increase ejection head speed and volume output, larger ejection heads having an increased number of ejection actuators are being developed. However, as the ejection head size and number of ejection actuators increases, manufacturing apparatus and techniques are required to meet increased tolerance demands for such ejection heads. Slight variations in tolerances of parts may have a significant impact on the operation and yield of suitable ejection head products.
The primary components of the micro-fluid ejection head are a substrate or chip containing fluid ejector actuators, and a nozzle plate and a flexible circuit attached to the chip. The chip is typically made of silicon and contains various passivation layers, conductive metal layers, resistive layers, insulative layers and protective layers deposited on a device surface thereof. For thermal micro-fluid ejection heads, individual heaters are defined in the resistive layers and each heater resistor corresponds to a nozzle hole in the nozzle plate for heating and ejecting fluid from the ejection head toward a target media. In a top-shooter type ejection head, nozzle plates are attached to the chips and there are fluid chambers and fluid feed channels for directing fluid to each of the heaters on the chip either formed in the nozzle plate material or in a separate thick film layer. In a center feed design for a top-shooter type ejection head, fluid is supplied to the channels and chambers from a slot or via that is conventionally formed by chemically etching or grit blasting through the thickness of the chip. The chip, nozzle plate and flexible circuit assembly is typically bonded to a thermoplastic body using a heat curable and/or radiation curable adhesive to provide a micro-fluid ejection head structure.
Attaching the chips to the body and curing the adhesive is a delicate procedure and may result in chip cracking and thus product yield loss. As the size of the chips increase, the difficulty associated with handling the chips without damage or breakage also increases. Larger chips require even more care when attaching the chips to a thermoplastic body so as to minimize chip cracking and warpage.
It is believed that a predominant contributor of chip warpage is the coefficient of thermal expansion mismatch between the chip and the thermoplastic body. During manufacturing, when the chip and body go through the adhesive cure cycle, chip warpage is introduced as the components cool. If the displacement for the chip from a planar configuration is too large, the chip cracks. Accordingly, there continues to be a need for improved manufacturing processes and techniques which provide improved ejection head components and structures without product loss due to chip cracking.
With regard to the above, there is provided a micro-fluid ejection head assembly having improved assembly characteristics and methods of manufacturing a micro-fluid ejection head assembly. The micro-fluid ejection head includes a fluid supply body having at least one fluid supply port in a recessed area therein. A reinforcing member circumscribes the fluid supply port. A micro-fluid ejection head is attached with an adhesive to the supply body in the recessed area so that cracking of the ejection head during adhesive curing is substantially reduced.
In another embodiment, there is provided a method for improving micro-fluid ejection assembly yield. The method includes providing a fluid supply body having a fluid supply port in a recessed area thereof therein and a reinforcing member circumscribing the fluid supply port. A micro-fluid ejection head is adhesively attached to the fluid supply body in the recessed area. The method may provide a substantially improved yield of usable micro-fluid ejection assemblies.
An advantage of the foregoing structure and method therefor is that chip warpage and thus chip cracking may be substantially reduced without the need to select materials having similar coefficients of thermal expansion. The structures and methods provided herein may be used with a wide variety of thermoplastic body materials and chip substrate materials to reduce warpage of the chip substrate during adhesive curing cycles. A wider variety of stiffener materials may be used with the thermoplastic bodies to maintain substantially lower chip warpage as compared to materials selected for a coefficient of thermal expansion that is similar to the coefficient of thermal expansion of the chip material

Methods and apparatus for improved ejection head planarity and reduced ejection head damage


An apparatus has a jig suitable for receiving an orthesis engaged thereon, the jig having two elongate branches, an expander cooperating with facing ends of the branches to move them apart from each other transversely to their long dimension, control system for controlling the expander and suitable for moving the branches so that they move apart from each other progressively and in a controlled manner, and sensors distributed along the length of at least one of the branches and suitable for measuring the force applied locally to the branch by the orthesis at the locations of the respective sensors in terms of a component perpendicular to the profile of the branch.

This is a 371 of PCT/FR00/02274, filed Aug. 8, 2000.
The invention relates to apparatus for non-destructive extensometric measurement of the support forces that can be exerted by an orthesis of the elastic hose type (where said forces are more exactly both supportive and compressive), the term xe2x80x9celastic hosexe2x80x9d being understood broadly, including various kinds of hose such as short socks, socks, thigh-high stockings, self-supporting stockings, tights, maternity tights, men""s tights, or half-tights.
The term xe2x80x9cextensometric measurementxe2x80x9d is used to mean measurement that consists in applying deformation to a precise location of the hose and in measuring the force applied locally by the hose under the effect of said deformation, which force is a function of the elastic characteristics of the materials used and of the structure of the article.
It is necessary to be able accurately and reproducibly to measure the force which a given compressive orthesis can apply, in particular in order to verify that it complies with nominal values specified as a function of a selected class of support.
Such measurement is important particularly during manufacture, in order to verify articles as they come off the knitting machine while performing quality control and optionally adjusting the knitting machine.
Nevertheless, this application is not limiting, and the invention can be used for numerous other purposes, e.g. for testing new materials, developing new products, investigating product fatigue, etc.
Various extensometric measurement apparatuses and protocols have already been proposed for these purposes. However, such methods and apparatuses all present one or more of the following drawbacks:
they are destructive, in particular in systems that use traction claws for imparting forced deformation to the hose;
inspection times are very long: some measurement protocols can take as long as 48 hours, which is incompatible with industrial constraints of the manufacturing quality control type;
the number of measurement points is small, even though the uniformity of hose makes it important to obtain as large as possible a number of measurement points over the entire length of an article;
the equipment is expensive; and
multiple jigs need to be provided as a function of the size of the hose or as a function of different hosiery articles, thus requiring a large amount of manipulation.
The object of the present invention is to mitigate all of the above drawbacks by proposing a non-destructive extensometric measurement apparatus that is suitable (amongst other things) for production quality control, because of its robustness, the speed with which it can be used, and its flexibility, including the option of adapting quickly and simply to articles that are different or to different sizes of the same article.
The apparatus of the invention also presents the following advantages:
accurate measurement;
reliable measurement making it possible to provide data reproducibly and independently of the skill of an operator;
measurement that is performed simultaneously at a large number of points;
implementation can be simple and quick;
the data obtained can be digitized, stored, processed, and displayed, in particular for interfacing with computer processing; and
it can be used to inspect all of the standard sizes, executions, and lengths currently in production, and also all of the articles that are made to measure.
To this end, the extensometric apparatus of the invention is characterized in that it comprises: a jig suitable for receiving an orthesis engaged thereon, said jig having two elongate branches; expander means cooperating with facing ends of the branches to move them apart from each other transversely to their long dimension; control means for controlling the expander means and suitable for moving the branches so that they move apart from each other progressively and in controlled manner; and sensors distributed along the length of at least one of the branches and suitable for measuring the force applied locally to the branch by the orthesis at the locations of the respective sensors in terms of a component perpendicular to the profile of the branch.
According to various advantageous subsidiary characteristics:
the branches are pivotally united at their ends remote from their ends which co-operate with the expander means, the movement of mutually moving apart from each other being a pivoting movement about the corresponding pivot point;
the sensors include as sensor elements in contact with the orthesis buttons that lie flush with the outside profile of the branch in which they are located;
the expander means comprise a rectilinear branch carrying the sensors and a curvilinear branch whose profile corresponds to that of a leg suitable for receiving the orthesis;
the apparatus includes means for determining the transverse elongation of the orthesis at the location of each of the sensors as a function of the spacing imposed on the branches by the expander means;
the apparatus includes means for recording a plurality of pairs of measurements for each sensor, each pair comprising a force measurement and an elongation measurement, in particular, with means for dynamically determining a force/elongation characteristic; and
the apparatus includes means for dynamically determining a force/elongation characteristic.

Apparatus for non-destructive extensometric measurement of the support forces that can be exerted by an orthesis of the elastic hose type