A towable-trailer for a propane tank has a frame which is provided with an overhead boom extending lengthwise of the trailer and beyond the back of the trailer, a tank hoist movable along the boom, an independent engine and power train with a universal for driving the trailer wheels, and a steering mechanism for a retractable nose wheel of the trailer, with the engine being located at the trailer hitch end for proper weight distribution to offset the weight of a tank when positioned at the rear end of the boom. The trailer can be independently driven into a confined new-tank storage yard to pick up a tank, the loaded trailer driven to a purging station to have the tank purged, the trailer hitched to a truck, hauled to the site and unhitched from the truck at the road, the trailer independently driven to the point of final installation and the tank deposited at the point, all of these tasks ordinarily being handled by the same individual without assistance.

Present day installation of a new LPG (liquid petroleum gas) tank, which may range in capacity from 100 to 500 gallons and weigh between 355 and 1980 pounds, typically requires that it be towed with a trailer to the site by a truck and backed (if that is possible) into the final installation position. The towing truck must frequently have a four-wheel drive to enable its being driven over soft earth at the site. Added to the tank weight is a propane fill of approximately 10% of the tank capacity, which is accomplished during required purging noted below. Often-times, because of shrubbery, trees and plants and because of the placement in a backyard, the trailer must be unhitched well short of the final location and pushed or pulled by hand the remaining distance. If impossible to move the trailer directly to the final position, the tank must be unloaded and dragged there by hand.
When it is possible to back a truck to very near the installation point, it must be driven there by the truck and the trailer maintained hitched to the truck during unloading of the tank. For at least 60 years, the industry standard trailer has had a U-shaped frame, with the base of the U being adjacent the trailer hitch. The trailer was backed over an empty tank, the frame straddling the tank as the trailer was moved over it. A fixed-position overhead hoist then lifted the tank above the frame, cross supports were positioned below the tank and connected to legs of the U-shaped frame, and the tank was lowered to the cross supports and strapped to the frame for delivery. The empty tank was then taken or transported by the truck and trailer to a purging station where factory-installed compressed test air has to first be evacuated by purging the tank with propane vapor and alcohol. Approximately ten percent of the tank is then filled with LPG. State laws typically limit tank transportation over the road to no more than that amount in the portable tank. The vehicle and partially-filled suspended tank was then driven to the site, backed as close as possible to the point of installation and the pick-up process was reversed to lower the tank to the ground between the U frame. This often meant driving the truck and trailer across a lawn, often causing some lawn damage. The tank was manually moved the remaining distance, this oftentimes being the most physically strenuous part of the entire process. The entire procedure just described ordinarily ties up the time of two persons from initial tank pick-up to final installation. One variation of the above U-shaped trailer has a cantilevered boom extending rearwardly beyond the end of the trailer. The trailer is first backed while remaining hitched to the truck as close to the installation site as possible. If the trailer could be aligned with the final position of the tank, it could merely be lowered between the legs of the U. If, however, the tank had to be finally located at right angles to the position to which it could be driven by the truck, the tank was first lowered to the ground between the legs of the U and disconnected from the hoist, the truck and trailer driven forward until the distal end of the boom was directly over the center of the tank, and the tank then raised again, turned 90 degrees to the trailer, and lowered again to its final position. To accommodate this final move, the front hoist cable or chain would have to be removed from the front end of the tank, a separate spreader chain or cable connected between the ends of the tank, and the rear cable extended to a pulley at the end of the boom and connected to the center of the spreader chain. The tank could then be lifted again, turned 90 degrees about the rear hoist cable, and lowered to the ground. While this was done, the trailer had to remain hitched to the truck because the weight of the cantilevered tank suspended at the far end of the boom would tend to raise the hitch end of the trailer. As such, the truck, often necessarily a four-wheeled drive vehicle, had to keep the trailer hitched the entire time.
Another means of tank delivery requires two or more persons to normally mount a first pair of wheels under one end of the tank and drive wheels under the opposite end, drive the combined unit to a purging station with the tank itself serving as a chassis between the independent front and rear wheels, drive the unit onto a trailer bed by means of a ramp at the back of the trailer, tow the trailer to the installation site and park it on the road or in a driveway, drive the unit off the ramp, and then drive the unit from the road to the final resting position. To the best of my knowledge, this latter tank delivery system is the only one which enables the tank to be removed from a trailer at the road and driven to the final installation point. Nevertheless, I believe it to be necessary to employ two persons both to mount the tank onto its front and rear wheels at the outset and to remove the sets of wheels just before final installation. This essentially ties up two employees throughout the entire process, adding to the overall cost burden which includes the drive time of two people from the yard to the site and back. The manufacturer of this system also uses a special motorized cart onto which a smaller upright tank can be lifted and similarly delivered to the site. Here the tank is cargo only, and not part of the driven structure.
Use of independently-driven motorized trailers in fields other than propane tank delivery has been known for a considerable period of time, but that knowledge has not been applied to the propane industry. For example, such trailers have been used for delivering concrete burial vaults to cemeteries to avoid driving trucks over and around graves and depositing the vaults off the back end of the trailers into graves prepared in the ground. Because such vaults may weigh as much as 3000 pounds, a telescoping boom had to be used to extend well beyond the end of the trailer in order to straddle the grave. The telescoping end had a pair of legs mounted to the trailer during transporting of the vault by truck to the cemetary. The trailer was unhitched, powered by itself to one end or side of the grave, the heavy legs and boom extension detached by two persons from the trailer and manually lifted and carried to a position beyond the grave and firmly planted on secure earth at the far end of the grave. Whatever the reason, this readily-available, long-used design was never used in the propane tank industry, possibly because it was manual labor intensive in extending and returning the legs and perhaps also because it was unsuitable without extensive modification and redesign in order to accommodate it to the needs of the LPG industry.

Motorized trailer for delivery and installation of propane tanks


A liquid crystal display device has a semiconductor substrate. A plurality of switching elements are arranged on the substrate in matrix, and a plurality of pixel electrodes are provided above the switching elements, arranged in matrix corresponding to the switching elements. A liquid crystal layer is provided on the pixel electrodes. The switching element is connected with a corresponding pixel electrode by a wiring layer. Dummy layers are provided in the same level as the wiring layer so that a surface of the dummy layer is substantially flush with a surface of the wiring layer.

The present invention relates to a reflection type liquid crystal display (LCD) device, and more particularly to an LCD device provided with a miniaturized reflection panel having a good reflectivity and a controllability, so as to be preferably applied to an image projector.
A conventional LCD panel generally uses a TFT (Thin Film Transistor) as a switching element for each pixel. Although the TFT is advantageous in manufacturing a large sized LCD panel and in decreasing the manufacturing cost thereof, the driving capacity thereof is liable to be small. Moreover as shown in FIG. 9, there occurs a parasitic capacitance C.sub.SD between the source and the drain of the transistor, thereby causing the fluctuation of the driving voltage applied to the corresponding pixel even after the transistor is turned off.
Hence in a field where the miniaturizing of the LCD panel is emphasized rather than the enlargement thereof, MOS transistors have come to be used as the switching elements. Moreover, reflection panels are employed in order to obtain a higher aperture rate.
In order to obtain desired switching characteristics for appropriately driving each pixel in miniaturized LCD panel, which is employed in an image projector for example, it is necessary for each MOS transistor to have an area approximate to that of the pixel electrode. When the transistors are formed on the same plane as the pixel electrodes, thereby defining the region of the electrodes, the aperture rate is too small for obtaining the desired efficiency. Thus, the pixel electrodes are disposed above the transistors, thereby forming a display panel of a layered construction. However, in the layered construction, the pixel electrode must be formed over various elements such as the transistors and the wirings. Hence the pixel electrodes cannot be disposed horizontally and the surfaces thereof become bumpy. Hence, the reflecting surface of the panel becomes uneven, thereby resulting in the deterioration of the reflecting characteristics such as the reflectance and the polarization controllability.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open 4-56827 discloses a conventional reflection LCD panel, as shown in section in FIG. 10, which aims to solve the problem. Referring to the figure, the display panel comprises a silicon substrate 1, opposite glass substrates 6, and a liquid crystal layer 9 sealed between the substrates 1 and 6. On the silicon substrate 1, MOSFETs 2 are provided in a matrix, and pixel electrodes 4 are provided also on the substrate 1 in a matrix, interposing an insulation layer 3. A protection layer 5 is further provided on the MOSFETs 2 and the electrodes 4. On the entire substrate 6, a transparent electrode 7 is provided on the side of the liquid crystal layer 9. On the transparent electrode 7, a black matrix or black stripes 9b are formed at portions confronting the MOSFETs 2. The pixel electrodes 4 are provided only at the areas above storage capacitor electrodes 4a so that the upper surface of the pixel electrode 4 becomes flat.
The above described display panel is advantageous in that the pixel electrodes 4 are formed only in areas where the layer under the pixel electrodes 4 is flat and evenly disposed. Hence, the reflecting surface becomes flat, thereby improving the reflecting characteristics. However, only a portion of the reflecting surface can be made flat so that the black matrix 9b must be provided on the glass substrate 6 at the portions which oppose the transistors 2 and other wirings formed on the silicon substrate 1. Thus the aperture rate of the panel is decreased. Moreover, a complicated and difficult positioning procedure is necessary when assembling the silicon and glass substrates.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open 6-148679 discloses another conventional reflection LCD panel wherein the pixel electrodes and the protection layer are ground to flatten the reflecting surface.
More particularly, referring to FIG. 11a, the MOSFETs 2a provided in the form of a matrix are disposed on the silicon substrate 1a. The pixel electrodes 4b are also formed on the substrate 1a in a matrix through the insulation layer 3a. The protection layer 5a covers the pixel electrodes 4b. The surfaces of the electrodes 4b and the protection layer 5a are ground so that the reflecting surface becomes flat.
In order to form an even and flat reflecting surface, the pixel electrodes must initially have a thickness much larger than that of the ordinary electrodes, thereby taking more time to laminate the material. Moreover, the electrode must be ground until the surface thereof is even. Although such a display panel can be experimentally produced, due to the increase of the processing cost, it is not preferable in actual production. In addition, the panel has portions where conductive patterns dominate and portions comprising between-layer films in which conductive patterns are disposed, isolated from one another. These portions have different finish when ground so that it is difficult to render the entire surface flat.
The display panel has further disadvantages.
When the MOSFET 2a is rendered conductive, driving voltage is quickly applied to the molecules in the liquid crystal layer 9a through the pixel electrode 4b. When the MOSFET 2a becomes inconductive, the load and the applied voltage are held at a storage capacitor electrode, so that the polarization of the liquid crystal can be controlled.
Referring to FIG. 11b showing an equivalent circuit of the display panel, there are generated a parasitic capacitance C.sub.NG between the gate G and the drain D of the MOSFET 2a, and a parasitic resistance R.sub.ND between the drain D of the MOSFET 2a and the silicon substrate 1a which is connected to other elements such as a backgate. When the source S of the MOSFET 2a is applied with a data signal through an electrode A.sub.2, the liquid crystal layer 9a is applied with the driving voltage. A part of the voltage of a signal applied to the gate G through an electrode Y.sub.2 is added to the driving voltage through the parasitic capacitance C.sub.NG. Thus the driving voltage is fluctuated. Furthermore, the electric current may leak from the pixel electrode 4a through the parasitic resistance R.sub.ND even when the MOSFET 2a is turned off. This also causes the fluctuation of the driving voltage. In addition, the voltage between the source S and the silicon substrate 1a fluctuates in accordance with the data signal, thereby decreasing the dynamic range of the MOSFET.
It is hence necessary to eliminate the undesirable influences of the parasitic capacitance and parasitic resistance. From the point of the manufacturing technique and the manufacturing cost, the means for eliminating the influences is preferably compatible with the existing conventional manufacturing devices.
The conventional MOSFET provided in the above described display panels usually has the lightly doped drain-source (LDD) structure as shown in FIGS. 12a and 12b. In the MOSFET 2b, a silicon oxide film 2c is formed on either side of a gate electrode G. Silicon is implanted in the substrate so that there are formed a p.sup.+ drain region, namely, a highly doped region 2d wherein the density of the impurities is high, and a p.sup.- drain region, namely, a lightly doped region 2e adjacent the highly doped region 2d where the density of the impurities is low under the silicon oxide film 2c. Since the highly doped region 2d is disposed between the gate and the drain, the maximum intensity of the electric field adjacent the drain is decreased. Accordingly, it is possible to miniaturize the MOSFET which becomes conductive when applied with the voltage of about 5 volts, which is the level of the supply voltage of the ICs in general. Namely, the MOSFET with the channel length of about 1.2 .mu.m can be manufactured.
The driving voltage needed to control the polarization of the liquid crystal molecules is generally between 15 and 20 volts. In order that the MOSFET for switching on and off the driving voltage has a sufficient withstand voltage, that is, the maximum voltage which the MOSFET is able to sustain without breaking down, the lightly doped region 2e must have a length of about 1.5 to 2 .mu.m taking into account the possibility that twice as much voltage may happen to be fed. However, in the LDD structure, since the thickness of the silicon oxide film 2c must be considered, the lightly doped region 2e can only be formed with a length of about 0.2 to 0.3 .mu.m, namely decreasing the withstand voltage. Hence, although the MOSFET can be made smaller, the operational reliability is decreased.
FIGS. 13a and 13b show another conventional structure of the MOSFET disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open 5-93922. Such a structure is called the drift channel structure, and is intended to solve the above mentioned problem by decreasing the intensity of the electric field adjacent the drain D.
As shown in FIG. 13b, a field oxidation film 3a is formed as a mask on the substrate. When ions are implanted, the lightly doped region 2e is formed adjacent the highly doped region 2d under the field oxidation film 3a. The lightly doped region 2e thus formed between the gate and the drain has a long length so that a withstand voltage larger than the liquid crystal driving voltage is obtained.
On the other hand, in the case of a miniaturized MOSFET having a channel length of about 1.2 .mu.m, the minimum width of the field oxidation film inevitably becomes about 2.4 .mu.m which is approximately the double of the channel length. The length of the lightly doped region 2e is accordingly increased to more than 2.4 .mu.m which is larger than the above described optimum length of 1.5 to 2.0 .mu.m. Hence, although a large withstand voltage of the MOSFET is obtained, a sufficient miniaturization thereof cannot be realized in the drift channel structure.

Reflection liquid crystal display and a semiconductor device for the display


Provided is an automatic analyzer that includes a suction nozzle, a detection container, and a detector. The suction nozzle suctions a sample and a solution used for the detection of the sample. The suctioned sample and the solution are supplied to the detection container. The detector detects a signal from the sample. In addition, a vessel for the sample and a container for the solution are disposed below the detection container.

Various automatic analyzers that are particularly used, for instance, in the fields of medicine and biotechnology include a detection system flow path mechanism in which a nozzle for suctioning a liquid is connected by way of a flow path and of a detector to a suction drive source for suctioning the liquid from the nozzle. Such automatic analyzers handle, for example, blood, serum, or urine as a sample and detect a specific biogenic substance, chemical substance, or other substance included in the sample.
As regards such automatic analyzers, efforts are being made to increase the accuracy of analysis in order to conduct highly reliable examinations with a high degree of precision. A method described, for instance, in Patent Document 1 is applicable to an analyzer that includes a suction nozzle for suctioning a liquid, a flow path connected to the suction nozzle, a suction drive source connected to the flow path to permit the suction nozzle to suction the liquid, a liquid container into which the suction nozzle is inserted to let the suction nozzle suction the liquid, and a transfer mechanism for transferring the liquid container to insert the suction nozzle into the liquid container. This analyzer suctions the liquid while retaining the relative positional relationship between the suction nozzle, the flow path, and a detector connected to the flow path.


Disclosed is a molding material which can be easily decomposed by using an alkaline solution. This molding material comprises, as a binder, a thermosetting composition of an unsaturated polyester, an addition-polymerizable monomer and a low shrink agent, the addition-polymerizable monomer containing a monomer having an affinity for alkaline solution. As the addition-polymerizable monomer, there can be used a compound having an ethylene bond and a carbonyl or sulfonyl group, e.g. carboxylic and sulfonic acids, and metal salts, esters and acid anhydrides of these acids. There is also disclosed a molded motor comprising a molded part of an iron core, a winding and the above molding material, the molded part being integrally molded so as to coat at least one part of the iron core and winding with the molding material.

Although thermosetting resins comprising an unsaturated polyester and an addition-polymerizable resin as a skeleton are sometimes used alone, they are exclusively used as a composite material and about 80% of them produced are used as a fiber reinforced plastic (FRP). These thermosetting resins are applied to molding materials, laminates, adhesives, paints, etc. because formulation of fillers and additives (e.g. inorganic materials, etc.) and reinforcement by fibers are easily performed.
On the other hand, a three-dimensional structure is imparted to these resins by a curing reaction to convert into an insoluble/non-fusible solid. Therefore, it has hitherto been considered that these thermosetting resins are not easily decomposed and are not suitable for regeneration treatment and reuse, which results in disposal of them.
Molding materials are molding compounds prepared by filling inorganic materials (e.g. glass fiber, calcium carbonate, talc, silica, etc.) or organic materials (e.g. pulp, wood, etc.) into a resin as a binder. These molding materials are used for various applications in the industrial and household fields because large specific strength and specific rigidity are obtained by filling them.
Since these molding materials are composite materials, it is generally difficult to perform regeneration treatment after use. Furthermore, if the binder resin is a thermosetting resin, a three-dimensional structure is imparted to the binder resin by a curing reaction to convert into an insoluble/non-fusible solid. Therefore, it has hitherto been considered that the binder resin is not easily decomposed and is not suitable for regeneration treatment and reuse, which results in disposal of it. As the problem about wastes has attracted special interest recently, the development of the reuse/regeneration technique has been required and a study of conversion into raw materials by heat decomposition has started. However, advantages of the thermosetting resin or molding material (e.g. hardness, magnification of strength, heat resistance, non flammability, chemical resistance, etc.) make it difficult to perform waste disposal from the technical point of view.
Recently, an apparatus using a molding material comprising a thermosetting resin as a binder, e.g. molded motor, has been applied to household apparatuses, industrial apparatuses, business apparatuses and the like. Since the molded motor is superior in silent running properties, vibration-damping properties, insulating properties and maintainability and is capable of easily performing automated production because of compact size, its demand has been rapidly increased.
A molded stator of a molded motor, which has hitherto been used as A.C. motor, brushless D.C. motor and the like, generally has a construction, for example, disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 1-214740. The molding material used herein contains a thermoplastic resin (e.g. polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon, etc.) or a thermosetting resin (e.g. unsaturated polyester, vinyl ester resin, phenol resin, etc.) as a binder and further contains an additive (e.g. calcium carbonate, talc, carbon black, etc.).
The issue on wastes has become more serious and the urgent development of a volume-reduction technique and a disposal technique for reuse of discarded thermosetting compositions or molded articles of molding materials is required. Particularly, a large amount of fiber-reinforced unsaturated polyester resins are used for the production of fishing boats, tanks or large products such as housing materials and, therefore, problems about decomposition and regeneration treatment of wastes are serious. The molding materials comprising a thermosetting resin as a binder are exclusively used as a structural material because of magnification of strength and sometimes contain other materials such as metal. The metal is a valuable material which is expensive in comparison with a resin material and its possibility of inhibiting regeneration and reuse is a serious problem. That is, according to a conventional construction and disposal method, the problem about wastes remains unsolved with respect to the molded article of molding material at present.
At disposal of the molded motor, it is preferred to remove the molding material, thereby recycling metals (e.g. iron core, winding, etc.) as valuables. In conventional waste disposal, valuable materials are recycled by firstly shredding a molding material using a shredder and then selecting the valuable materials (e.g. iron core, winding, etc.) from shreds. Regarding the molded motor having the above-described construction, a shredding process is avoided because teeth of the shredder are easily damaged by the iron core and winding. Therefore, the molded motor is discarded without recycling the valuable materials, and buried under the ground, together with other wastes. Since the above-described molding material is not naturally decomposed by burying under the ground, silicon steel plates, copper wires, etc. used for the iron core and winding are buried without recycling in spite of high material value even after used as a motor. Furthermore, a conventional decomposition method such as volume reduction by heat decomposition can not be applied to the thermosetting resin used as the molding material. Accordingly, a conventional molded motor has a problem that shredding and decomposition of the molding material can not be applied and it is difficult to reuse valuable materials (e.g. iron core, winding, etc.) at disposal.
Accordingly, the primary object of the present invention is to provide a molding material capable of easily performing waste disposal.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a molded motor which can be separated and divided.


A bolt repair platform includes a frame and a tool module. The tool module includes a tool having a first end configured to rotationally engage a bolt. The tool module also includes an actuator disposed between the tool and the frame so that actuation of the actuator moves the tool with respect to the frame. The frame is removably disposed on the structure, and the tool is movable with respect to the frame, so that, at each of a plurality of positions, the second end of the tool is capable of engagement with a respective bolt disposed in an internal support structure of a nuclear reactor vessel.

Nuclear reactor vessels, particularly pressurized water reactor vessels, may include internal structures to support and orient reactor fuel and direct coolant through a reactor core. One such internal structure may be a core baffle that includes a set of vertical plates surrounding the outer rim of the reactor fuel assembly. The core baffle provides lateral restraint to the core and directs coolant flow through the core in that it blocks coolant flow laterally but permits vertical flow. The vertical baffle plates may be bolted to the edges of horizontal former plates which, in turn, may be bolted to the inside surface of a core barrel. There may, typically, be several levels of former plates located at various elevations within the core barrel. Baffle-former bolts, e. g. baffle bolts, may secure the baffle plates to the former plates.
Baffle bolts may degrade, e. g. due to one or more of irradiated assisted stress corrosion cracking, loss of preload, thermal and irradiation embrittlement, high cycle fatigue/unzippering/overload, steady-state pressure gradient across the baffle plates, or the like. In some reactor plants, a portion of the water flowing through the reactor vessel may be directed between the core barrel and the baffle plates to cool the baffle structure in either a downward direction ("down-flow"), or an upward direction ("up-flow"). "Down-flow" plants may place more stress on baffle bolts, which may contribute to the bolts' susceptibility to degradation. Plants with the modified "up-flow" direction suffer less baffle-former bolt cracking as compared to the "down-flow" designs.
A tooling system that may be used to replace baffle bolts includes a large mast with a tool on an end effector that is configured to work, i. e. extract and replace, one baffle bolt at a time. Such systems achieve an average removal rate of about eight bolts per day. In some cases, removal rates of up to sixteen bolts per day have been reported with upgraded equipment and skilled operators, but, in many cases, removal rates are approximately four bolts per day. This rate of removal of baffle bolts may be undesirable when reactor plants experience high bolt failure rates. Plants faced with the need to replace two hundred bolts in a single maintenance outage can experience 25-40 day impacts to restored operation.

Apparatus and method for baffle bolt repair


One macroblock is constructed by 16×16 pixels (bytes). When the macroblocks are stored in a frame memory constructed by a DRAM or the like, addresses are sequentially allocated in an ascending order in a manner such that addresses 0000 to 0255 are allocated to the first macroblock and addresses 0256 to 0512 are allocated to the second macroblock and the macroblocks are stored. The macroblocks stored in this manner are read out in the ascending order of the addresses.

In recent years, a video compressing technique represented by MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group) 2 has been progressed and used in various fields. In case of decoding video data encoded by MPEG2, the decoding is performed every macroblock. When the video data which was decoded every macroblock is stored in a frame memory, memory addresses of the video data are sequentially allocated in a screen display order. That is, in case of a picture plane such that a Y macroblock constructed by 16×16 pixels as shown in FIG. 1A consists of 720×480 pixels, the macroblocks are stored in the frame memory in a state where 45 macroblocks are arranged in the lateral direction and 30 macroblocks are arranged in the vertical direction as shown in FIG. 1B.
In case of allocating the memory addresses and storing the video data as mentioned above, such an allocation is a suitable address allocation in case of displaying the video data onto a screen on the basis of the video data stored in the frame memories. For example, in the frame memory shown in FIG. 1A, when one line in the top portion of the screen is displayed, since the data in addresses 0000 to 0719 (the data as much as 720 pixels) can be continuously read out, the occurrence of a page mishit can be minimized. The "pagemis" denotes a time which is necessary to precharge a sense amplifier provided in a memory such as a DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) or the like (therefore, a process such as reading of the data or the like cannot be performed while precharging).
A DRAM is generally used as a frame memory. The DRAM is constructed by rows and columns and one row is constructed by charge accumulating devices comprising 256 (there is also a case of 512 or the like)×8 columns. Among the charge accumulating devices, an 8-bit device has external terminals of 8 pins and a 16-bit device has external terminals of 16 pins. It indicates the number of bits which can be outputted by one clock. In case of the 8-bit device, 8 bits are outputted by one clock. In case of the 16-bit device, 16 bits are outputted by one clock. Data can be continuously extracted in the same row. That is, in the 8-bit device, since data of 256×8 bits has been accumulated in one row, data of 256 clocks (data of 256 bytes) can be continuously read out.
In a video decoder or the like, video data which is stored in a frame memory is transmitted on a macroblock unit basis and a decoding order is also set to a macroblock order. In one Y macroblock, one line is constructed by 16 lines each consisting of 16 pixels (therefore, 16 bytes). Therefore, for example, in case of the first Y macroblock, the addresses are divided (instead of serial addresses) in a manner such that addresses 0000 to 0015 are allocated to the first line, addresses 0720 to 0735 are allocated to the second line, and addresses 1440 to 1455 are allocated to the third line, and the data is stored.
In case of decoding a stream of a digital video signal from a stream of the MPEG system, a process for detecting a sequence header (Sequence Header) is first performed in an analyzing unit in a decoding apparatus. This is because unless the Sequence_Header is detected, a picture size and an aspect ratio cannot be specified.
That is, in the MPEG stream, there is a case where a picture plane of the SDTV (Standard Definition Television) or a picture plane of the HDTV (High Definition Television) is transmitted. For example, in a digital satellite broadcasting, there is a case where a program of a picture plane of the SDTV and a program of a picture plane of the HDTV are multiplexed and broadcasted in one channel. There is also a case where a channel of a program of a picture plane of the SDTV and channel of a program of a picture plane of the HDTV are switched.
In case of decoding the MPEG stream, first, it is necessary to set a picture size and an aspect ratio. In the MPEG system, a sequence layer has been determined as a most significant layer. In one sequence, a picture size and a picture rate are identical. A Sequence_Header is transmitted at the head of each sequence. The picture size, aspect ratio, picture rate, and the like have been described in the Sequence_Header.
Therefore, hitherto, in case of decoding a bit stream of the MPEG system, first, in order to set the picture size and aspect ratio, the Sequence_Header is detected. After the picture size and aspect ratio were set from the Sequence_Header, a decoding is started from the first picture which was intrafield encoded or intraframe encoded.
After the data stored in one row was extracted, the process advances to the next row and an apparatus has to wait for a time of about 6 clocks for precharging until the data stored in the next row is read out. In this way, the precharge necessary to read out the data stored in another row is called "pagemis" as mentioned above. In the foregoing 8-bit device, the pagemis occurs every 256 clocks (each time the data of 256 bytes is extracted). In the foregoing 16-bit device, the pagemis occurs every 128 clocks. It will be understood that, as mentioned above, when an amount of data which can be extracted by one clock increases, the number of times of occurrence (generating period) of the pagemis decreases.
As shown in FIG. 1B, in the case where the video data is stored and the data is sequentially read out one line by one and displayed in a manner such that the data in addresses 0000 to 0719 is read out to thereby display the first horizontal line and the data in addresses 0720 to 1439 is subsequently read out to thereby display the second horizontal line, a pagemis occurs every 256 bytes in the 8-bit device. Since the pagemis causes a loss time, the ability of a memory (DRAM) can be made the most of by setting in such a manner that the pagemis does not occur as possible.
In case of the foregoing video recorder, the video data is stored on a macroblock unit basis and read out on a macroblock unit basis. Since one Y macroblock is constructed by 16 lines as mentioned above, the pagemis occurs each time one line is read out. That is, the pagemis occurs 16 times whenever one Y macroblock is read out. In case of a chroma signal (Cb, Cr), since one macroblock is constructed by 8 lines each consisting of 8 bytes, the pagemis occurs 8 times whenever one Cb (Cr) macroblock is read out.
In case of using the 16-bit device for the frame memory, since the data of 16 bits (2 bytes) can be outputted in response to one clock, the pagemis occurs at a rate of once per 8 clocks in the Y macroblock. In each of the Cb macroblock and the Cr macroblock, the pagemis occurs at a rate of once per 4 clocks. Therefore, 8 clocks (one line of the Y macroblock is constructed by 16 bytes) are necessary to read out one line of the Y macroblock and 8×16 clocks (one Y macroblock is constructed by 16 lines) are necessary to read out one Y macroblock.
On the other hand, assuming that a time of 6 clocks is expended for the pagemis of one time, it will be understood that the loss time that is caused by the pagemis is equal to the time of 6×16 clocks because the pagemis occurs 16 times in case of reading out one Y macroblock. This means that the ratio of the pagemis is fairly larger than the time (8×16 clocks) which is necessary to read out one Y macroblock. In other words, it means that the loss time is large. Also in case of the macroblock of chroma, the ratio of the loss time for the time that is necessary to read out the data is similarly large.
The pagemis also occurs in case of performing the decoding based on the motion compensation. That is, although the video data as much as one macroblock is extracted from an arbitrary position in the frame memory by a motion vector associated for the macroblock to be decoded, since the address is moved by an amount of one line each time one line of the macroblock is read out in a manner similar to the case mentioned above, the pagemis occurs. There is a problem such that if the user wants to make the most of the ability of the DRAM or the like, it is necessary to suppress the loss time such as a pagemis as small as possible.
The invention is made in consideration of such a circumstance and it is an object of the invention to suppress the occurrence of the pagemis by allocating addresses to video data of macroblocks in the ascending order and storing the data.
In case of decoding the MPEG stream, first, the Sequence_Header is detected and the picture size and aspect ratio are set. However, if the MPEG stream is decoded after the Sequence_Header was detected, there is a problem such that it takes time to detect the Sequence_Header and a fairly long waiting time is necessary until the reproduction is started.
That is, the sequence layer of the MPEG system is a stream in which the picture size and picture rate are identical. Although the Sequence Header can be provided at a minimum GOP (Grop Of Picture) period, a period of the Sequence_Header is not determined. Therefore, a maximum length of sequence is equivalent to one video program. Thus, hitherto, for example, when a channel of a satellite broadcasting is switched, there is a case where it takes time to detect the Sequence_Header and a fairly long waiting time is necessary until the reproduction is started.
Another object of the invention is to provide video processing apparatus and method in which when Sequence_Header information of an MPEG stream is not detected, information of the Sequence_Header is predicted and a decoding is started, thereby enabling the MPEG stream to be immediately decoded.

Video processing apparatus and method for allocating addresses to data of macroblocks and storing the same, and medium containing a program for performing such method


At least one processing device is configured to detect a failure event impacting at least a first storage node of a distributed storage system, and responsive to the detected failure event, to initiate a metadata recovery process for at least the first storage node. In conjunction with the metadata recovery process, destaging of a metadata update journal of the first storage node is performed, the destaging of the metadata update journal of the first storage node being performed in multiple phases, including at least a preload phase in which, for each of a plurality of pages required for the destaging of the metadata update journal, one or more address locks are obtained for the page, the page is preloaded into a memory of the first storage node from persistent storage accessible to the first storage node, and the one or more address locks are released, and an update and write phase.

A wide variety of different types of distributed storage systems are known. Such storage systems include clustered storage systems as well as other types of storage systems that are distributed across multiple storage nodes. Distributed storage systems can include a potentially large number of distributed storage nodes that are interconnected by a mesh network or other type of communication network. Each such storage node of a distributed storage system typically processes input-output (IO) operations from one or more host devices and in processing those IO operations runs various storage application processes that generally involve interaction of that storage node with one or more other ones of the storage nodes. In these and other conventional arrangements, journal destaging performed by the storage nodes can adversely impact the processing of IO operations received from the host devices.

Metadata update journal destaging with preload phase for efficient metadata recovery in a distributed storage system


A heat-fixing apparatus for a color video printer. The heat-fixing apparatus comprises a heating member for heating an under surface of a receiver paper, thereby heat-fixing an image which has been developed on the receiver paper, and receiver paper feeding and discharging member for feeding the receiver paper, the receiver paper having been processed at a developing process, under the condition that the under surface thereof closely contact with the heating member, and discharging the receiver paper which has been processed at a heat-fixing process. The heating member comprises a rotary type heat roller, a stationary type heat tube or a stationary type heat cover plate. The heat-fixing apparatus of this invention provides advantages in that it makes an under surface of the receiver paper to closely contact with the outer surface of the heat member, reliably prevents rollers such as compression roller from being stained with dyestuff of color image on the receiver paper, improves a heat efficiency of the heat source thereof and uniformly performs the heat-fixing operation for the receiver paper.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a color video printer, such as a cycolor type color video printer, and more particularly to a heat-fixing apparatus for such a color video printer which reliably prevents rollers such as compression roller from being stained with dyestuff of color image on a receiver paper, improves a heat utilization efficiency of a heat source thereof and uniformly performs the heat-fixing operation for the receiver paper.
2. Description of the Prior Art
With reference to FIG. 1 which shows an operational principle of a heat-fixing operation by a known heat-fixing apparatus for a cycolor type color video printer, the cycolor film 2 which is applied with a great number of cylith capsules 1 is exposed, by using a light-exposing apparatus such as a F/O CRT (Fiber Optics Cathode Ray Tube), to an image light corresponding to an optical image which is to be printed on a receiver paper. In result, a part of the cylith capsules 1 which were exposed to the image light are cured owing to a high photosensitivity thereof while the other cylith capsules 1 which were not exposed to the image light remains as in previous liquid state.
Sequentially, a receiver paper 5 comprising a paper base 4 being covered with a resin layer 3 passes through a pair of developing rollers, that is, upper and lower developing rollers 6, under the condition that it overlaps with the light-exposed cycolor film 2. At this time, the cylith capsules 1 which were not exposed to the image light are broken due to a substantially high pressure generating between the upper and lower developing rollers 6 so that the dyestuff of the broken cylith capsules 1 is transferred onto the receiver paper 5. That is, the resin layer 3 of the receiver paper 5 is applied with the dyestuff of the broken cylith capsules 1.
Thereafter, the receiver paper 5 out of the upper and lower developing rollers 6 is heated by a heat-fixing apparatus 7. In result, the resin layer 3 of the receiver paper 5 is fused in order to react upon the dyestuff having been applied on the receiver paper 5, thereby causing the color image to be heat-fixed on the receiver paper 5.
There have been proposed several types of conventional heat-fixing apparatus for a cycolor type color video printer for heat-fixing a color image on a receiver paper in accordance with the above-mentioned heat-fixing operational principle. Hereinafter, two types of conventional heat-fixing apparatus as examples will be described in conjunction with accompanying drawings, respectively.
Referring to FIG. 2 which shows a sectional view of an embodiment of a conventional contact type heat-fixing apparatus for a color video printer, the contact type apparatus comprises a heat roller 12 enclosing therein a halogen lamp 10 as a heat source and being coated at circumferential outer surface thereof with a teflon layer 11, and a compression roller 14 being coated at circumferential outer surface thereof with a silicon rubber 13 and adapted for contacting with the outer surface of the heat roller 12 at a predetermined pressure. In addition, there are provided a pair of separating members 16, each disposed at each roller 12, 14 and adapted for smoothly separating the receiver paper 15 from the roller 12, 14, and an oil supplying member comprising an oil reservoir 17 for containing oil which is to be supplied to the heat roller 12 during the heat-fixing operation, and an oil feeding tube 18 for allowing the oil of the oil reservoir 17 to be supplied to the heat roller 12 therethrough. Therefore, the color image on the receiver paper 15 is heat-fixed during the receiver paper 15 passes through the heat and compression rollers 12 and 14, then the receiver paper 15 out of the rollers 12 and 14 is smoothly separated from the rollers 12 and 14 by means of the separating members 16. At this time, the heat roller 12 is continuously supplied with the oil by means of the oil supplying member 17 and 18.
On the other hand, FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of an embodiment of a conventional non-contact type heat-fixing apparatus for a color video printer. As shown in the drawing, the conventional non-contact type apparatus comprises two pairs of upper and lower feed rollers 21, 22 and 23, 24 disposed such that the two pairs 21, 22 and 23, 24 are spaced from each other pair by a predetermined distance, and the upper and lower rollers 21 and 22, 23 and 24 of each pair contact with each other at a predetermined pressure. In addition, there are provided a halogen lamp 25 disposed between the upper feed rollers 21 and 23 of the two pairs in order to act as a heat source, and a reflector 26 surrounding the halogen lamp 25 in order to concentrate the heat generated by the halogen lamp 25.
In such a conventional non-contact type heat-fixing apparatus, the upper feed rollers 21 and 23 are connected to each other by means of a endless belt 27 wrapping thereabout in order to interlock with each other, thereby feeding the receiver paper 20 so as to pass under the reflector 26. At this time, the receiver paper 20 is supplied with the heat which is generated by the halogen lamp 25 and then concentrated by the reflector 26, thereby causing the color image having transferred on the receiver paper 20 to be heat-fixed.
However, in the conventional non-contact type heat-fixing apparatus as shown in FIG. 3, the heat-fixing apparatus has a substantially lower heat utilization efficiency so that it must be necessary to increase the temperature of the halogen lamp 25 to a substantially higher temperature. In result, the conventional non-contact type heat-fixing apparatus has a disadvantage in that in case of increasing the temperature of the halogen lamp 25 to such a high temperature, it can not reliably provide a stability such as due to occurrence of ignition of the receiver paper 20, occurrence of a danger that the whole system of the apparatus is subjected to an undesirable high temperature atmosphere, and an evaporation of moisture from the receiver paper 20, resulting in causing the receiver paper 20 to be rolled, thus occurring a paper jam.
On the other hand, in the conventional contact type heat-fixing apparatus as shown in FIG. 2, even though it is possible to provide a relatively good stability, it has a disadvantage in that is needs a substantially long warming time for accomplishing a desired temperature for reliably performing the desired heat-fixing operation. In addition, the heat roller 12 of this type of heat-fixing apparatus has to directly and closely contact with the color image on the receiver paper 15, thereby introducing another disadvantage of occurrence of an offset of dyestuff in which the heat roller 12 is stained with the dyestuff of the cylith capsules.

Heat-fixing apparatus for color video printer including a stationary heat tube


In an audio/control (A/C) head connecting device of a tape recorder, a main circuit board installed under a main deck applies an electrical signal to an A/C head on the main deck. A sub-circuit board is formed at the A/C head to electrically connect the A/C head to which the electrical signal is applied. A support is installed on the main circuit board. Thus, the sub-circuit board having a connecting port passes through an opening in the main deck and is electrically connected to an elastic connecting member installed at the support.

The present invention relates to an audio/control head (hereinafter referred to as an "A/C head") connecting device of a tape recorder having a simplified structure and providing easy connectivity.
In general, there is a recording area on a magnetic tape for recording an audio signal and a control signal. Referring to FIG. 1, a video tape recorder is provided with an A/C head 20 which has a recording head 20b for recording audio/control signals on the recording area and an erasing head 20a for erasing a video signal recorded on the recording area.
The A/C head 20 is installed on a sub-plate 13 fixed to a main plate 12. The main plate 12 is rotatably installed on a main deck 10, and can be rotated by a control gear 11 having a first gear portion 11a meshed with a second gear portion 12a formed on the main plate 12.
The A/C head 20 is electrically connected to and controlled by a circuit board (not shown) installed under the main deck 10. That is, the circuit board has a connection member 19 protruding from the main deck 10 and penetrating the main deck 10, and the connection member 19 supports a bundle of wires 1 which is connected to the A/C head 20 so that the A/C head 20 can receive the audio/control signals via the wires 1. The wires 1 are installed such that they do not affect the rotation of the main plate 12 by the control gear 11.
However, such a connecting device has a complicated structure and it is difficult to assemble the connecting device. That is, the wires 1 are installed after the A/C head 20 and the connection member 19 are installed.

Audio/control head connecting device of tape recorder


In order to measure the power consumed by a bus in a digital signal processor, each bus conductor has a lead electrically coupled thereto. The lead is coupled to apparatus that provides a signal each time the logic state of the bus is changed. The total number of logic signal changes for a given period of time is determined. Because power is consumed by the bus only during logic state transitions, the total number of logic state transitions can be multiplied by the power consumed by the bus during each transition to provide the total power consumed during a predetermined period of time. The power consumed by the bus during each logic state transition can be determined by simulation or other techniques. The power consumed by the operation of the bus can be further divided into power consumed by the internal (on-chip) bus and the external (off-chip) bus.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to digital signal processing units and, more particularly, to power consumption of the buses found in digital signal processor units.
2. Background of the Invention
The digital signal processor and related devices have found increasing application in portable apparatus, such as cell phones, wireless internet devices, etc. The power consumption is a critical parameter for portable apparatus. The power consumption determines the size of the battery and the time between recharging the battery, key parameters in the portability of devices.
However, the power consumption parameter ha s several variables. The hardware implementing the device can, for example, be designed to run with minimum power expenditure. Even after every effort has been employed to reduce to power requirements of the implementing hardware, the software programs being executed by the hardware may not be optimized to provide minimum power consumption. In addition, not only can the central processing unit draw power, but bus activity can also result in the consumption of power. However, before these parameters can be optimized, a technique for the measurement of the power consumption must be provided.
A need has therefore been felt for apparatus and an associated method having the feature that the power consumption in a digital signal processor unit can be measured. It would be a feature of the apparatus and associated method to measure the power dissipated by the bus in a digital signal processing unit. It would be yet another feature of the apparatus and associated method to measure the power dissipated by the digital signal processor bus during a preselected period of activity. It would be a still further feature of the apparatus and associated method to separate the power consumed by internal bus and the power consumed by the external bus in a digital signal processing unit. It would be yet another feature of the apparatus and associated method to determine the power consumption of a digital signal processor bus for a selected portion of a software program. It would be a still further feature of the present invention to determine separately the power consumption of a digital signal processor bus for a plurality of portions of a software program.

Apparatus for determining power consumed by a bus of a digital signal processor using counted number of logic state transitions on bus


A wireless communication authentication program whereby a slave station in a small-scale wireless LAN system can be authenticated by a simple procedure. A wireless communication authentication device periodically increments a first system timer value (Step S1) for which an optional numerical value is set beforehand. A wireless communication device sets therein a second system timer value (Step S2) so as to coincide with the first system timer value and periodically increments the second system timer value (Step S3). The wireless communication device transmits an authentication request command including a third system timer value (Step S4), and the wireless communication authentication device compares the third system timer value included in the authentication request command with the first system timer value thereof assumed at the time of reception of the command (Step S6). In accordance with the comparison result, the wireless communication authentication device determines whether to authenticate the wireless communication device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to computer-readable recording media recording wireless communication authentication programs, and more particularly, to a computer-readable recording medium recording a wireless communication authentication program having the function of preventing an outsider's illegal access.
2. Description of the Related Art
In information communications via networks, it is necessary that illegal acts such as an outsider's illegal access should be prevented. Various security technologies have therefore been developed for information communications via wired LANs (Local Area Networks).
For example, with respect to software to be executed by a client device (hereinafter merely referred to as client), a server machine issues, to the client, an authentication key specifying a term of validity. When the software is to be executed by the client, the stored authentication key and validity term are checked against the current date and time indicated by the calendar timer of the client, to determine whether to permit the execution of the software (e.g., Unexamined Japanese Patent Publication No. 2000-122863).
Also, as authentication schemes using a one-time password, a technique is known which makes use of time information of a mobile telephone in order to manage secret information while ensuring security of the one-time password. One-time password scheme is a scheme wherein a password displayed on a small portable device called token, instead of a password memorized by the user, is input for the purpose of user authentication. For example, in a mobile telephone, a hash value is obtained using a user ID, current time information and common secret information, to generate a one-time password. The user inputs the generated one-time password and the user ID to a user PC (Personal Computer), whereupon the input information is sent to a user authentication server. On receiving the user ID and the one-time password from the user PC, the user authentication server causes a hash generator therein to similarly generate a one-time password by using the received user ID, current time information and common secret information, and the generated one-time password is used for the verification by a one-time password verifier (e.g., Unexamined Japanese Patent Publication No. 2002-259344).
Meanwhile, as a result of the recent advance in wireless LAN technologies, data communications can be performed using a terminal device connectable to a wireless LAN, without the need for cable connection. For example, a wireless LAN communication environment may be created inside a factory, whereby the terminal device can communicate wherever in the factory it is moved, without changing network settings etc. This improves the efficiency of work using computers.
In the case of wireless LAN, however, communication data is carried by electromagnetic waves and thus can be tapped relatively easily, compared with the case of wired LAN. Accordingly, when configuring a wireless LAN, it is necessary to employ more sophisticated security techniques than those required for a wired LAN. Such security techniques include techniques for preventing outsider's illegal connection, and as such illegal connection prevention techniques, a technique is known wherein only the terminal devices authenticated by an authentication server are allowed to connect to a wireless LAN.
FIG. 31 shows an exemplary configuration of a conventional wireless LAN system. An authentication server 91 is connected via an IP (Internet Protocol) network 92 to an access point 93 which is connected to a client 94 by wireless. The access point 93 and the client 94 are in a relationship such that the access point 93 functions as a master station of wireless communication while the client 94 as a slave station. The authentication server 91 is a computer for performing authentication following the procedures provided by IEEE 802.1x. In accordance with the procedures defined by RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service), the authentication server 91 authenticates the user who uses the client 94. Details of RADIUS are publicized as RFC 2138 and 2139.
FIG. 32 shows an authentication sequence of the conventional wireless LAN system. In FIG. 32, a user authentication sequence is executed between the slave station (client 94), the master station (access point 93) and the authentication server 91 (Step S201). An encryption key is delivered from the authentication server 91 to the master station (access point 93) and then to the slave station (client 94). Using the delivered encryption key, the client 94 encrypts data to be communicated (Step S202).
The authentication scheme according to IEEE 802.1x is, however, prescribed on the assumption that the scheme is applied to a large-scale wireless LAN system as a whole. Accordingly, even in the case of a small-scale system based on P-P (Point-to-Point) communication, for example, the authentication server 91 needs to be provided on the network, though there are only two wireless LAN devices on the network, which entails an increase in the cost of equipment.
Moreover, the authentication process needs to be periodically performed by the authentication server 91 to dynamically change the encryption key. By dynamically changing the encryption key, it is possible to prevent the encryption key from being decrypted, thereby greatly enhancing security. However, since the encryption key is dynamically changed, the user authentication sequence is frequently executed between the slave station (client 94), the master station (access point 93) and the authentication server 91. As a result, a problem arises in that the throughput of actual communication lowers due to increase in the communication time required for communication other than data communication.

Computer-readable recording medium recording a wireless communication authentication program


Disclosed is a novel deformation-resistant structure of a portable device, capable of reducing an electric failure by decreasing a distortion which occurs in a soldered portion between a printed circuit board of the portable device and an electric part mounted on the board due to a mechanical stress such as drop or pressure. Through slits are formed in positions in a printed wiring plate, which correspond to bosses having prepared holes disposed at the corners of a casing. By inserting screws into the prepared holes through the through slits, the printed circuit board is mounted in the casing. Although the casing is deformed when an external mechanical stress is applied to the casing, the screw and the boss can slide along each of the through slits. Thus, a deformation amount of the printed circuit board is not caused or becomes smaller than that of the casing.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a printed circuit board of a portable device such as portable telephone, PHS, or PDA and a structure of a casing in which the printed circuit board is mounted and, more particularly, to a deformation-resistant mounting structure of a portable device.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Since a portable device such as a portable telephone or PDA becomes lighter, thinner, and smaller, the user can easily carry it in his/her pocket or the like.
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a general schematic structure of a conventional technique of this kind.
In FIG. 1, a plurality of screws 105 are inserted in through holes 204 of a printed circuit board 203 and screwed into prepared holes 102 of bosses 106 of a casing 101, thereby sandwiching the printed circuit board 203 of a portable device between the top surfaces of the bosses 106 and the screws 105 and mounting the printed circuit board 203 on the casing 101.
Due to light weight, thinness, and small size, the user sometimes forgets that he/she carries a portable device. Consequently, an electric failure is increasingly caused by a drop of the portable device from a breast pocket when the user stoops down or by pressure applied on the portable device in a pocket of pants when the user sits down.
By a mechanical stress such as drop or pressure, distortion occurs in a soldered portion between the printed circuit board of the portable device and an electric part mounted on the board.
Because of the distortion, disconnection occurs due to a crack in the soldered portion, and it causes an electric failure.
For solving the problem, in Japanese Unexamined Utility Model No. 63-115251 as a first conventional technique, a printed circuit board in which at least one slit or groove is formed so as to surround a portion sandwiched by holding members has been proposed.
Techniques similar to the first conventional technique are disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 64-18300, 9-181403, and 11-330640 as second, third, and fourth conventional techniques, respectively.
The first to fourth conventional techniques, however, have the following drawbacks.
Specifically, deformation in a printed circuit board cannot be prevented only by a plurality of slits or grooves formed around portions for fixing the printed circuit board to a casing, the mechanical stress of an external force cannot be sufficiently absorbed, and an effective area of the printed circuit board is reduced by the area of the portions in which the slits or grooves are formed.
In order to overcome the aforementioned disadvantages, the present invention has been made and accordingly, has an object to provide a novel deformation-resistant mounting structure of a portable device, capable of reducing an electric failure by decreasing the distortion, that is, capable of improving the mechanical strength of a portable device.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel portable information terminal device enabling convenience and reliability of a portable information terminal or the like to be improved.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a deformation-resistant mounting structure of a portable device comprising: a printed circuit board in which a plurality of though holes are formed; a casing having a plurality of bosses each having a seat and a prepared hole or a threaded hole, the seat is provided for mounting the printed circuit board, a plurality of screws each being inserted into the prepared hole or the threaded hole of each of the plurality of bosses through each of the plurality of through holes, wherein each of the plurality of through holes is formed in a slit shape, and wherein when the casing is deformed, each of the plurality of screws displaces along a direction of the slit shape.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a deformation-resistant mounting structure of a portable device comprising: a printed circuit board in which a plurality of though holes are formed; a chassis having a plurality of bosses each having a seat and a prepared hole or a threaded hole, the seat is provided for mounting the printed circuit board, a plurality of screws each being inserted into the prepared hole or the threaded hole of each of the plurality of bosses through each of the plurality of through holes, wherein each of the plurality of through holes is formed in a slit shape, and wherein when the chassis is deformed, each of the plurality of screws displaces along a direction of the slit shape.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a deformation-resistant mounting structure of a portable device comprising: a printed circuit board in which a plurality of though holes are formed; a casing having a plurality of bosses each having a seat and a male screw, the seat is provided for mounting the printed circuit board, a plurality of screw nuts, into each of which each of the male screws is inserted through each of the plurality of through holes, wherein each of the plurality of through holes is formed in a slit shape, and wherein when the casing is deformed, each of the plurality of male screws displaces along a direction of the slit shape.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a deformation-resistant mounting structure of a portable device comprising: a printed circuit board in which a plurality of though holes are formed; a chassis having a plurality of bosses each having a seat and a male screw, the seat is provided for mounting the printed circuit board, a plurality of screw nuts, into each of which each of the male screws is inserted through each of the plurality of through holes, wherein each of the plurality of through holes is formed in a slit shape, and wherein when the chassis is deformed, each of the plurality of male screws displaces along a direction of the slit shape.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a deformation-resistant mounting structure of a portable device comprising: a printed circuit board in which a plurality of though holes are formed; a casing having a plurality of bosses each having a seat and a pillar on the seat, the seat is provided for mounting the printed circuit board, the pillar having a prepared hole or a threaded hole, the pillar being inserted into each of the through holes, a plurality of screws each being inserted into the prepared hole or the threaded hole of each of the pillars, wherein each of the plurality of through holes is formed in a slit shape, and wherein when the casing is deformed, each of the plurality of pillars displaces along a direction of the slit shape.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a deformation-resistant mounting structure of a portable device comprising: a printed circuit board in which a plurality of though holes are formed; a chassis having a plurality of bosses each having a seat and a pillar on the seat, the seat is provided for mounting the printed circuit board, the pillar having a prepared hole or a threaded hole, the pillar being inserted into each of the through holes, a plurality of screws each being inserted into the prepared hole or the threaded hole of each of the pillars, wherein each of the plurality of through holes is formed in a slit shape, and wherein when the chassis is deformed, each of the plurality of pillars displaces along a direction of the slit shape.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a deformation-resistant mounting structure of a portable device comprising: a printed circuit board in which a plurality of though holes are formed; a casing having a plurality of bosses each having a seat and a pillar on the seat, the seat is provided for mounting the printed circuit board, the pillar having a male screw, the pillar being inserted into each of the through holes, a plurality of screw nuts, into each of which each of the male screw is inserted, wherein each of the plurality of through holes is formed in a slit shape, and wherein when the casing is deformed, each of the plurality of pillars displaces along a direction of the slit shape.
According to a eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a deformation-resistant mounting structure of a portable device comprising: a printed circuit board in which a plurality of though holes are formed; a chassis having a plurality of bosses each having a seat and a pillar on the seat, the seat is provided for mounting the printed circuit board, the pillar having a male screw, the pillar being inserted into each of the through holes, a plurality of screw nuts, into each of which each of the male screw is inserted, wherein each of the plurality of through holes is formed in a slit shape, and wherein when the chassis is deformed, each of the plurality of pillars displaces along a direction of the slit shape.

Deformation-resistant mounting structure of portable device


The present disclosure discloses an optical imaging system, the optical imaging system having an effective focal length f and an entrance pupil diameter EPD, and comprising sequentially, along an optical axis from an object side to an image side, a first lens, a second lens, a third lens, a fourth lens, a fifth lens, a sixth lens and a seventh lens. The third lens has a negative refractive power; the fifth lens has a positive refractive power or a negative refractive power, and an image side surface of the fifth lens is a convex surface; the seventh lens has a positive refractive power or a negative refractive power, and an object side surface of the seventh lens is a concave surface; the first lens, the second lens, the fourth lens, and the sixth lens respectively have a positive refractive power or a negative refractive power.

As the science and technology develop, there is an increasing demand for high-resolution lens assemblies in mobile phones on the mobile phone market. Since thicknesses of the mobile phones are reduced, the total length of a lens assembly is limited, thereby increasing the difficulty in designing a mobile phone lens assembly. Currently, an often used photosensitive element in an optical system is a CCD (Charge-Coupled Device) or a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS). As imaging sensors enhance their performances and become smaller in size, corresponding camera lens assemblies also need to satisfy requirements on the high image quality and miniaturization.
To satisfy the miniaturization requirement, a typical configuration of an existing lens assembly has an F-number of 2.0 or above. However, with the constant development of smart phones and other portable electronic products, higher requirements on imaging lens assemblies are brought forward, especially in situations such as lack of light (e.g., cloudy and rainy days, dusk, etc.) and hand trembling, thus the F-number of 2.0 or above has been unable to meet higher order imaging requirements.
Therefore, the present invention proposes a miniaturized optical imaging system having a large aperture and a high image quality.


An organic light emitting device according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a first substrate defining a pixel region and a non-pixel region; an array of organic light emitting pixels formed in the pixel region of the first substrate; a second substrate placed over the first substrate, the array being interposed between the first and second substrates; a frit seal interposed between and interconnecting the first and second substrates, wherein the frit seal comprises a plurality of elongated segments, which in combination surrounds the array; and at least one conductive line formed in the non-pixel region and elongated substantially parallel to one of the plurality of elongated segments of the frit seal, wherein no conductive line in the non-pixel region is elongated substantially parallel to one of the elongated segments and overlaps the elongated segment substantially parallel thereto when viewed from the first or second substrate.

1. Field
The invention relates to an organic light emitting display, and more particularly, to packaging of an organic light emitting display.
2. Description of the Related Technology
With the goal of improving upon the shortcomings of certain displays such as cathode ray tubes, attention has recently been focused on flat panel displays such as a liquid crystal display, an organic light emitting display, a plasma display panel (PDP), and so on.
Since the liquid crystal display is a passive device rather than an emissive device, it is difficult to make it have high brightness and contrast, a wide viewing angle, and a large-sized screen. While the PDP is an emissive device, it is heavy, consumes much power, and requires a complex manufacturing process, compared to other displays.
Meanwhile, since the organic light emitting display (OLED) is an emissive device, it has a wide viewing angle, and high contrast. In addition, since it does not require a backlight, it can be made lightweight, compact, and power efficient. Further, the OLED can be driven at a low DC voltage, has a rapid response speed, and is formed entirely of solid material. As a result, the OLED has the ability to withstand external impact and a wide range of temperatures, and can be fabricated by a simple method at low cost. The above discussion is simply to describe the general field of organic light emitting displays and is not a discussion of the prior art.

Organic light emitting display device and method of fabricating the same


A robot controller controls a robot during a fall to reduce the damage to the robot upon impact. The robot controller causes the robot to achieve a tripod-like posture having three contact points (e.g., two hands and one foot) so that the robot motion in arrested with its center of mass (CoM) high above the ground. This prevents a large impact caused by the transfer of potential energy to kinetic energy during the fall. The optimal locations of the three contacts are learned through a machine learning algorithm.

The issue of safety and robust operation is a major challenge to integrating humanoid or other legged robots into human environments. Particularly, given the size, weight, and fragility of such robots, a fall can be a significant threat to safe and smooth operation of humanoid robots and to safety of objects and people in their surroundings. While robot balance controllers are designed to reduce the likelihood of the robot falling over, in some cases the fall is inevitable and cannot be prevented. In these cases, it is desirable that humanoid robots be equipped with a comprehensive fall management strategy to minimize damage to itself and surrounding objects and/or to prevent injury to people.


An exemplary sound processor (104) included in an auditory prosthesis system includes 1) a clock facility (406) configured to detect an elapsing of a predetermined amount of time and 2) a fitting facility (408) communicatively coupled to the clock facility and configured to automatically perform, in response to the elapsing of the predetermined amount of time, one or more fitting operations with respect to the auditory prosthesis system. Corresponding systems and methods are also disclosed.

The sense of hearing in human beings involves the use of hair cells in the cochlea that convert or transduce audio signals into auditory nerve impulses. Hearing loss, which may be due to many different causes, is generally of two types: conductive and sensorineural. Conductive hearing loss occurs when the normal mechanical pathways for sound to reach the hair cells in the cochlea are impeded. These sound pathways may be impeded, for example, by damage to the auditory ossicles. Conductive hearing loss may often be helped by the use of conventional hearing aids that amplify sound so that audio signals reach the cochlea and the hair cells. Some types of conductive hearing loss may also be treated by surgical procedures.
Sensorineural hearing loss, on the other hand, is caused by the absence or destruction of the hair cells in the cochlea which are needed to transduce acoustic signals into auditory nerve impulses. People who suffer from sensorineural hearing loss may be unable to derive significant benefit from conventional hearing aid systems, no matter how loud the acoustic stimulus is. This is because the mechanism for transducing sound energy into auditory nerve impulses has been damaged. Thus, in the absence of properly functioning hair cells, auditory nerve impulses cannot be generated directly from sounds.
To overcome sensorineural hearing loss, numerous auditory prosthesis systems (e.g., cochlear implant systems) have been developed. Auditory prosthesis systems bypass the hair cells in the cochlea by presenting electrical stimulation directly to stimulation sites (e.g., auditory nerve fibers) by way of one or more channels formed by an array of electrodes implanted in an auditory prosthesis patient. Direct stimulation of the stimulation sites leads to the perception of sound in the brain and at least partial restoration of hearing function.
When an auditory prosthesis (e.g., a cochlear implant) is initially implanted in a patient, and during follow-up tests and checkups thereafter, it is usually necessary to fit the auditory prosthesis system to the patient. These fitting sessions are typically performed under the supervision of an audiologist or the like at a clinic. Unfortunately, this requires the patient to make repeated trips to the clinic, which can be costly, time-consuming, and inconvenient for both the patient and the audiologist. While some clinical visits involve a great deal of patient-clinician interaction, other clinical visits are very routine and follow strict processes.

Systems and methods for facilitating time-based fitting by a sound processor


A fuel cell roll good subassembly is described that includes a plurality of individual electrolyte membranes. One or more first subgaskets are attached to the individual electrolyte membranes. Each of the first subgaskets has at least one aperture and the first subgaskets are arranged so the center regions of the individual electrolyte membranes are exposed through the apertures of the first subgaskets. A second subgasket comprises a web having a plurality of apertures. The second subgasket web is attached to the one or more first subgaskets so the center regions of the individual electrolyte membranes are exposed through the apertures of the second subgasket web. The second subgasket web may have little or no adhesive on the subgasket surface facing the electrolyte membrane.

A fuel cell is an electrochemical device that combines hydrogen fuel and oxygen from the air to produce electricity, heat, and water. Fuel cells do not utilize combustion, and as such, fuel cells produce little if any hazardous effluents. Fuel cells convert hydrogen fuel and oxygen directly into electricity, and can be operated at much higher efficiencies than internal combustion electric generators, for example.
A typical fuel cell power system includes a power section in which one or more stacks of fuel cells are provided. The efficacy of the fuel cell power system depends in part on the integrity of the various contacting and sealing interfaces within individual fuel cells and between adjacent fuel cells of the stack.
A subgasket may be deployed on the electrolyte membrane of a fuel cell to seal the active regions of the fuel cell and to provide dimensional stability to the electrolyte membrane. Under pressure, the edges of fuel cell components in the stack can cause local stress concentrations on the membrane which may cause failure of the fuel cell. Subgaskets provide support to the membranes to reduce the occurrence of this failure mechanism.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Fuel cell subassemblies incorporating subgasketed thrifted membranes


An inrush current limiter circuit (20) includes a detection circuit (30) that produces a control signal (VDRIVE) from a sense current (ISENSE). A power transistor responds to the control signal and has a source (51) coupled to an input node (12) to receive a supply voltage (ground) and a drain (53) for routing a load current (ILOAD) to an output node (45) as a protection signal (VSW). A sense transistor responds to the control signal and has a source scaled to the source of the power transistor and coupled to the input node to route a portion of the load current to the output node as the sense current.

The present invention relates in general to semiconductor devices and, more particularly, to high current semiconductor devices for limiting current surges on a power supply bus.
Telecommunications, network and computer applications often require the ability to insert and remove circuit cards from systems without powering down the entire system, often referred to as "hot swapping". In network equipment configured with a distributed power system, circuit cards often include large filter capacitors for reducing noise on the power rail or bus. During a hot swap, the capacitors can produce an inrush current spike that can, if not otherwise limited, reach hundreds of amperes of peak amplitude, which can damage the circuit card or its connector. Moreover, such a large inrush current can cause a power disturbance that damages other circuit cards that are plugged into the system or result in a data loss or other system malfunction. To prevent such deleterious effects, hot swappable circuit cards typically are formed with inrush current limiting circuits that control a power MOSFET switch through which is routed the supply current.
Existing inrush current limiters suffer from a high cost due to a large number of components needed to control the power MOSFET switch in a fashion that achieves a limits the inrush current to a specified level. Most inrush current limiters use a low value sense resistor coupled in series with the power MOSFET switch to limit the peak value of the supply current. However, a large current flow through the switch and sense resistor results in a high power dissipation that can adversely affect reliability.
Hence, there is a need for an inrush current limiter that reduces the component count in order to reduce the manufacturing cost while achieving a high reliability by reducing power dissipation.

Integrated inrush current limiter circuit and method

Semiconductor Components Industries, L.L.C


Intermediate frequency Fif output from a first frequency mixer passes through IF filter which attenuates a noise level at a frequency of a difference between receiving frequency Frx and output frequency FL2 from a second local oscillator to a level such that the a transmitting noise produces no receiving sensitivity suppression, whereby the intermediate frequency becomes one that possesses a sufficiently low noise level compared to a sensitivity level of a receiver. After the intermediated frequency is converted to a transmitting frequency by a second frequency mixer, in the intermediate frequency which increases its noise level by a gain obtained by the circuit components disposed behind first frequency mixer, a receiving band noise is removed by a transmitting filter having an attenuation amount at a receiving band equal to the gain obtained by the circuit component disposed behind the first frequency mixer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a transmitter, more particularly to a transmitter employing an FDD (Frequency Division Duplex) system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a conventional transmitter disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid Open No. 174018/89.
The transmitter shown in FIG. 1 consists of a radio transmitter-receiver and a transmitter-receiver detouring wave canceling circuit. The radio transmitter-receiver comprises transmitting signal input terminal 21, transmitting IF amplifier 22, transmitting frequency mixer 23, transmitting filter 24, transmitting power amplifier 25, local oscillator 26, distributer 27, transmitter-receiver commonly-used device 28, antenna connecting terminal 29, receiving filter 30, receiving high-frequency amplifier 31, receiving frequency mixer 32, receiving IF filter 33, receiving IF band amplifier 34, and receiving signal output terminal 35. The transmitter-receiver detouring wave cancel circuit comprises directional coupling device 36, adjusting device 37, directional coupling device 38, transmitting filter 39, detector 40, and control section 41.
Transmitting waves are partially branched by directional connection device 36 disposed in a transmitting side, and the branched waves are output to directional coupling device 38 disposed in a receiving side via adjusting device 37. Hereupon, adjusting device 37 adjusts the amplitude and the phase of the transmitting waves output from directional coupling device 36 so that the amplitude of the transmitting waves is the same as that of the transmitter-receiver detouring waves and the phase of the transmitting waves shifts from that of the transmitter-receiver detouring waves by 180 degrees. The transmitter-receiver detouring waves are output to directional coupling device 38 after passing through transmitter-receiver commonly-used device 28. Directional coupling device 38 disposed in the receiving side synthesizes the waves output from adjusting device 37 with the transmitter-receiver detouring waves which detours around adjusting device 37 by passing through transmitter-receiver commonly-used device 28. As a result, the transmitter-receiver detouring waves are canceled.
The foregoing conventional transmitter has heretofore employed the technique in which the amplitude and the phase of the signal obtained by separating the transmitting output are adjusted and then the signal is synthesized with the receiving input. However, this technique requires directional coupling devices both for the transmitting and receiving sides so that transmitting loss is brought about and a power amplification efficiency is made worse in the coupling device of the transmitting side. On the other hand, in the coupling device of the receiving side, a receiving signal is attenuated, and a receiving sensitivity is deteriorated. Furthermore, it is required to detect transmitting noises included in a receiving IF band and to adjust the amplitude and phase of the branched transmitting signal with a high precision. Hence, there is a problem that the circuit constitution is complicated.

Frequency division duplex transmitter which attenuates the difference between a receiving frequency an output frequency from a second oscillator


An electrostatic lens arrangement of three stages of quadrupole electrodes comprising first, second and third stage electrostatic lens unit connected in series, each electrostatic lens unit including first, second, third and fourth electrode arranged around a circle surrounding a center axis of an ion beam passage with an equal interval of 90.degree. C., wherein the respective first, second, third and fourth electrodes for the first, second and third stage electrostatic lens unit are respectively supported by first, second, third and fourth common supporting rod along respective straight lines while electrically insulating each other.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a multi-stage multi-pole electrode arrangement used for an electrostatic lens system which converges a beam of electric charges and is applied, for example, to a corpuscular ray accelerator, mass spectrometer and ion beam analyzer.
2. Description of Related Art
As disclosed in JP-A-59-215650 (1984) which corresponds to U.S. Pat. No. 4,553,029, in a double convergence mass spectrometer an electrostatic lens unit of quadrupole electrode system is widely used as a measure for converging charged particles or ion beam and when no sufficient convergence is obtained with such electrostatic lens unit of a single stage, a plurality of such electrostatic lens units are used and arranged in two or three stages in series to obtain a required convergence.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing one example of conventional electrostatic lens arrangements of muliti-stage multi-pole electrode system.
The illustrated conventional electrostatic lens arrangement relates a three stage quadrupole electrode system wherein a first stage quadrupole lens unit 1A, a second stage quadrupole lens unit 1B and a third stage quadrupole lens unit 1C, each of which is constructed independently, are accomodated in series within a cylindrical casing 2.
In each of the electrostatic lens units of multi-pole electrode system for the respective stages four rod shaped electrodes 3, wherein four electrodes 3A for the first stage, four electrodes 3B for the second stage and four electrodes 3C for the third stage, which are generally called as electrodes 3, are arranged in parallel around a circumference surrounding a passage of the charged beam with an equal interval of 90.degree. and rods 4' for supporting the electrodes 3 are inserted through the respective electrodes 3 in the axial direction at the center thereof. At both axial ends of the respective quadrupole electrodes disks 5-1 and 5-2 are disposed opposing each other and both ends of the supporting rods 4' for the respective electrodes 3 are secured to the respective disks 5-1 and 5-2, and further the respective disks 5-1 and 5-2 are provided with a beam passage aperture 6.
Further, conventional electrostatic lens arrangements of multi-pole electrode system are also disclosed in JP(PCT)-A-59-500642 (1984) which corresponds to WO-A-83/03498, JP-A-2-257558 (1990) and JP-A-2-270256 (1990).
The conventional electrostatic lens arrangements of multi-stage multi-pole electrode system as explained above are constituted by combining a plurality of independent electrostatic lens units of multi-pole electrode system one by one in series, therefore such conventional electrostatic lens arrangements had the following drawbacks to be improved.
(1) When constituting an electrostatic lens arrangement of multi-stage it is necessary to assemble the multi-pole electrodes for the respective stages in such a manner that the center axes of the corresponding electrodes for the respective stages coincide each other and align straight lines in order to eliminate offsetting of axes of the respective electrostatic lens units, however the supporting rods for the electrodes for the respective electrostatic lens units are independent, it is difficult to coincide the axes of the corresponding electrodes for the respective stages with a high accuracy. When there arises an error in axis coincidence with the corresponding electrodes an aberration due to axis offsetting in electrostatic lens units with respect to the charged beam is generated and a convergence estimated according to a theory can not be achieved.
(2) Further, an electrostatic lens arrangement of multi-pole electrode system for n stages requires n time larger number of parts than that required for a single stage, therefore the time for assembling the same as well as the cost therefor increase.

Electrostatic lens arrangement of multi-stages of multi-pole electrodes and mass spectrometer using the same


A computer implemented method for helping a user of computer game and learning programs to perceive a correct answer to a question presented by the programs. These computer game and learning programs (Set A programs) are modified by a computer program of this invention that accepts exactly one token string to be a correct answer (Set ESP program). Answer related output information in a Set A program is modified by the Set ESP program to provide a cue (hint) to a user to increase or decrease the ability of a user to perceive a correct answer. When a user enters an answer a guard requirement in the Set ESP program is satisfied and a guarded subfunction in the Set ESP program is executed if the user's answer is correct. Cues for answers can be visual (with or without eye-tracking), audible, and haptic and can be presented subliminally.

Computer implemented games are a well-known category of games that allow a player to interact with a computing device to cause the processor to perform certain functions and typically display a result on a screen or other display device. Different types of games have evolved from classical arcade games into games that can be played on a handheld device such as a smartphone, tablet or personal computer. Some games are also connected to the Internet and the player can play against or compare scores with other users in multiplayer mode.
There are multiple challenges for the designer of computer-implemented games. One challenge is making a game fun and compelling without the game being excessively difficult for scoring and winning. Another challenge is designing gameplay to be engaging and rewarding to players. Computer games need to be easily understood at their simplest or introductory levels, providing rewarding gameplay with quite simple game mechanics. However, the computer games need to become progressively more challenging so that players are not bored but remain engaged and develop rewarding skills. Effective engagement requires various forms of feedback to reinforce a player's sense of success and accomplishment.
These challenges also apply to computer learning programs. The same capabilities of the computer which make it an excellent game platform, also make it an excellent teaching tool. The ability to quickly store and manipulate large quantities of information, and to provide different output based on an analysis of that information, gives the computer great potential in the educational field. Nonetheless, previous attempts at using computers for educational purposes have generally involved teaching programs which, despite being well-designed educationally, are quite dry and scholarly. They are simply not considered to be "fun" like a computer game.
Both at home and in schools, the computer is gradually becoming a major medium for education. One weakness of a computer-aided-educational system is that it typically ignores a student's concentration level. Prior art systems have sought to provide educational programs on desktop computers. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,035,625 discloses a method of teaching a student using a computer game teaching system. A plurality of questions contained in a tutorial module are presented to the student at pause points in the game and a scoring algorithm for the game is modified as a result of positive responses to the questions to permit higher probability of scoring in the game. U.S. Pat. No. 5,980,264, teaches a screen saver that displays questions and receives answers, testing a user's knowledge on certain topics. U.S. Pat. No. 6,139,330, teaches a system and method that test a user on different subjects. The system decouples a device used for entertainment, recoupling it only when the user performs some specified task, such as attempting to answer a question.
A more important motivator than fun or entertainment in a game or learning environment is achieving success, for example, by getting a correct answer, solving a puzzle, or getting a winning score in a game. Helping a user in a game or in a learning computer program by decreasing the difficulty of the question, game, puzzle, etc. to achieve success is not effective. The user is aware that the task is easier. Satisfaction and a sense of fulfillment come from successfully completing a difficult task. Inducing a user to know a correct answer or solution should help the user remember the answer or solution. What is needed is a computer implemented method and system that will help a user of a computer game or learning program figure out difficult answers and solve difficult problems without feeling that he or she has been helped.

Method and system for altering level of difficulty of computer games and learning programs