Fermented malt beverages with reinforced filling taste and fullness of mouthfeel are manufactured by addition of α-glucosidase prior to a heat treatment in a wort production process in the course of manufacturing fermented malt beverages

In a usual process of manufacturing beers, starch derived from ingredients including malt is hydrolyzed by hydrolases (α-amylase, β-amylase) and fermentable sugars such as glucose, maltose, and maltotriose, which a brewer's yeast can metabolize, and oligosaccharides larger than maltotetraose and dextrin are produced. The fermentable sugars are metabolized by a brewer's yeast and converted to the components of beer such as alcohol. It is said that oligosaccharides larger than maltotetraose and dextrin may remain in the beer without being metabolized and may participate in filling taste and fullness of mouthfeel of the beverages. Besides, isomaltooligosaccharides produced by α-glucosidase from malt may give filling taste and fullness of mouthfeel of the beer, but their concentrations are too low to influence the taste of the beer.
There is a method to increase the concentration of isomaltooligosaccharides by addition of isomaltooligosaccharides syrup in beers and high adjunct beer (Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 7-51045, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 7-327659). In these methods, however, kinds and amounts of adjuncts are limited because it is essential to use isomaltooligosaccharides syrup as a adjunct. In addition, adjuncts are used in these methods, which means that these methods cannot be applied to the so-called all malt beers brewing.
On the other hand, a trial to reinforce filling taste and the like by using α-glucosidase in a method of manufacturing low alcohol beers has been performed. For example, in the method of manufacturing disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 5-68529, there is an attempt to reinforce filling taste and the like by production of isomaltooligosaccharides through addition of α-glucosidase (another name; transglucosidase) to the boiling-treated wort in the wort production process. In detail, after wort boiling in the wort production process a ratio of the fermentable sugars in wort can be reduced by addition of α-glucosidase to wort in which the concentration may be adjusted not more than 10 weight %, so that filling taste of beers similar to that of the usual alcohol concentration beers may be given. In this method in which α-glucosidase is added after the concentration adjustment, however, there is the following problem. That is, α-glucosidase may remain in wort or fermented wort in the fermentation and maturating processes which follow the wort production process, and then, once produced, isomaltooligosaccharides may be hydrolyzed by the enzyme to glucose and then the concentration of isomaltooligosaccharides may be decreased.
Meanwhile, the following arts are known in the high gravity brewing of beers and in the low-calorie beer brewing. The high gravity brewing is a method to ferment the high concentration of original extract in manufacturing beers. Concretely, wort in which the concentration of original extract of wort is usually 13–16 weight % is fermented and matured, and the product is diluted with carbonated water to the designated concentration prior to shipping. The high gravity brewing has an advantage of enhancing productive efficiencies of manufacturing equipment such as fermentation and lagering tanks and curtailing energy costs. Therefore, it is widely used in European countries and the United States, whereas the problem that it takes a long time to ferment a great volume of wort extract is indicated. The method to promote the fermentation in the high gravity brewing includes (1) to accelerate the viability and growth of the yeast by supplying a great volume of oxygen, (2) to use fresh yeast, and (3) to supply free-amino nitrogen. Besides, there is a problem that beer flavor manufactured in the high gravity brewing may be different from that of beers in a usual method. Especially, the original extract of wort is high in the high gravity brewing, and since a brewer's yeast is exposed to conditions of high osmotic pressure, expression of acetaldehyde dehydrogenase gene is generally induced. Because acetic acid, an off-flavor of beers, is produced from acetaldehyde, it has been desired to reduce its production.
Meanwhile, low-calorie beer, also called as diet beer, is a general name of beers with low calories. According to the art of beer brewing, low-calorie beer is defined as that with carbohydrate at 0.75 g/100 g or less and with fermentation degree of 90–92%. On the other hand, light beer is a general name of beers having lighter flavor than that of usual beers. Although it is not standardized on the quality and the method of manufacturing, it has generally lower calories than that of usual beers and is counted as one of low-calorie beers. The method to manufacture low-calorie beers includes (4) to ferment using diluted wort less than 10 weight % of original extract, or to dilute usual beers produced from wort at 12–13 weight % of original extract, (5) to ferment highly using dextrin-hydrolyzing enzymes (glucoamylase, debranching enzyme, α-amylase derived from mold, malt enzyme etc.), (6) to use dextrin-metabolizing yeast including recombinant yeast, (7) to ferment highly by supplying glucose to wort, (8) to dilute beer manufactured through the high gravity brewing, and (9) to ferment separately not less than two kinds of wort with different concentrations of original extract, to mix them to make the concentration the designated one, and to re-ferment and mature and the like.
Enzymes from malt such as β-amylase are used to saccharify ingredients such as malt in the process of manufacturing beers. Then, because maltose is a major carbon-source in wort, a sake yeast and wine yeast other than a brewer's yeast, which are less able to metabolize maltose have not been able to be employed in the manufacturing beers.

Method of manufacturing fermented malt beverages

Abstract: Production of acetic acid can be reduced by addition of α-glucosidase in the fermentation process in the high gravity brewing of beer. Further, low-calorie beers are manufactured by the method in which α-glucosidase is added in the fermentation process in brewing of beer and thereby real fermentation degree is enhanced.


A processing apparatus is disclosed which is capable of switching supplies of a raw material gas and a reducing gas alternately, while continuously forming a plasma of the reducing gas. An excitation device (12) excites a reducing gas supplied thereinto, and the excited reducing gas is supplied into a process chamber (2). A switching mechanism (20) is arranged between the excitation device (12) and the process chamber (2), and a bypass line (22) is connected to the switching mechanism (20). The switching mechanism (20) switches the flow of the excited reducing gas from the excitation device (12) between the process chamber (2) and the bypass line (22).

With the recent trend of miniaturizing semiconductor devices, various processing methods capable of achieving more miniaturized structures have been proposed. Among them, a method for forming a thin film on a semiconductor substrate by using an excited species formed from exciting gas has been has drawn attention.
For example, as a method for forming a high quality thin film on a substrate by supplying a processing gas to a heated substrate under a depressurized atmosphere, ALD (Atomic Layer Deposition) has drawn considerable attention. In ALD, various species of source gases are alternately supplied to a substrate in a depressurized atmosphere. Then the gases react on the heated substrate, thereby forming a very thin film of reaction product. Although setting the substrate at high temperature is effective in promoting the reaction of the source gases on the substrate, raising the heating temperature of the substrate has a limit. For example, for a silicon wafer for semiconductor, preferably the temperature of the substrate is set at 400° C. or less.
Meanwhile, to promote the reaction of the source gases on the substrate at relatively low temperature, one technology uses excited species by exciting source gases. Various methods exist for producing excited species, but a method for converting the source gas into plasma is commonly used.
Further, in the wiring process of a semiconductor integrated circuit, formation of a barrier film is necessary to suppress copper (Cu) film as a wiring material from diffusing into the low dielectric interlayer insulating film (low-K film). As for forming the barrier film, TiN film, TaN film, WN film, Ti film, Ta film etc., are considered promising materials. It has been proposed that the barrier films are formed by using a processing gas which has been converted into plasma (for example, see reference 7 and article 1, as listed below).
References related to the technical background of the present invention are as follows:    Reference 1: Japanese Patent Laid-open Application No. H06-89873;    Reference 2: Japanese Patent Laid-open Application No. H06-333875;    Reference 3: Japanese Patent Laid-open Application No. H07-252660;    Reference 4: U.S. Pat. No. 5,306,666;    Reference 5: U.S. Pat. No. 5,916,365;    Reference 6: U.S. Pat. No. 6,342,277;    Reference 7: U.S. Pat. No. 6,387,207; and    Article 1: S. M. Rossnagel, A. Sherman, F. Turner, "Plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition of Ta and Ti for interconnect diffusion barriers", J. Vac. Sci. Technol. July/August 2000, pp. 2016-2020
As an example method for forming Ti film by using a processing gas which has been converted into plasma, there is a method of using TiCl4 as source gas and H2 as reducing gas. In this method, Ti film is formed on a substrate, e.g., a wafer or the like, by alternately supplying H2 as reducing gas and TiCl4 as source gas, wherein reducing gas, H2, is excited by ICP (Inductively Coupled Plasma) to be converted into plasma. Such a method is referred to as the PE-ALD method.
As described above, in a processing apparatus for forming Ti film by using the PE-ALD (Plasma-Enhanced Atomic Layer Deposition) method, the supply of H2 is stopped while TiCl4 is supplied, to thereby switch the supply of H2 to TiCl4. For that reason, the operation of ICP, which is an excitation source, is stopped while H2 is not being supplied. In the PE-ALD method, since alternating supplies of TiCl4 and H2 are performed repeatedly over hundreds of times, ICP is stopped every time accordingly.
Here, if the operation of ICP is stopped and plasma is dissipated, to regenerate plasma for the next process, a time is necessary for plasma ignition. Further, once plasma has been ignited, more time is required for the plasma to reach a stable state. Therefore, every time the supplies of TiCl4 and H2 are alternated, it takes time to ignite and stabilize plasma, ultimately resulting in the problem of extending the overall processing time.

Gas switching mechanism for plasma processing apparatus


A test site is incorporated on a circuit board having a set of test connections passing through a test via on respective test connection layer, the test connection layers including (1) a first layer adjacent to a target layer, and (2) a second layer spaced apart from the target layer with the first layer therebetween. The test via is back-drilled from the direction of the second layer to remove undesired via metallization, breaking the test connections of all the layers through which it passes, and the continuity of the test connections is measured to determine a pattern of broken and non-broken test connections resulting from the back-drilling. The pattern of broken and non-broken test connections is examined to ascertain the actual depth of the back-drilling in relation to the target layer.

The present invention is related to the field of printed circuit board manufacturing.
In the manufacture of printed circuit boards, especially relatively thick circuit boards such as used for backplanes and mid-planes in electronic equipment, it is known to perform counter-boring or back-drilling of selected plated through holes (vias) that are used to make signal connections between different layers. If the connection formed by a via is near one surface of the circuit board, then the part of the via extending away from the connection to the other surface of the circuit board forms a "stub" that can cause undesirable effects on high-frequency signals. By back-drilling such vias to remove the stub, the quality of the signals carried by these via connections can be improved.
There are known methods of verifying that back-drilling is being performed to the correct depth. These methods include the use GO/NO-GO depth gauges to verify drill depth, either on a representative sample of back-drilled vias or on all back-drilled vias. This method only determines the depth of the drilled hole without any indication of the hole's relationship to the target signal layer, whose depth may vary considerably due to normal manufacturing tolerances. As an alternative, time-domain reflectometry (TDR) testing can be used to identify gross changes in the via stub length, but with only limited resolution.
In theory, back-drilling is a simple manufacturing process, but it has not been readily verifiable. The target layer's actual depth in the PCB stackup can vary substantially due to variations in raw material thickness and processing. Drilling too deep can ruin the board. Drilling too shallow may leave too much via stub, increasing the risk of latent signal-integrity issues which could cause the system to exhibit transient errors or to fail when upgraded to higher signaling rates, possibly after being in service for many years. Standard continuity checking only confirms that the counter-bore operation did not create any open circuits, and provides no information regarding the depth of the back-drilling with respect to the target signal layer.

Methods for verifying correct counter-bore depth and precision on printed circuit boards


A continuously manually or remotely adjustable microwave attenuator and linear phase shifter is made using a two section slabline structure in which a “U” formed center conductor forms a line-stretcher to adjust the transmission phase and slivers of ferromagnetic material are inserted into the magnetic field of the slabline, or thin layers of dielectric material are inserted into the electric field serving either way to reducing the amplitude of the transmission factor, or increase the attenuation. The unit is manually or remotely controlled, in which case its transmission behavior can be calibrated on a VNA and used in test software for automated differential load pull operations.

This invention relates to testing of differential microwave transistors (DUT) in the frequency and time domain [1] using Load Pull. Load pull is the method by which the load impedance presented to the DUT at a given frequency is changed systematically and the DUT performance is registered, with the objective to find an optimum depending on the overall design objectives [1]. This may be maximum power, efficiency, linearity or else. The same is valid for the source side of the DUT. Passive (slide screw) tuners are used to emulate the various impedances presented to the DUT [1], (FIG. 1a). The electrical signals injected into the input of the DUT and extracted from the output can be measured using sampling devices, such as signal couplers [2]. At high power the (nonlinear) DUT is saturating and deforming the sinusoidal input signal. As a result part of the power is contained in harmonic frequency components. The DUT performance can only be optimized when all harmonic frequency components are impedance-matched properly. This requires independent harmonic tuning, mainly at the DUT output, but also at the DUT input.
Each port on a connectorized RF device comprises two terminals. When one terminal connection is used to transmit the RF signal and the other is used as a ground reference, the port is referred to as "single-ended" (FIG. 1b). Traditionally, most RF devices have been designed to operate in this mode. When a terminal is designed to reference a signal on another terminal (and not the ground terminal), it is operating in a "differential" mode (FIG. 1e). The terminal pair is known as a differential or "balanced" port. These circuits are designed to have a pair of electrically symmetrical signal paths. Signals are transmitted through the device 180 degrees out of phase with respect to one another. Any signal that is "common" or in-phase to both terminals will ideally be rejected, and will not pass through the circuit. This characteristic gives the device a lower sensitivity to electromagnetic interference (EMI). Differential devices cannot be easily tested with a traditional two-port network analyzer [3].
A differential load pull setup is shown in FIG. 2. A single ended signal source injects power into a BALUN [4]. A BALUN (Balanced-Unbalanced) is a component which generates a differential signal from a single ended one or the opposite. It has three terminals; the input terminal relative to a common (ground) terminal creates a single ended input/output port and two terminals create the differential output/input port. BALUNs can be used in both directions. The accuracy of the measurement depends on the precision with which the phase opposition and the amplitude equality of the signals at the differential port. Ideally the two signals must have the same amplitude and a phase difference of 180°. In reality this is never the case. Therefore a real test system shall provide for continuous and fine adjustment of the differential signal components, both in amplitude and phase, both before and after the DUT. In FIG. 2 this is done using the Variable Attenuation and Phase Shifter controllers (VAPS, 21, 22). The differential tuners (23, 24) create true differential impedance presented to the differential DUT (25) at both its input (26) and output (27) terminals [paper diff tuner]. Since the VAPS has a minimum attenuation this must be compensated by fixed attenuators (28, 29). This invention discloses manual and automated wideband attenuation and phase controllers.

Wideband attenuation and phase controller


This disclosure provides a method of indicating a subject's reaction to different agents administered to induce anesthesia. In particular, the subject's reaction can be assessed by receiving electrical signals from first and second electrodes spatially distributed on different regions of a subject's head, and by processing the electrical signals from the electrodes to provide a first indicator of the subject's reaction to a first of the agents and a second indicator of the subject's reaction to a second agent.

The present disclosure relates generally to the field of medicine and more particularly to the field of anesthesiology and the assessment of the effects of anesthetic drugs using an electroencephalogram (EEG).
Quantitative assessment of EEG data is used in basic and clinical research. The collection of simultaneous, multiple-channel EEG recordings allows one to be quickly overwhelmed by quantities of data from which rules and relationships can be difficult to sift. Consequently, much of the effort to evaluate this data has been directed towards determining global parameters from the EEG that can correlate with observations seen clinically for a number of normal and pathological conditions. However, the complexity of analysis of EEG data limits the use of EEG to monitor anesthesia.
There are 40 million surgical interventions performed annually in the U.S. under general anesthesia. The number of surgical and anesthesia-based interventions, both therapeutic and diagnostic, is expected to increase as the population ages. There is more than double that number worldwide. (See, EEG Processor Monitor Market Opportunities, Strategies, and Forecasts, 2003 to 2008. 2003, WinterGreen Research Inc.) Recent evidence from Sandin et al. gives credence to the need to monitor the complete anesthetic state. (See, Sandin, R., G. Enlund, P. Samuelsson, and C. Lennmarken, Awareness during anesthesia: a prospective case study. The Lancet, 2000. 355: p. 707-711.) In a prospective study of surgical patients, Sandin et al. showed an incidence of awareness during anesthesia of 0.1-0.2%. While most of the awareness incidents were benign, this still underscores the challenge faced by clinicians in administering drugs to depress the CNS.
There is a need for a system and method for determining the analgesic component to an anesthetic state of a patient. There is a need for a method to distinguish the amount of an analgesic and the amount of a sedative that contribute to an anesthetic state of a patient during surgical procedures. There is yet another need for a means to provide the output of the information collected from the method above to an attending anesthesiologist during a surgical procedure. Further still, there is a need for a pseudo-real time, direct computational method that does not rely on a database of empirical data which is drug-specific.

Distinguishing different drug effects from the electroencephalogram

The University of Utah Research Foundation


Methods and computer systems are provided for reducing the runtime of a material requirements planning run. In one embodiment, a computer system loads a plurality of bills of materials into a data structure. The computer system may analyze parent-child relationships between components of the plurality of bills of materials in the data structure and set for each component in the data structure a counter value that indicates the number of parent components for each component. The counter value of a specific child component may be decremented when the planning of a parent component of the specific child component is completed. The computer system may then proceed with the planning of the specific child component if the associated counter value indicates that the planning of all parent components of the specific child component is completed.

Some computer systems, such as for example Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems or Supply Chain Management (SCM) systems, support functions to plan material requirements for production. Complex products that include many components typically have large bills of materials (BOM). A bill of materials includes all components of a product in a hierarchical structure. The hierarchy indicates for each component which parent component is needed. A parent component can have multiple child components. When running material requirements planning for multiple products, multiple BOMs are processed simultaneously because some of the products may use the same components. Therefore, to plan these components that are used by multiple products, the requirements by each of the products are to be considered.
Some systems use parallelization to cope with a huge amount of data in case of simultaneous planning of many products. To ensure that all requirements are considered for a specific component, some systems create a data structure that includes the BOMs of all products being subject to material requirements planning and introduce planning levels in this data structure. Within a planning level, all components are planned before the system moves on to the next planning level. This guarantees that all requirements of the previous planning level are considered.
However, when using parallelization, it can occur that all but one component of a planning level are already planned and the system cannot move on to the next planning level because of the one still unplanned component. As a consequence, only one process is active while the last component of a planning level gets planned, whereas other parallel processes remain idle.
The idle processes have to wait until the last process finishes before parallel processing at the next planning level can continue. The waiting period can be long. In the case of configurable products, individual customer requirements exist at more than just the final product level which may cause waiting times at multiple planning levels. For example, if the final product is a kitchen, an inlay shelf may be included which is also included as a component in almost any other kitchen of the kitchen manufacturer. Thus, having orders for various kitchens creating requirements in the MRP for the same shelf, this shelf can become a long-runner in the MRP that occupies a process for hours and leaves the other processes waiting before moving to the next planning level.
Usually, such long-runners can be found at various planning levels and can form multiple barriers to parallel planning.

Methods and computer systems for reducing runtimes in material requirements planning


A centering ruler includes a first straight edge, a second straight edge, an angle θ therebetween, and a measuring scale, marked on both sides of the ruler, which divides the first straight edge into equal increments. To find the center of a straight side of a workpiece, one aligns a first edge of a first side of a ruler with the straight side, positions a second edge of the ruler at the approximate center of the straight side, measures a minimum distance from a first end of the straight side to the second edge of the ruler, marks a first line of an “X” using the second edge as a guide, flips the ruler over to the second side, aligns the first edge of the ruler with the straight side, measures the afore-determined minimum distance from a second end of the straight side to the second edge of the ruler, and marks a second line of an “X” using the second edge as a guide. The center of the “X” marks the center of the workpiece.

The prior art provides several mechanical devices which have many moving parts to find the center of a workpiece. Centering devices having multiple parts are described in the following United States patents: U.S. Pat. No. 6,243,963 B1; U.S. Pat. No. 6,158,137; U.S. Pat. No. 5,437,105; U.S. Pat. No. 1,309,930; U.S. Pat. No. 202,180 and others. These devices have many moving parts, and they are not suitable for dirty dusty wet environments. One piece devices and methods for finding the center of a workpiece are described in the following United States patents: U.S. Pat. No. 6,311,408 B1; U.S. Pat. No. 5,090,129; U.S. Pat. No. 2,764,818; U.S. Des. 399,769 and others. These devices are limited by their length to smaller workpieces.
Thus it is desirable to provide a simple one piece device for finding the center of any size workpiece. The present invention provides a one piece centering ruler, which may be used with a marking utensil, such as a pencil for finding the center of any size workpiece.


A method for use with 3-dimensional or stereoscopic projection is disclosed, with crosstalk and differential distortion compensations provided for stereoscopic images in a presentation such that the projected images will have reduced crosstalk and differential distortion.

The current wave of 3-dimensional (3D) films is gaining popularity and made possible by the ease of use of 3D digital cinema projection systems. However, the rate of rollout of digital systems is not adequate to keep up with demand, partly because of the relatively high cost involved. Although earlier 3D film systems suffered from various technical difficulties, including mis-configuration, low brightness, and discoloration of the picture, they were considerably less expensive than the digital cinema approach. In the 1980's, a wave of 3D films were shown in the US and elsewhere, making use of a lens and filter designed and patented by Chris Condon (U.S. Pat. No. 4,464,028). Other improvements to Condon were proposed, such as by Lipton in U.S. Pat. No. 5,481,321. Subject matter in both references are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety.
Prior single-projector 3D film systems use a dual lens to simultaneously project left- and right-eye images laid out above and below each other on the same strip of film. These left- and right-eye images are separately encoded (e.g., by distinct polarization or chromatic filters) and projected together onto a screen and are viewed by an audience wearing filter glasses that act as decoders, such that the audience's left eye sees primarily the projected left-eye images, and the right eye sees primarily the projected right-eye images.
However, due to imperfection in one or more components in the projection and viewing system such as encoding filters, decoding filters, or the projection screen (e.g., a linear polarizer in a vertical orientation may pass a certain amount of horizontally polarized light, or a polarization-preserving screen may depolarize a small fraction of the incident light scattering from it), a certain amount of light for projecting right-eye images can become visible to the audience's left eye, and similarly, a certain amount of light used for projecting left-eye images can become visible to the audience's right eye, resulting in crosstalk.
In general, "crosstalk" refers to the phenomenon or behavior of light leakage in a stereoscopic projection system, resulting in a projected image being visible to the wrong eye. Other terminologies used to describe various crosstalk-related parameters include, for example, "crosstalk percentage", which denotes a measurable quantity relating to the light leakage, e.g., expressed as a percentage or fraction, from one eye's image to the other eye's image and which is a characteristic of a display or projection system; and "crosstalk value", which refers to an amount of crosstalk expressed in an appropriate brightness-related unit, which is an instance of crosstalk specific to a pair of images displayed by a system. Any crosstalk-related parameters can generally be considered crosstalk information.
The binocular disparities that are characteristic of stereoscopic imagery put objects to be viewed by the left- and right-eyes at horizontally different locations on the screen (and the degree of horizontal separation determines the perception of distance). The effect of crosstalk, when combined with a binocular disparity, results in each eye seeing a bright image of an object in the correct location on the screen, and a dim image (or dimmer than the other image) of the same object at a slightly offset position, resulting in a visual "echo" or "ghost" of the bright image.
Furthermore, these prior art "over-and-under" 3D projection systems exhibit a differential keystoning distortion between the projected left- and right-eye images, i.e., the projected left- and right-eye images have different keystoning distortions, in which each projected image has a magnification that varies across the image such that a rectangular shape is projected as a keystone shape. Furthermore, the left- and right-eye images have different magnifications at the same region of the screen, which is especially apparent at the top and bottom of the screen. This further modifies the positions of the crosstalking images, beyond merely the binocular disparity.
Differential keystoning arises because the 'over' lens (typically used for projecting the right-eye image), is located higher above the bottom of the screen than is the 'under' lens (used for projecting the left-eye image) and thus, has a greater throw or distance to the bottom of the screen. This results in the right-eye image having a greater magnification towards the bottom of the screen than the left-eye image. Similarly, the left-eye image (projected through the 'under' lens) undergoes greater magnification at the top of the screen than does the right-eye image.
This differential keystoning produces two detrimental effects for 3D projection using the dual-lens configuration. First, in the top-left region of the screen, the greater-magnified left-eye image appears more to the left than the lesser-magnified right-eye image. This corresponds in 3D to objects in the image being farther away. The opposite takes place in the top-right region, where the greater-magnified left-eye image appears more to the right and, since the audience's eyes are more converged as a result, the objects there appear nearer. For similar reasons, the bottom-left region of the screen displays objects closer than desired, and the bottom-right region displays objects farther away than desired. The overall depth distortion is rather potato-chip-like, or saddle shaped, with one pair of opposite corners seeming to be farther away, and the other pair seeming nearer.
Second, differential keystoning causes a vertical misalignment between the left- and right-eye images near the top and bottom of the screen. This misalignment can cause fatigue when viewed for a long time, and detracts from some individuals' ability to comfortably and quickly fuse 3D objects imaged there.
Not only is the combined effect distracting to audiences, but it can also cause eye-strain, and detracts from the 3D presentation.
In digital cinema presentations, Matt Cowan teaches, in US published application 2006/268,104A1, a technique of crosstalk correction that subtracts from the image for one eye a fraction of the image for the other eye, in which the fraction corresponds to the expected crosstalk. This works in digital cinema (and video) or projection systems that do not have differential keystone distortion, e.g., systems that multiplex the left- and right-eye images in the time domain so that the left- and right-eye images are projected from the same physical images along the same optical axis such that the two images overlay each other precisely. However, this approach is inadequate for stereoscopic film projection systems, dual-projector systems or single-projector over-and-under systems that exhibit differential keystone distortion.
Furthermore, application of the Cowan technique to a 3D film can degrade the image, because edges of objects subject to crosstalk compensation are effectively sharpened. This occurs because when a compensation is made for a crosstalk that actually occurs at a different location (e.g., due to uncompensated differential distortion), instead of a decreased brightness at the proper location suffering from the crosstalk, a nearby location or pixel has its brightness decreased while the crosstalk remains unaddressed. Thus, instead of merely suffering from uncompensated crosstalk, the result is an artificially dark line near the uncorrected bright line, to produce a visually intensified edge. Thus, a different crosstalk compensation technique is needed in the presence of differential distortion.
To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures. The drawings are not to scale, and one or more features may be expanded or reduced for clarity.

Method and system for crosstalk and distortion corrections for three-dimensional (3D) projection


A roof anchor including a pair of blocks positioned side-by-side. The blocks have adjacent, inner surfaces with notches cut therefrom for receiving a standing seam of a metal roof. The blocks also have outer surfaces remote from the inner surfaces. A bracket is positioned over the pair of blocks. The bracket includes a base portion having a pair of legs, each being positioned adjacent a respective one of the outer surfaces of the blocks, and a crosspiece, positioned adjacent the tops of the blocks, joining the legs together. A loop portion is affixed to the base portion for securement of a workman's safety lanyard. A threaded fastener penetrates the pair of blocks and the pair of legs for: fastening the pair of blocks together, securing the bracket to the pair of blocks, and clamping the pair of blocks upon a standing seam of a metal roof.

Roofing has always been a particularly difficult avocation. Putting up roofs not only requires the lifting of heavy tools and materials, but also necessitates that this be done high above the ground and during the heat of the day. The problems are compounded when the pitch of a roof is steep or the roofing materials are slick. The possibility of a life-threatening slip and fall is ever present.
To lessen the risk of injury, roofers have proposed guard rails and tethering devices for attachment to roofs and other stable portions of buildings. Unfortunately, these things have been complex in their construction and difficult to install, particularly on standing seam roofs formed of interlocking metal sheets that have few convenient mounting places. Thus, they have seen little use outside of areas where they are mandated by law.


A semiconductor integrated circuit device is provided which includes an active region, a shallow groove isolation adjacent to the active region, and a semiconductor element formed in the active region and having a gate. The sum of a width of the active region and a width of the shallow groove isolation constitutes a minimum pitch in the direction of a gate width of the gate, and the width of the active region is set larger than one-half of the minimum pitch.

With scale-down and high integration of semiconductor chips or elements, the introduction of a shallow groove isolation (SGI), of a type in which an insulating film is embedded inside each groove defined in a silicon substrate, is proceeding to provide a device isolation structure that serves as an alternative to a local oxidization of silicon (LOCOS) method.
The above-described shallow groove isolation is considered to be advantageous from the point of view of ensuring sub-threshold characteristics and reduction in junction leakage and a backgate effect, as compared with the LOCOS method, because (a) the device isolation interval or space can be reduced, (b) it is easy to control the film thickness for device isolation and set a field reverse voltage, and (c) an inversion preventive layer can be separated from a diffused layer and a channel region by separately implanting an impurity in side walls of the inside of each groove and the bottom thereof.
A common method for forming the shallow groove isolation is as follows: First of all, a silicon substrate is subjected to thermal oxidation and a thin silicon oxide film is formed on the surface thereof. Thereafter, a silicon nitride film is deposited thereabove by a CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition) method. Next, each silicon nitride film lying in a device isolation region is removed by dry etching using a photoresist film as a mask. Thereafter, trenches or grooves are defined in the substrate by dry etching with the silicon nitride films being left in each active region as masks.
Next, a thick silicon oxide film is deposited on the substrate, including the interiors of the grooves, by the CVD method. Thereafter, the substrate is subjected to a thermal process, and the silicon oxide films embedded inside the grooves are elaborately densified. Thereafter, the silicon oxide films above the silicon nitride films are removed by a polishing process, such as etchback or chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) or the like, and the unnecessary silicon nitride films are then removed, whereby shallow groove isolations are completed. Shallow groove isolations are discussed, for example, in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. Hei 02-260660, No. Hei 04-303942, No. Hei 08-97277 etc.

Semiconductor integrated circuit device and a method of manufacturing the same


A transflective liquid crystal display panel includes a first substrate, a second substrate arranged opposite to the first substrate, and a plurality of pixels positioned between the first substrate and the second substrate. Each of the pixels having at least one reflecting region and at least one transmitting region includes a color filter layer formed on the substrate and located in both of the reflecting region and the transmitting region, at least one first reflective layer formed between the color filter layer and the substrate and located in the reflecting region, at least one switch element located in the reflecting region, and at least one second reflective layer located in the reflecting region.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a transflective liquid crystal display panel, and more particularly, to a transflective liquid crystal display panel having integrated switch elements and a color filter layer on a substrate.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Liquid crystal displays are commonly utilized in various electronic products including personal computers, digital cameras, cell phones, PDAs, and projectors. As the market demand for display panels continues to increase, transflective liquid crystal displays having dual operating modes have become widely popular. Typically, a transflective liquid crystal display includes two operating modes: a reflective mode and a transmitting mode. In most circumstances, when the reflective mode is operating, light from the external environment is being used, whereas when the transmitting mode is operating, light generated from a backlight module is being used.
Typically, a transflective liquid crystal display panel is made up of a color filter substrate and an array substrate having corresponding electrodes thereon, and a liquid crystal layer disposed between the color filter substrate and the array substrate. The surface of the array substrate includes a plurality of thin film transistors as switch elements. Each of the thin film transistors includes a gate electrode connected to a scan line, a source electrode connected to a data line, and a drain electrode connected to a pixel electrode. The pixel electrodes are specifically composed of reflective electrodes and transparent electrodes, in which the reflective electrodes are utilized to form a reflective region of the display panel and the transparent electrodes are utilized to form a transmitting region of the display panel. The color filter substrate includes a black matrix layer, a color filter layer for displaying colors, and a transparent common electrode disposed on top surfaces of the black matrix layer and the color filter layer.
As the resolution of the liquid crystal display panel increases, the accuracy for the alignment between the color filter substrate and the array substrate also increases accordingly. If a shift occurs between the two substrates, a color representing a pixel region of the display panel is likely to be influenced by the color of the adjacent pixel region and result in a color-mixing phenomenon, which may further bring a light leakage phenomenon.
A technique commonly utilized for solving the above problem involves directly forming a color filter layer with colors such as red, blue, and green on the pixel region of an array substrate. However, those skilled in the art would know, if the color filter layer disposed on the array substrate produces any defects, the process for removing the color filter layer from the array substrate would become difficult as the solvents utilized already affect the devices located on the surface of the array substrate. Therefore, the method cannot rework the color filter layer on the array substrate, and the result not only wastes a large quantity of array substrates but also increases the overall fabrication cost.

Transflective liquid crystal display panel with integrated switch element and color filter layer on a substrate


An electron gun includes a cathode, a cavity, and an energy input. The cavity resonates at a particular frequency, and the cathode generates an electron beam along its longitudinal axis when driven by resonant electromagnetic radiation of the particular frequency. The energy input introduces electromagnetic radiation of the particular frequency into the cavity along the longitudinal axis of the cathode.

Electron guns generate and accelerate narrowly focused beams of electrons. In a radio frequency (RF) electron gun, the electrons are accelerated with RF energy. The transverse emittance of the electron beam refers to the electrons that travel in a direction other than along the axis of the beam. Because these electrons do not travel within the beam of the electron gun, the energy consumed in generating these electrons may be considered as wasted energy. Consequently, it is desirable to have an electron gun structure that minimizes transverse emittance.

Axisymmetric emittance-compensated electron gun


This invention relates to vaccines and methods for protecting dogs against disease caused by Bordetella bronchiseptica. This invention also relates to combination vaccines and methods for protecting dogs against disease or disorder caused by canine pathogens, for example, infectious tracheobronchitis caused by Bordetella bronchiseptica, canine distemper caused by canine distemper (CD) virus, infectious canine hepatitis (ICH) caused by canine adenovirus type 1 (CAV-1), respiratory disease caused by canine adenovirus type 2 (CAV-2), canine parainfluenza caused by canine parainfluenza (CPI) virus, enteritis caused by canine coronavirus (CCV) and canine parvovirus (CPV), and leptospirosis caused by Leptospira Bratislava, Leptospira canicola, Leptospira grippotyphosa, Leptospira icterohaemorrhagiae or Leptospira pomona. The vaccines of the present invention include a Bordetella bronchiseptica p68 antigen.

The present commercially available canine Bordetella bronchiseptica vaccine product is composed of an inactivated, nonadjuvanted Bordetella bronchiseptica whole cell bacterin. Such whole cell bacterin can lead to cell protein related post-vaccination reactions. The p68 protein of B. bronchiseptica is antigenically similar to the Outer Membrane Protein (OMP) of B. pertussis and the OMP of B. parapertussis (Shahin et al., "Characterization of the Protective Capacity and Immunogenicity of the 69-kD Outer Membrane Protein of Bordetella pertussis", J. Exp. Med., 171: 63-73, 1990). A protective role of this OMP has been demonstrated for mice (Shahin et al., supra; Novotny et al., "Biologic and Protective Properties of the 69-kD Outer Membrane Protein of Bordetella pertussis: A Novel Formulation for a Acellular Pertussis Vaccine", J. Infect. Dis. 164:114-22, 1991), humans (He et al., "Protective Role of Immunoglobulin G Antibodies to Filamentous Hemagglutinin and Pertactin of Bordetella pertussis in Bordetella parapertussis Infection", Eur. J. Clin Microbiol Infect Dis. 10:793-798, 1996) and swine (Kobisch et al., "Identification of a 68-Kilodalton Outer Membrane Protein as the Major Protective Antigen of Bordetella bronchiseptica by Using Specific-Pathogen-Free Piglets", Infect. Immun. 58(2):352-357, 1990).
Prior to the present invention, there had been no showing that a Bordetella bronchiseptica p68 antigen can be a safe and effective vaccine in dogs. Therefore, there is a need to develop a Bordetella bronchiseptica vaccine containing a p68 antigen that is suitable for canine use. It would be even more advantageous if such a Bordetella bronchiseptica p68 vaccine is safe for administration to puppies and provides a long-term protection.
CD is a universal, high-mortality viral disease with variable manifestations. Approximately 50% of nonvaccinated, nonimmune dogs infected with CD virus develop clinical signs, and approximately 90% of those dogs die.
Infectious canine hepatitis or ICH, caused by canine adenovirus type 1 (CAV-1), is a universal, sometimes fatal, viral disease of dogs characterized by hepatic and generalized endothelial lesions. CAV-2 causes respiratory disease, which, in severe cases, may include pneumonia and bronchopneumonia.
CPI is a common viral upper respiratory disease. Uncomplicated CPI may be mild or subclinical, with signs becoming more severe if concurrent infection with other respiratory pathogens exists.
CPV infection results in enteric disease characterized by sudden onset of vomiting and diarrhea, often hemorrhagic. Leukopenia commonly accompanies clinical signs. Susceptible dogs of any age can be affected, but mortality is greatest in puppies. In puppies 4-12 weeks of age CPV may occasionally cause myocarditis that can result in acute heart failure after a brief and inconspicuous illness. Following infection many dogs are refractory to the disease for a year or more. Similarly, seropositive bitches may transfer to their puppies CPV antibodies which can interfere with active immunization of the puppies through 16 weeks of age.
CCV also causes enteric disease in susceptible dogs of all ages worldwide. Highly contagious, the virus is transmitted primarily through direct contact with infectious feces, and may cause clinical enteritis within 1-4 days after exposure. Severity of disease may be exacerbated by concurrent infection with other agents. Primary signs of CCV infection include anorexia, vomiting, and diarrhea. Frequency of vomiting usually diminishes within a day or 2 after onset of diarrhea, but diarrhea may linger through the course of infection, and stools occasionally may contain streaks of blood. With CCV infection most dogs remain afebrile and leukopenia is not observed in uncomplicated cases.
Leptospirosis occurs in dogs of all ages, with a wide range of clinical signs and chronic nephritis generally following acute infection. Infection with L. canicola and L. icterohaemorrhagiae cannot be differentiated clinically.
Prior to the present invention, there have been no effective combination vaccines that protect dogs against Bordetella bronchiseptica and one or more of other canine pathogens such as CD virus, CAV-2, CPI virus, CPV, CCV, and a Leptospira species such as L. bratislava, L. canicola, L. grippotyphosa, L. icterohaemorrhagiae and L. pomona. A problem in developing combination vaccines involves efficacy interference, namely a failure of one or more antigens in a combination composition to maintain or achieve efficacy because of the presence of the other antigens in the composition. This is believed to be a result of interference with an antigen in the composition administered to a host, e.g., a dog, in the immunological, antigenic, antibody or protective response such antigen induced in the host because of the other antigens present in the composition. However, for other hosts, such as cats, combination vaccines are known. It is believed that efficacy interference in dogs is due to some peculiarity of the canine biological system, or due to the reaction of the antigens with the canine biological system.
There is a need, therefore, to develop a combination vaccine suitable for administration to dogs against Bordetella bronchiseptica and one or more other canine pathogens, which does not exhibit efficacy interference in canines. It would be even more advantageous if such a combination vaccine is safe for administration to puppies and provides long-term protection.


A DC to DC switch mode power supply for a service subscriber interface unit of a fiber optic network includes a source of DC primary power, a main DC to DC switched mode power supply connected to the source of DC primary power and including switching circuitry and rectifier circuitry for supplying DC operating power to the service subscriber interface unit including central office battery power to at least one subscriber loop connected thereto, and a ringing voltage DC to AC switched mode generator connected to the source of DC primary power and including switching circuitry and synchronous rectification circuitry for generating ringing ringing voltage approximating a sine wave supplied as a reference to the synchronous rectification circuitry. A Johnson counter and resistor capacitor network is preferably employed to convert a reference ringing square wave into a sine wave.

Conventional telephone instruments include an incoming call annunciator: classically a bell, more recently a piezoelectric resonator. In a conventional telephone network, a wire pair extends from a telephone central office location to the service subscriber's premises. Central office battery voltage is typically applied to the wire pair to power the telephone service set, and an AC voltage, nominally 90 volts at 20 Hertz, is applied whenever it is appropriate to ring the telephone bell(s) of the service set(s) at the subscriber's premises, in order to signal an incoming call and induce a user to remove the handset from its cradle, known as an "off hook" condition. The standard telephone service set within the U.S. Bell System includes a bell call annunciator which is broadly resonant at 20 Hertz. In Europe and elsewhere, a frequency of 25 Hertz is commonly employed as the ringing frequency.
Ringing voltage is generated at a central office in a number of ways. A rotary generator or ringing machine consists of a single-speed motor (either AC or DC, depending upon the local power supply). The motor rotates one or more AC generators which generate the desired ringing frequencies and voltages. Magnetic generators operating from the AC power mains have been used to generate ringing signals. Such generators employ resistors, transformers and tuned circuits of inductors and capacitors in order to develop the desired ringing signal. Vibrating reed converters have also been employed to generate ringing voltage from the 48 volt central office battery supply. These converters have included two magnetic coils, an armature and a reed assembly mounted on a frame, and have converted the 48 volts DC into a square wave of the desired frequency for ringing. A filter circuit has modified the square wave to a sine wave. A mechanical interrupter has been employed to divide the ringing generator's signal into alternating ringing and silent periods. One implementation has been a motor for rotating a shaft carrying a number of cams which operate switch contacts that switch the ringing signal on and off. Electronic oscillators have also been employed to generate signals used for ringing. Such circuits have been used in conjunction with private branch exchanges, etc. All of the foregoing approaches have been bulky and have required significant amounts of primary operating power.
Fiber optic networks are proliferating within telecommunications systems. Fiber optic cables are now being extended to "curbside" or within about 100 feet or so of the subscriber's premises. In fiber optic based networks, it is not possible to send central office battery or ringing signals over the fiber optic cable, and these signals must be locally generated at the SIU and delivered to the customer in an appearance functionally identical to the existing "wire plant" network capability. While small, switched mode DC to DC converters are known to be efficient in supplying power, a hitherto unsolved need has arisen for a highly compact, highly efficient DC to DC to AC power supply including an on-demand tinging voltage generator, e.g. for inclusion within an SIU of a fiber optic network.

DC/DC/AC power supply for a subscriber interphase unit


A composite electronic component includes a multilayer ceramic capacitor including a ceramic body configured by stacking a plurality of dielectric layers and configured by stacking a plurality of internal electrodes facing each other with the dielectric layer interposed therebetween and first and second external electrodes disposed on opposing end portions of the ceramic body, and a pair of substrates spaced apart from a lower portion of the multilayer ceramic capacitor and each including, on opposing end portions, first terminal electrodes connected to the first external electrode and second terminal electrodes connected to the second external electrode.

A multilayer ceramic capacitor (MLCC), a type of stacked chip electronic component, is a chip-type capacitor mounted on the circuit boards of various electronic products such as an image display device, i.e., a liquid crystal display (LCD) and a plasma display panel (PDP), a computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a cellular phone, and the like, serving to charge and discharge electricity.
Such a multilayer ceramic capacitor may be used as a component in various electronic devices, due to advantages thereof, whereby the MLCC is easily mountable while having a small size and high capacity ensured therein.
Such an MLCC includes a plurality of dielectric layers and internal electrodes having different polarities, alternately stacked between the dielectric layers.
Since such a dielectric layer has piezoelectric and piezoresistive properties, a piezoelectric phenomenon may occurs between the internal electrodes when a direct current (DC) or alternating current (AC) voltage is applied to the MLCC and, thus, vibrations may be generated.
Such vibrations may be transferred to a circuit board having the MLCC mounted thereon through external electrodes of the MLCC to generate vibration sound, as the entire circuit board may function as an acoustic reflective surface.
The vibration sound may correspond to an audio frequency in the range of 20 to 20,000 Hz, which may cause discomfort in humans, and the vibration sound which causes discomfort in humans is referred to as acoustic noise.
Recently, as electronic devices have been used in environments in which high voltages and large changes in voltage are present, along with a printed circuit board, due to the slimming and miniaturization of electronic devices, acoustic noise is present in a level sufficiently recognizable by a user.
Accordingly, in accordance with current trends, there has been a continuous need for a new product having reduced acoustic noise.


A coalescing filter includes a coalescing filter medium having an entrance face and an exit face and a surface energy, the coalescing filter also having a drainage channel in the coalescing filter medium, the drainage channel being a woven or non-woven fiber construct having a pore size greater than the pore size of said coalescing filter medium and having a surface energy that is lower than the surface energy of the coalescing filter medium, the drainage channel extending at a downward angle relative to the direction from the entrance face to the exit face.

Typical coalescing filters are employed to separate liquid out of a gas stream containing a liquid component. As the gas passes through the filter, the liquid component is captured and coalesced by the filter. As more and more of the liquid component is captured, the droplets that are captured combine to form larger droplets. When the coalesced droplets are sufficiently large, gravity will allow the large droplets to exit the filter.
Coalescing filters have good separation efficiency for removing oil droplets from air stream. At the same time, most coalescing filters have significant pressure drop, which represents the energy expenditure. Usually, filters having higher separation efficiency also have higher pressure drop. This occurs because the filter loads up with liquid droplets. The liquid droplets occupy the porous space inside the filter medium; therefore, the filter media becomes saturated with the liquid load-up, which causes the pressure drop of the filter medium to increase.
In order to effectively continue the gas flow through the filter, the captured liquid must move through the filter and ultimately exit the filter, because the coalesced liquid reduces the pore space available for gas flow and thus causes an increase in pressure drop. To aid in the draining of the coalesced droplets, filters have been designed that utilize drainage channels at the inlet or outlet surfaces of the filters.
These drainage channels collect the coalesced liquid and drain it to an exit location. However, these filters often experience issues with liquid drainage and hold-up. Filters that do not effectively drain the coalesced liquid experience distorted gas flows, causing localized filter plugging and reducing the life of the filter.
Some coalescing filters include layers having different fiber properties, such as fiber diameter and surface energy. However, these filters often experiences issues with the liquid droplets being re-entrained into the gas flow. These filters also do not always provide sufficient pressure drop and flow characteristics.
Thus, a need in the art exists for an improved coalescing filter. The current invention is an improved coalescing filter that offers improved drainage, which results in more effective pressure drop and flow characteristics. According to the present invention, a coalescing filter is provided that comprises a drainage channel that extends at a downward angle, where the drainage channel has a higher porosity than the coalescing filter medium.

Liquid drainage from coalescing filter medium with drainage channels


A variable attenuator for a fiber optic transmission system includes first and second optical fibers which are axially aligned. The fibers are provided with spherical polishes. The radius of each of the fibers originates at an axis which is offset from an axis of the fiber cores.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains to fiber optic attenuators. More particularly, this invention pertains to an attenuator which may be continuously varied to have an attenuation throughout a range of values.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the prior art, optical attenuators are provided to attenuate a light signal passing through optical fibers. Examples of optical attenuators are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,557,556 and 4,557,557 as well as U.S. Pat. No. 4,893,889.
Variable attenuators are also known. An example of such is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,904,044. That patent teaches a continuously variable fiber optic attenuator which utilizes a flexible filter of varying optical density.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a variable attenuator for a fiber optic transmission system. It is a further object of the present invention to provide such an attenuator which is of low cost manufacture. A still further object of the present invention is to provide a variable attenuator which is variable over a wide range of attenuation values.


A cargo carrier is disclosed which includes walls including a plurality of adjacent plates with outer surfaces, at least a selected pair of the adjacent plates being spaced from each other by a predetermined amount. A joint is provided for joining the selected pair of adjacent plates, which includes an inner strip extending between the adjacent plates, the inner strip overlying at least a marginal portion of each plate. An outer strip extends between the adjacent plates and defines a generally vertical axis located generally centrally of the space, the outer strip overlying the inner strip and having an outer surface and an inner surface which faces the inner strip. The inner surface includes a pair of adjacent surface portions which respectively taper from the outer strip toward the inner strip in respectively opposite directions such that the maximum dimension between the inner and outer strip is substantially coincident with the vertical axis. Structure is provided for fastening the first and second strips to the plates, and means is provided for receiving logistics fittings generally aligned with the vertical axis. In an alternative embodiment the tapered surface portions are replaced with an arcuate concave surface. A false point is also disclosed to provide added stiffness to the structure and uniformity of appearance. A joining member for such cargo carrier is also disclosed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to van-type semi-trailers and similar cargo vehicles and containers of the type constructed of a plurality of upstanding rectangular panels composed of thin aluminum plate or composite materials, wherein a space is provided between at least a selective pair of adjacent plates.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The van-type semi-trailers and cargo vehicles contemplated by the present invention generally include a trailer section constructed of a plurality of rectangular panels composed of thin aluminum plate or composite materials. Such materials are generally disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,685,721, 4,810,027, 4,904,017, 4,940,279, 5,066,066 and 5,112,099. In particular, such cargo vehicles include at least a portion of the wall structure thereof formed by such adjacent panels which are maintained in side-by-side relationship.
Cargo carriers of the type disclosed in the above noted patents generally employ particularly thin rectangular panels which are coupled by relatively flat joining members in a manner to form a semi-trailer, cargo vehicle, container, or other cargo carrier having a high cubic capacity. The thickness of the plate materials which form the walls of such cargo carriers is maintained at a minimum in order to maximize the volume of the cargo carrier for a given width. Accordingly, in the construction of such cargo carriers, particular care has been required in the handling of the panel members in order to protect the edges of the panel members to ensure that the panels are smooth and flat. For example, any burr, bend, or crease can have a tendency to allow moisture to creep between the panel member and the joining member joining the panel to an adjacent panel, thereby tending to permit possible damage to the cargo carrier contents. Also, any burr, bend or crease in the plate edge may have the tendency to displace the joining member outwardly from the edge portions of the plate. The special care handling requirements imposed during the construction of such carriers contributed directly to an increased manufacturing cost of such carriers.
Other particular problems of such plate type cargo carriers have resulted when it became desirable and necessary to include logistics tracks on the sides of such cargo carriers. Logistics tracks are generally vertically oriented steel tracks which include apertures or other means to attach logistic fittings or supports such as hooks or the like. The attachment of logistics tracks directly to the flat plates is effectively prohibited since such an attachment requires holes in the plates for fasteners, which can contribute to the invasion of weather, causing elements such as rain, snow or the like to enter. Also, such holes can also produce unwanted stress which may contribute to untimely product failure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,112,099 to Yurgevich et al. relates to plate trailer joints wherein a joining member for joining an adjacent pair of plates on the side of a cargo carrier is formed by a rectilinear strip having an inner surface which includes a pair of flanges positioned between two rows of apertures straddling a channel of uniform depth. In one embodiment, an outer rectilinear strip and an inner rectilinear strip are provided, each strip having an outer surface, an inner surface, parallel edges joining the outer and inner surfaces, and two rows of apertures extending between the outer and inner surfaces. One row of apertures is provided adjacent each of the edges of the outer and inner strips for receiving means for fastening the strips to the plates. The outer strip inner surface includes a pair of flanges positioned between the selected pair of adjacent plates and projecting toward the inner strip outer surface forming a channel of uniform depth situated between the pair of flanges, and the inner strip includes means aligned with the channel for receiving logistics fittings. In one embodiment the pair of flanges are positioned between the selected pair of adjacent plates and extend from the outer plate entirely to the inner plate and contact the outer surface of the inner plate. In another embodiment the flanges extend from the outer plate toward the inner strip outer surface, but do not physically contact the inner strip outer surface.
While the joint disclosed in the Yurgevich et al '099 patent is stated to provide the stiffness and capability of attachment of logistic fittings to the inside of the trailer sides, some difficulty occurs in providing the requisite stiffness, while maintaining the space between the inner strip and the outer strip at a maximum to accommodate hooks for supporting logistics fittings. Furthermore, with such structure maintaining the inner wall-to-wall dimension at a maximum is often difficult. In particular, in order to maintain a maximum dimension for the logistics fittings, hooks or the like, the inner strip of the structure disclosed in the Yurgevich et al patent is required to protrude inwardly of the vehicle body. However, since inward protrusion of the inner strip effectively reduces usable space within the vehicle body, it is normally desirable to minimize the dimension in which the inner strip protrudes into the vehicle body. The present invention provides improved stiffness for such joints for plate trailers while maintaining the inner wall-to-wall useful dimension of the trailer at a maximum, as well as maintaining a maximum dimension within the joint for reception of logistics hooks at the precise location where the greatest dimension for such hooks is required to be located.


A wafer has a substrate and a photoresist layer thereon with a surface that is planarized by positioning over a starting surface of the photoresist layer a gray-scale mask having a pattern that correlates with a gradient height profile of unevenness present on the starting surface, patterning the photoresist layer using the gray-scale mask to produce the pattern thereof in the photoresist layer which, in effect, produces a profile of evenness in the photoresist layer underlying the gradient height profile of unevenness, and developing the patterned photoresist layer such that only a three-dimensional portion thereof corresponding to the gradient height profile of unevenness located above the profile of evenness is removed which, in effect, leaves behind a resulting surface on the photoresist layer made substantially more even and thus substantially in a planarized condition.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to wafer processing methods and, more particularly, to a method for planarizing unevenness on a surface of a wafer photoresist layer and also to a wafer produced by the method
2. Description of the Related Art
Micro-fluid ejection heads are useful for ejecting a variety of fluids including inks, cooling fluids, pharmaceuticals, lubricants and the like. One use of micro-fluid ejection heads is in an ink jet printer. Ink jet printers continue to be improved as the technology for making the micro-fluid ejection heads continues to advance. New techniques are constantly being developed to provide low cost, highly reliable printers which approach the speed and quality of laser printers. An added benefit of ink jet printers is that color images can be produced at a fraction of the cost of laser printers with as good or better quality than laser printers. All of the foregoing benefits exhibited by ink jet printers have also increased the competitiveness of suppliers to provide comparable printers in a more cost efficient manner than their competitors.
One area of improvement in the printers is in the micro-fluid ejection head itself. This seemingly simple device is a relatively complicated structure containing electrical circuits, ink passageways and a variety of tiny parts assembled with precision to provide a powerful, yet versatile micro-fluid ejection head. The components of the ejection head must cooperate with each other and with a variety of ink formulations to provide the desired print properties. Accordingly, it is important to match the ejection head components to the ink and the duty cycle demanded by the printer. Slight variations in production quality can have a tremendous influence on the product yield and resulting printer performance.
In order to improve the quality of the micro-fluid ejection heads, new techniques for fabricating components of the heads are being developed. For example, electrostatic chucks (ESC) are being used to hold a wafer during Deep Reactive Ion Etching (DRIE) and other wafer processing steps. See the U.S. patent application cross-referenced above as well as U.S. patent application publication no. 2007/0004215 to Mrvos et al. Both are assigned to the assignee of the present invention and their disclosures are hereby incorporated herein by reference. See also U.S. Pat. No. 6,628,500 to Thomas et al. DRIE is used in various ways including to form ink vias in the wafer to provide fluid to ejection actuator devices on a device surface of the wafer. However, DRIE generates heat that can adversely affect components of the micro-fluid ejection head, particularly organic photoresist layers on the ejection head substrate used as masking layers and/or etch stop layers.
The ESC generates a uniform electrostatic capacitively inducted force that clamps a wafer to a dielectric (ceramic plate) on an electrode of the ESC for supporting the wafer during the etching process. The etch stop constituted by a positive photoresist coating or layer formed on a back side of the wafer facing the ESC dielectric substrate prevents the etching from reaching the dielectric through the front side of the wafer. Due to the process used in forming it, the etch stop is typically an irregular or non-uniform film layer with a non-uniform edge bead provided about the perimeter of the layer.
Wafers need to be cooled during the etching process, either by convection or conduction techniques or a combination of both. A significant portion of the wafer clamping force and wafer cooling quality is due to a gap distance between the wafer and the dielectric. In the past, an ESC was used having a series of mesas on the front side of its dielectric to define a three dimensional space between it and the etch stop layer in order to create the necessary helium circuit for wafer cooling and to control the amount of area of direct electrical contact between the wafer and the ESC. See, for an example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,583,736 to Anderson et al. As long as the ESC used had mesas, the presence of the edge bead of the etch stop was found to be beneficial by contributing to enhanced cooling of the wafer through increasing the amount of surface area contacted by the helium as well as increased volume of helium used to remove heat at the edge of wafers where damage traditionally is incurred from wafer cooling varying negatively. However, significant non-uniformity of the edge bead is problematic for clamping uniformity and helium containment.
Recent improvements in ESC construction, namely the use of a thick higher purity dielectric ESC (hereinafter called an improved ESC), has improved clamping force and wafer cooling by improving, among other things, the thermal conductivity of the dielectric, the voltage across the dielectric, reducing the gap distance between the wafer and the dielectric, and changing the helium cooling circuit. Furthermore, the mesas have been eliminated from the dielectric and a single helium back side gas circuit has been provided at the edge of the underside of the wafer.
Where the irregular edge bead on the etch stop was beneficial to wafer cooling as long as mesas were provided on the ESC dielectric since the edge bead offset the negative effect on the clamping force quality of the mesas, with the mesas now eliminated the presence of the irregular edge bead now presents significant challenges to helium back side gas containment and wafer cooling in a system using the improved ESC dielectric. The recent improvement in ESC construction thus means that the presence of edge bead on the etch stop is no longer beneficial. The edge bead presence is now a problem for the DRIE etch process because it increases gap distance between the wafer and the improved ESC, negatively affecting both cooling and clamping of the wafer.
Thus, edge bead removal from the etch stop is now desired. However, employment of known mechanical and chemical removal methods on the edge bead exacerbate the problem. Both methods, though highly optimized using available equipment and knowledge, are fundamentally limited by the presence of a main flat feature on the wafer. This limitation causes positive resist features that make the efficient cooling of the wafer during the etch step more difficult. Current edge bead removal techniques present challenges from a process control standpoint because of this variation across the wafer between the main flat area and the rest thereof.
Thus, there is a need for an innovation that will be effective for planarizing a sacrificial photoresist layer, such as the etch stop with an edge bead, in order to maximize wafer clamping and cooling and thereby improve the quality of the polymer disposition and etch in a DRIE etch process.

Methods for planarizing unevenness on surface of wafer photoresist layer and wafers produced by the methods


A data storage device includes a disk, a head, a microactuator, a coarse actuator, and a servo controller. The microactuator is configured to position the head relative to the disk. The coarse actuator is configured to position the microactuator relative to the disk. The servo controller is configured to generate an adjusted position error signal based on a position error signal and an estimated microactuator position signal. The servo controller is also configured to filter the adjusted position error signal with a shaping filter to generate a filtered position error signal, and to provide sliding mode control of the coarse actuator based at least partially on the filtered position error signal.

Data storage devices such as disk drives are commonly used in computers and other electronic devices for the storage and retrieval of data. Disk drives generally include a disk, a head connected to an actuator arm, and an actuator that controls the actuator arm to position the head over the disk. The actuator is usually controlled by a servomechanism that performs the operations of track seek to move the head from one track to another over the disk, and track following to attempt to keep the head over the center of a track during data reads and writes. If the head moves too far from the center of a track during a read operation, the operation must be suspended and retried, which reduces the data transfer rate of the disk drive. If the head moves too far from the center of a track during a write operation, data integrity may be adversely affected due to existing data on a wrong track being improperly overwritten and potentially lost.
When operating in various environments, a disk drive may be subject to disturbances that affect the head positioning by the servomechanism. For example, the environment may cause vibrations in the disk drive and there may also be external shocks that act upon the disk drive. Such vibrations and shocks may cause the actuator arm on which the head is located to oscillate and, thus, to move farther distances away from a track center. As disk drives become smaller and use lighter actuator arms, the problems caused by external disturbances become a larger concern.

Data storage devices and methods with frequency-shaped sliding mode control

The Regents of the University of California


A swiveling table apparatus comprises a base and a table main body disposed on the base and mounted for swiveling movement about a swivel axis. A driving mechanism includes a servo motor for generating a driving power to swivel the table main body about the swivel axis. A power transmission mechanism transmits the driving power of the servo motor to the table main body.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to machine tools and, more particularly, to a swiveling table apparatus used as a table for machine tools in general such as units for which the swivel angle must be adjusted, e.g., grinding wheel spindles and main spindles for internal grinding machines and main spindles, grinding wheel spindles and tailstocks for cylindrical grinding machines.


A shaft manufacturing apparatus includes a first drawing die having a cylindrical first cavity defined therein which is open at both ends thereof and a second drawing die having a cylindrical second cavity defined therein which is open at one end thereof. The angle formed between a first tapered part of the first drawing die and the axis of the first cavity is greater than the angle formed between a second tapered part of the second drawing die and the axis of the second cavity.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of and an apparatus for manufacturing a shaft, and more particularly to a method of and an apparatus for manufacturing an elongate shaft that is suitable for transmitting power.
2. Description of the Related Art
Heretofore, drive shafts in automobiles serve as a component of the drive line for transmitting power from the engine, i.e., for transmitting rotary motion from the engine as rotary drive power to the drive wheels. There have been demands in the art for drive shafts that are lower in weight for better vehicle gas mileage and higher in rigidity for less vibration and noise.
One method of manufacturing a lightweight shaft is disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 11-247835. According to the disclosed method, as shown in FIGS. 17A and 17B of the accompanying drawings, an end 202 of a hollow circular tube 200 is pressed into a cavity 206 defined in a die 204 so that it is squeezed into a smaller diameter (see FIG. 17A). Thereafter, a mandrel 208 is pushed into the opening in the end 202 to squeeze the end 202 between the inner circumferential surface of the cavity 206 and the outer circumferential surface of the mandrel 208 (see FIG. 17B). After the end 202 of the hollow circular tube 200 has been machined, the other end of the hollow circular tube 200 is similarly machined, thereby producing a shaft.
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 10-036937 discloses a method of manufacturing a highly rigid shaft of carbon steel processed by high-frequency quenching.
The shaft disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 11-247835 is a hollow shaft which is of a small wall thickness and low mechanical strength. Accordingly, it is difficult for the disclosed method to simultaneously machine the ends of the hollow circular tube 200. The disclosed method cannot be used to reduce the number of machining steps and shorten the manufacturing time by simultaneously machining the ends of the hollow circular tube 200.
The shaft disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 10-036937 has a high level of high surface hardness. The disclosed method finds it difficult to simultaneously machine both ends of a cylindrical solid rod on a lathe, and fails to reduce the number of machining steps and shorten the manufacturing time in manufacturing a shaft.

Method of and apparatus for manufacturing shaft


If a fault occurs in a servo driving system incorporated in a transfer system, the transfer system is continuously driven or safely stopped without loosing synchronization of the transfer system with a pass system. The transfer system is driven by a plurality of independently controllable servo motors 12.sub.1 to 12.sub.n. In the event that a driver for any one of the servo motors is failed for example, transmission of driving force to the servo motor associated the failed driver is interrupted by a magnet conductor in response to a specified signal indicative of a driver failure so that the servo motor can be brought into a free state.

There are known transfer presses which include a transfer system for conveying workpieces to be pressed through a series of work stations in timed relation with performance of a series of pressing operations. Typically, the transfer system comprises a pair of feed bars juxtaposed so as to extend in a workpiece transferring direction and cross bars each spanned between these feed bars. The transfer system conveys workpieces held by vacuum caps by vacuum adsorption, these vacuum caps being attached to the cross bars. Alternatively, the transfer system conveys workpieces gripped at both sides by fingers attached to the feed bars. In this case, the pair of feed bars perform two-dimensional or three-dimensional movement to transfer an individual workpiece from one station where a set of dies are disposed to the next adjacent station where another set of dies are disposed.
The most typical method for driving the feed bars is a mechanical driving method in which the feed bars are driven, being linked to the press system with a cam and link mechanism. This method however reveals the disadvantage that adjustment at the time of die replacement is extremely difficult and therefore the individual driving method becomes prevailing recently according to which the feed bars are driven with motors (servo motors) different from the motor for the press system. Such transfer presses having a transfer system driven by the individual driving method has the advantage that the transfer system can be changed arbitrarily in its movement and has a simple configuration.
In the transfer press of this type, the transfer system is driven synchronously with the movement of the press slide and is designed to move, drawing a motional trajectory in which interference does not occur between the cross bars etc. of the transfer system and the dies. If a failure occurs in the servo driving systems (e.g., servo amplifiers) during operation of the transfer system, the control of the servo motors cannot be continued. The measure usually taken in the even of such a failure is such that the servo driving systems are disconnected from the servo motors by means of hard logic and then the servo motors are D.C. braked thereby stopping the servo motors immediately. Meanwhile, the press slide of the press system is brought to an emergency stop, by being braked upon detection of a failure in the transfer system. In this way, the press system and the transfer system are independently stopped in the event that a failure occurs in the servo driving systems of the transfer system.
As far as the press slide and the transfer system can be stopped simultaneously in the event of a failure in the transfer system, there is no problem. However, in reality, the transfer system is stopped before a stop of the press slide because the inertia force of the press slide is much greater than that of the transfer system. If the transfer system deflects from the set course of feeding motion during stopping or stops at a wrong position in the case of emergency stop, there will be the danger that the press slide crashes to the transfer system because of the inertia of the press slide, thereby damaging the press dies or transfer system which are very expensive.
In cases where the transfer press is installed in the production line for automobiles for example, the pressing line is situated in the upstream of the welding, painting and assembly lines and therefore the emergency stop of the pressing line would involve and cause a trouble to the overall production line.
The present invention is directed to overcoming the foregoing problems and it is therefore one of the objects of the invention to provide a transfer press which can be continuously driven or safely stopped without loosing synchronization of the transfer system with the press system in the event of a failure in the servo driving systems of the transfer system.


Tool and method for generating microstructures within cylindrical surfaces with a higher degree of efficiency, thereby allowing to provide cylindrical surfaces with a corresponding microstructure in much shorter cycle time. Cutting elements of the tool are arranged within seats to be radially displaceable in said seats during rotation of said tool body. The cutting elements are radially displaceable at least between two different radial positions, namely a radially retracted and a radially extended position. The cutting elements can be evenly distributed about the circumference of the tool at the same radial distance such that the tips of the cutting teeth and also the seats define a common cylindrical envelope surface the axis of which coincides with the axis of the tool body.

In the discussion that follows, reference is made to certain structures and/or methods. However, the following references should not be construed as an admission that these structures and/or methods constitute prior art. Applicant expressly reserves the right to demonstrate that such structures and/or methods do not qualify as prior art against the present invention.
In particular in the automotive industry, it has turned out that the fuel efficiency of a motor may be substantially improved by using light weight cylinder blocks and coating the inside of the motor cylinders with a hard and wear-resistant coating having favorable gliding properties because the light weight material of the cylinder block as such would have a poor wear resistance.
However, there is the general problem of a sufficient adherence of such coating to the cylinder surface without any flaking during a desired life time of such motor. In order to improve adherence of coatings on motor cylinders, the cylinder surface should not be too smooth and there have been developed many different methods and devices to increase the roughness of the cylinder surface in order to improve the adherence of such coatings. In particular the application of high pressure water jets is one of the methods which have shown to create a surface roughness and surface structure which is suited to provide a good adherence for cylinder coatings. However, water jetting is rather cumbersome and expensive and therefore less suited for industrial mass production.
As an alternative to water jetting which generates a rough but irregular surface, there have been developed methods to provide well defined microstructures by micro milling, i.e. by rotating cutting elements having a well defined geometry of rather small dimensions of typically less than one mm. Such cutting elements may generate surface structures and in particular grooves in the μm-regime (order of magnitude), i.e. with dimensions between 10 and 1000 μm, or more specifically between 100 and 500 μm.
Micro milling is typically performed with a rotating tool having cutting teeth generating one or several spirally wound thread-like grooves. In order to further improve adherence of coatings. It is also known to provide such grooves with an undercut cross section.
The generation of undercut grooves may also include plastic deformation of sides and edges of the grooves or of ridges remaining between adjacent grooves. Also the direct milling of undercut grooves by cutting teeth having a corresponding shape and arrangement is already known in the art.
Examples of corresponding tools and methods are for instance disclosed in US 2005/0064146, EP 09 776 027 and DE 10 2009 028 040.
The known tools and methods for the direct milling of undercut micro grooves are designed to generate a thread like structure by means of cutting teeth following a spirally wound path. Thereby, the micro groove structure is generated by means of a plurality of different cutting teeth successively engaging the same groove upon rotation of the tool, thereby generating the final shape and cross section of the grooves.
This necessarily implies that for generating a completely machined cylinder surface the tool is rotated while being be axially fed with a rather low axial feed rate along the total length of the cylinder, because the pitch of the thread like grooves should not exceed a maximum value in the order of two to five times the width of the individual grooves. Otherwise the adherence of the coating may be reduced due to wide smooth surface portions left between adjacent grooves. This operation requires a large number of revolutions of the tool before the structuring of the cylinder surface is completed.
To improve the cycle time of such tools, in particular where the tool has to be withdrawn through said cylinder after completing the groove structure, it is already known to arrange the respective cutting elements offset to one side of the tool body and reducing the radial extension of the tool on the opposite side, i.e. reducing the tool diameter. It is then possible to exit a hollow cylindrical space without engaging the cylindrical wall, after the surface milling is finished. That is, after finishing the milling process by rotating and axially feeding the milling tool into and through the cylinder, the tool body is radially offset in order to bring the cutting elements out of alignment with the cylinder wall, and then axially withdrawn through the cylinder. Of course, this also implies that the rotation of the tool body during the milling process is effected about the cylinder axis which in turn is offset from any symmetry axis of the tool body in order to allow the tool body and cutting elements to exit the hollow cylindrical space without engaging the cylinder wall.
The microstructures have typical dimensions well below 1 mm, i.e. the depth and width of the grooves provided in the cylindrical surface is below 1 mm, while the pitch may be about twice or three times the groove width and could be up to the order of or slightly larger than 1 mm.
This does of course not exclude the provision of methods and corresponding tools and cutting elements generating corresponding structures with larger or smaller dimensions.
A prior art tool comprising the aforementioned features is known from DE 10 2009 028 040 A1. The cutting elements within this tool are fixedly mounted, i.e. while being still adjustable, they remain in a fixed position when the tool enters a hollow cylindrical body, whereupon the tool is rotated about an axis which is offset from the center of the tool while being axially fed. Finally the whole tool is radially shifted to bring the cutting elements out of alignment with the wall of the work piece and then axially retracted.
As already mentioned, the respective cutting elements are provided to generate spirally wound grooves similar as a thread with a very small pitch. This requires many revolutions of the tool within the hollow cylindrical space until the structured surface is completed.

Device and method for generating microstructures in cylindrical surfaces