A system and method are provided for estimating temperature of a rotor of a motor configured to calculate temperature of the rotor using an actual measured data-based thermal model (thermal impedance model) and an energy loss model, and to estimate temperature of the rotor using the calculated temperature variation of the rotor. The method includes calculating, by a controller, an energy loss of the motor using driving conditions of the motor. The controller is also configured to calculate a temperature variation of the rotor in a predetermined reference temperature using the calculated energy loss and thermal resistances of the rotor and a stator of the motor. Further, the controller is configured to estimate a rotor temperature in the predetermined reference temperature using the temperature variation of the rotor.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system and method for estimating temperature of a rotor of a motor, and particularly, to a system and method for estimating temperature of a rotor of a motor to calculate temperature variation of the rotor using a measured data-based thermal model (e.g., thermal impedance model) and an energy loss model to then estimate temperature of the rotor with the temperature variation of the calculated temperature variation of the rotor.
(b) Description of the Related Art
Generally, it is well-known that a motor consists of a stator and a rotor. The stator refers to a fixed portion in the motor, including an iron core that supports a current-flowing coil and a frame to which the iron core is attached. The rotor is a rotatable portion in the motor, including a permanent magnet and an iron core. FIG. 1 is an exemplary drawing illustrating a schematic structure of a driving motor used in an environmentally-friendly vehicle, in which an air gap is formed between the stator 20 and rotor 10, a housing 40 is installed extraneous to the stator 20 to form a cooling channel 42, and oil or coolant flows in the cooling channel 42 to cool a motor 1.
Similar to a general motor, the rotor 10 includes permanent magnets 12 and an iron core 14, and the stator 20 includes an iron core 22 and a coil 24. The motor 1 of the environmentally-friendly vehicle may have different output and control performances as characteristics of the permanent magnets 12 embedded within the rotor 10 are varied. In general, magnetic flux of the permanent magnet 12 decreases as temperature increases, thereby resulting in a decreased output. Thus, to maintain equal torque (e.g., equal output), compensation control is required as temperature of the rotor varies.
However, the permanent magnets 12 are positioned inside of the rotor 10, causing difficult in attaching a temperature sensor configured to detect the permanent magnets 12, and a method for estimating the temperature of the rotor needs to be developed. Meanwhile, a method is known in which a temperature sensor is attached to a stator coil to detect temperature of a stator and the detected temperature of the stator is used to estimate temperature of a motor. However, this known method does not teach estimating temperature of the rotor and thus may not provide appropriate temperature compensation control according to temperature variation of the rotor.
The above information disclosed in this section is merely for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

System and method for estimating temperature of rotor of motor


The present invention relates to a method of preparing a porous cross-linked polysaccharide chromatography matrix, which comprises to provide an aqueous solution of a gellable polysaccharide, wherein part of the hydroxyl groups are substituted with groups which are not susceptible to nucleophilic attack; to provide essentially spherical droplets of the substituted polysaccharide solution; to form a gel of the substituted polysaccharide solution; and to cross-link the gel by adding a cross-linking agent. The invention also encompasses a chromatography column packed with a matrix so produced as well as use thereof in e.g. protein purification.

The recent advances in the field of biotechnology have required faster and more accurate techniques for recovery, purification and analysis of biological and biochemical substances, such as proteins. Electrophoresis and chromatography are two commonly used such techniques.
In electrophoresis, charged particles are separated by migration in an electric field. More specifically, a sample is placed on a soft solid support medium, such as an agarose or polyacrylamide gel slab, which in turn is placed between two electrodes, a positively charged anode and a negatively charged cathode. As the current is switched on, each component of the sample will migrate at a characteristic rate determined by its net charge and its molecular weight. One essential property of a well working electrophoresis gel is its melting point, which affects the ability to extract the migrated target compounds from separate gel spots. Thus, a low melting point gel is commonly advantageous. Native agarose is commonly used in electrophoresis gels, but they have been noted to involve some problems. For example, even though the coarse pore structure of the native agarose is excellent for resolving large macromolecules, for smaller molecules smaller molecular weight agarose must be prepared. This is commonly obtained by increasing the agarose content of the gel, which however produces high viscosities in the solutions rendering casting of gels thereof difficult. To overcome such problems and others, modified agarose has been suggested for electrophoresis gels.
Electrophoresis is discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,956,273 (Guiseley), which relates to agarose or agar compounds useful for electrophoresis or diffusive interactions, but also as thickeners. The compounds have been modified with alkyl and alkenyl groups in order to lower their gelling and melting temperatures, and to increase their clarity as compared to the unmodified material. More specifically, the agar or agarose is first dissolved in strong alkali, after which a suitable reagent is added to provide the modification. A difunctional agent such as epichlorohydrin may be used, but only under conditions which prevent cross-linking.
Electrophoresis is also discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,143,646 (Nochumson et al), which relates to electrophoretic resolving gel compositions comprising polysaccharide hydrogels, such as agarose, which has been derivatised and depolymerised sufficiently to reduce its casting-effective viscosity. The disclosed compositions do not require any cross-linking or polymerising agents.
Further, U.S. Pat. No. 5,541,255 (Kozulic) relates to gels for electrophoresis, and more specifically to cross-linked linear polysaccharide polymers. The gels are formed by dissolving a polysaccharide in a solvent such as water; adding a cross-linking agent, which is not charged nor which becomes charged upon contact with water; and incubating the mixture in a quiescent state to simultaneously react the polysaccharide and the cross-linking agent and to gel the product into a slab. According to U.S. Pat. No. 5,541,255, the prior art electrophoresis gels could be redissolved by water, while the U.S. Pat. No. 5,541,255 invention provides a gel which is water insoluble. These properties are obtained due to the simultaneous cross-linking and gelation, and also due to the high ratio of cross-linker to polysaccharide.
In chromatography, two mutually immiscible phases are brought into contact. More specifically, the target compound is introduced into a mobile phase, which is contacted with a stationary phase. The target compound will then undergo a series of interactions between the stationary and mobile phases as it is being carried through the system by the mobile phase. The interactions exploit differences in the physical or chemical properties of the components in the sample. In liquid chromatography, a liquid sample, optionally combined with a suitable buffer constitutes the mobile phase, which is contacted with a stationary phase, known as a separation matrix. Usually, the matrix comprises a support to which ligands, which are groups capable of interaction with the target, have been coupled.
Separation matrices are commonly based on supports made from inorganic materials, such as silica, or organic materials, such as synthetic or natural polymers, or the like. The synthetic polymers, such as styrene and divinylbenzene, are often used for supports that exhibit some hydrophobicity, such as size exclusion chromatography, hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC) and reverse phase chromatography (RPC). Further, the synthetic polymers are sometimes preferred over natural polymers due to their flow properties, which may be more advantageous since synthetic polymers are often more rigid and pressure-resistant than the commonly used natural polymer supports.
The natural polymers, which are commonly polysaccharides such as agarose, have been utilised as supports of separation matrices for decades. Due to the presence of hydroxyl groups, the surfaces of the natural polymers are usually hydrophilic, giving essentially no non-specific interactions with proteins. Another advantage of the natural polymers, which is of specific importance in the purification of drugs or diagnostic molecules for internal human use, is their non-toxic properties. Agarose can be dissolved in water at increased temperature, and will then form a porous gel upon cooling to a certain temperature (the gelling point). On heating, the gel will melt again at a temperature (the melting point), which is usually considerably higher than the gelation point. The gelation involves helix-helix aggregation of the polysaccharide polymers, and is sometimes referred to as a physical cross-linking. To optimise the target mass transport rate and the area with which the target interacts, it is often desired to increase the porosity of the support, which can be achieved by varying the agarose concentration. However, another essential parameter to consider is the flow properties of the support. The matrix is normally used in the form of a packed bed of particles (spherical or non-spherical). When the mobile phase is forced through the bed, the back pressure of the bed will mainly be controlled by the interstitial channels between the particles. At low flow rates, the particles can be regarded as incompressible and then the back pressure increases linearly with the flow rate, with the slope depending on the particle size. At higher flow rates, the particles may start to deform under the hydrostatic pressure, resulting in diminishing diameters of the interstitial channels and a rapidly increasing back pressure. At a certain flow rate, depending on the rigidity of the matrix, the bed will collapse and the back pressure approaches infinity unless it is switched off automatically by the chromatography system. To improve the rigidity and hence the flow properties of agarose, it is frequently cross-linked. Such cross-linking takes place between available hydroxyl groups, and may be obtained e.g. with epichlorohydrin.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,973,683 (Lindgren) relates to the cross-linking of porous polysaccharide gels, and more specifically to a method of improving the rigidity while minimising the non-specific interaction of a porous polysaccharide gel. The method involves providing an agarose gel and a reagent denoted "monofunctional", which comprises a reactive group, such as a halogen group or an epoxide group, and a double bond. The reagent is bound to the gel via its reactive group; and the double bond is then activated into an epoxide or halohydrin, which is finally reacted with hydroxyl groups on the agarose to provide cross-linking.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,135,650 (Hjertén et al) relates to highly compressible chromatographic stationary phase particles, such as agarose beads, which are sufficiently rigid for HPLC and non-porous to the extent that it is impenetrable by solutes. More specifically, such beads are produced by starting from porous agarose beads, which are contacted with an organic solvent to collapse the porosity, after which the bead surfaces inside the collapsed pores are cross-linked to fix the pores in their collapsed state. Alternatively, the beads are produced by filling the pores with a polymerisable substance, which grafts to the pore surfaces, and performing graft polymerisation. One stated advantage of the invention disclosed is that a single stationary phase is effective at high pressures and yet can be used at low pressures.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,602,990 (Berg) relates to a process for the production of a porous cross-linked polysaccharide gel, wherein a bifunctional cross-linking agent is added to a solution of polysaccharide and allowed to bind via its active site to the hydroxyl groups of the polysaccharide. A polysaccharide gel is then formed from the solution, after which the inactive site of the cross-linking agent is activated and cross-linking of the gel performed. Thus, the cross-linking agent is introduced into the polysaccharide solution, contrary to the above discussed methods wherein it is added to a polysaccharide gel. The bifunctional cross-linking agent comprises one active site, i.e. a site capable of reaction with hydroxyl groups of the polysaccharide, such as halides and epoxides, and one inactive site, i.e. a group which does not react under the conditions where the active site reacts, such as allyl groups. Thus, the present bifunctional cross-linking agent corresponds to the "monofunctional reagents" used according to the above-discussed U.S. Pat. No. 4,973,683 (Lindgren). Particles comprised of the resulting gel have been shown to present an improved capability of withstanding high flow rates and back pressures. A drawback with the U.S. Pat. No. 6,602,990 method is that bromine is required for the activation of the cross-linking agent.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,998,606 (Grandics) relates to a method of synthesising chromatography media, wherein cross-linking and functionalisation of a matrix takes place simultaneously. More specifically, double bonds provided at the surface of a polymeric carbohydrate matrix are activated in the presence of a metallic catalyst to cross-link the matrix and functionalise it with halohydrin, carboxyl or sulphonate groups. The double bonds are provided at the matrix surface by contact with an activating reagent, which contains a halogen atom or epoxide and a double bond. Thus, the U.S. Pat. No. 5,998,606 activating reagent corresponds to the U.S. Pat. No. 4,973,683 monofunctional reagent and the U.S. Pat. No. 6,602,990 bifunctional cross-linking agent.
Thus, even though there are a number of techniques available for producing cross-linked polysaccharide separation matrices, since different applications will put different requirements on the matrix, there is still a need within this field of alternative methods.

Method of preparing a chromatography matrix


In a railroad auto rack car having an array of side panels with horizontal air gaps between vertically adjacent panels, a strip of continuous flexible resilient plastic material, preferably vinyl having a white color, is fitted onto and adhesively secured to horizontal flanges of vertically adjacent upper and lower side panels to function both as a seal to close the horizontal air gap against swirling road dirt and also as a protective bumper to protect the automobiles from damage from being bumped during loading and unloading of the rack car. The bumper seal in preferred form has upper and lower legs each having a channel which faces the center axis of the bumper for receiving the vertical flanges found along the horizontal edges of the side panels of the rack car. The portion of the bumper seal along the center axis is designed to provide a spring action to accommodate for variations in the width of the air gaps.

The invention relates particularly to railroad auto rack cars of the type having an array of vertically positioned side panels arranged in horizontal rows and vertical columns, the rows being spaced apart vertically to provide horizontal air gaps between vertically adjacent panels. The upper and lower edge portions of each panel are in the form of a U-shaped channel having vertically disposed flanges which in the case of the lower edge of a panel is an upstanding flange and the case of the upper edge of a panel is a depending flange. The vertically adjacent panels of a column do not abut horizontally; they are spaced apart forming horizontal air gaps through which light and air enter the car. Located between each column of panels is a vertical post which supports the panels and there is a vertical air gap between the posts and the side edge portions of the panels.
While the air gaps between the panels and between the panels and posts have beneficial advantages in that they allow for admittance of light and air, it is has been found that the beneficial effects are more than outweighed by the adverse effects. Specifically, as the train moves along the track at conventional speeds, the air flowing into the interior of the car through the air gaps carries with it dust and dirt which, due to the turbulence and swirling action of the air, tends to damage the paint finishes and vinyl tops of the brand new automobiles which are being transported. This of course is not desirable.


In a method of testing a semiconductor wafer, semiconductor chips of a predetermined number are selected from among a plurality of semiconductor chips formed on a semiconductor wafer, and a first test is performed on I/O pins of each of the selected semiconductor chips. Then, a second test is performed on a part of the I/O pins of each of non-selected semiconductor chips as ones of the plurality of semiconductor chips other than the selected semiconductor chips.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor wafer testing apparatus and a testing method of a semiconductor wafer.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a test of a semiconductor device by using a conventional semiconductor wafer testing apparatus, the whole of one semiconductor wafer is divided into n (n is a natural number larger than 1) regions, and m (m is a natural number smaller than n) regions are optionally selected from among the n regions. Then, a test of necessary test items is performed to semiconductor chips for the semiconductor devices formed on the m selected regions. All the test items are not necessary to semiconductor chips formed in the remaining (n−m) regions, and a test of selected test items is performed based on a cumulative defect percentage calculated from the test result to each of the semiconductor chips formed on the m regions. Thus, each test item having the cumulative defect percentage equal to or smaller than a specified threshold value is omitted to shorten the overall test time.
FIGS. 1A and 1B show a process flow of a test performed on a semiconductor wafer by a conventional semiconductor wafer testing apparatus. Upon start of the test of the semiconductor wafer, all test items (test item 1 to 5) are determined as necessary test items and a test of the test items is performed on m regions selected from n regions of a semiconductor wafer (step S1). Then, the determination of good product/defective product is carried out for each of the m regions based on the test result. Next, the number of defects and a cumulative defect percentage are determined for the semiconductor chips of a same type based on the test result carried out at the step S1 (step S2). At a time when the test of the necessary test items on the selected m regions is completed, a test of the necessary test items and a test of the selected test items are performed on the semiconductor chips formed on the (n−m) non-selected regions (step S3). In an examples shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the test item 1 and 2 are necessary test item, and the test items 3 to 5 are the selected test items. For the semiconductor chips formed on the (n−m) regions, the test of the necessary test items, i.e., a test of the test item 1 (step S4) and a test of the test item 2 (step S5) are first performed. A test of the selected test items is performed on the semiconductor chips, which passed the test of the necessary test items, and the semiconductor chips, which did not pass the test of the necessary test items, are handled as defective products.
When a test of the selected test item 3 starts, the cumulative defect percentage for the test item 3 is first checked (step S6). Here, if the cumulative defect percentage is 0.2% or more, the test of the test item 3 is actually performed (step S7). On the other hand, if the cumulative defect percentage is not larger than 0.2%, it is checked whether or not each of semiconductor chips formed on the m regions is defective (step S8). Here, if any of the semiconductor chips is defective, the test of the test item 3 is performed (step S7). If any of the semiconductor chips is not defective, the test of the test item 3 is omitted, and the semiconductor chips formed on the (n−m) regions pass the test of the test item 3 and are transferred as good products to the test of the next selected test item 4.
Operations in the test of the test items 4 and 5 are the same as that in the test of the test item 3, and thus the detailed description thereof is omitted here. When the test of the selected test items 3 to 5 is completed, products that have passed all the test items are handled as good products (step S15). On the other hand, if the products which have been determined to be defective in any one of the test items are handled as the detective products (step S16). When it is confirmed that the test of all the test items on all the semiconductor chips formed on the (n−m) regions has been completed (step S17), the cumulative defect percentages are obtained based on the test result of the test items 1 to (step S18), thus completing the test of the test items 1 to 5.
As described above, in order to incorporate the selected test items into the test by the conventional semiconductor wafer testing apparatus for omitting the test items, it is necessary that a chip manufacturing variation dependent on the region in the semiconductor wafer is small. For example, there is a case that process parameters such as a film thickness and dimension for physical evaluation and management concerning the chip structure and electrical parameters such as a threshold voltage of a transistor, an ON current value, an electrical resistance value of a resistor, and a capacitance of a capacitor are different depending on the location of the semiconductor chips. Alternately, there is a case that the process parameters and electrical parameters are different due to any manufacture-related trouble.
In such a case, if the test item is omitted based on the cumulative defect percentage for the test item, deterioration in the chip quality at shipment is caused.
In conjunction with the above description, Japanese laid Open Patent application (JP-P2004-266017A) discloses a "semiconductor wafer testing method", in which the whole region of a semiconductor wafer is previously divided into n regions and a test is performed on each of the regions, m (n>m) regions of the n regions are optionally set and the test of necessary test items and selected test items is performed on the m regions. Good product/defective product determination is performed based on the test result and a test of the necessary test items is performed on the (n−m) regions and a test of the selected test items is performed in accordance with the cumulative defect percentages of the selected test items, and the final good product/defective product determination is performed based on the test result.
Also, Japanese Laid Open Patent application (JP-P2003-332189A) discloses a "semiconductor test system". In this conventional example, a semiconductor wafer testing apparatus performs a test of a plurality of test items on semiconductor chips formed on a semiconductor wafer based on a test program. A management apparatus manages the test program used by this semiconductor wafer testing apparatus. The semiconductor wafer testing apparatus and the management apparatus are connected to each other through a communication line network. In the management apparatus, a collecting section collects test results of the plurality of test items on the semiconductor chips. A determining section determines the test items that can be omitted for all the semiconductor chips or the semiconductor chips satisfying a predetermined condition, based on the test result collected by the collecting section. A test program generating section generates a test program to omit the test items that have been determined by the determining section for all the semiconductor chips or semiconductor chips satisfying the predetermined condition. A transmitting section transmits the test program generated by the test program generating section to the semiconductor wafer testing apparatus. The semiconductor wafer testing apparatus performs the test in accordance with the test program transmitted from the transmitting section.
Moreover, Japanese Laid Open Patent application (JP-A-Heisei, 7-37959) discloses a "wafer test method". In this conventional testing method of a wafer having a plurality of chips, a test of all test items is performed for a part of chips on a wafer whose arrangement position has been selected. A test of only the test items selected based on a test result is performed for the remaining chips on the wafer.
In accompaniment with the recent trend of a semiconductor device toward higher performance such as a multi-pin structure and a higher operation speed, a time required for a test of the semiconductor device has become longer. Thus, it is important to reduce the test time of the semiconductor wafer for semiconductor devices so as to improve a production efficiency and to reduce a cost of the semiconductor device. In order to reduce the test time, there is a case that some of test items are omitted. However, when the test items are simply omitted, deterioration in quality of the semiconductor wafer for the semiconductor devices is caused.

Semiconductor wafer testing apparatus and method of testing semiconductor wafer


The present invention provides Lactobacillus plantarum CJLP56 KCTC 11402BP, a composition containing the Lactobacillus for treating intestinal diseases, and a composition containing the Lactobacillus for enhancing immunity.

Lactic acid bacteria are abundantly present in fermented foods such as Kimchi and usually dwell in the digestive tract, functioning to degrade fibroid materials and composite proteins into useful metabolites. As such, live microorganisms that confer a health benefit on the host by improving the microbial environment in the gut are generally called probiotics. To function as probiotics after oral uptake, microorganisms must reach the intestine alive and must stay on intestinal surfaces. Therefore, they are fundamentally required to have a tolerance to acid and bile acid and an ability to adhere to intestinal epithelial cells.
Representative among probiotics are Lactobacillus sp. microorganisms, which are abundantly present in Korean conventional fermented foods such as Kimchi. Lactobacillus sp. microorganisms are homo- or hetero-fermentative lactic acid bacilli which can be readily found in human and animal guts or in the fermentation process of diary products or vegetables. Lactobacillus sp. microorganisms are known to have the beneficial functions of vitamin synthesis, anticancer activity and blood cholesterol reduction in addition to maintaining the intestines at an acidic pH that inhibits the excessive growth of harmful bacteria, such as E. coli, or Clostridium and improving diarrhea and constipation. Acidophilin, produced by fermenting lactic acid bacilli, can act like an antibiotic and inhibit the growth of dysentery bacilli, salmonella, staphylococci, E. coli, etc. Reportedly, this natural antibiotic can bind the bowel by suppressing the growth of diarrhea-causing bacteria and normalizing the intestinal microfloral environment (Michael and Philippe, Probiotics and prebiotics: Effects on diarrhea, The journal of nutrition, Volume 137, March 2007, pages 803S-811S; Roberfroid, Prebiotics and probiotics: Are they functional foods?, American journal of clinical nutrition, Volume 71, June 2000, pages 1682S-1687S).
Active research has been made to take advantage of Lactobacillus sp. microorganisms in the development of probiotic agents and animal feeds. Bacterial diarrhea causes livestock to lose weight or even die. To increase livestock production by preventing the onset of diseases, antibiotics have been generally added to the feedstock of livestock. However, because the use of antibiotics causes the advent of resistant bacteria and a residuum of antibiotics within livestock products, it is regulated by law and therefore, and organic methods of raising livestock have been recommended (Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 1998-78358)(McEwen and Fedorka-Cray, Antimicrobial use and resistance in animals, Clinical infectious Diseases, Volume 34, June 2002, pages S93-S106).
In addition, lactic acid bacteria such as Lactobacillus sp. microorganisms are known to exhibit immunopotentiating activity. With the aggravation of environmental pollution in the world and the increased uptake of instant food, allergy and atopic diseases associated with abnormal immunomodulation have been increased rapidly over the world including Korea. In Europe, keen attention has been paid to bacteriotherapy in which pathogenic microorganisms are displaced with beneficial bacteria by the oral administration of, for example, lactic acid bacteria, thereby treating or alleviating diseases.
A report has it that the administration of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG has reduced the onset of atopic diseases in infants to half the level (Kalliomaki et. al., Probiotics in primary prevention of atopic disease: a randomized placebo-controlled trial, Lancet, Volume 357, April 2001, pages 1076-1079). Also, children with atopic dermatitis were reported to undergo a decrease in both the area and extent of dermatitis when they were administered with Lactobacillus rhamnosus and L. reuteri (Rosenfeldt et. al., Effect of probiotic Lactobacillus strains in children with atopic dermatitis, Dermatologic and ocular diseases, Volume 111, February 2003, pages 389-395).
The immunopotentiating mechanism of lactic acid bacteria has been steadily researched and has yet to be proven. It is generally inferred that after being introduced via an oral route, lactic acid bacteria settle down and inhabit the gut, positively affecting the intestinal immune system. For example, the uptake of lactic acid bacteria with yogurt is reported to increase the antibacterial activity of Peyer's patch's lymphocytes. Tests with animals and humans showed that lactic acid bacteria potentiate the response of IgA. Further, lactic acid bacteria have an influence on both innate immunity and adaptive immunity. In the intestinal immune system, the cells imparting innate immunity defend the host from infection of pathogens by recognizing and killing them. In adaptive immunity, macrophages, which plays a role in phagocytosing pathogens and presenting antigens, are activated to stimulate the production of various cytokines, inter alia, IL12 and IL-18. In this regard, some of the constituents of the cell wall of lactic acid bacteria are known to activate the NF-κB and STAT signaling pathway in macrophages and thereby stimulate the production of cytokines. In addition lactic acid bacteria increase the production of IL-12, IL-18, and TNF-α in dendritic cells, which are specialized antigen-presenting cells abundantly found in the lymph nodes and the mucous membranes of the digestive tract, as well as the expression of T-lymphocyte activating surface molecules such as MHC class II and B7-2 (Cross et. al., Anti-allergy properties of fermented foods: an important immunoregulatory mechanism of lactic acid bacteria?, International Immunopharmacology, Volume 1, May 2001, pages 891-901).
T lymphocytes play a central role in adaptive immunity. There is a Th1 response leading to cell-mediated immunity and also a Th2 response leading to humoral immunity in the adaptive immunity. The cytokines produced by antigen-presenting cells differ between the Th1 response to Th2 response. IL-12, IL-18, and interferon (IFN) are predominantly produced in the Th1 response whereas the Th2 response predominantly results in the production of PGE2, IL-4, and IL-10. For immune system homeostasis, there must be an appropriate balance between the Th1 and Th2 responses. The disruption of Th1/Th2 balance gives rise to immune-mediated diseases. Generally, Th1 cells are more effective against infection, while Th2 cells are responsible mainly for allergic and inflammatory responses. When acting normally, Th2 cells protect the body from dust and other undesired substances. When excessively activated, Th2 cells induce the hyperproduction of IgE antibodies, giving rise to allergic reactions to proteins which are not normally antigenic (e.g., pollen, foods). Th1 responses must be in balance with Th2 responses. A surplus or deficiency of either of them causes diseases. Chronic stress induces the continuous release of cortisol, which causes a decrease in Th2 response but an increase in Th1 response, resulting in the induction of cancer, atopy, allergy, and autoimmune diseases (Elenkov and Chrousos, Stress hormones, Th1/Th2 patterns, pro/anti-inflammatory cytokines and susceptibility to disease, Trends in Endocrinology and Metabolism, Volume 10, November 1999, pages 359-368).
Lactic acid bacteria stimulate the production of the Th1 cytokine IFN-γ, but suppress the release of the Th2 cytokines IL-4 and IL-5 in T lymphocytes, as shown in an in vivo experiment (Matsuzaki et. al., The effect of oral feeding of Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota on immunoglobulin E production in mice, Journal of Dairy Science, Volume 81, January 1998, pages 48-53). Another experiment exhibited that when ovalbumin-primed mice that showed a Th2 bias were administered orally with lactic acid bacteria, the IFN-γ level of the splenocytes increased but the IL-4, IL-5 and IgE levels decreased and that incubating the splenocytes isolated from ovalbumin-primed mice with a Th2 bias, together with lactic acid bacteria, brought about a change in cytokine and IgE levels in agreement with the results of the oral administration experiment. However, because the incubation of only T lymphocytes together with lactic acid bacteria did not lead to a significant increase in IFN-γ level, T lymphocytes are thought to require antigen-presenting cells such as macrophages and dendritic cells for their IFN-γ production (Kato et. al., Lactic acid bacterium potently induces the production of interleukin-12 and interferon-gamma by mouse splenocytes, International Journal of Immunopharmacology, Volume 21, February 1999, pages 121-131). IL-12 and IL-18, which are cytokines playing an important role in differentiating Th0 lymphocytes into Th1 lymphocytes, are produced in macrophages or dendritic cells. When treated with lactic acid bacteria, splenocytes or microphages are known to increase the production of IL-12, IL-18 and IFN-α in dose-dependent manners. As such, lactic acid bacteria increases the production of IL-12, IL-18 and IFN-α in macrophages, thus promoting differentiation into Th1 cells with the concomitant induction of IFN-γ production, so that they can act to drive a Th2-predominant condition toward a Th1/Th2 balance (Cross et. al., Anti-allergy properties of fermented foods: an important immunoregulatory mechanism of lactic acid bacteria?, International Immunopharmacology?, Volume 1, May 2001, pages 891-901). Therefore, lactic acid bacteria are reported to be useful in the prevention or treatment of immune-mediated diseases such as cancers, atopy, allergy and autoimmune diseases, which are caused by the disruption of the Th1/Th2 balance triggered by an excessive Th2 response.


A shaker bottle comprising an open top lower vessel for retaining a liquid volume, an upper member releasably engaging and closing the open top lower vessel; the upper member including a liquid passage inlet in a bottom surface thereof connected to a closable port on an exterior of the upper member allowing liquid in the lower vessel to pass through the inlet and the closable port when the closable port is open and the upper member is closing the lower vessel; the upper member including a storage chamber suitable for receiving a powder supplement; the storage chamber including a releasable bottom member forming a seal with the storage chamber separating the storage from the lower vessel when the releasable bottom member is in with the storage chamber; the bottom member when released from the storage chamber being received in the lower vessel with the storage chamber being open to the lower vessel.

Many powdered supplements are available to be added to water or another liquid and have particular popularity with athletes and exercise programs. Such powdered supplements include, but are not limited to meal replacement powders, nutritional additives and protein supplements.
In the fitness community, athletes use protein supplements to increase performance and/or to help build muscle. These supplements typically come as powdered additives to be mixed with water before consumption. Many of these supplements are recommended to be taken after a workout. It is recommended that the protein supplements not be mixed in advance of consumption as the protein can denature in the water over time. As a result, many athletes bring a single portion of the powdered supplement with them to the gym and add it to water in a water bottle after their workout. If a powdered supplement is added to a traditional water bottle, shaking of the water bottle does not necessarily remove all the clumps of powder and does not result in a smooth textured drink.
Some specialty bottles for mixing protein shakes contain a wire whisk-like ball within the bottle. The whisk-like ball helps to mix the powdered supplement with the liquid in the bottle. To use this style of bottle, a user adds a liquid and supplement powder to the bottle, closes the bottle and shakes the contents. When the bottle is shaken, the wire whisk-like ball acts as an agitator to help dispense the clumped supplement. These specialty bottles do not provide an internal storage compartment for the powdered supplement. If a user would like to use the bottle for an alternate purpose, such as a water bottle prior to adding the protein powder, the powdered supplement must be separately stored. An example of this type of structure is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,379,032.
It is known in a baby bottle having a nipple outlet at the top thereof to include an integrated chamber under the lid of a bottle for storage of powdered supplements. The user adds water to the bottle and stores powdered supplement in the integrated chamber of the lid. The lid is then typically screwed on the bottle. When the user wishes to prepare the beverage, the powder in the compartment is released and falls into the bottom vessel. This release of the powder introduces the powder into the liquid in the bottom vessel. The bottle is shaken to provide mixing of the powder and the liquid.
With this baby bottle, the powder compartment blocks the opening in the lid used to receive the contents. The fluid must flow through the compartment to exit through the lid. Thus, the baby bottle cannot be used as a water bottle prior to the mixing of the powdered supplement. Additionally the releasable bottom of the powder compartment is substantially flat and is not optimized for agitation.
Another style of bottle includes a series of sealable compartments which are temporarily stored in the bottom vessel. The compartments are approximately half the volume of the bottom vessel. The bottle design allows for water to flow from the bottom vessel and through a passage in the lid for consumption prior to the addition of the powdered supplements. To add the supplement, the user removes the lid, extracts the compartments and pours the contents of at least one compartment into the bottom vessel. Liquid is then added. The compartments are removed from the bottle when a drink is prepared. This design requires the removal of the lid and removal of the compartment to add the supplement to the liquid contained within. This is undesirable as many users do not wish to contaminate the supplement or the other compartments with any dirt on their hands.
There is a need for a bottle with an internal powdered supplement compartment in isolation from liquid contained in the bottle which can be released without need to open the bottle or contaminate the interior of the bottle. There is a further need for such a bottle to be additionally used as a water bottle prior to the addition of the supplement.


Techniques for designing optical couplers are disclosed. According to one aspect of the optical couplers, different from the prior art couplers, a holding tube (a sub-assembly) for holding an optical lens (e.g., a GRIN lens) and an optical filter (e.g., a thin film filter) is formed by concatenating two single tubes, one for accommodating the optical lens and the other for accommodating the optical filter. The two tubes are not required to have an identical dimension. As a result, inherent flexibilities are provided in the holding tube, especially the optical filter often comes in different sizes. Further, when the sub-assembly is inserted in a sleeve, only either one of the two tubes is secured to the sleeve so as to reduce a risk that, during a thermal condition change, any metal and glass material expansion will not cause the sub-assembly to be under stress that would otherwise be present when both of the tubes are secured to the sleeve. To reduce stress-related optical loss of the optical couplers, an epoxy adhesive is applied onto only a portion of an optical lens and a portion of a tube.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention is generally related to the area of optical components and devices for optical communications. In particular, the present invention is related to techniques for packaging optical components and devices in compact size and more economic way without compromising overall performance of such components and devices.
2. The Background of Related Art
The future communication networks demand ever increasing bandwidths and flexibility to different communication protocols. Fiber optic networks are becoming increasingly popular for data transmission due to their high speed and high capacity capabilities. Wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) is an exemplary technology that puts data from different sources together on an optical fiber with each signal carried at the same time on its own separate light wavelength. Using the WDM system, up to 80 (and theoretically more) separate wavelengths or channels of data can be multiplexed into a light stream transmitted on a single optical fiber. To take the benefits and advantages offered by the WDM system, there require many sophisticated optical network elements.
Optical add/drop and multiplexer/demultiplexer devices are those elements often used in optical systems and networks. For example, an exchanging of data signals involves the exchanging of matching wavelengths from two different sources within an optical network. In other words, an add/drop device can be advantageously used for the multi-channel signal for dropping a wavelength while simultaneously adding a channel with a matching wavelength at the same network node. Likewise, for transmission through a single fiber, a plurality of channel signals are combined via a multiplexer to be a multiplexed signal that eventually will be separated or demultiplexed via a demultiplexer.
A fundamental element in an add/drop device or a multiplexer/demultiplexer is what is called a three-port device. As the name suggests, a three-port device has three ports, each for a multi-channel signal, a dropped or added signal or a multi-channel signal without the dropped or added signal. FIG. 1A shows a typical design of a three-port add/drop device 200. The optical device 200 includes a common (C) port 202, a reflection (R) port 204, and a transmission (T) port 206. When the device 200 is used as a multiplexer (i.e., to add a signal at a selected wavelength λK to other signals at wavelengths other than the selected wavelength λK), the T-port 206 receives a light beam at the selected wavelength λK that is to be multiplexed into a group of beams at wavelengths λ1, λ2, . . . λN excluding the selected wavelength λK coupled in from the C-port 202. The R-port 204 subsequently produces a multiplexed signal including all wavelengths λ1, λ2, . . . λK, . . . λN.
Likewise, when the optical device 200 is used to demultiplex signals, the C-port 202 receives a group of signals with wavelengths λ1, λ2, . . . λK, . . . λN. The T-port 206 produces a signal with the selected wavelength λK while the R-port 204 subsequently produces a group of signals including all wavelengths λ1, λ2, . . . λN except for the selected wavelength λK. In general, the optical paths towards a R-port and a T-port are respectively referred to as R-channel and T-channel.
FIG. 1B shows an exemplary internal configuration 210 of the optical device 200 of FIG. 1A. As shown in FIG. 1B, there is a first GRIN lens 212, an optical filter 214 (e.g., a multi-layer thin film filter) and a second GRIN lens 216. In general, a dual-fiber pigtail is provided in a holder 218 (e.g., a dual-fiber pigtail collimator) and coupled to or positioned towards the first GRIN lens 212, and a single-fiber pigtail is provided in a second holder 220 and coupled to or positioned towards the second GRIN lens 216. Essentially the two GRIN lenses 212 and 216 accomplish the collimating means for coupling an optical signal with multi channels or wavelengths in and out of the C port 202, the R port 204, or the T port 206. In general, the three-port device 200 is known to have a very low coupling loss from the C-port to both the R-port and the T-port for use as a demultiplexing device, or vise versa as a multiplexing device.
The performance, reliability and cost of such devices are primarily controlled by the designs and packaging technologies thereof. U.S. Pat. No. 6,282,339 has reviewed two kinds of design and packaging technologies of wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) couplers and lists their respective problems. Accordingly, U.S. Pat. No. 6,282,339 discloses an improved design and process for fabricating a low-cost WDM coupler with improved reliability by preventing the epoxies to spread over or diffused into the optical paths in the coupler. By eliminating the epoxies from all the optical paths, the difficulties and limitations in the two kinds of design and packaging technologies can be fully overcome.
FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B respectively duplicate FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B of U.S. Pat. No. 6,282,339. In FIG. 2A, a WDM filter 105 is attached to a first GRIN lens 110 by applying a first heat-curing epoxy 115. To prevent the epoxy from entering the optical path between the WDM filter and the GRIN lens, an EP42HT heat-curing epoxy is employed as the first heat-curing epoxy 115. The EP42HT epoxy has good resistance to high temperature and humidity. For the purpose of completely preventing the EP42HT epoxy from entering the optical path between the WDM filter and the GRIN lens in any situation, a special bonding and curing process is developed. The EP42HT epoxy is first prepared and then gelled at room temperature for about two hours. Then the EP42HT epoxy is applied to the boundary areas between the WDM filter and the GRIN lens. Then the EP42HT epoxy is further gelled at room temperature for another one hour. Finally, the EP42HT epoxy is cured at 110C for another one hour. According to this manufacturing process, the EP42HT epoxy will enter only the very outside interface areas between the WDM filter and the GRIN lens to provide bonding between the WDM filter and the GRIN lens but not the optical path between the WDM filter and the GRIN lens. To obtain strong bonding between the WDM filter and the GRIN lens, a certain amount of the EP42HT epoxy is applied around the interface area between the WDM filter and the GRIN lens. Usually, the diameter of the EP42HT epoxy bonding will be slightly larger than that of the GRIN lens.
After the WDM filter 105 is attached to the first GRIN lens 110, the first GRIN lens 110 attached to the WDM filter 105 is inserted into a first holding tube 120. The first holding tube 120 has a length slightly longer than the combined length of the WDM filter 105 and the first GRIN lens 110. The first GRIN lens 110 and the WDM filter 105 is fixed to the first holding tube 120 by applying a second heat curing epoxy 125. Since the diameter of the epoxy bonding 115 is slightly larger than that of the first GRIN lens 110, the holding tube 120 has larger inside diameter at the side of the epoxy bonding 115 than at the other side. After a second holding tube 130 is mounted onto a dual fiber pigtail 135, the filter 105, the lens 110, and the tube 120 sub-assembly and the fiber pigtail 135 with the holding tube 130 are mounted on an alignment stage (not shown). Then a distance and orientation of the fiber pigtail 135 relative to the GRIN lens 110 is adjusted to achieve a lowest reflection loss from the input fiber 140 to the output fiber 145. After the fiber pigtail 135 is placed at its optimal position relative to the GRIN lens 110, the position of the holding tube 130 is adjusted so that its end surface is in contact with that of the holding tube 120. Then a third heat-curing epoxy 150 is applied to fix the fiber pigtail 135 and the two holding tubes 120 and 130 together and thus an assembly of a dual fiber collimator 155 is completed. After the epoxy 150 is applied, it will spread over all contact areas between the holding tube 130 and the fiber pigtail 135 and between the holding tubes 120 and 130. However, it will not contaminate the optical path between the GRIN lens 110 and the fiber pigtail 135 because of surface tension.
In FIG. 2B, a second GRIN lens 160 is inserted and fixed into a third holding tube 165 having a length slightly longer than that of the GRIN lens 160 by applying a fourth heat-curing epoxy 170. Then a single fiber pigtail 175 is inserted into a fourth holding tube 180. The single fiber pigtail 175 is a low-cost standard single fiber pigtail, like that used in the pending patent application. Then the first holding tube 120 with the first GRIN lens 110 and the WDM filter 105, the third holding tube 165 with the second GRIN lens 160 and the fourth holding tube 180 with the single fiber pigtail 175 are mounted on an alignment stage (not shown). A pigtail position-adjustment is made on the alignment stage to achieve optimal positions of the first GRIN lens 110 to the second GRIN lens 160 and the single fiber pigtail 175 to the second GRIN lens 160 with a lowest transmission loss.
However, it has been noticed that the approach disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,282,339 demonstrate at least the following problems that can, in return, complicate the designs and introduce costs in packaging an optical device (e.g., a WDW coupler). First of all, the device 100 in FIG. 2A or FIG. 2B requires that the first holding tube 120 (i.e., a glass tube) that packages the WDM filter 105 and the GRIN lens 110 has to be made with two distinctive cross-sections (e.g., different diameters). A smaller inner diameter section is to match to that of the GRIN lens 110 (e.g., 1.8 mm diameter) and the larger inner diameter section is to accommodate the WDM filter 105 that is typically in a square cross-section shape. For a variety of applications, such a filter may have to be in different square sizes due to coating stress concerns. Some of the most popular sizes used in the industry are 1.4×1.4 mm, 1.6×1.6 mm, 1.9×1.9 mm. Thus the attached GRIN lens and filter combination can have various different cross-sections (e.g., ˜1.98 mm, ˜2.26 mm, and ˜2.69 mm, respectively, if the popular sizes are used). Making these types of glass tubes in large quantity will inevitably become a costly problem since the most inexpensive method to make a glass tubing is through extrusion. Finally, tube segments are formed by cutting and end polishing.
Another problem is the stress-induced power loss that may experienced in the device 100 in FIG. 2A or FIG. 2B. The bonding of the GRIN lens 110 to the holding tube 120 (so is the bonding of the GRIN lens 160 to the holding tube 165) is done by thermally cured epoxy. The use of the thermally cured epoxy takes a substantial time and such epoxy typically puts some stress on materials being bonded. However, the stress can slightly change the optical property of the GRIN lens, thereby inducing an undesirable optical power loss.
Accordingly, there is a great need for techniques for providing optical couplers of consistent performance, reliability and low cost. Such devices so designed are amenable to small footprint, broad operating wavelength range, enhanced impact performance, lower cost packaging, and easier manufacturing process.

Cost-effective packaging of fiber optical devices


The invention relates to a method for determining the humidity and/or density of a dielectric material in a resonator that is filled with said material and that contains a transmitter and a receiver. According to said method: the transmitter emits a signal; a resonance curve of the filled resonator is scanned in stages, whereby respective signal intensity values (Ui) are measured at different frequencies (fi); the resonant frequency (frm) and the bandwidth (BWm) are determined for the filled resonator from measured points (fi/Ui); and the humidity (ψ) and/or density (ρ) of the material are calculated by solving a second system of equations (G2), containing the resonant frequencies (fr0, frm) and bandwidths (BW0, BWm) of the empty and filled resonators and known calibration coefficients (ar1, ar2, br1, br2, cr1, cr2, abw1, abe2, bbw1, bbw2, cbw1, cbw2) of said resonator. The aim of the invention is to provide a method for determining the humidity independently of the density in a rapid, precise manner.

The invention relates to a method for determining the humidity and/or density of a dielectric material in a resonator filled with the material, comprising a sender and a receiver.
The dielectric properties of a material, described by the complex relative dielectric constant ∈r=∈′r−i∈″r, can be affected by humidity and density in case of porous materials. Humidity and density thus modify the scalar parameters resonant frequency fr and resonator quality Q of a material-filled resonator in contrast to those of the empty, air-filled resonator (fr0 and Q0) in such a way that
            f              r        m              =                                        f                          r              0                                                          ɛ              r                                                                                and                                                            1                      Q            m                              =                        1                      Q            0                          +                              ɛ            r            ″                                ɛ            r            ′                                ,wherein 1≦∈′r≦∈′rmax and 0≦∈″r≦∈″rmax, wherein ∈′rmax and ∈″rmax are the maximum values resulting for the respective material from the assigned humidity range and density range.
In prior art, different methods are known for measuring the humidity or density of granular materials, in which the resonance behavior of a matter-filled resonator is used.
For example, from U.S. Pat. No. 5,666,061 a method is known for measuring the humidity in granular materials by means of microwaves. There, one electronically reacts to a threshold while bidirectionally sweeping a frequency range. From the chronological properties of pulses created in such a way the components of the dielectric constant are deduced.
All methods are relatively slow and have either a dependency of the density of the material or have relatively large errors in the determination of the humidity.
The invention is underlied by the problem to specify a method of the type initially mentioned, by which a fast, accurate and density-independent determination of the humidity is possible.

Method for determining the humidity and density of a dielectric material


This invention relates to transition metal catalyst component chelated by chelate ligand, a catalytic system comprising the transition metal catalyst component in the presence of magnesium halide, and a process for olefin polymerization using the catalytic system. The preparation of chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] are prepared by the unique synthetic method, in which Mg[AlRxe2x80x2(OR)3]2 reacts with chelate ligand to form Mgxe2x80x94Al-chelate ligand complex containing chelate ligand, and this complex reacts with metal halide compound to prepare chelated transition metal compound which is quite soluble in non-polar solvents. The olefin polymerization is performed using a catalytic system comprising the chelated transition metal catalyst component[A], MgCl2 support component[C], and an organoaluminum cocatalyst component[B]. Such polymerization produces a polymer having narrow molecular weight distribution, narrow compositional distribution, excellent morphology, and good processibility.

This invention relates to chelated transition metal catalyst component in the presence of magnesium halide, a process for olefin polymerization using said catalyst component, and, more particularly, novel olefin polymerization catalyst containing transition metal compound chelated by chelate ligand which can copolymerize ethylene and xcex1-olefin and produce a polymer having a narrow molecular weight distribution and compositional distribution.
Metallocene compounds are known to be an excellent catalyst for (co)polymerization of olefin and have been improved through the modification of cyclopentadienyl ligand to indenyl ligand, fluorenyl ligand, or bridged ligand. Also, there have been developments of supported metallocene catalytic system producing polyolefin with excellent morphology, which can be applied to slurry process or gas phase polymerization process. For example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,439,995 or 5,455,316, they reported that the supported titanium metallocene or zirconium metallocene catalytic system showed excellent copolymerization and morphology properties. However, they still have some disadvantages such as synthetic difficulties, modification of existing polymerization process, and poor processibility of the produced polymer due to its narrow molecular weight distribution. Also, the activating components for metallocene catalysts such as MAO(methylaluminoxane) compounds or boron compounds are still quite expensive to be applied for polyolefin materials with general purpose.
Recently, they have been employing oxygen or heteroatom bound chelated transition metal compound as homogeneous catalysts for olefin polymerization, which are called non-metallocene catalysts or organometallic catalysts, and it attracted much attention, because these compounds are easier to synthesize than metallocene compounds and are known to show equivalent properties to metallocene compounds. Similar to the metallocene catalysts, these catalysts are anticipated to display excellent (co)polymerization ability, and there have been active investigation of oxygen or heteroatom bound chelated transition metal compounds as a catalyst component.
Japanese Laid-Open Patent sho 63-191811 disclosed the chelated catalysts for ethylene and propylene polymerization where chlorides of titanium chloride compound are replaced by TBP ligand(6-tert-butyl-4-methylphenoxy), and methylaluminoxane(MAO) is used as a cocatalyst. It was reported that polymerization of ethylene and propylene yielded polymer with excellent activity and high molecular weight(Mw=3,600,000). U.S. Pat. No. 5,134,104 reported chelate catalysts employing amine ligand substituted halide titanium compound, {(C8H17)2NTiCl3}, and the results of olefin polymerization with these catalysts. And in J. Am. Chem. Soc., 117, 3008, catalysts using oxygen bound chelated transition metal compounds which localize the coordination sphere of transition metal compounds were introduced. Also, transition metal compounds chelated with phenoxy derivative ligands were reported in Japanese Laid-Open Patent hei 6-340711 and EP 0606125A2, which produce high molecular weight polymer having narrow molecular weight distribution with MAO as cocatalyst.
However, the investigated organometallic catalyst or non-metallocene catalysts have never reported examples of copolymerization of xcex1-olefin, and they have never been used as a heterogeneous catalyst for olefin polymerization, which can control the morphology of polymer. Also, they have never reported examples of polymer having broad molecular weight distribution, which shows good processibility. On the other hand, conventional TiCl4 based Ziegler-Natta catalyst, being heterogeneous catalyst, can produce a polymer having good morphology, good processibility, and broad molecular weight distribution. However, when low to medium density polyethylene is desired to obtain using conventional TiCl4 based Ziegler-Natta catalyst, compositional distribution of the resulting copolymer tends to be very broad. Furthermore, high quality copolymers capable of being formed into films having excellent transparency, antiblocking property and heat sealing property are difficult to be obtained.
Therefore, the catalyst having hybrid character between conventional Ziegler-Natta catalyst and single site catalyst, which can produce the copolymer having narrow compositional distribution and good morphology and processibility, has been desired.
The objective of this invention is to provide the catalytic system for olefin polymerization employing chelated transition metal compound containing chelate ligand in the presence of MgCl2 material having a spherical shape as support, which are capable of giving ethylene/xcex1 olefin copolymer having narrow molecular weight distribution, narrow compositional distribution, excellent morphology, and good processibility.
According to this invention, the olefin polymerization catalytic system comprises chelated transition metal catalyst component[A], MgCl2 support component[C], and aluminum cocatalyst component[B].
The preparation of chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] are prepared by the unique synthetic method, in which Mg[AlRxe2x80x2(OR)3]2 reacts with chelate ligand to form Mgxe2x80x94Al-chelate ligand complex containing chelate ligand, and this complex reacts with metal halide compound to prepare chelated transition metal compound which is quite soluble in non-polar solvents.
Aluminum cocatalyst component[B], to activate the catalyst component[A], employs general organoaluminum compounds of formular R3Al or R2AlCl (R=hydrocarbon). And the catalytic system of this invention does not have to use expensive MAO(methyl aluminoxane) or boron compounds are cocatalyst.
MgCl2 support component[C] is solid MgCl2 having a spherical shape which can be prepared from the known method or MgCl2 on the surface of silica which is available from the supplier.
The catalytic system of this invention may be used to produce ethylene copolymer from ethylene and at least one alpha-olefin having 3 or more carbon atoms in which the copolymer has narrow molecular weight distribution, narrow comonomer compositional distribution, excellent morphology, and good processibility.
These and other features, aspects, and advantages of this invention will become better understood with reference to the following description and appended claims.
In this invention, the term xe2x80x9cpolymerizationxe2x80x9d used herein is intended sometimes to include not only homopolymerization but also copolymerization, and the term xe2x80x9cpolymerxe2x80x9d used herein is intended sometimes to include not only homopolymer but also copolymer.
According to this invention, the chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] is prepared by the reaction of Mg[AlRxe2x80x2(OR)3]2 with chelate ligand to form Mgxe2x80x94Al-chelate ligand complex [M-2] containing chelate ligand as described in equation (1-1)
Mg[AlRxe2x80x2(OR)3]2+chelate ligandxe2x86x92Mgxe2x80x94Al-chelate ligand complex[M-2]
Mgxe2x80x94Al-chelate ligand complex[M-2]+MX4xe2x86x92Transition metal component[A]
where R and Rxe2x80x2 are independently alkyl or aryl group; M is Ti or Zr; X is halogen atom.
Mg[AlRxe2x80x2(OR)3]2 can be prepared through the reaction of Rxe2x80x22Mg with Al(OR)3. Al(OR)3 is simply prepared by adding ROH to AlRxe2x80x33, where R, Rxe2x80x2 and Rxe2x80x3 are independently alkyl or aryl group. The reaction of AlRxe2x80x33 with ROH produces exothermic heat and liberate Rxe2x80x3H. The exothermic heat and liberation speed of Rxe2x80x3H can be controlled through the slow addition of ROH to AlRxe2x80x33. The mole ratio of AlRxe2x80x33 to ROH is preferred to be 1:3. The reaction of Al(OR)3 with Rxe2x80x22Mg produces mild heat of 5xc2x0 C., and the reaction goes smoothly at the room temperature. The mole ratio of Al(OR)3 to Rxe2x80x22Mg is preferred to be 1:2, and the reaction is completed by stirring the mixture of two components for 3 to 5 hours.
Mgxe2x80x94Al-chelate ligand complex[M-2] containing chelate ligand can be obtained by the reaction of Mg[AlRxe2x80x2(OR)3]2 with chelate ligand with mole ratio of between 1:1 and 1:2. Depending on the type of chelate ligand, the reaction could produce mild heat. However due to the Al(OR)3 complexation, the exothermic heat is usually not produced, and the reaction could be done at the room temperature. Depending on the ligand type, the reaction time could be changed, but generally the reaction needs to be done for at least 6 hours to complete at the room temperature. Regarding chelate ligand compounds, various types of chelate ligands can be employed for the purpose of this invention. For example, carbodiimide type compounds such as dimethylcarbodiimide, dicyclohexylcarbodiimide, 1,3-bis-trimethylsilylcarbodiimide and the like; or diketiminato type compounds such as 2-(p-tolylamino)-4-(p-tolylimino)-2-pentene, 2-((2,6-diisopropylphenyl)amino)-4-((2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imino)-2-pentene and the like may be used. The preparation method for diketiminato type ligands are reported in Organometallics 1998, 17, 3070 and Tetrahedron Letter 1990, 31, 6005.
Transition metal catalyst component [A] containing chelate ligand can be prepared through the methathesis reaction of Mgxe2x80x94Al-chelate ligand complex[M-2] with metal halide compound such as TiCl4, TiBr4, TiCl2(OR)2, TiCl3(OR), TiBr2(OR)2, and TiBr3(OR) (where, R is alkyl or aryl group) at the room temperature. To help the separation of MgCl2 or to cause a smoother reaction, it is preferred to use Lewis base adduct of metal halide such as TiCl4(THF)2. The reaction needs at least 12 hours to complete at the room temperature, and the separation of MgCl2 can be done easily through the filtration since MgCl2 is not soluble at all in hydrocarbon solvents. As a medium for reaction, non-polar solvents such as aliphatic or aromatic hydrocarbon solvents are preferred.
One of the specific feature of this invention is that the preparation method of chelated transition metal catalyst component does not include any complicated separation procedure or any heating so that the industrial scale preparation of this chelated transition metal catalyst component can be done simply without complication. Also, instead of using lithium salt or potassium salt compounds in the methathesis reaction to attach the chelating amide ligand to a metal, the incorporation of the unique Mg[AlRxe2x80x2(OR)3]2 compound which is soluble in non-polar solvents such as aliphatic or aromatic hydrocarbon makes the preparation much simpler and easier to do, since it does not include any polar solvents such as ether or THF to complete the methathesis reaction which is usually done in polar solvents. After the separation of MgCl2 from the reaction medium, the chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] solution in non-polar solvent medium is used without further purification or separation, since usually the specific incorporation of Mg[AlRxe2x80x2(OR)3]2 compound does make the chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] readily soluble in non-polar solvents such as aliphatic or aromatic hydrocarbon.
The MgCl2 support component[C] having excellent morphology may be prepared through the various known methods such as recrystallization of MgCl2 from electron donating solvents and the reaction of Grignard reagent with alkyl halides. Alternatively, silica containing 3xcx9c5% MgCl2 which is available from the supplier such as Grace Co. may be used.
The unique solubility of chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] in non-polar solvent enables a unique polymerization process, in which chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] in non-polar solvent, not being supported on MgCl2 support component[C], is directly put into the polymerization reactor in the presence of the separate MgCl2 support component[C] in the form of solid and cocatalyst component[B] to polymerize ethylene or ethylene/alpha-olefin. That is, chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] is not necessarily supported on the MgCl2 support component[C] to act as a catalyst. With separate injection of MgCl2 support component[C] and chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] into the reactor, the excellent morphology of polymer can be obtained in the slurry process. Also regarding the gas phase polymerization, through the prepolymerization as explained in the examples, the dry form of prepolymerized catalyst can be prepared to be injected to gas phase process to get polymer with excellent morphology.
Also, the immobilization procedure may be done by simply stirring the slurry mixture of the chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] in non-polar solvent and MgCl2 support component[C] at mild temperature such as 40 to 50xc2x0 C. The temperature of 50xc2x0 C. is preferred. The ratio of the chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] to the MgCl2 support component[C] is preferred to be 0.3 to 1 mmol per gram of MgCl2 support component[C]. After stirring the slurry mixture for about 3 hours, the supernant liquid portion is decanted and washed with hexane or heptane five times to get chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] supported on the inorganic support.
Ethylene (co)polymerization may be done using the catalytic system of this invention, which can employ either the catalyst component[A] in the form of solution with the separate MgCl2 support component[C] or the catalyst component[A] in the form of solid supported on the surface of MgCl2 support component[C], with organoaluminum compound as a cocatalyst component[B].
The catalyst component[A] can produce polymers having narrow molecular weight distribution(M.W.D.) or narrow compositional distribution. Therefore, the organoaluminum compound as a cocatalyst component[B] is not necessarily MAO(methylaluminoxane), modified MAO products or boron compounds to produce copolymers having narrow M.W.D. or narrow compositional distribution. With conventional organoaluminum compounds of the formular AlRnCl3xe2x88x92n, where R=alkyl group and n=2 or 3, as a cocatalyst component[B] such as TEA(triethylaluminum), TIBA(triisobutylaluminum), TMA(trimethylaluminum), TOA(trioctylaluminum), diethylaluminumchloride, and diethylaluminumsesquichloride.
With the catalyst component[A] in the presence of MgCl2 support component[C] and organoaluminum cocatalyst component[B] described in the above, ethylene can be copolymerized with an alpha-olefin having 3 to 10 carbon atoms, preferably 4 to 8 carbon atoms. Examples of the alpha-olefin having 4 to 8 carbon atoms include 1-butene, 1-pentene, 1-hexene, and 4-methyl-1-pentene.
In the polymerization process of this invention, the copolymerization of ethylene with alpha-olefin can be carried out in the liquid or gas phase in the presence of or absence of inert polymerization solvents such as hexane, octane, and cyclohexane. The amount of the chelated transition metal catalyst component[A], being supported or separated, can be varied. Measured per liter in the polymerization reaction zone, the chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] is used in an amount of preferably about 0.001 to about 0.5 millimoles per liter, calculated as transition metal atom. The ratio of chelated transition metal catalyst component[A] to MgCl2 support component[C] can be varied from 1.0 mmol/g-MgCl2 to 0.3 mmol/g-MgCl2. The organoaluminum cocatalyst component[B] is used in such an amount that the aluminum to transition metal atomic ratio is approximately from 5 to 100. The polymerization temperature may be approximately 40xc2x0 C. to 100xc2x0 C., and (co)polymerization may be performed in the presence of hydrogen to control the molecular weight of (co)polymer.
In this invention, the ethylene copolymer having a density of 0.910 to 0.945 g/cmxe2x80x2 can be produced without causing any problems such as the formation of substantial amount of ethylene copolymers soluble in hydrocarbon solvents and consequently the increase of viscosity of the copolymer solution causing reduction in stirring efficiency, blockage of pipes, and low efficiency of separating the copolymer from the reaction solvent. Also, the catalyst component[A] according to this invention can polymerize ethylene copolymer, having a density of 0.910 to 0.945 g/cmxe2x80x2 in gas phase process, without any reactor fouling through direct catalyst feeding to gas phase reactor or through prepolymerization, of which prepolymerized catalyst is fed to gas phase reactor. Specially, the catalytic system of this invention is suitable to polymerize ethylene copolymer having density of 0.910 to 0.945 g/cmxe2x80x2 with narrow molecular weight distribution and comonomer compositional distribution, and in turn, the ethylene copolymer can be used to produce a film having high impact strength property. Also, by using MgCl2 support component[C] having a spherical shape, either the catalyst component[A] being supported or separated, the catalytic system of this invention provides excellent morphology of polymer having bulk density of 0.40xcx9c0.45 g/cmxe2x80x2 and a spherical shape.

Olefin polymerization chelate catalyst and olefin polymerization method using the same


A secondary battery including a first electrode assembly, a second electrode assembly, a case accommodating the first and second electrode assemblies, a terminal part electrically connected to the first and second electrode assemblies, and exposed to an outside of the case, and a plurality of short circuit inducing members between the first electrode assembly and the case, between the second electrode assembly and the case, and between the first electrode assembly and the second electrode assembly.

1. Field
Aspects of embodiments of the present invention relate to a secondary battery.
2. Description of the Related Art
Lithium ion secondary batteries are widely used in small electronic devices, such as notebook computers and cellular phones. Such lithium ion secondary batteries are superior to other types of secondary batteries in terms of power, capacity, and weight, and can also be used in hybrid vehicles and electric vehicles.
Lithium ion secondary batteries for vehicles should satisfy the requirements of safety and reliability under harsh conditions. A penetrating test, a squeezing test, and an overcharging test are the harshest ones of safety tests.
Of these safety tests, the penetrating test is very important in predicting damage to a secondary battery due to a vehicle accident. Particularly, the penetrating test requires that even after a nail penetrates a secondary battery, the temperature of the secondary battery does not excessively increase, or the secondary battery is not ignited or burned.


A multilayer electronic component is provided having a structure in which a dielectric layer and an internal electrode layer are alternately laminated. The internal electrode layer includes metal powder and an inhibitor. The inhibitor includes 0.5 to 20 mol % of a Ca component based on 100 mol % of a barium titanate (BT) base material. A method for manufacturing the same is also provided.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to multilayer electronic components and methods for manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
A multilayer ceramic condenser (hereinafter, MLCC) is manufactured by printing a conductive paste on the formed dielectric layer sheet with screen, gravure, or other methods to print an internal electrode layer and laminating the sheet on which the internal electrode layer is printed.
The conductive paste used at this time mainly consists of inorganic matter such as metal powder such as Ni and Cu and ceramic powder (inhibitor) and organic matter such as dispersants, resins, additives, and solvents.
Generally, since the metal powder used in the internal electrode paste, such as Ni and Cu, has a lower melting point than ceramic powder used in a dielectric layer, a temperature at which sintering shrinkage starts is low. Therefore, since ceramic powder is added as an inhibitor to shift a shrinkage start temperature to high temperature to be similar to that of a dielectric as much as possible and the ceramic powder used as an inhibitor is absorbed into the dielectric layer in the process of firing the internal electrode layer to ultimately contribute to dielectric characteristics, the inhibitor is designed with the same or similar composition to the dielectric layer. In the general case, barium titanate (BaTiO3), which is the same as the composition of the dielectric layer, is used as a main component of the inhibitor, and various oxide sub-components may be used to increase a sintering start temperature.
An internal electrode is sintered through the following process in manufacture of an MLCC.
A step in which an inhibitor leaks out while metal power shrinks at 800 to 1000° C. (1). A step in which an internal electrode layer is connected while a dielectric layer shrinks at 1000 to 1100° C. (2). A step in which the internal electrode layer is agglomerated while the dielectric layer becomes dense at more than 1100° C. (3).
Therefore, as a sintering temperature is increased, electrode disconnection is increased, and as particulate metal powder is used for thinning, electrode disconnection is more increased.
In the conventional methods, electrode connectivity is improved by using ceramic powder with the same or smaller size than that of metal powder used in an internal electrode layer as an inhibitor to restrain contact between the metal powders and thus increase a shrinkage start temperature of the internal electrode.
Generally, since an inhibitor is absorbed into a dielectric layer after firing to ultimately contribute to dielectric characteristics, it is designed with the same or similar composition to the dielectric layer. Further, since the inhibitor should be distributed between metal particles to limit sintering, it has generally a smaller particle size than metal powder and the amount thereof is adjusted according to a firing temperature of a chip.
In the MLCC, the inhibitor component added to the internal electrode layer moves to the dielectric layer during sintering to affect the characteristics of the dielectric. Since ultrathin/ultrahigh capacity MLCCs include a thin dielectric, the effect of the inhibitor component is great.
According to the trend of high capacity and thinning of the MLCC, the internal electrode layer as well as the dielectric layer becomes thinner, and a thinner internal electrode is needed. However, unless a firing temperature of the dielectric is remarkably reduced, as an internal electrode becomes thinner, it is difficult to form an internal electrode with excellent connectivity.
Therefore, an inhibitor is added to the internal electrode layer to suppress the sintering shrinkage of the internal electrode. The thinner the internal electrode is, the greater the effect of the inhibitor is. When many oxygen vacancies are formed on the interface between the electrode and the dielectric, electrical characteristics such as withstand characteristics, accelerated life, and capacity are badly affected.
The role of the inhibitor is to lower a temperature at which sintering shrinkage starts as much as possible. However, when the sintering of metal used as an internal electrode starts, most of the inhibitors are pushed out to the dielectric layer or some of them are trapped between the metal and the inhibitors pushed out to the dielectric layer react with the dielectric layer so that firing is performed.
Therefore, a layer greatly influenced by the inhibitor component (hereinafter, inhibitor-influencing layer 30a and 30b) is formed on the interface of the dielectric layer 10 close to the internal electrode layer 20a and 20b. In case of ultrahigh capacity/thin MLCCs, a fraction of the interface layer is increased.
The inhibitor uses barium titanate (BaTiO3, BT) with a smaller size than Ni used in the internal electrode as a main component, and BT has smaller size and lower crystallinity than BT powder applied to the dielectric layer. And since the interface between the dielectric and the electrode is used as a path for removing a binder during firing, a reducing atmosphere acts relatively. Therefore, the layer influenced by the inhibitor has relatively high frequency of oxygen vacancies and deteriorates withstand voltage characteristics, reliability, and capacity characteristics.

Multilayer electronic components with an inhibitor-influencing layer and method for manufacturing the same


A semiconductor device includes a plurality of first MOS transistors has a first gate electrode formed on a first gate insulating film provided in a first transistor region on a semiconductor substrate, a plurality of second MOS transistors has a second gate electrode formed on a second gate insulating film which is provided in a second transistor region on the semiconductor substrate and which is smaller in thickness than the first gate insulating film, a first element isolation region in the first transistor region, the first element isolation region provided between the plurality of first MOS transistors, and a second element isolation region in the second transistor region, the second element isolation region provided between the plurality of second MOS transistors. The upper surface of the second element isolation region is lower than the upper surface of the first element isolation region.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and a manufacturing method thereof. More particularly, it relates to a nonvolatile semiconductor memory device which has a low-voltage (LV) transistor region and a high-voltage (HV) transistor region in a peripheral circuit section and which has a different element isolation structure in each of the regions.
2. Description of the Related Art
A NAND-type flash memory, for example, is a nonvolatile semiconductor memory device capable of electric rewriting (program and erase) of data. In this flash memory, a plurality of transistor circuits (peripheral circuit sections) are arranged around a memory cell section. The peripheral circuit sections of the flash memory are roughly classified into an LV transistor region and an HV transistor region.
A flash memory having such a configuration is already well known (see, for example, Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2002-064157).
Recently, element isolation regions have been shrinking in the NAND-type flash memory. In the future, a coating film of, for example, polysilazane (PSZ) may be used to fill a trench in the process of forming an embedded element isolation insulating film serving as shallow trench isolation (STI). That is, since the PSZ film has good coverage characteristics, it is embedded in an element isolation trench to form a micro STI.
However, the PSZ film has the property of being high in contraction stress. Thus, when the PSZ film is used for the STI of the peripheral circuit section, crystal defects tend to be happened in the LV transistor region, so that there is concern about problems such as a junction leakage. This problem is dependent on the amount of the PSZ film and can be alleviated by reducing the amount of the film, that is, by reducing the depth of the STI. However, as the STIs of the peripheral circuit sections are simultaneously formed in the LV transistor region and the HV transistor region, the reduction of the depth of the STI then leads to a problem such as an STI inversion leakage in the HV transistor region.

Semiconductor device and semiconductor device manufacturing method


A multistage optical amplifier is controlled to compensate for the effect of amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) by a method comprising the following steps. Optical input and output signals to a first gain stage are detected, and the drive current to the first gain stage is controlled in dependence on the optical input signal to the first gain stage. Optical input and output signals to a last gain stage are detected, and the drive current to the last gain stage is controlled to maintain the output power of the last gain stage substantially constant. The effect of ASE in the first gain stage is compensated for by applying a correction factor based on the ASE of the first gain stage and the output power of the first gain stage. The drive current supplied to the first gain stage is controlled to zero in on an error signal of the general form:(Total Power at B−Stage 1 ASE)−(A+Stage 1 Gain)where Total Power at B is the power of the output signal from the first gain stage, and A is the input signal of the first gain stage. Furthermore the drive current supplied to the last gain stage is controlled to zero in on an error signal of the general form:(Total Power at E−Stage 2 ASE)−(D+Stage 2 Gain)where Total Power at E is the power of the output signal from the last gain stage, and D is the input signal of the last gain stage. In this method the correction factor is calibrated in the gain control mode and is subsequently applied in the power control mode, and this therefore simplifies the calibration procedure.

This invention relates to optical amplifiers and is concerned more particularly, but not exclusively, with multiple stage erbium doped fibre amplifiers (EDFAs).
The performance of optical amplifiers can be characterised by two main performance parameters, namely the noise figure (NF) and the Gain Ripple (GR). In an inverted erbium doped fibre amplifier (EDFA) the signal is amplified by stimulated emission with a noise component generated as a result of spontaneous emission. This spontaneous emission can be further amplified by the amplifier, resulting in amplified spontaneous emission (ASE). ASE is thus generated over the entire gain bandwidth region of the amplifier. In conventional EDFAs the gain and or power of the amplifier is controlled using total power monitoring schemes that cannot not differentiate between signal and ASE components. The noise figure and gain ripple are thus impacted by the effectiveness of the control scheme and its account of ASE.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,606,191 discloses a method for controlling the performance of an optical amplifier in order to compensate for ASE in a gain control mode. In this method values are obtained for the input and output power electronic circuitry DC offset, and set point values are selected as follows: power set point=—0.0, gain set point=_desired gain. A digital value representative of the signal input value is then obtained and the input electronic circuitry DC offset subtracted to produce an adjusted input power value, and a digital value representative of the signal output value is obtained and the output power electronic circuitry DC offset subtracted to produce an adjusted output power value. The ASE content of the adjusted input power value is obtained either utilising a look-up table or a formula, and the ASE content is subtracted from the adjusted input power value to produce an ASE adjusted output power value. The gain set point is multiplied by the ASE adjusted input power value and subtracted from the ASE adjusted output power value, or alternatively the ASE adjusted output power value is divided by the gain set point and the adjusted input power value is subtracted from this to obtain the gain control error signal. The gain control error signal is then subtracted from any number to produce a controller input signal, and the controller input signal is transformed into digital representation of at least one pump control signal by a control algorithm. The digital representation is transformed into at least one corresponding analogue pump control signal that is applied to at least one pump by way of driver circuitry.
Although the input power is adjusted for its overall ASE content in such an arrangement, there is no mention of making adjustments for the ASE content arising in the gain stage doing the work. Accordingly the ASE is amplified along with the signal and without taking into account ASE from the current stage. In a multistage amplifier the ASE compensation of any stage after the first gain stage must account for both the ASE arising from the preceding stages as well as the ASE arising from that gain stage. It follows that the amplifier cannot be switched to the power control mode using ASE factors determined from calibration in the gain control mode, so that, in this case, specific calibration of ASE factors for the power control mode would be required.
Furthermore U.S. Pat. No. 6,525,873 discloses an optical fibre amplifier comprising at least one optical pump source coupled to an optical gain medium, an input optical signal tap coupled to a first optical detector, an output optical signal tap coupled to a second optical detector, and an electronic controller receiving inputs from the detectors to control the optical power provided by the pump source. The controller includes a programmed unit and a user interface allowing the user to choose between available control functions including ASE noise compensation. Although this reference does not specify how ASE calibration is effected, it seems likely that such ASE compensation requires separate calibration in the gain control mode and in the output power control mode.
It is an object of the invention to provide an optical amplifier which enables ASE compensation to be effected in a particularly straightforward manner.


A novel advanced set top terminal capable of digital decompression, displaying picture-on-picture, outputting multiple video channels, outputting multiple audio signals, outputting multiple audio channels corresponding to a single video channel, and other advanced functional capabilities for use in a television program delivery system is described. The invention relates to methods and apparatus for upgrading existing set top terminals to provide these advanced functional capabilities. The invention is particularly useful in television program delivery systems providing advanced functional capabilities using a set of hardware upgrades and/or an expansion card. Specifically, the invention is an ungradable system that supports displaying picture-on-picture, multiple video channels, multiple audio signals and multiple audio signals corresponding to a single video channel, among other features and capabilities through the use of internal software, hardware upgrades, an upgrade module and/or expansion cards. The upgraded hardware generally includes microprocessors, various output ports, tuners, demodulators, demultiplexors, decryptors and memory.

Advances in television entertainment have been primarily driven by breakthroughs in technology. In 1939, advances on Vladmir Zworykin's picture tube provided the stimulus for NBC to begin its first regular broadcasts. In 1975, advances in satellite technology provided consumers with increased programming to homes.
Many of these technology breakthroughs have produced inconvenient systems for consumers. One example is the ubiquitous three remote control home, having a separate and unique remote control for the TV, cable box and VCR. More recently, technology has provided cable users in certain parts of the country with 100 channels of programming. This increased program capacity is beyond the ability of many consumers to use effectively. No method of managing the program choices has been provided to consumers.
Consumers are demanding that future advances in television entertainment, particularly programs and program choices, be presented to the consumer in a user friendly manner. Consumer preferences, instead of technological breakthroughs, will drive the television entertainment market for at least the next 20 years. As computer vendors have experienced a switch from marketing new technology in computer hardware to marketing better usability, interfaces and service, the television entertainment industry will also experience a switch from new technology driving the market to consumer usability driving the market.
Consumers want products incorporating new technology that are useful, and will no longer purchase new technology for the sake of novelty or status. Technological advances in sophisticated hardware are beginning to surpass the capability of the average consumer to use the new technology. Careful engineering must be done to make entertainment products incorporating new technology useful and desired by consumers.
In order for new television entertainment products to be successful, the products must satisfy consumer demands. TV consumers wish to go from limited viewing choices to a variety of choices, from no control of programming to complete control. Consumers wish to advance from cumbersome and inconvenient television to easy and convenient television and keep costs down. Consumers do not wish to pay for one hundred channels when due to lack of programming information, they seldom, if ever, watch programming on many of these channels.