A method for cleaning a disk-shape glass substrate, which comprises rotating the disk-shape glass substrate on its center with its main surface vertical, and making a cleaning fluid irradiated with ultrasonic waves run down on the outer peripheral edge surface of the rotating glass substrate.

I. Technological Field
The present invention relates to a method for cleaning a disk-shape glass substrate to be used for e.g. a magnetic disk, and a magnetic disk.
II. Description of Related Art
A magnetic disk having e.g. a magnetic layer formed on a disk-shape glass substrate (hereinafter sometimes referred to simply as a glass substrate) has been widely used for a small hard disk such as a personal digital assistant.
A glass substrate to be used for a magnetic disk is produced usually by cleaning and drying a precisely polished glass substrate.
Cleaning of a glass substrate is carried out commonly by immersing it in a plurality of cleaning fluid tanks such as a cleaner tank and a pure water tank in order and conducting ultrasonic cleaning in each tank. In recent years, for the purpose of securely and effectively removing an abrasive which is firmly attached to the glass substrate, it has been proposed to carry out scrubbing cleaning before or during the ultrasonic cleaning (see JP-A-2002-74653). The scrubbing cleaning is to clean a glass substrate by rotating two scrubbing rollers each having a scrubbing pad formed on its surface in opposite directions so that the glass substrate is sandwiched therebetween, and rotating the glass substrate.
As described above, a glass substrate is becoming used widely for a small hard disk, and the area of a recording area on the main surface is reduced along with the downsizing of the hard disk. Accordingly, in addition to a demand for a high recording density, improvement in the proportion (recording area proportion) of the area which effectively functions as a recording area to the area of the main surface is increasing.
In order to meet the above demands, not only the cleanness on the main surface of the glass substrate has to be improved to achieve a high recording density but also the cleanness on the outer peripheral edge surface of the glass substrate has to be improved, since if the cleanness on the outer peripheral edge surface of the glass substrate is insufficient, the stain present on the edge surface on which the cleanness is insufficient will expand to the main surface of the glass substrate in the process of handling the glass substrate, thus decreasing the recording area proportion.

Method for cleaning disk-shape glass substrate and magnetic disk


Mercaptans and/or hydrogen sulfide (H2S) in hydrocarbons, naphthas, gasolines, and the like may be scavenged therefrom by being brought into intimate contact with a mercaptan scavenger formulation containing at least one disubstituted azodicarboxylate of the formula R1OOCN═NCOOR2, where R1 and R2 are independently alkyl groups, alkenyl groups and aromatic groups having from 1 to 18 carbon atoms. These scavengers remove mercaptans and/or H2S from hydrocarbons faster than many conventional mercaptan scavengers. An effective scavenging amount of disubstituted azodicarboxylate in the hydrocarbon fluid ranges from about 5 to about 20 parts by weight based on 1 part as sulfur of mercaptan and/or H2S.

Hydrocarbon fluids, such as crude oil, crude oil emulsions, oilfield condensate, petroleum residua and even refined fuels often contain a variety of mercaptans, including mercaptans of relatively low molecular weight. In the drilling, production, transport, storage, and processing of hydrocarbon stocks, the mercaptans encountered can cause many problems ranging from malodors to metal corrosion. Because of the volatility of mercaptans of relatively low molecular weight (for example, methyl mercaptan, CH3SH, ethyl mercaptan, CH3CH2SH and propyl mercaptan, CH3CH2CH2SH), they tend to evolve into vapor spaces, where their offensive odors create problems in and around storage areas and throughout pipelines and shipping systems used for transporting the hydrocarbon. Mercaptans in crudes, naphthas and gasoline streams present safety concerns and corrosion hazards.
Various additives have been employed in efforts to alleviate these problems. For example, choline or choline hydroxide has been found to alleviate hydrogen sulfide (H2S) evolution and to scavenge mercaptans. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,594,147 to Roof et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,867,865 to Roof and U.S. Pat. No. 5,183,560 to Roof et al. However, choline and choline hydroxide are not well suited for many uses and media, such as in crude oil. Although choline and choline hydroxide might scavenge mercaptans in such media, they also form a volatile and malodorous by-product with the sulfur compounds indigenous to such media. Accordingly, the use of choline and choline hydroxide to control odors associated with light weight mercaptans is self-defeating in media such as crude oil. Thus, the cited patents to Roof and Roof, et al. fail to address this problem and instead describe the use of choline or choline hydroxide in the more refined fuel oils.
European application 0 538 819 A3 to Roof et al. describes the use of oil-soluble quaternary ammonium compounds of the formula:
to scavenge various sulfur compounds, including mercaptans, from certain oils, especially high boiling, heavy residual fuels. These compounds, prepared under anhydrous conditions, are what are described herein as "internal ions"; i.e., the positive charge on the nitrogen and the negative charge on the oxygen result in overall electrically neutral compounds without the presence of counter ions such as halides. The European application stresses the significance of the oil solubility of these compounds, noting that they are more oil soluble than choline base and so disperse through the oil being treated more thoroughly to decrease the concentration of undesirable sulfur compounds more effectively. Nevertheless, the compositions of the European application suffer from certain disadvantages. For example, compositions that are produced in higher yields, yet still at low cost, and that reduce mercaptan concentrations more effectively are still desired.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,840,177 and 6,013,175 relate to methods for scavenging mercaptans in hydrocarbon fluids using quaternary ammonium hydroxides. Other chemistries and methods for removing mercaptans from hydrocarbons include caustic (NaOH solutions) and cobalt with caustic (Merox™ process of UOP, Merichem processes).
A quick removal of these smelly mercaptan species would be desirable in both oilfield and refinery operations. Many conventional mercaptan scavengers remove and/or react with the mercaptans present only slowly. There is a continuing need in the liquid fuel industry for treating liquid hydrocarbon stocks and wet or dry gas mixtures containing mercaptans using new compositions and methods that would scavenge mercaptans quickly.

Quick removal of mercaptans from hydrocarbons


The invention relates to a DC-DC converter, which includes a power stage driven by a pulse width modulator, a first error amplifier with a first input coupled to a first reference voltage source and a second input coupled to a current sink through which a current is fed from an output of the power stage to receive a first feedback voltage (FB1), a second error amplifier with a first input coupled to a second reference voltage source and a second input coupled to the output of the power stage to receive a second reference voltage (FB2), and switching means (SW1) for connecting a control input of the pulse width modulator with the output of the first error amplifier in a current regulation mode and with the output of the second error amplifier in a voltage regulation control mode.

DC-DC converters are used for a broad variety of applications and devices, in particular battery driven hand-held and portable applications. Some devices require several different voltages or currents for different parts and functions of the device. One example for such device is a cell phone with an integrated camera module, where a constant voltage may be required for the regular cell phone functions and a high current for the flash light of the camera. A conventional approach provides an individual DC-DC converter stage with individual regulation loops for each function. However, this approach is expensive, power consuming and bulky.

Dual mode regulation loop for switch mode power converter


A semiconductor device comprising a substrate, a semiconductor element mounted on the substrate, an inner annular stiffener provided on the substrate in an outer side of the semiconductor element, and an outer annular stiffener provided on the substrate in an outer side of the inner annular stiffener. The inner annular stiffener and the outer annular stiffener are made of different materials. Particularly, the thermal expansion coefficient of the inner annular stiffener is selected to be smaller than that of the substrate, and the thermal expansion coefficient of the outer annular stiffener is selected to be larger than that of the substrate. The amount of deformation of the substrate is thus decreased.

Semiconductor devices comprising a semiconductor element mounted on a substrate are well-known. The wire-chip bonding and the flip-chip bonding are effected in mounting the semiconductor element on the substrate. Flip-chip bonding is widely used, because it is a trend to decrease the pitch between the electrodes. To effect the flip-chip bonding, solder balls are provided on the electrodes of a semiconductor element and are joined to the electrodes of the substrate while heating the semiconductor element and the substrate. As a result, the semiconductor element is electrically and mechanically bonded to the substrate.
Recently, there is a tendency to decrease the thickness of the substrate. As the thickness decreases, the substrate tends to be deformed upon receiving thermal load and, hence, to be warped or undulated. Therefore, it has been attempted to provide an annular stiffener on the surface of the substrate surrounding the semiconductor element to prevent the deformation of the substrate relying upon the stiffness of the stiffener. A semiconductor device provided with an annular stiffener is disclosed in, for example, JP-A-9-260527.
According to this prior art, the annular stiffener is made of a material having a thermal expansion coefficient greater than the thermal expansion coefficient of the substrate. When the substrate is subjected to a high-temperature state, the annular stiffener expands more than the substrate; i.e., the annular stiffener pulls the substrate outward so as to maintain it flat.
However, the substrate is generally returned back to the normal-temperature state from the high-temperature state. Then, the annular stiffener contracts more greatly than the substrate, whereby the substrate contracts. Therefore, the substrate does not assume a completely flat state and adversely affects the subsequent processing steps such as joining using the BGA balls.


A continuously variable transmission having a belt ratio measurement system. The continuously variable transmission contains a moveable sheave and a fixed sheave. The measurement system includes two tone wheels and pickups. The first tone wheel is mounted to the fixed sheave with a corresponding first pickup mounted proximate thereto. The second tone wheel is mounted to the moveable sheave with a corresponding second pickup mounted proximate thereto. The second tone wheel has angled teeth so that the signal sensed in the second pickup varies in relation to the axial position of the moveable sheave. By comparing the signal sensed by the first pickup with the signal sensed by the second pickup, the axial position of the moveable sheave, and thus the belt ratio of the transmission, may be determined.

This invention relates to a continuously variable transmission system and more particularly to a drive belt ratio measurement system.
A continuously variable transmission ("CVT"), generally utilizes a pair of adjustable pulleys, including a primary pulley and a secondary pulley. The primary pulley is mounted on an input shaft connected to an engine. In certain embodiments the primary pulley is connected to the engine through a torque converter. The secondary pulley is mounted on an output shaft connected to the drive train of the vehicle, typically through a clutch. One example of such a CVT is shown in Smirl, U.S. Pat. No. 4,433,594 entitled "Variable Pulley Transmission" which is incorporated herein by reference. A drive belt interconnects the pulleys and transfers power from the engine to the drive train through the frictional contact between the side faces of the drive belt and the contact faces of the adjustable pulleys. The side faces of the drive belt are shaped to correspond to the contact faces of the pulleys.
Each pulley includes two sheaves or flanges having conical side surfaces defining a V-shaped gap between the sheaves. At least one of the sheaves is moveable along the axis of the shaft so that the gap between the sheaves can be varied. When the gap width between the sheaves varies, the radial contact point of the drive belt also varies due to the conical shape of the side surfaces of the sheaves. Consequently, the effective radius of the pulleys vary along with the transmission drive ratio. Generally, as the effective diameter of the primary pulley is moved in one direction, the effective diameter of the secondary pulley is moved in the opposite direction. This permits a continuous adjustment of the drive ratio between the engine and the drive train, while maintaining the tautness of the belt.
Typically, the transmission belt ratio is determined by measuring the speed of the primary and secondary sheaves. The transmission belt ratio is then calculated by mathematically computing the ratio of the primary pulley's speed to the secondary pulley's speed. If, however, clamping forces of the sheaves on the chain belt are insufficient for the torque being transmitted, the belt may slip on the sheaves. This is undesirable because the efficiency of the transmission is greatly compromised. Although the sheave speed method of calculating the belt ratio adequately provides the actual belt ratio, it alone cannot be used to determine if belt slippage is occurring or if the system is operating at peak efficiency.
The present invention solves this problem by providing a mechanism that can determine the theoretical belt ratio. The mechanism can also compare the actual belt ratio to the theoretical belt ratio to anticipate an impending belt slip condition so that the appropriate corrective action can be taken to stop belt slippage and to prevent further belt slippage.

Continuously variable transmission belt ratio measurement system


Implementations relate to causing a command to be executed based on an image. In some implementations, a computer-implemented method includes obtaining and programmatically analyzing an image to determine suggested actions. The method causes a user interface to be displayed that includes user interface elements corresponding to default actions, and to suggested actions that are determined based on analyzing the image. The method receives user input indicative of selection of a particular action from the default actions and the suggested actions. The method causes a command to be executed by a computing device for the particular action that was selected.

The widespread availability of digital image capture devices, e.g., digital cameras, smartphones, wearable cameras, computers with built-in cameras, etc. has led to the capture of an order of magnitude greater number of images than with film cameras. Capture of images and storage of captured images is inexpensive owing to the relatively low cost of such devices and storage. While film cameras were typically restricted to certain uses, e.g., professional photography, family or business events, travel photography, etc., modern digital cameras are used for many other purposes. For example, sharing captured images via social networks, image sharing applications, or messaging applications is a popular activity. Further, images are also captured for recordkeeping, reminders, and reference purposes (e.g., a receipt, a note, a picture of a product, etc.).
The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.


Present embodiments relate to a method for synchronizing an electric grid. The method includes receiving a phase voltage of the electric grid. The method further includes determining one or more disturbance frequencies in the phase voltage via a plurality of sequential tracking filters, wherein each of the plurality of tracking filters corresponds to a harmonic of the received phase voltage. The method further includes removing the disturbance frequencies components sequentially to produce a minimally distorted frequency, and performing a PLL operation on the clean frequency to determine a phase angle of the frequency.

The invention relates generally to electrical networks, and more specifically, to methods of synchronizing input signals into the electrical networks.
Electrical devices may be connected or organized in a network to enable the transmission of power to the devices, or communication between the devices. Such a network of interconnected devices may be described as a grid. For example, an electric grid may be an interconnected network for delivering electricity from one or more power generators to the connected devices (e.g., customers of the utility company). A power grid may transmit AC power at a synchronized frequency, amplitude, and/or phase angle to efficiently connect a large number of power generators and devices. Synchronized operation of a grid, or portions of a grid, may enable a pooling of power generation, as well as a pooling of loads to result in lower operating costs.
The synchronized transmission of AC power may be beneficial for efficiently transmitting and/or distributing of power. However, many factors may disturb the synchronization of a grid. For example, voltage imbalances, angular frequency variations, and voltage harmonic distortions may significantly disturb grid synchronization. In some situations, voltage imbalances may be common in a power grid, as single phase loads of a grid may not be evenly distributed between the phases of the supplied power and may be continuously connected and disconnected. Furthermore, the presence of grid voltage imbalances may generate or propagate voltage harmonic distortions that may have further undesired effects on the synchronization of the grid.
Such discrepancies in the amplitudes, frequencies, and/or phase angles between two parallel voltages may cause abnormal current circulation within the grid, which may result in a large current imbalance. In some power grids, even a small voltage imbalance may result in a large current imbalance. In addition, in some situations, voltage harmonic distortions may disrupt the synchronization of the grid. Imbalanced currents may stress grid devices, such as AC-DC converters, cycloconverters, active filters, induction motors, and other energy storage systems which function to convert and/or transfer power through the grid to the connected electric devices. Imbalanced current may also stress grid link inductors. Accordingly, methods of decreasing the effects of voltage imbalances and/or voltage harmonic distortions may improve the performance and synchronous operation of a grid.

Phase lock loop with cascade tracking filters for synchronizing an electric grid


A method includes obtaining a scanned command mark written with a conventional writing implement onto a conventional medium, and recognizing the scanned command mark as a command that may be executed by a processor. The method may further include recognizing a command mark that comprises a notational, transformational and operational mark.

In the modern workplace a variety of computer resources are generally available, such as desk-top or lap-top computers. Entering information or commands to a computer is typically accomplished by using a keyboard or a mouse connected to a computer.
Despite the availability of computer resources, many people still use more traditional methods and mediums to record information, such as writing notes and action items on paper using a pen or pencil.

Recognizing commands written onto a medium


The invention relates to a detector comprising a multiple quantum well structure operating on interband or intersubband transitions by absorption of radiation having a wavelength λ having a polarization comprising a component perpendicular to the plane of the multiple quantum well structure, and comprising optical coupling means for coupling said radiation, wherein the coupling means comprise a set of first diffractive lamellar features that are distributed along at least a first direction and a set of second diffractive lamellar features that are distributed along at least a second direction, said first and second directions being mutually perpendicular and lying in a plane parallel to the plane of the multiple quantum well structure.

The rapid advances made in epitaxial growth on GaAs-type substrates has led to the development of a new class of electromagnetic wave detectors using the absorption of radiation around a wavelength λ corresponding to the electron transition between various energy levels within one and the same band or between the valence band and the conduction band. The diagram shown in FIG. 1 illustrates this type of transition.
The recent evolution in performance of this type of component is due in particular to the relatively easy production of semiconductor heterojunction multilayers in the standard system by MBE (molecular beam epitaxy), that is to say the GaAs/Ga(1-x)AlxAs. By adjusting the growth parameters, the thickness of the quantum wells and the percentage x of aluminum in the barriers imposing the confinement potential, it is possible to choose a narrow detection band (about 1 micron) centered on a given wavelength.
This type of structure has the advantage of providing very good sensitivity because of the discretization of the energy levels within the conduction bands of the photoconductor materials used.
Within the context of intersubband transitions, so that this type of transition is possible, it is necessary for the electric field of the incident electromagnetic wave to have a component along the direction of growth of the layers, i.e. along the direction D indicated in FIG. 1, this direction being perpendicular to the plane of the layers. The consequence of this physical effect is that a detector has little or no absorption in the case of illumination at normal incidence.
It has already been proposed to use coupling means of the diffraction grating type (cf. Goossen and Lyon, APL 47 (1985), pp 1257-1259) for generating said perpendicular component, creating diffracted rays, especially lamellar (1D) gratings or steps for coupling only a single polarization of the light. However, crossed diffraction gratings are also known for coupling the various electric field components of incident radiation, as illustrated in FIG. 2. The matrix grating Rij diffracts the incident radiation along both the direction Dx and the direction Dy. The major drawback of this type of matrix structure lies in the depth d for diffractive features that are generally produced within an encapsulation layer EL, thereby protecting the multiple quantum well MQW structure as illustrated in FIG. 3.

Electromagnetic wave detector with an optical coupling surface comprising lamellar patterns


A solution is proposed for managing containers isolating corresponding application environments from one or more shared operating systems in a computing system. One or more relevant groups are determined among one or more candidate groups (each comprising private data in common among a plurality of the containers); the candidate groups are determined according to corresponding access commands submitted by the containers and the relevant groups are determined according to one or more relevance policies. The private data of the relevant groups are consolidated into corresponding shared data.

The present disclosure relates to the field of information technology. More specifically, this disclosure relates to the management of containers in a computing system.
Virtualization is commonplace in modern computing systems. Generally, the virtualization is aimed at creating virtual computing resources that emulate corresponding actual computing resources by software; this allows abstracting from an implementation of the virtual computing resources thereby improving flexibility and scalability.

Sharing of data among containers running on virtualized operating systems

International Business Machines Corporation


In a non-reciprocal circuit element, capacitors are disposed on a bottom surface of a dielectric facing a ferrite member in a state in which first electrodes are connected to port portions serving as one end of central conductors, and second electrodes of the capacitors and ground portions serving as the other ends of the central conductors are connected to a ground plate composed of one sheet of metal plate and the ground plate is connected to a lower plate of a second yoke. Therefore, by means of the ground plate made of one sheet of metal plate, the second electrodes of the capacitors and the ground portions of the central conductors can be connected to ground.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a non-reciprocal circuit element, such as an isolator or a circulator, which can be applied to a transmitting unit of a mobile communication device, such as a cellular phone or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional non-reciprocal circuit element. Hereinafter, a configuration of the conventional non-reciprocal circuit element will be described with reference to FIG. 12. A first yoke 51 made of a boxlike magnetic plate (iron plate or the like) is boxlike and a magnet 52 having a rectangular shape is attached to the inside of the first yoke 51 by means of a magnetic force or the like.
A second yoke 53 made of a magnetic plate (iron plate or the like) has a lower plate 53a and two side plates 53b which are bent upward from two opposite sides of the lower plate 53a. The second yoke 53 is coupled with the first yoke 51 to form a magnetic closed circuit.
A boxlike resin case 54 made of a synthetic resin molding product has a circular through hole 54b provided at a central portion of a lower wall 54a and a plurality of concaves 54c with bottoms provided around the through hole 54b. In addition, the resin case 54 is assembled with the second yoke 53, so that the lower plate 53a is exposed to the outside through the through hole 54b.
An output terminal 55 and a ground terminal 56 made of metal plates are buried in the resin case 54 to be attached thereto. In addition, the output terminal 55 protrudes toward a sidewall 54d in a state in which the output terminal 55 is arranged to be exposed onto the lower wall 54a and the ground terminal 56 protrudes toward the sidewall 54d in a state in which the ground terminal 56 is exposed onto an inner lower surface of the concave portion 54c.
First to third capacitors C1, C2, and C3 are formed of chip type capacitors. While being located into the concave portions 54c of the resin case 54, the first to third capacitors C1, C2, and C3 have their lower electrodes (not shown) that are soldered to and mounted on the ground terminal 56 located on the inner lower surfaces of the concave portions 54c. Further, a chip type resistor R has one electrode (not shown) that is soldered to and mounted on the ground terminal 56.
A disk-shaped ferrite member 57 made of YIG (Yttrium iron garnet) or the like is inserted into the through hole 54b of the resin case 54 in a state in which the disk-shaped ferrite member 57 is located in the through-hole 54b of the resin case 54, and a lower surface of the ferrite member 57 is mounted on the lower plate 53a of the second yoke 53.
A flat plate-shaped dielectric 58 is composed of a laminated plate obtained by laminating a plurality of insulating thin plates, and first to third central conductors 59, 60, and 61 are disposed at different laminated locations of the dielectric 58 such that parts of them cross each other in a vertical direction.
In addition, the dielectric 58 is mounted on the ferrite member 57, and the first to third central conductors 59, 60, and 61 have port portions connected to upper electrodes of the first to third capacitors C1, C2 and C3 and the output terminal 55 and ground portions of the first to third capacitors C1, C2 and C3 are connected to the ground terminal 56 (for example, see Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication NO. 11-298207).
However, the conventional non-reciprocal circuit element need to have the ground terminal 56 buried in the resin case 54 in order to ground the resin case 54 by which the ferrite member 57 and the first to third capacitors C1, C2, and C3 are located and held, the lower electrodes of the capacitors C1, C2, and C3, and the ground portions of the first to third central conductors 59, 60 and 61, and the non-reciprocal circuit element has a large size and many components, which results in increase of cost. In addition, a molding work for burying the output terminal 55 and the ground terminal 56 into the resin case 54 and an assembling work of the second yoke 53 and the resin case 54 are troublesome. As a result, the productivity decreases and the cost increase.
In addition, each of the capacitors C1, C2, and C3 has a thickness thinner than that of the ferrite member 57. Therefore, in a state in which the concave portion 54c is lifted, the work for burying the output terminal 55 and the ground terminal 56 into the resin case 54 becomes necessary, so that a metal mold for forming the resin case 54 becomes complicated, thereby increasing the cost.
The conventional art has the following problems. Specifically, since the conventional non-reciprocal circuit element needs to have the ground terminal 56 buried in the resin case 54 in order to ground the resin case 54 by which the ferrite member 57 and the first to third capacitors C1, C2, and C3 are located and held, the lower electrodes of the capacitors C1, C2, and C3 and the ground portions of the first to third central conductors 59, 60 and 61, the non-reciprocal circuit element has a large size and many components, which results in an increase of the cost. In addition, a molding work for burying the output terminal 55 and the ground terminal 56 into the resin case 54 and an assembling work of the second yoke 53 and the resin case 54 are troublesome. As a result, the productivity decreases and the cost increases.
In addition, each of the capacitors C1, C2, and C3 has a thickness thinner than that of the ferrite member 57. Therefore, in a state in which the concave portion 54c is lifted, the work for burying the output terminal 55 and the ground terminal 56 into the resin case 54 becomes necessary, so that a metal mold for forming the resin case 54 becomes complicated, thereby increasing the cost.


Provided are a method for manufacturing a rubber composition for a tire and a method for manufacturing a tire including this manufacturing method for the rubber composition in the present invention, which are characterized by including the steps of: starting to knead a rubber component, a sulfur donor, and a sulfur atom-containing vulcanization accelerator together before kneading the rubber component with a filler; and then adding a filler to an obtained kneaded product and performing kneading at a kneading temperature of 120° C. or higher. According to the manufacturing methods of the present invention, a rubber composition for a tire and a tire which have good fracture property can be manufactured.

In recent years, social demands for reduction of carbon dioxide gas emissions have been strengthened from the standpoint of resource conservation, energy conservation, and environmental protection, and various countermeasures such as weight reduction, reduction of fuel consumption, and use of electric energy have been studied for automobiles. In such a situation, tires for automobiles are required to reduce their rolling resistance to enhance fuel efficiency performance. Further, tires are also desired to have improved performance such as durability.
For example, as a method of lowering the rolling resistance of a tire, there are known measures, such as adoption of silica compounding, reduction of the amount of filler, use of filler having a small reinforcing property, and the like. However, these measures tend to reduce the mechanical strength or the like of rubber and to deteriorate various performance.
Further, the use of a polysulfide-based silane coupling agent or a mercapto-based silane coupling agent for the silica compounding has been proposed. However, a coupling reaction could progress in a kneading process depending on kneading conditions, which tends to deteriorate the processability of the rubber composition. Even in the silica compounding, it is desired to provide a silica-based rubber composition which has good processability and improves its performance, such as rubber strength and abrasion resistance, with good balance.
For this reason, Patent Documents 1 and 2 describe that the processability, fuel efficiency, rubber strength, abrasion resistance, and crack growth resistance of a rubber composition can be improved in a balanced manner by further compounding a predetermined polysulfide compound into a rubber composition that contains a silica and a silane coupling agent having a mercapto group.
There has been also proposed a method for manufacturing a rubber composition by a kneading method which is not a conventional kneading method that includes a base kneading step X of kneading components other than a vulcanization chemical, such as a vulcanization agent and a vulcanization accelerator, and a finishing kneading step F of adding a vulcanization chemical to the kneaded product obtained in the step X.
For example, Patent Documents 3 and 4 and the like describe that compounding agents, including a rubber component, a filler, a silane coupling agent, and a vulcanization accelerator, are kneaded in the first stage of kneading, thereby producing a rubber composition with less heat generation.
Patent Document 5 describes that a rubber component, a filler, a silane coupling agent, a sulfur donor, and a vulcanization accelerator are kneaded in a pre-mixing step, thereby manufacturing a rubber composition excellent in strength and abrasion resistance.

Method for manufacturing rubber composition for tire and method for manufacturing tire


An apparatus including a memory array and control circuitry. The control circuitry is configured to, based at least on a plurality of read comparison results, determine a number of memory cells of the memory array that have threshold voltages that fall into each of a plurality of voltage ranges. The control circuitry is further configured to, based at least on the number of memory cells that have threshold voltages in each of the plurality of voltage ranges, estimate an offset amount that a center voltage between two threshold voltage distributions differs from a center reference voltage. The control circuitry is further configured to read one or more of the plurality of memory cells based at least in part on the estimated offset amount.

The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that do not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.
In flash memory devices, data is stored by programming the cells to different voltage levels. A k-bits-per-cell flash device stores k bits in a single cell and has 2k voltage regions with each region corresponding to one of the possible 2k k-bit patterns. A k-bit pattern is stored by programming the cell to a nominal voltage value in the corresponding voltage region. The actual stored voltage within a particular memory cell is subject to noise and hence can differ from the nominal value. The exact value of the stored voltage cannot be read out directly, but can only be compared to a read reference voltage for most practical devices. Also, the primary goal is to find the k-bit pattern corresponding to the stored voltage rather than the voltage itself. Therefore, the cells are read by comparing the stored values in the cell to one or more read reference voltages.
A floating-gate transistor of a flash memory cell is capable of storing a voltage on its floating gate for a period, typically many years. The threshold voltages that correspond to the stored charge on the floating gate of the floating-gate transistor will change over time due to, for example, physical changes in the device. Such physical changes may result from device aging, repeated erase and program cycles, and so forth. A group of flash memory cells will therefore exhibit a change in their overall threshold voltage distributions over time. Such changes will result in greater error rates, which will worsen as the device ages.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Decoder parameter estimation using multiple memory reads


A semiconductor thin-film manufacturing method includes: forming, above a substrate, an amorphous silicon film (precursor film) having a photoluminescence (PL) intensity greater than or equal to 0.65 when photon energy is 1.1 eV in a PL spectrum normalized to have a maximum PL intensity of 1; and annealing the amorphous silicon film to form a crystalline silicon film.

Active-matrix driven display devices such as liquid-crystal display devices or organic EL display devices use a thin-film semiconductor device (hereafter referred to simply as "semiconductor device") called a thin-film transistor (TFT).
In a display device, a TFT is used as a switching element for selecting a pixel or as a driving transistor which drives a pixel.
Such a TFT has a configuration in which a source electrode and a drain electrode, a semiconductor layer (channel layer), and a gate electrode are sequentially stacked on a substrate. A silicon semiconductor in the form of a thin film is typically used for the channel layer used in the TFT (see, Patent Literature (PTL) 1 for example).
Such silicon semiconductor films are broadly divided into non-crystalline silicon films (amorphous silicon: a-SI) and silicon films having crystallinity (crystalline silicon films). Crystalline silicon films are further classified into polycrystalline silicon films, microcrystalline silicon films, monocrystalline silicon films, and so on.
Non-crystalline silicon films can be manufactured evenly on a large-area substrate at relatively low temperatures using a chemical vapor deposition method (CVD method), and are thus presently the most commonly used as channel layers for large-screen liquid-crystal display devices. However, since characteristics, such as carrier mobility (on-characteristics), of non-crystalline silicon films are inferior to those of crystalline silicon films, the realization of TFTs having a crystalline silicon film as a channel layer is eagerly awaited in order to realize a display with enhanced high-speed driving and high-definition.
Conventionally, a method (direct CVD method) of directly forming a crystalline silicon film during film-forming using chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is available as a method of forming a crystalline silicon film (see PTL 2 for example). Alternatively, there is also a method in which a non-crystalline silicon film is formed before hand and then crystallized by applying thermal or light energy (see PTL 3 for example). As a method of applying light energy for crystallization, there is a method (laser annealing method) of locally applying a short burst of energy such as an excimer laser, a solid-state laser, a semiconductor laser, and so on. Furthermore, as methods of applying thermal energy, there are, for example, thermal annealing methods such as rapid thermal annealing (RTA) and rapid thermal processing (RTP), or thermal annealing methods which make use of catalytic action of nickel (Ni), and so on.

Semiconductor thin-film forming method, semiconductor device, semiconductor device manufacturing method, substrate, and thin-film substrate


An apparatus including valving structure to direct in a circular swimming pool a first conduit to effect a circular stream within the swimming pool, with a second conduit directed to a basket, and the second conduit having a nozzle directing fluid flow into the basket in association with the first conduit to direct debris from the swimming pool into the basket structure.

1. Field of the Invention
The field of invention relates to swimming pool cleaning apparatus, and more particularly pertains to a new and improved swimming pool skimmer apparatus wherein the same is arranged to include fluid flow from and in association with the outlet of a swimming pool pump to direct fluid flow into a skimmer.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Swimming pool cleaning apparatus of various types have been utilized throughout the prior art and exemplified in U.S. Pat. No. 4,889,622 wherein a basket member in cooperation with a suction member is arranged to clean debris from the top surface of a swimming pool.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,043,060; 4,518,495; 3,856,679; and 4,606,819 are further examples of swimming pool cleaning and skimmer structure.
The instant invention attempts to overcome deficiencies of the prior art by providing for a compact and readily retrofitted swimming pool cleaning apparatus relative to a swimming pool and in this respect, the present invention substantially fulfills this need.


A nonvolatile memory cell (1) can be integrated in space-saving fashion into a semiconductor circuit (10) intended for volatile storage with the aid of volatile memory cells (2). The memory cell (1) has a programmable component (3) having an electrical resistance that can be altered by reprogramming, and also first (8) and second switching elements (9), which switch a first current path (J1) or a second current path (J2) in conducting fashion upon activation of optionally a first (11) or a second word line (12). At least one of the two current paths leads via the programmable component (3). Potentials of two bit lines (21, 22) to which the memory cell (1) according to the invention is connected can be altered as a result of the first or the second current path (J1, J2) being activated temporarily. The memory cell (1) permanently stores an item of digital information and can be driven by word lines (11, 12) and bit lines (21, 22) such as are conventionally used in volatile semiconductor memories (10). The invention opens up the possibility of integrating volatile and nonvolatile memory cells into a common memory cell array.

In the case of integrated semiconductor memories, a distinction is made between volatile semiconductor memories and nonvolatile semiconductor memories. Nonvolatile semiconductor memories store the items of information even after the operating voltage has been switched off. Nonvolatile semiconductor memories may be EEPROMs (electrically erasable programmable read only memories), for example. By contrast, volatile semiconductor memories store the items of information only during their operation until the operating voltage is switched off. Even during operation, stored items of information continually have to be refreshed again since they are otherwise lost through leakage currents despite the operating voltage being maintained. Thus, by way of example, memory cells of DRAMS (dynamic random access memories) are in each case read and rewritten in amplified fashion (refreshing) after a few or a few dozen milliseconds, since it is only during this refresh time that error-free storage of the items of information is ensured.
Volatile memory cells have the advantage that they require little substrate area and can be arranged densely on a semiconductor chip. Memory cells of DRAMs, for instance, can be realized just with a storage capacitor, for example in the form of a trench capacitor or a stacked capacitor, and a selection transistor connected to in each case a word line and a bit line.
Volatile memory cells and nonvolatile memory cells are usually accommodated on different semiconductor chips. Although there is the need to permanently store certain items of information in the case of nonvolatile semiconductor memories, too, storing these items of information would necessitate nonvolatile memory cells on the memory chip of the volatile semiconductor memory, which can conventionally be realized at best by an additional memory cell array for nonvolatile memory cells or by a very small number of fuses or antifuses arranged outside the cell array of the volatile memory cells. In the case of an additional memory cell array for nonvolatile memory cells, however, it is necessary to effect dedicated driving of the additional memory cell array by means of word lines and bit lines including the corresponding drivers and the other electrical control circuits. On account of the disproportionately large additional amount of area taken up on the semiconductor substrate, such an additional nonvolatile memory cell array on a memory chip for the volatile semiconductor memory is dispensed with in most cases. Instead, only the most necessary items of information, namely usually only the identification designator of the respective semiconductor chip, are stored with the aid of laser fuses on the volatile memory chip. By contrast, other items of information, for instance the test results originating on account of an electrical functional test carried out with the aid of the volatile memory device, for instance test errors that occurred or the positions or numbers of replaced word or bit lines or test parameters such as temperatures, current values, trimming values, burn-in test time durations or the like, are not stored on the fabricated and then tested semiconductor chip, even though this would actually be desirable.
Consequently, there is a requirement for integrated volatile semiconductor memories that additionally afford the possibility of storing a relatively large quantity of data permanently, that is to say in nonvolatile fashion. In particular, there is a requirement for a memory cell that in conjunction with little additional occupancy in terms of substrate area being taken up, enables nonvolatile storage of as many digital items of information of the semiconductor memory as possible.

Nonvolatile memory cell and methods for operating a nonvolatile memory cell


A hydrogenation process of chloronitrobenzene. The hydrogenation process comprises the steps of producing a nanosized boron-containing nickel catalyst, wherein a ratio of the amount of the boron atom to the amount of the nickel atom in the nanosized boron-containing nickel catalyst is of about 0.1-0.9. Then, the nanosized boron-containing nickel catalyst is placed into a reactor with a chloronitrobenzene an alcohol solvent having carbon number less than four per molecule and a hydrogenation process is performed to hydrogenating the chloronitrobenzene in hydrogen with a reaction pressure of about 5-40 atm and a reaction temperature of about 40-150° C.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a hydrogenation process of chloronitrobenzene. More particularly, the present invention relates to a hydrogenation process of chloronitrobenzene with the use of nanosized boron-containing nickel catalyst.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventionally, the noble metal is used as the catalyst in the liquid-phase hydrogenation process of chloronitrobenzene, wherein the catalyst includes palladium (Pd), platinum (Pt) and ruthenium (Ru). That is, by using the noble metal as the catalyst, the ortho-chloronitrobenzene is hydrogenated into the ortho-chloroaniline, the meta-chloronitrobenzene is hydrogenated into the meta-chloroaniline and the para-chloronitrobenzene is hydrogenated into the para-chloroaniline.
In the Journal of Applied Catalysis (vol. 76, pages 255-266, 1991), Figueras et al. disclose the use of the ruthenium as the reaction catalyst in the hydrogenation process of the ortho-chloronitrobenzene. In addition, Liao et al., in J. Chem. Soc., Chem. Comm. (pages 1155-1156, 1995), described the use of palladium-ruthenium bi-metals as the reaction catalyst in the hydrogenation process of the ortho-chloronitrobenzene. Furthermore, Liu et al., in Applied Catalysis A: General (vol. 164, pages 197-203, 1997), disclosed the use of platinum cluster as the reaction catalyst in the hydrogenation process of the para-chloronitrobenzene. Moreover, in Catalysis Letter (vol. 44, pages 205-210, 1997), Vitulli et al. revealed the use of platinum/aluminum oxide as the reaction catalyst in the hydrogenation process of the ortho-chloronitrobenzene. Also, Liu et al. in J. Molecular Catalysis A: Chemical (vol. 147, pages 55-62, 1999) disclosed the use of palladium-platinum bi-metals as the reaction catalyst in the hydrogenation process of the para-chloronitrobenzene. Further, Liu et al. in J. Molecular Catalysis A: Chemical (vol. 159, pages 115-120, 2000) illustrated the use of platinum mixed with the polyvinyl alcohol surfactant as the reaction catalyst in the hydrogenation process of the ortho-chloronitrobenzene. Liu et al. in J. Molecular Catalysis A: Chemical (vol. 170, pages 203-208, 2001) revealed the use of ruthenium mixed with the polyvinyl alcohol surfactant as the reaction catalyst in the hydrogenation process of the para-chloronitrobenzene.
In addition, in American Patent with the U.S. Pat. No. 4,326,078, the noble metal is used as the reaction catalyst for hydrogenating nitrobenzene to form oxy-azobenzene. Further, American Patent with the U.S. Pat. No. 4,140,719 disclosed the use of the phase-shifting catalyst for fluorinating the 2,4,5-trichloro nitrobenzene to form 2,4-difluoro nitro benzene.
However, the conventional hydrogenation processes mentioned in all the documents and the issued patterns use noble metal such as palladium, platinum and ruthenium as the reaction catalyst. The noble metal is expensive and possesses high hydrogenation ability. Therefore, it is easy to generate byproducts during the hydrogenation process.

Hydrogenation process of chlorinated nitrobenzene


A well test string includes an annulus pressure responsive tester valve and a tubing conveyed perforating gun including a tubing pressure actuated time delay firing mechanism. A compression set packer is disposed in the test string between the tester valve and the perforating gun. The packer includes a bypass valve for communicating the well below the packer with the tubing bore. The bypass valve is operably associated with the packer so that the bypass valve is open prior to setting the packer and so that the bypass valve is closed as the packer is set. The compression set packer also includes a one-way equalizer valve for allowing one-way fluid flow from the well below the packer to the tubing bore. The equalizer valve is operably associated with a bypass valve so that the equalizer valve is inoperable when the bypass valve is open, and so that the equalizer valve is operable when the bypass valve is closed.

1. Field Of The Invention
The present invention relates generally to a drill stem test string including tubing conveyed perforating guns, and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to an adapter for a compression set packer which allows the combination of a drill stem test string with a tubing conveyed perforating string.
2. Description Of The Prior Art
During the completion of a well it is desirable to flow test the well after the well is perforated. It is particularly desirable to be able to flow test the well in an unbalanced condition wherein the pressure in the well is substantially lower than the formation pressure when the subsurface formation is initially perforated.
One system which accomplishes this general purpose is that shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,915,171 to McMahan, and assigned to the assignee of the present invention. The McMahan patent discloses an above packer perforate test and sample tool which allows well annulus pressure above the packer to cross over into the tubing string to actuate a pressure actuated firing mechanism for the tubing conveyed perforating guns.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,804,044 to Wesson et al., and assigned to the assignee of the present invention, discloses another system which operates in a manner somewhat similar to the McMahan '171 patent.
The prior art also includes a compression set packer actuated by setting down weight on the packer. One example of such a tool is that sold by Halliburton Services, the assignee of the present invention, under the trademark Champ.RTM. III Packer. The details of construction of the Champ.RTM. III Packer

Drill stem testing with tubing conveyed perforation


Flat flexible cable includes at least one conductor with an insulating film disposed thereabout. The cable further includes an opening through the film not in contact with the conductor. A connector for use with the flat flexible cable, includes an opening and a means for retaining the cable within the opening. The opening receives the cable such that one end of the cable is within the connector. The means for releasably retaining the cable within the opening is disposed through the opening in the cable, so that any force on the cable is transferred to the connector.

Electrical connectors are used in a wide variety of applications to interconnect various electrical components. It is well known to use electrical connectors with flat flexible cable. Flat flexible cable has a plurality of spaced, parallel extending conductors which are encased in an insulating film. Typically, these connectors have some electrically conductive feature, such as a terminal, retained therein.
There are two general requirements for connecting the flat flexible cable to the connector. One is that an electrical connection must exist between the cable conductors and the terminals. The other is that a mechanical connection must exist between the cable and the connector. With respect to the mechanical connection, it is desirable to provide strain relief so that if a mechanical load is applied to the cable, the terminal does not separate from the cable.
Many different types of problematic strain relief devices have been proposed for various applications. Many of these devices include clamp mechanisms hold the cables within the connectors. Clamps have limited versatility and require additional parts be added to the housing. Oftentimes, the clamps place large compressive loads on the cable potentially causing damage to the components. If the clamping load is insufficient, the clamps do not provide the necessary strain relief
Adhesives have been used to bond the cable to the connector. This solution however does not work with all types of cable due to the composition of the film. If the film is incompatible with the adhesive, the necessary strain relief will not be provided. Adhesives are also expensive and are not a desired manufacturing process. Additionally, many of the existing strain relief devices require the cable to be routed along a tortuous path, often resulting in the housing of the device being enlarged or not providing sufficient strain relief.
Connectors can also provide strain relief by using the terminals to provide the mechanical as well as the electrical connection between the conductor and the connector. This solution does not provide the optimal electrical connection, since the termination is usually not gas tight and involves minimal copper contact.
In addition, the cable can be molded into the connector. This presents the problems of requiring a complex manufacturing process with sensitive parameters. This manufacturing process requires slow speeds and an expensive connector material.
In light of the aforementioned connectors, an improved connector is sought, which provides strain relief without degrading the electrical connection.

Method for connecting flat flexible cable and a connector


A storage device includes a base, and a number of side panels selectively coupled to the base. Each of the side panels include a protrusion. The base includes a number of voids defined therein. The protrusions, once inserted into the voids, restrict movement of the side panels relative to the base in at least two coordinate directions.

Storage devices such as bins, boxes, cupboards, and other storage devices are useful in organizing and securing items to be stored. These storage devices come in many shapes and sizes to accommodate for a number of different storage items.
Throughout the drawings, identical reference numbers designate similar, but not necessarily identical, elements.


In various embodiments, an illumination device features an ultraviolet (UV) light-emitting device at least partially surrounded by an encapsulant and having a rigid lens. Downward forces is applied while the encapsulant is at least partially cured to substantially prevent partial or full detachment of the rigid lens from the light-emitting device, and/or substantially suppress formation of bubbles between the light-emitting device and the rigid lens.

Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are increasingly utilized in a variety of different lighting applications due to their lower energy consumption, longer lifetime, high physical robustness, small size, and fast switching times. FIG. 1 depicts a conventional LED package 100, in which an LED chip 105 is electrically and physically connected to a submount 110 on a surface-mount device (SMD) package 115. Wires 120 electrically connect submount contacts to contact pads 125 on the SMD package 115, and a plastic lens 130 is placed over the LED chip 105 to focus the light therefrom. As shown, a transparent liquid- or gel-based "glob top" encapsulant 135 is then disposed over all of the components within the SMD package 115 and cured to form a semi-rigid protective coating that is also transparent to light emitted by the LED chip 105. The encapsulant 135 typically has a lens-like shape to facilitate light emission from the packaged LED chip 105. LED package 100 also may feature one or more electrical contacts 140 that electrically connect the LED chip 105 to the submount 110, as well as an underfill 145. As shown, the underfill 145 may be disposed between the LED chip 105 and the submount 110 and provide mechanical support to the LED chip between the electrical contacts 140.
UV LEDs have shown great promise for applications such as medical therapy, sensors and instrumentation, and fluid sterilization. Unfortunately, the above-described conventional packaging is frequently unsuitable for UV LEDs, which may emit light having wavelengths less than 320 nm, less than 265 nm, or even less than 200 nm. As shown in FIG. 1, when the LED chip is a UV LED, the highly energetic UV light leads to deterioration and even formation of cracks 150 within the transparent encapsulant. Such cracking may lead to distortions or breaks in the bonding wires 120 or failure of the LED package 100 due to moisture introduced from the outside environment along the cracks 150. In addition, the UV radiation from UV LEDs can cause deterioration and even failure of the plastic lenses 130 that are typically utilized atop other (e.g., visible-light-emitting) LEDs. In view of these issues, there is a need for improved packaging schemes for UV LEDs that enable high reliability, mechanical robustness, and long lifetime for the packaged devices.

Ultraviolet light-emitting devices and methods


An endodontic file with improved fatigue resistance comprising a conical body made of a metal alloy and an amorphous titanium-zirconium-boron film deposited on a surface of the conical body.

During endodontic treatment, an endodontic file is used for the debridement of an infected pulp tissue. The endodontic file is mostly made of a metal alloy, e.g. a nickel-titanium (Ni—Ti) alloy, but usually exhibits fatigue problems. For this reason, when the endodontic file is placed in the root canal of a patient in need of the treatment, the file is likely to be fractured when rotated in the root canal for a long period. Upon fracture, a dentist must stop the treatment at once and try to remove the fraction from the root canal. This not only extends the treatment period, but also possibly hurts the patient when the fraction can't be easily removed.
Therefore, there is a need to solve the fatigue problem exhibited in the conventional endodontic file.

Endodontic file with high fatigue resistance


An automatic machine for folding long sheets having first and second oscillating blades operating in a transverse motion to create alternate creases in a vertically descending sheet between a first and second upper folding rollers opposing respective first and second lower folding rollers that are rotatable with a predetermined reciprocating synchronous movement, said first and second oscillating blades being arranged to insert said sheet between said folding rollers to form folds in the sheet, whereby the folded sheet is directed towards an underlying collection shelf wherein said upper folding rollers being driven with rapid-reversal or pulse-reversal rotation by a linkage which moves them in the same direction by virtue of their connection by a toothed drive belt, engaged about their toothed end pulleys which are rotatably free, but which can be individually and alternately fixed to a shaft of their own respective roller following the operation of an electromagnetic clutch, said first upper folding roller being connected to said second upper folding roller by a series of gearwheels causing said first and said second upper folding rollers to rotate in opposite directions.

As is well known, the usually large dimensions of technical drawings makes it necessary to fold them into a size enabling them to be easily repositioned or partly opened out. Such folding must be done in a standardized manner to enable the folded sheets to be filed in an orderly way. This folding has previously been done manually by filing clerks. Currently there is a tendency to entrust it to specific sheet folding machines, which can carry out the operations in a more precise and rapid manner.
Currently known sheet folding machines are however particularly complex and costly, to the extent of being able to be acquired or used only by industries with large financial resources.

Automatic machine for folding long sheets, particularly technical drawings


Specific anomalies and details of failures as well as measures thereagainst are described that might possibly occur in electric power converters that drive and control permanent-magnet synchronous motors. An electric power converter capable of stable operation has a protective function of taking proper measures against such failures that might possibly occur.

Permanent-magnet synchronous motors (hereinafter simply referred to as "motors") are known as high-efficiency motors in comparison with most-used conventional induction motors, because magnetic field is established by the permanent magnet which results in no need for excitation current and no current flows through the rotor which results in no secondary copper loss. While induction motors are conventionally used in electric railway cars, application of permanent-magnet synchronous motors to electric railway cars has been investigated in recent years to enhance efficiency thereof.
In electric power converters used in controllers of electric railway cars that drive and control the permanent-magnet synchronous motors, a stable operation is required in which the possibility of a halt in operation due to failure or of a breakage is reduced to the extreme extent, to ensure stable services of electric railway cars. In order to achieve such a requirement, how to protect the electric power controllers is a most important subject in applying permanent-magnet synchronous motors to electric railway cars. In other words, it is necessary to clarify anomalous phenomena that might possibly occur in the electric power converters and to take proper measures against these anomalies so that excessive operation halting of the power converters is eliminated and the power converters are kept unbroken.
An electric power converter is made up of a large amount of electric/electronic parts, for example, electronic parts such as sensors and a microprocessor, semiconductor parts such as switching elements, electrical conductive members such as cables and bus bars that connect these parts with each other, and insulation members. For this reason, a failure or a malfunction could potentially occur in a constituent element, i.e., in each of the parts making up the electric power converter, and, on this occasion, anomalous phenomena such as an over-current and an over-voltage occur in the circuits. In addition, a temporary over-current or over-voltage may sometimes occur in the circuits by supply-voltage fluctuation specific to electric railways or by various disturbances associated with vibration of a railway car and that from the rails.
Moreover, permanent-magnet synchronous motors, different from induction motors having been most used, always generate voltage during rotation by interaction with magnetic field of the built-in permanent magnets even without electric power externally supplied.
Generally, electric railway cars run with a plurality of cars being coupled into a train, and a plurality of electric power converters and motors are each distributedly mounted on the plurality of cars. Thus, even when, for example, an electric power converter among the plurality of electric power converters on the train happens to halt owing to a failure, the railway cars can continue to run by the other normal motors. On the other hand, the motor connected with the halted electric power converter is forced to rotate continuously by the wheels, to generate a voltage in proportion to the rotation speed thereof.
Accordingly, depending on types of failures occurring in the electric power converter during running of the railway cars, a current is continuously supplied to the failure part by the motor-generated voltage, so that the failure part might be further damaged or might causes heat build-up.
For such a case, a protective function is required for preventing the electric power converter from breaking, in such a manner that a system controller monitors signals from a voltage sensor, a current sensor, or thee like provided in the electric power converter and, when a monitored value, for example, exceeds a predetermined one or the like, the system controller determines that an anomalous phenomenon has occurred and turns off internal contactors and switching elements according to predetermined logic rules.
However, it is improper to turn off all the contactors and switching elements in the electric power converter when an anomalous phenomenon occurs, because it takes time to restart the electric power converter, which retards on-time service of the railway cars, and operation counts of the contactors and the like increases more than necessary, which accelerates wear of moving parts thereof. Moreover, damage of anomalous portions might increase if improper measures are taken. The electric power converter therefore needs to have a protective function that allows proper measures to be taken against various types of anomalous phenomena and failures occurring in the electric power converter in order to prevent the converter from being damage while avoiding excessive operation halting thereof.
A method is disclosed as a prior art in Patent Document 1, in which, supposing the case where a failure occurs in an inverter that drives and controls a permanent-magnet synchronous motor while the electric railway cars are running, contactors are provided for shutting off the connection between the inverter and the permanent-magnet synchronous motor so as not to cause a further damage of the inverter by the motor-generated electric power, whereby the inverter and the permanent-magnet synchronous motor are isolated from each other by the contactors when a failure of the inverter is detected.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H08-182105.


A bicycle helmet having a body, which preferably includes both a base and a reinforcement structure. In one arrangement, the reinforcement structure is an external shell and, in another arrangement, the reinforcement structure is an internal skeletal frame. In some arrangements, the helmet body may include both an external shell and an internal frame. The helmet also includes a retention mechanism defining a contact surface configured to contact a rearward surface of the head of the user. A strap arrangement includes a first strap portion and second strap portion selectively connectable to one another to extend from opposing sides of the body and underneath a chin of the user. Desirably, no portion of the strap arrangement is secured to the retention mechanism. The strap arrangement includes a strap section extending through a pair of spaced openings in a lower, rearward portion of the body such that a portion of the strap section extends across an outer surface of the body between the openings. Preferably, each of the openings is sized and shaped to generally correspond with a cross-sectional size and shape of the strap section.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to protective helmets and bicycle helmets in particular. More specifically, the present invention relates to a helmet having an improved helmet strap arrangement.
2. Description of the Related Art
Bicycle helmets typically employ a strap system to secure the helmet to a user's head. The strap commonly includes two strap portions that extend from opposing sides of the helmet and are selectively joined together underneath the user's chin, often by a releasable snap fit connector. Each side strap typically includes a forward strap portion and a rearward strap portion which extend alongside forward and rearward sides, respectively, of the user's ear. The forward and rearward portions of the strap typically converge the below the ear and are connected, or extend together, to the end of the respective strap portion.
In prior art arrangements, the rearward strap portions are typically secured to the helmet at a single location at a rearward upper portion of the helmet or are connected to a retention assembly, which extends from a rearward portion of the helmet body to cradle the back of the user's head. With each of these common prior art arrangements, the straps tend to hang toward the center line of the helmet, become tangled with one another and usually require manual untangling or separation prior to putting on the helmet. Thus, it is difficult to put the helmet on quickly or put the helmet on with only one hand and have the straps properly located for use.


Organizing data in a cloud computing environment having a plurality of computing nodes is described. An authorization to service a request is received. The request may be from a user for launching an instance. In response to receiving the authorization and based on the request, an image list is determined. The image list includes information corresponding to a plurality of machine images. At least one machine image is identified from the image list associated with a functional requirement of the request. The instance is launched at the at least one computing node. The at least one machine image is updated after the instance has been launched.

Cloud computing is an Internet-based computing concept whereby shared resources, software and information are provided to computers and other devices on-demand, like a public utility.
The term "cloud" is used as a metaphor for a network, based on the cloud drawing used to represent the telephone network, and later to depict the Internet in computer network diagrams as an abstraction of the underlying infrastructure it represents. Typical cloud computing providers deliver common business applications online which are accessed from another web service or software, like a web browser, while the software and data are stored on servers.
In general, cloud computing customers do not own the physical infrastructure. Instead customers can avoid capital expenditure by renting usage from a third-party provider. They consume resources as a service and pay only for resources that they use. Many cloud-computing offerings employ the utility computing model, which is analogous to how traditional utility services (such as electricity) are consumed, whereas others bill on a subscription basis. Sharing "perishable and intangible" computing power among multiple tenants offer the promise of improving utilization rates, as servers are not unnecessarily left idle (which can reduce costs significantly while increasing the speed of application development).

Organizing data in a virtual computing infrastructure


A therapeutic purse configured with a therapeutic device including a cushion, or a thermal pouch is provided. The therapeutic purse is an enclosure having an interior volume and at least one opening to the interior volume and a closure feature. In one embodiment, the interior volume of the purse comprises a therapeutic pocket configured for containing a therapeutic device. In yet another embodiment, the therapeutic purse comprises a hot or cold pouch that may comprise a substance that may be transferred into a conduit coupled to the strap.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to therapeutic purses.
Background
Breast surgery, including biopsy, mastectomy and the like require a long recovery with pain and discomfort. Many women have to return to work or other daily activities before the pain and/or swelling from the surgery has subsided. Application of heat or cold to the affected area may be recommended for quicker recovery and for pain management. However, application of a hot or cold pad in public may be embarrassing and may prevent women from performing normal activities. In addition, some women may benefit from the use of a pillow or cushion applied to the affected area.
There exists a need for a discrete way of carrying a pillow or cushion for therapy. In addition, there exists a need for a device that will allow for discrete application of hot or cold to an affected area, especially the breast region.


An apparatus for transmitting a pseudolite signal so that a navigation signal is transmitted includes: at least four pseudolite configured to generate and output pseudolite codes for navigation; antennas configured to transmit signals outputted by the pseudolite corresponding to the antennas, respectively; and a single synchronization clock unit configured to provide each of the pseudolites with a synchronization clock.

1. Field of the Invention
Exemplary embodiments of the present invention relate to a method and an apparatus for precise positioning using Global Positioning System (GPS) pseudolites in a space where no GPS signal can reach (e.g. indoor environment).
2. Description of Related Art
In general, a GPS system refers to a system for determining positions using satellites placed in a medium Earth orbit at a predetermined altitude from the Earth. Specifically, a user of the GPS system receives signals from at least four different satellites in the medium Earth orbit, and calculates his/her position using the received signals. Besides the current position, altitude information can also be acquired, if necessary, from the signals.
However, the GPS system has a limitation in that signals from the medium Earth orbit satellites cannot reach indoor environments or urban/canyon areas with densely located tall buildings and mountains, making the GPS positioning service unavailable.
Therefore, as an alternative to the GPS system in indoor environments or urban/canyon areas with densely located tall buildings and mountains, a method of using pseudolites has been proposed. The pseudolites will now be described briefly.
Pseudolites refer to devices for transmitting signals to indoor environments or areas where densely located tall buildings block signals from medium Earth orbit satellites, as if the signals are transmitted from the satellites.
The pseudolite system includes a number of pseudolites and a reference station for monitoring signals of the pseudolites and generating calibration information (e.g. time calibration information). The pseudolite system requires a wireless link to transmit calibration information from the reference station to users.
An advanced type of pseudolite system includes a master pseudolite and a number of slave pseudolites. This type of pseudolite system equips the master pseudolite with a precise time source so as not to use a wireless link for providing users with calibration information (e.g. time calibration information). A reference station, which is configured to monitor pseudolite signals, monitors the time of the slave pseudolites. A system has also been proposed in which, based on information regarding the time of a number of slave pseudolites monitored by a reference station, each slave pseudolite is synchronized by a PLL control circuit installed in the pseudolite. Such a pseudolite system including master and slave pseudolites is too expensive to be used for indoor positioning because a system of a number of pseudolites must be installed on each floor.

Apparatus for transmitting pseudollite signal based on single clock and positioning system using the same

Electronics And Telecommunications Research Institute


An apparatus for use as a sign or display, for example as a traffic barricade, includes a base that has a hollow cavity that can be filled with ballast, such as sand or water. A receiver is formed in the base to pivotably receive interchangeable vertical signs having display areas with instructions or attention grabbing indicia. The base and vertical sign also cooperate to hold the sign vertical until overcome by a certain amount and direction of force, at which time the sign pivots down to prevent breakage of the apparatus. It can be easily replaced to its original position. The base also cooperates with other removeable items such as a barrel type device which would matably fit around the perimeter of the base. The base is disassemblable from the sign or barrel for handling and storage.

A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for use as portable signs or indicators, for example, as traffic or construction barricades.
B. Problems in the Art
In today's society the number of automobiles continues to increase, as does the number of miles and sophistication of roadways. As a result, the need for maintenance and repair of such roadways has increased, as has the need for temporary traffic control signs to alert and direct motorists through, for example, construction zones.
Safety is a primary concern. This concern is directed not only to motorists but also to repair and construction persons at the site. There are numerous examples of accidents occurring in construction zones. Therefore, making motorists aware of the construction, as well as clearly marking out the construction zone, to physically distinguish it from the correct path of travel, are significant concerns to governments, construction companies and motorists.
There are currently a number of traffic barricades in use. Conventional, long-used types include a metal legged device, hinged at the top, having wood or metal horizontal panels with stripes; sometimes reflective stripes. Advantages of this type of device include the ability to fold it down for easy handling and storage. It also is relatively stable, but many times sand bags or other ballast is used to try to secure it is place against wind or brushing by vehicles. A significant disadvantage is its weight (wood and metal parts), its durability, and its susceptibility to damage as well as the risk of creating serious damage to vehicles. There are also "A-frame", saw horse type devices that use two A-shaped side frames and an elongated board there between.
Another type frequently used are barrels, painted or otherwise having striping or high visibility and/or reflective indicators around the vertical sides. Disadvantages include the amount of space they consume when stored or transported, the difficulty in handling, and the difficulty in securing them in place outside on the road. Their durability is also limited.
In more recent times, attempts at addressing some of the above-mentioned problems have been made. For example, the use of plastics as increased. Also, there have been uses of high visibility webbed fences, single vertical tubes, and spring-loaded vertical panels attached to bases. However, each has certain problems and deficiencies.
For example, use of fencing is not feasible for large distances, such as miles of highway construction. It would simply take too much fencing to be economical, or practical from the standpoint of transport and handling.
The use of the vertical tubes or posts is sometimes deficient because they are relatively small and therefore lack visibility. The same is generally true of traffic cones.
The use of spring loaded vertical panels improves visibility over vertical narrow tubes, but they must be attached to a larger base. Therefore, to have both spring loading to return to a normal position if struck, and have sufficient ballast to withstand wind and impact, they are difficult to store compactly and thus handle efficiently. The vertical panel may be removed from the base, but it usually requires tools and labor to both assemble and disassemble. Many require the use of sand bags or other ballast to help hold them in place.
Therefore, the following considerations are believed to come into play with traffic barricades. First, there are safety concerns; namely the barricade must have as much visibility as possible, both in day and night, to catch motorists' attentions. It also must adequately instruct the motorist to follow a certain authorized path or obey certain rules. This can be done by indicia on the barricade (words or symbols) or simply by their physical placement along the road. Therefore, it usually must have a relatively significant amount of area to communicate such information to the motorist, and can not be a simply a slim tube or the like.
Second, ease of handling, storage, set up and take down is important. Stackability and reduction of size for shipment and storage is preferable. However, the ability to quickly and easily assemble and disassemble is also important, preferably without tools.
Third, durability is an advantage. Wood and metal have inherent durability problems, not matter how carefully handled. Durability is relevant not only to how well the barricade stands up to the elements, such as rain, freezing, heat, wind, etc., but also to how well it can stand both minor and major impact by vehicles traveling at highway speeds. Wood or metal either break or can be damaged beyond repair.
Fourth, flexibility is a subtle but important consideration. Many barricades work well for one purpose or function, but are not adaptable, or do not work well for another. For example, there are Department of Transportation regulations which define the types of traffic signs and barricades that are indicated for certain situations. Some of the regulations pertain to the size and area of the indicators, such as whether one panel or two, the size of the panel(s), etc. Others apply to the configuration of the barricade, for example, a barrel versus a vertical panel versus fencing. Most existing barricades work for one situation only, or at least are not easily adaptable for several situations. In this specification the term vertical sign will be used to refer to various sign types, shapes, sizes and configurations, including those that are planar and stand vertical. This can include, but is not limited to, Types I, II and III DOT barricades, as well as what is conventionally known as a "vertical panel" barricade. Also, in this specification, the term barrel will be used to refer to drum type barricades.
Also, there is a need in the art for stable, resilient, durable, portable signs for a variety of uses. An example is "for sale" signs used by realtors for houses. They are needed for limited periods of time and are reused. Storage in a collapsed form is desirable for space considerations. Portable or temporary signs for other applications which improve over the state of the art are needed
There is therefore a real need for an improvement in the art. It is therefore a principle object of the present invention to provide a portable sign or barricade which improves over or solves the problems and deficiencies in the art.
Further exemplary objects and features of the present invention include:
1. The ability to provide high visibility and adequate instructions to, for example, motorists to promote safety.
2. The ability to reduce in size for efficient stacking for transport, storage, and handling, including the ability to be assembleable and disassemblable quickly and easily without tools.
3. The ability to be durable in outdoors conditions, over the extremes in temperatures and weather, as well as to resist damage from minor forces as well as major forces.
4. The ability to be applied flexibly to different needs and situations, including the ability to have interchangeable signs or barricade types.
5. The ability to eliminate substantially the need for independent ballast such as sand bags to resist wind and impacts.
6. The ability to be made completely of recyclable materials.
7. The ability to be made of a minimum number of pieces without complex structure.
8. The ability to be manufactured, handled, transported, and stored efficiently and economically.
These and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent with reference to the accompanying specification and claims.


A method and system for positioning a wafer on a bake plate in a processing module that includes lowering a bake plate cover assembly over the wafer during a baking process, raising the bake plate cover assembly after the baking process, removing the wafer, determining whether the bake plate cover assembly requires cleaning, then either processing another wafer if the cover assembly does not need cleaning or establishing a cleaning process for the bake plate cover assembly if the cover does need cleaning. Automated sensing of the state of the cover assembly may be employed, and cleaning process may be automatically performed in response to the cleaning need determination.

Minimizing defects during wafer processing will continue to be a critical path to attaining cost effective manufacturing of advanced semiconductor devices. Hard particles can block etch processes causing an electrical "open" or "short" in the circuit. Particles of lesser size and those falling on critical locations on a device may create perturbations in the active features' critical dimensions, producing adverse or fatal consequences during device operation.
The gate level defect maximum density requirements for 15 nm gate technology is expected to be approximately 0.01/cm**2 at 10 nm in size per the ITRS 2005 roadmap. No lithographic and etch process tool exists with these performance capabilities.
One source for hard particle defect generation in the imaging process is the post-apply bake process. In these processes, solvent-rich, polymer-containing, spun-on films are baked at temperatures close to and even well above the boiling point of the casting solvent used. Temperatures range from 80 to 250 C. The most common byproducts of the post-apply bake are volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and some amount of polymer or other hard material that deposits on the inside of the bake chamber. This hard material builds up and eventually sheds or peels off, creating particles with time, usually after about 4,000 to 15,000 wafers are processed. The degree of particle generation depends on chemistry and bake temperature. The bake plate lid is typically mounted directly above the production wafer, so what comes loose from the lid often falls onto the production wafer.
Current solutions to the problem of particles from the bake plate lid include cooling down the bake system, removing the bake plate lid and cleaning it in various chemicals, including by dunking it in a bath of solvent. After cleaning, the bake system must be reassembled and tested for process compliance. This cleaning process can take 4 to 6 hours, during which time the tool is unusable for manufacturing.
It is anticipated that more frequent cleaning of bake plate lids will be required to meet the future device defect maximum density requirements.

Bake plate lid cleaner and cleaning method


The present invention provides a system and method for conserving power consumption of a wireless device such as a BLUETOOTH slave device. A master device polls a slave device in a polling period. The slave responds by transmitting a data packet. If there is an error in transmission of the data, the master device may transmit an ARQ (Automatic Repeat Request) to the slave device in a TIMEOUT period to indicate that the data packet was not received. The slave device may reduce power consumption or power off during that TIMEOUT and receive a retransmit ARQ in a subsequent polling period.

Wireless communication between electronic devices is increasingly common. One example is a computer in communication with a mouse, keyboard and other peripheral components. To avoid excessive connecting cables and otherwise provide convenience, many mice, keyboard, and other components are now wireless. Although there are several standards for wireless communication, BLUETOOTH is becoming the de facto standard for many applications. Developed by Bluetooth SIG, Inc., the BLUETOOTH wireless specification establishes protocols and standards for two-way wireless communication between electronic devices using relatively low power radio communication. BLUETOOTH is described by, e.g., "Specification of the Bluetooth System" (versions 1.1 and 1.2), "Human Interface Device (HID) Profile version 1.0" and various other documents available from Bluetooth SIG, Inc. at <http://www.bluetooth.com>. Among other things, BLUETOOTH provides for two-way radio links between multiple devices in a short-range radio network called a "piconet."
A BLUETOOTH piconet typically includes a "master" (e.g., a personal computer) receiving input from one or more "slaves" (e.g., a wireless mouse or a wireless keyboard). A series of inquiry, paging and other messages are then exchanged between the master and slave(s). The BLUETOOTH protocol includes a special provision, called SNIFF, to enable some slave devices to reduce their power consumption below what they would normally consume in "active" mode on a piconet. Such devices are typically those which have modest levels of data flow and which can tolerate response latencies of tens or hundreds of milliseconds. In SNIFF mode, the master periodically polls each slave and requests that the slave send data. In response, each slave may transmit a data packet containing either a transmission of user data or a "NULL" to indicate that the slave has no user data. User data may include, for example, a mouse movement or a button press. The NULL response is necessary so that the master knows the slave is still part of the piconet. While in SNIFF mode, there is typically a longer interval between master and slave communication than is the case with more active communication modes. In between communications, the slave can shut down—"go to sleep"—and thus save power until it is time to receive and respond to the next transmission from the master. However, provision must still be made to recover a possible loss of data from the slave due to interference or similar difficulty. To handle this problem, a second set of slots, adjacent to the first and called "timeout" slots, are provided.
FIG. 1 illustrates BLUETOOTH SNIFF mode. SNIFF slots are time slots determined between the master and the slave and may be any one of a variety of agreed upon length of time or frequency. For purposes of the present invention, the SNIFF slots are referred to as "SNIFF periods" and the timeout slots are referred to as "TIMEOUT periods." In this example, simplified SNIFF periods and TIMEOUT periods are shown. However, it is understood that the frequency and duration of SNIFF periods and TIMEOUT periods, as well as the number of TIMEOUT periods following a SNIFF period, may vary based on negotiation between the master and the slave devices, for example. An ellipsis is depicted in the figures to illustrate varying numbers of time slots between SNIFF periods, as well as intervening periods between the end of a TIMEOUT period and the next SNIFF period.
The master device (e.g., a computer) and a slave device (e.g., a wireless keyboard or mouse) commence communication at a sniff slot depicted as "SNIFF period 1" in FIG. 1. In the first time slot of SNIFF period 1, the master device polls the slave device by sending a POLL packet to the slave device. In response to the POLL packet from the master device, the slave responds in the second time slot of SNIFF period 1 by either sending a data packet or a "NULL" to the master device. In this example, the slave sends a data packet (Data1) which may contain user data, such as a mouse movement or button press, which is successfully received by the master. The master confirms the successful reception by sending a NULL during the first slot of TIMEOUT period 1. The slave device listens during the first slot of TIMEOUT period 1 following SNIFF period 1. The slave device powers off in the second time slot of TIMEOUT period 1, and remains off until the beginning of the next SNIFF period.
FIG. 1 also illustrates master and slave device communication when a transmission from a slave device is not received at the master device. This example is illustrated in SNIFF period 2 and TIMEOUT period 2 of FIG. 1. In the first time slot of SNIFF period 2, the master device polls the slave device by sending a POLL packet to the slave device (which is powered on) while the slave device listens to the piconet. In response to receiving the POLL packet from the master device, the slave device responds by sending a data packet (Data2) to the master device in the second time slot. In this example, the master device fails to receive the transmission. This failure of transmission may be due to a variety of factors such as, but not limited to, an error in transmission or impaired transmission conditions. Because the transmission was unsuccessful, the master device transmits an ARQ (Automatic Repeat Request) to the slave device. Transmitting an ARQ to the slave device causes the slave device to re-transmit the data packet (Data) in the second time slot of TIMEOUT period 2.
If during a SNIFF period, the master sends a POLL packet to the slave device but the slave device does not have data at that time to transmit to the master device, the slave device may send a NULL packet to the master device. This is illustrated in SNIFF period 3 and TIMEOUT slot 3 of FIG. 1. In this example, the master device polls the slave device by sending a POLL packet to the slave device during the first time slot of SNIFF period 3. In this case, the slave device does not have data to transmit to the master device. Therefore, in response to receiving the POLL packet from the master device, the slave device responds by sending a NULL packet (NULL) to the master device in the second time slot of SNIFF period 3. After the master device receives the NULL packet (NULL) from the slave device, communication between the master device and the slave device terminates. The slave device does not have to listen during the first time slot of TIMEOUT period 3. Because the master device does not transmit as ARQ or other packet to the slave device during the first time slot of TIMEOUT period 3, the slave device powers off during the second time slot of TIMEOUT period 3.
If there is no error in transmission of data from the slave device to the master device during the SNIFF period, there is no need for the slave device to waste power by remaining powered on during the TIMEOUT PERIOD(S). By maintaining power to the slave device during this period, the slave device wastes power. Because the slave device is likely a battery-operated device, battery power may be unnecessarily drained. Thus, there remains a need in the art for eliminating unnecessary power use during timeout.

Reducing power consumption of a wireless device