A limited slip differential for vehicular applications that eliminates chattering noise from the differential while maintaining seal integrity. This is accomplished by the use of a differential casing that includes at least a pair of fluid seals isolating a first chamber for bathing the respective differential components in a fluid lubricant appropriate to the contained components. A fluid lubricant, such as one containing a friction modifier is particularly suitable for the array of friction plates and pads of a disk pack, but can be detrimental to sealing elements, such as about the pinion gear. The separate chambers allows for the use of different fluid lubricants.

This invention is directed to the field of limited slip differentials of the type for connecting a vehicle""s driving shaft to a pair of driven shafts, but more particularly to a limited slip differential that incorporates a self contained lubricant supply isolated from the lubricant disposed in the differential housing or carrier.
The present invention relates to an improved limited slip differential of the type for use in vehicular applications, such as automobiles. By way of brief background, when an automobile goes around a comer, the outer driving wheel must be turned at a greater speed than the inner one. This is achieved through the differential. It lies midway between the two driving wheels, linked to each wheel by a half-shaft turned through a bevel gear. The half-shafts have sun gears connected by free-wheeling planet pinions. When traveling straight, the planet pinions do not spin and drive both half-shafts at the same speed. As the automobile corners, the planet pinions do spin, driving the sun gear and half-shafts at different speeds.
Such differential systems have been improved over the years. Of particular concern to automotive engineers is the problem of traction, such as when one driving wheel encounters ice, mud, or snow, and the like. In straight, dry driving conditions, the differential supplies equal torque to each half-shaft. However, when adverse driving conditions are encountered, such as operating on a slippery surface, prior art differentials, supplying equal torque to the driving wheels resulted in reduced traction even when only one driving wheel was exposed to the slippery road surface. This dangerous condition resulted in the development of differential systems that introduced a torque to the system. The respective developments have become what are known as limited slip differentials, where the following prior art represents the state of the art on limited slip differentials. Such prior art, listed as U.S. Patents, are as follows:
a.) U.S. Pat. No. 6,076,646, to Bums, discloses a hydraulic coupling for use in motor vehicle driveline applications to limit speed differentiation and transfer drive torque between two rotary members. The hydraulic coupling includes a multi-plate clutch assembly operably connecting the two relatively rotatable members, and a sealed actuator assembly for actuating the clutch assembly in response to the magnitude of speed differentiation between the two rotary members. The actuator assembly includes a hydraulic pump and a piston, which are sealed relative to the clutch assembly. The sealed actuator assembly includes an internal recirculation path for supplying hydraulic fluid retained therein between a low pressure supply chamber at the inlet side of the hydraulic pump and a high pressure piston chamber provided at the discharge side of the hydraulic pump. Hydraulic pressure in the piston chamber controls the magnitude of the clutch engagement force exerted by the piston on the clutch assembly. As a further feature, the recirculation path includes a flow restrictor which provides a bleed flow path for supplying high pressure fluid from the piston chamber to the supply chamber following cessation of the pumping action to release the clutch assembly.
b.) U.S. Pat. No. 4,245,525, to LeBegue, teaches a pair of differential side gears splined to separate driven shafts that rotate the driven wheels of a vehicle. Rotation of a driven shaft is transmitted through a differential case and spider gears to the side gears. The side gears are rotatably mounted on a thrust assembly. Belleville spring assemblies exert a biasing force upon interleaved clutch plates alternately spined to the case and the side gears. Upon the occurrence of an unequal torque distribution between the driven shafts the gear separating forces exerted by the spider gears upon the side gears become imbalanced. The side gear associated with the driven shaft of the wheel having reduced traction is displaced axially toward the spider gears. This axial movement is transmitted through the thrust assembly to the side gear associated with the driven shaft of the wheel having the greater traction to axially move the side gear and compress the clutch plates to frictionally engage the case and the side gear. Rotation is transmitted from the case through the clutch plates to the side gear to increase the torque of the driven shaft of the wheel having the greater traction and thereby rotate the wheel having the greater traction.
c.) U.S. Pat. No. 3,896,684, to Duer, relates to a non-chattering limited slip differential which includes a clutch pack with alternating clutch plates of two types, one type being a conventional annular clutch plate. The other type comprises inner and outer annular members joined in a neck section which allows relative movement between the members. The outer member has an indentation diametrically opposite the neck section and the inner member has a tab projecting radially outward into the indentation to limit the relative movement between the members.
While the prior art offer different approaches to improving the operation and performance of differentials for vehicular applications, none are directed to the unique system for a limited slip differential casing that contains separate chambers, isolated in fluid sealing relationship from one another, and specifically to a sealing arrangement that isolates the lubricant in the differential case from the lubricant in the differential carrier. The manner by which the present invention achieves these goals will become clearer in the specification which follows.
This invention relates to an improved limited slip differential, as employed in the driving mechanism of vehicles, and to a method for providing a limited slip differential that has reduced chattering noise without deteriorating seal integrity.
The invention comprises a lubricant containing rotating case receiving a pair of output shafts for rotating the vehicle wheels, and a side gear, pinion gear and friction plates for each of the output shafts. Power to the output shafts is achieved by the rotating case revolving the pinion gears which in turn rotate the side gears. The rotating case is rotatably disposed within a differential carrier.
The improved feature hereof is the provision of an isolated first chamber defined by the interior of the rotating case, isolated from the chamber defined between the differential case and the carrier, where each chamber bathes selected components within a separate lubricating medium. Specifically, the side gear, pinion gear and friction plates are positioned within a first of the chambers. Fluid seals are provided between each axle and the axle openings in the differential case (trunnions) to isolate the component and lubrication in first chamber from the components and lubrication in the second chamber. By this arrangement, the respective components in the different chambers may be bathed in fluid lubricants specific to the needs and requirements of the components.
In a preferred method, the first chamber containing the friction plates may include a friction modifier, an additive that can be detrimental to lubricant seals associated with and fluid sealing the second chamber. Further, removable means are provided to access and fill the respective chambers.
Accordingly, an object of the invention is the provision of a limited slip differential for vehicle applications, where the differential casing includes at least a pair of fluid seals isolating the first chamber within the differential case from the second chamber between the differential case and the carrier.
Another object hereof is a method of operating a limited slip differential containing different sets of components, where the respective sets are bathed in different fluid lubricants.
Still another object hereof is a convenient, removable means to fill and maintain the respective fluid sealed chambers.
These and other objects of this invention will become more apparent in the description which follows, particularly when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing.

Limited slip differential with self contained oil supply


A method is provided for characterizing a scientific material, such as a silicate material, a polymer material and/or nanomaterial. The method can include the steps of irradiating a measuring light of a predetermined wavelength range into material specimens, recording the measuring light reflected and/or reemitted by the material specimens, determining a ratio depending on the wave lengths of irradiated to detected measuring light (spectrum), and numerical-mathematical processing of spectral data of single material specimens for determining the characteristic features of the material specimens.

In industry, silica gel is traditionally used as adsorbent. It is used to adsorb vapors, e.g., from petrol, benzene, ether, alcohol, from air, e.g., in the celluloid-, silk-, lacquer- and explosives-factories. Silica gel is a good desiccant; it can be used for gases, liquids and even solids can be dried (e.g. in a desiccator), liquids and lipids can be purified and decolorized. Silica gel can be used as a support medium for catalysts, as deodorant, and as drying material, as well as an active ingredient in filtertips for cigarettes. It is also used to coat electrodes in electrochemical cells or accumulators. Other fields of application comprise lacquer, synthetic materials, adhesives, toothpaste, etc.
In chemistry, silica gel is used, e.g., in chromatography as a stationary phase. In column chromatography the stationary phase is most often composed of silica gel particles of 1.5-60 μm. In this application, due to silica gel's polarity, non-polar components tend to elute before more polar ones. Lipophilic groups may be attached to the silica gel surface to produce a reverse phase silica gel which elutes polar components first. Silica gel is also applied to aluminum or plastic sheets for thin layer chromatography. For high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) in the fields of proteomics, metabolomics and phytomics silicate materials are also frequently used. In order to achieve the highest separation efficiencies, the physical properties of silica particles such as particle size, pore volume and surface area play an essential role.
The size of the particles is usually determined by electron microscopy, light scattering or the Coulter-Counter method, the surface area is measured by nitrogen adsorption experiments according to the Brunnauer Emmet Teller (BET) theory, pore sizes and volumes are usually assessed by size exclusion chromatography (SEC).
Nanotechnology is a field of applied science focused on the design, synthesis, characterization and application of materials on the nanoscale, so called nanomaterials. Nowadays nanomaterials play important roles in colloidal science, biology, physics, chemistry and other scientific fields that involve the study of phenomena and manipulation of material at the nanoscale and serve essentially to extend existing sciences into the nanoscale.
Two main approaches exist to produce nanomaterials: one is a "bottom-up" approach where materials are built up atom by atom, the other a "top-down" approach where they are synthesized or constructed by removing existing material from larger entities.
A unique aspect of nanomaterials is the vastly increased ratio of surface area to volume, which opens new possibilities in surface-based science, such as catalysis. This catalytic activity also opens potential risks in their interaction with biomaterials.
The impetus for nanotechnology has stemmed from a renewed interest in colloidal science, coupled with a new generation of analytical tools such as the atomic force microscope (AFM) and the scanning tunneling microscope (STM). Combined with refined processes such as electron beam lithography, these instruments allow the deliberate manipulation of nanostructures.
General fields involved with proper characterization of nanomaterials include physics, chemistry, and biology, as well as mechanical and electrical engineering.
However, due to the inter- and multidisciplinary nature of nanotechnology, subdisciplines such as physical chemistry, materials science, or biomedical engineering are considered significant or essential components of nanotechnology.
The proper characterization of nanomaterials is a dominant concern of nanotechnologists. The atomic force microscope (AFM) and the Scanning Tunneling Microscope (STM) are two early versions of scanning probes that launched nanotechnology. There are other types of scanning probe microscopy, all based on the idea of the STM, that make it possible to see structures at the nanoscale. This is why scanning probe microscopy has become an important technique for the characterization of nanomaterials. However, all these tools are difficult to handle, require a lot of skill and expertise along with a tedious preparation and furthermore are slow and expensive.
Polymer is a term used to describe molecules consisting of structural units and a large number of repeating units connected by covalent chemical bonds. The key feature that distinguishes polymers from other molecules is the repetition of many identical, similar, or complementary molecular subunits in these chains. These subunits, the monomers, are small molecules of low to moderate molecular weight, and are linked to each other during a chemical reaction called polymerization. Instead of being identical, similar monomers can have various chemical substituents. The differences between monomers can affect properties such as solubility, flexibility, and strength.
Although most polymers are organic, with carbon-based monomers, there are also inorganic polymers; for example, the silicones, with a backbone of alternating silicon and oxygen atoms and polyphosphazenes.
Physical properties of polymers include the degree of polymerization, the molar mass distribution, crystallinity, as well as the thermal phase transitions, branching and stereoregularity or tacticity.
Interestingly, polymer substrates are used for everyday banknotes in Australia, Romania, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Zambia, Vietnam, New Zealand and a few others, and the material is also used in commemorative notes in some other countries.
The characterization of a polymer requires several parameters which need to be specified. This is because a polymer actually consists of a statistical distribution of chains of varying lengths, and each chain consists of monomer residues which affect its properties. A variety of lab techniques are usually used to determine the properties of polymers. Techniques such as wide angle X-ray scattering, small angle X-ray scattering, and small angle neutron scattering are used to determine the crystalline structure of polymers. Gel permeation chromatography is used to determine the number average molecular weight, weight average molecular weight, and polydispersity. FTIR, Raman and NMR can be used to determine composition.
However, similarly as for silicate materials and nanomaterials these methods require a complex and expensive instrumentation and a good deal of expertise, time and effort.
Nevertheless, in all these applications, the physicochemical characterization of these scientific materials is of great importance. Only well characterized and optimized materials can be used in demanding fields.
Furthermore, in demanding fields it is oftentimes important to make sure that the scientific materials that are used are continuously from the same source to ensure an excellent reproducibility.

Method for classifying scientific materials such as silicate materials, polymer materials and/or nanomaterials


A process for producing dielectric layers with low dielectric constants by thermal treatment of a sol-gel product of a multifunctional carbosilane, corresponding layers, and their use in the production of electronic components, are described.

Very large-scale integrated microelectronic circuits consist of a plurality of semiconducting elements which are produced by controlled doping and structuring of monocrystalline silicon. These individual semiconductor elements are connected to form a functioning unit by a layer structure, the so-called interconnect, which consists of conductive tracks and the interlayers needed for insulation.
Progressive miniaturisation is placing extreme requirements on the materials that are used. Besides the semiconducting transistors, the properties of the interconnect determine the performance features of these very large-scale integrated microelectronic circuits. These requirements are dictated by the ever-higher clock frequencies and shorter signal propagation times needed for this.
In this case, a high conductance of the conductive-track material and a low dielectric constant of the insulator material are desirable. The miniaturisation of the semiconductor elements and of the interconnect detrimentally affect the component properties. Reducing the conductive-track cross sections increases the resistance of the conductive tracks. The smaller spacing between the conductive tracks, which is filled with insulator material, leads to an electrical interaction between the various conductive tracks and therefore to undesired signal lags. The interactions between the conductive tracks depend to a great extent on the relative permittivity ∈ (the k value) of the insulator material.
Attempts are being made to counteract these technical difficulties by using conductive materials with a higher conductivity and insulator materials with a lower dielectric constant. For instance, the aluminium previously used as a conductive-track material is being successively replaced by copper, which has a higher conductivity.
Silicon dioxide has to date proved useful, in terms of both its electrical properties and its process properties, as an insulator material in the production of very large-scale integrated circuits. The dielectric constant of silicon dioxide is about 4.0. For modern requirements, however, this value is too high. For new chip generations, dielectric materials with k values significantly lower than 3.0, preferably lower than 2.5, are needed.
The value of the relative permittivity (k value) depends strongly on the temperature at which this value is determined. The values indicated here should be understood to be the values obtained when determined at 22° C. and a pressure of 1 bar.
Besides the dielectric constant (the k value), a number of other properties need to be taken into account for the integration of a new material in a semiconductor process as a replacement for silicon dioxide. For example, the dielectric material must be able to withstand high process temperatures of up to 400° C., which are reached during subsequent metallisation and annealing steps. It is furthermore necessary for the layer materials, or their precursors, to be available at a sufficient purity, since impurities, in particular metals, can detrimentally affect the electrical properties of the layer materials.
The dielectric material should be as easy as possible to work with, and it should be possible to apply it as a thin layer by using a standard industrial method, for example, the spin coating method.
Besides organic polymers, silsesquioxanes and carbon-doped silicon dioxide (SiOC) are described as dielectrics with a dielectric constant lower than 3.0.
Organic polymers, as dielectrics with a low dielectric constant, have gained acceptance in technical fabrication. The properties of these polymers, however, lead to significant problems in process integration. For instance, their limited chemical and mechanical stability at elevated temperatures restricts the subsequent process steps. Requisite polishing steps, for example, are optimised for layers that resemble silicon dioxide, and they often do not lead to optimum results on organic polymer layers.
Silsesquioxanes are siliconorganic polymers which are applied as oligomer solutions in spin coating methods and are then thermally crosslinked. WO 98/47944 A1 teaches the use of organosilsesquioxanes to produce layers with k values lower than 2.7. These compounds, however, are obtainable only via elaborate synthesis routes from trialkoxysilanene. U.S. Pat. No. 5,906,859 teaches the application of oligomeric hydridosilsesquioxanes, which are thermally crosslinked to form polymers. Dielectric constants of 2.7–2.9 are achieved with the compounds described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,906,859.
Carbon-doped silicon dioxide is applied from organosilanes in a PE-CVD method (Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapour Deposition) with a reactive oxygen plasma.
Carbon-doped silicon dioxide, because of its silicon dioxide matrix, has similar process properties to silicon dioxide, and it is therefore much easier to integrate in the production process. The dielectric constant of these layers is lowered in relation to silicon dioxide by the carbon content. U.S. Pat. No. 6,054,206 teaches the application of such layers from gaseous organosiloxanes. The high-vacuum plasma CVD process, however, is elaborate and entails high costs. Dielectric constants of 2.7–2.9 are likewise achieved with carbon-doped silicon dioxide layers.
WO 99/55526 A1 also describes the production of dielectric layers by means of a CVD process, preferably a plasma CVD process. Starting from organosilicon precursors, layers are obtained which have a backbone structure of Si—O—Si bonds, with organic side groups being bonded to this structure. The CVD process is preferably carried out in such a way that the backbone has ring-like structures. In particular, cyclic organosiloxanes are suitable as precursors. The layers produced according to the examples have dielectric constants between 2.6 and 3.3.
WO 00/75975 A2 teaches the use of polycarbosilanes, which are applied from a solution and are converted into polyorganosilicon layers with k values lower than 2.5 by heat treatment in discrete steps. The polycarbosilanes that are used are hydridopolycarbosilanes, which contain at least one hydrogen atom bonded to silicon, as well as preferably allyl substituents. Si—H bonds, however, are moisture-sensitive and therefore need to be handled accordingly. The platinum compounds that are used to crosslink Si—H compounds with unsaturated groups are undesirable as metallic impurities. In order to obtain layers with low k values, the heat treatment needs to be carried out under accurately controlled conditions, with the need to comply with various fixed temperature steps.
A more general way of further reducing the dielectric constant, i.e., the k value, of dielectric materials is to introduce pores. The air contained in the pores has a k value of close to 1. If air-filled pores are introduced into a dense material, then the average k value of the material is a combination of the k value of the dense material and partially the k value of air. A reduction of the effective k value is hence achieved. The k value of pure silicon dioxide can in this way be reduced from 4.0 to lower than 2.0, although porosities >90% are needed for this (L. Hrubesch, Mat. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc., 381, (1995), 267). Such a high porosity lowers the mechanical stability and compromises the processability of these layers considerably.
The principle is generally applicable to dense dielectric layers. For layers with lower initial k values, it is possible to achieve k values lower than 2.0 with substantially smaller porosities, which in turn benefits the mechanical stability of the layers.
There is, however, a lack of readily obtainable starting materials that are suitable for the production of dielectric layers in a simple thermal method. The German Patent Specification DE 196 03 241 C1 describes the production of multifunctional organosiloxanes, which are used as crosslinkers in inorganic surface coating agents based on silica sol. After drying, these materials form soft films that are ill-suited as dielectric layer materials and have k values significantly higher than 3.
It has now been found, unexpectedly, that it is also possible to produce dielectric layers with low k values by thermal treatment from sol-gel products of multifunctional carbosilanes, for example compounds which are known from DE 196 03 241 C1. In particular, it is in this case possible to use carbosilanes that do not have any Si—H bonds. This is surprising, in particular, against the background of the teaching of WO 00/75975 A2, which states on page 8, last paragraph, that only polycarbosilanes that contain at least one hydrogen atom bonded to silicon are suitable for the production of corresponding dielectric layers.
After the thermal treatment, the dielectric layers according to the invention resemble carbon-doped silicon dioxide in terms of their composition, and they combine low k values with the advantage of a simple heat treatment.

Process for producing dielectric layers by using multifunctional carbosilanes


Methods of fabricating CMOS transistors are disclosed. A disclosed method includes forming first and second gate patterns on the first and second wells, respectively; forming a sidewall insulating layer over the substrate; forming first lightly doped regions in the first well by NMOS LDD ion implantation; forming a first gate spacer insulating layer over the substrate; forming second lightly doped regions in the second well by PMOS LDD ion implantation; sequentially stacking a spacer insulating layer and a second gate spacer insulating layer on the first gate spacer insulating layer; forming first and second spacers on sidewalls of the first and second gate patterns; and forming first and second heavily doped regions in the first and second wells by NMOS and PMOS source/drain ion implantations, respectively.

Generally, a pitch of a semiconductor device is shortened in accordance with a decreasing design rule, such that a channel length of a transistor is considerably reduced. To accommodate a decrease in the gate length below 0.13 μm, many efforts are being made to research and develop a shallow junction and super steep channel doping. Low energy implantation is currently performed for shallow junctions, which lowers the throughput of the manufacturing process.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional illustration of a prior art CMOS transistor. Referring to FIG. 1, the junction of a deep, sub-micron transistor is formed in the following manner. First, after a gate pattern has been formed, a sidewall oxide layer is deposited to have a thickness of about 20 Å thick.
LDD ion implantation is then performed at a low energy of about 2˜5 KeV to form the shallow junction of a PMOS transistor. Since the ion implantation energy is low, the dopant profile throughput of the equipment is lowered, which reduces the process margin.
Moreover, since the junction is made shallow to suppress lateral diffusion, junction loss in salicidation is increased, which, in turn, increases the drain leakage current of the transistor. Additionally, the transistor process margin is lowered by the short channel effect which is attributable to lateral diffusion of the impurities.
In the case of a PMOS transistor, a halo structure having a higher impurity density than the well is provided in the vicinity of the source/drain to prevent the depletion areas of the source and drain from closely approaching each other in a horizontal direction. As a result, the depletion areas of the source/drain are shortened and the performance of the PMOS transistor is lowered.
Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.

Methods of fabricating semiconductor devices


A method of forming a three-dimensional body from a mixture, wherein the mixture can comprise dispersed solid polymeric particles and a curable binder. In a particular embodiment the solid polymeric particles can be fluoropolymeric particles. The method can include at least partial removal of the cured binder and sintering, to obtain a sintered polymeric three-dimensional body. In one embodiment, the sintered three-dimensional body can be PTFE.

The manufacturing of polymeric three-dimensional bodies based on a layer by layer built up of a radiation curable liquid material has become of increasing interest, especially in view of the enhancement in production speed if a bottom-up technique is employed. One disadvantage of three-dimensional printing is the limited spectrum of curable resins that can be used and the limited material type of formed polymeric bodies. It is desirable to expand the scope of polymer materials that may be formed during 3D printing to a broader spectrum of polymers, such as particularly fluoropolymers, for example, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE).

Method of forming a three-dimensional body

SAINT-GOBAIN PERFORMANCE PLASTICS CORPORATION


Devices and methods for the detection of antigens are disclosed. Devices and methods for detecting food-borne pathogens are disclosed.

Detection of antigens is important for many areas of scientific research, diagnostic use and therapeutic uses. There are several methods by which antigens can be detected. Various methods are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,701, U.S. Pat. No. 5,141,850, PCT Publication WO 91/12336, U.S. Pat. No. 5,451,504, U.S. Pat. No. 5,559,041, European Patent Application No.: 0505636A1, PCT Publication No. WO 88/08534, European Patent Application No. 0284 232A1, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20070020768 and U.S. Pat. No. RE39664. The methods and devices available prior to the present invention may still require improvements in sensitivity or speed at which results can be obtained. These factors can be important where time is of the essence when attempting to determine the presence or absence of an antigen.
In the area of detecting food borne pathogenic contaminants, approximately, seventy-six million people in the United States become afflicted with a food borne illness. Of those seventy-six million, approximately, 325,000 will become violently ill, requiring hospitalization, and approximately 5,000 will die. The majority of food-borne illnesses are causes by Salmonella, E. coli, and Campylobacter costing approximately $35 billion dollars.
Current measures at ensuring a safe food supply involve a combination of local, state and federal authorities as well as an elaborate system of inspectors and surveillance networks. Food manufacturers are held to certain United States Department of Agriculture, United States Food and Drug Administration, and the National Marine Fisheries Service regulations that are enforceable by law. The USDA has created a system of health inspectors that are charged with performing daily meat, produce, and other consumable products inspections made or processed in manufacturing and processing facilities. These inspections involve a detailed statistical analysis to best ensure safety and sterility of food before it reaches the consumer. Moreover, the majority of the meat industry has adopted irradiation techniques to further demonstrate sterility of products. At a lower level, local and municipal health departments work to ensure that local distributors, restaurants, and retailers follow strict guidelines to ensure a safe food supply. However, despite this elaborate network, food-borne infections are still common.
Once an outbreak is strongly suspected, an investigation begins. A search is made for more cases among persons who may have been exposed. The symptoms and time of onset and location of possible cases are determined, and a "case definition" is developed that describes these typical cases. The outbreak is systematically described by time, place, and person. A graph is drawn of the number of people who fell ill on each successive day to show pictorially when it occurred. Calculating the distribution of cases by age and sex shows whom is affected.
Often the causative microbe is not known, so samples of stool or blood must be collected from ill people and sent to the public health laboratory to make a diagnosis. Each collection and sampling can cost upwards of $500 per test and often takes 2-4 days for analysis (CDC "Food-borne Infections").
Prior to the present invention, to identify the food or other source of the outbreak, the investigators first interview a few persons with the most typical cases about exposures they may have had in the few days before they got sick. In this way, certain potential exposures may be excluded while others that are mentioned repeatedly emerge as source possibilities. Combined with other information, such as likely sources for the specific microbe involved, hypotheses are then tested in a formal epidemiologic investigation. The investigators conduct systematic interviews about a list of possible exposures with the ill persons, and with a comparable group of people who are not ill. By comparing how often an exposure is reported by ill people and by well people, investigators can measure the association of the exposure with illness. Using probability statistics, the probability of no association is directly calculated.
As new food-borne problems emerge there is a need for novel devices and methods for detecting food borne pathogens. The present invention provides a device for the detection of antigens, such as antigens from food-borne bacteria, and fulfills the needs of having a device and assay with increased sensitivity and/or speed of detection. The present invention fulfills other needs as well as will be discussed herein.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Device for detection of analytes and uses thereof


Disclosed is a method for obtaining an improved drink, in particular a method for suppressing turbidity and sediment of an acidic drink that contains a peptide when the acidic drink is stored for a long period of time. In a basic method for suppressing turbidity and sediment, pectin and a fatty acid ester emulsifier are added to an acidic drink that contains a peptide. In this connection, it is appropriate that the stabilizers are respectively added in an amount of 1-10% by weight relative to the amount of the peptide. In addition, the pH of the acidic peptide drink is preferably 2.5-5.0; a peptide to be used preferably has a degradation rate of 10% or more and a free amino acid content of 50% or less; and the protein concentration in the drink is preferably 0.1-5.0% by weight.

A peptide which is prepared by making protein to small molecules with a hydrolysis is an excellent nutritional ingredient because it is digested and absorbed rapidly. A peptide has attracted attention as a health food or a food for athlete because it is recognized that the peptide has various physiological effects such as higher recovering effect of muscle wasting and effect of promoting muscle strength. As a form for ingesting peptide, drink form is convenient. In fact, a wide variety of beverages such as lactic acid bacteria beverage, tea-based beverage and sports drink are known. Among them, acidic clear beverage has broad utility and is more favorable because it has pleasant sour taste and clear appearance.
However, there is a problem that an acidic clear beverage containing peptide generates cloudiness and precipitation during long-term storage and that a commercial value of the beverage is reduced. As a method for preventing a generation of cloudiness and precipitation in beverage, using emulsifier has been known (patent document 1), but an effect of dissolving precipitate in the method is insufficient. A method of reducing pH has also been known (patent document 2). Although a solubility of peptide is increased in the method, the method has a taste problem that acidic taste becomes too strong. In addition, using a pectin (patent document 3) shows effect of preventing a generation of precipitation, that is, effect of dispersion and stabilization of dreg component, but this method generates cloudiness and is insufficient for clear beverage.

Method for improving storage stability of protein drink


An electro-optical device includes, above a substrate, a plurality of data lines and a plurality of scanning lines that cross each other, a plurality of pixel electrodes that are provided so as to correspond to intersections between the plurality of data lines and the plurality of scanning lines, and transistors, each of which is electrically connected to the pixel electrode and has an LDD structure. Further, each of the transistors has a semiconductor layer in which an impurity region is formed around a channel region, the impurity region having a heavily doped region and a lightly doped region whose impurity concentrations are different from each other, a first gate electrode that is formed on the channel region so as not to overlap the lightly doped region in plan view, and a second gate electrode that is electrically connected to the first gate electrode and that is formed on the first gate electrode so as to cover the lightly doped region in plan view.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an electro-optical device, such as a liquid crystal device in which a driving transistor having a lightly-doped drain (LDD) structure is provided in a pixel portion, to a method of manufacturing an electro-optical device, and to an electronic apparatus including an electro-optical device.
2. Related Art
In general, in electro-optical devices, in order that an on current is suppressed from being decreased at the time of performing inversion control of liquid crystal in pixel portions and an off current is decreased, a thin-film transistor having an LDD structure is formed in each of the pixel portions. According to this LDD structure, a gate electrode is used as a mask, and regions whose impurity concentrations are different from each other are formed in a semiconductor layer.
Further, JP-A-2002-368125 discloses a semiconductor device, such as a static random access memory (SRAM), including gate electrodes having a plurality of layers having the same width.
In a liquid crystal device that is an example of an electro-optical device, light that is emitted from a light source, such as a backlight and the like, is irradiated onto a pixel region that forms an image display region. This light has high directivity and strong intensity. Accordingly, when the light is irradiated onto a semiconductor included in a transistor having an LDD, a light leakage current may be generated, and thus an image display defect, such as a flicker, may easily occur. In a lightly doped region of the semiconductor layer where impurities are doped with a relatively lower density than the other regions, a light leakage current may be easily generated, and it is difficult for the lightly doped region to be sufficiently shielded from the light by only a light-shielding unit, such as a light-shielding film or the like.
In this case, a method of shielding light by a gate electrode is also considered. However, due to the restriction of manufacturing processes when the LDD structure is manufactured and the restriction of an electrode structure of a gate electrode, it is difficult for the lightly doped region to be sufficiently shielded from the light. For example, when an electrode structure of a gate electrode disclosed in JP-A-2002-368125 is applied to the transistor having the LDD structure, since a plurality of layers forming the gate electrode have the same width, it is not possible to shield from light the lightly doped region not overlapping the gate electrode in plan view, from the design viewpoint of the LDD structure and the manufacturing processes.

Electro-optical device, method of manufacturing electro-optical device, and electronic apparatus


Tissue markers, systems for marking tissue, and methods of using tissue markers. A tissue marker may have a body with a first surface and a second surface, a plurality of coupling sites, and a plurality of elongate members. The tissue marker may include a remotely visible material. The tissue marker may have a delivery configuration that is different from a deployed configuration.

It is often desirable to mark tissue with a marker so that it can later be identified. For example, tissue may be sampled by performing a biopsy to remove a small portion of the tissue. If the biopsy site is marked, the marker may later be used to guide a doctor or health care professional in returning to the site of the biopsy, should further medical procedures need to be performed at this site. For example, tissue (including small masses or microcalcifications) is sometimes completely removed by procedures such as stereotactic core biopsy. Often during these procedures, a metal clip is employed through the biopsy needle to mark the target. Should another procedure be required in the same area (e.g. a further excision or biopsy), the metal clip acts as a marker to aid in re-identification of the target or target region. The marker may also be used to confirm that the biopsied site matches the intended target.
Unfortunately, there are many problems with currently available markers such as the metal clips mentioned above. In particular, markers such as metal clips may move (or migrate) from the correct or initial position. Furthermore, the size and shape of these metal clips or other markers is limited because they must typically fit within the small diameter of a delivery needle. Finally, there may be problems identifying the marker once it has been inserted.
Migration of tissue markers is a well-described phenomenon, which can cause serious problems with patient treatment. Migration may occur immediately after insertion, or it may occur some time after insertion, and may have many causes. One common cause of clip migration occurs when the tissue (e.g., breast tissue) re-expands after compression or pressure on the tissue is released, for example, when the biopsy procedure is completed. This may be referred to as the "accordion effect." Markers may also be displaced after being inserted into the tissue by formation of a hematoma, because the marker (particularly smaller markers) may "float" within the hematoma.
Most currently available tissue markers are also limited to visualization (or localization) by a single imaging modality. For example, metal clip markers may be radioopaque and therefore visible by X-ray based modalities, but may not be visualized by ultrasound or other modalities. Furthermore, imaging of a tissue marker may also be limited by the size or shape of the marker, because the size and shape of most currently available markers are constrained by the insertion mechanism. For example, markers that are inserted through a biopsy needle generally have a cross-sectional dimension that is smaller than the diameter of the biopsy needle even after they have been inserted into the body.
Exemplary tissue markers have been described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,228,055 to Foerster et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,261,243 to Burney et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,350,244 to Fisher, U.S. Pat. No. 6,234,177 to Barsch, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,371,904 to Sirimanne et al. Each of these references is incorporated in its entirety herein. However, none of these devices adequately addresses all of the concerns described above.
Applicants have recognized that it would be desirable to provide a relatively large tissue marker that is deliverable in a smaller profile sheath, embodiments of which are described herein along with methods of making same.


A mold closing unit for an injection molding machine for processing plastics and other compounds that can be plasticized, including at least one machine bed, at least one stationary platen, and at least one platen that can be moved relative to the stationary platen by a drive mechanism, where the movable platen can be moved on a slide having guide shoes along at least one guide attached to the machine bed, and the drive mechanism has at least one gear rack drive driven by at least one drive motor, whereby, because at least two gear racks are fixedly connected to the machine bed and because the drive motor is fixedly connected to the slide and, in the event of a movement of the movable platen, the occurrence of tilting torques are reduced and safe operation of the mold closing unit is ensured.

In order to open the mold closing unit of an injection molding machine following an injection molding procedure or to close it before an injection molding procedure, at least one of the mold mounting plates must be moved. In order to keep the dead time of the injection molding machine as short as possible and thus to obtain a sufficient degree of productivity, a rapid opening and closing of the mold closing unit is desirable. Since, however, mold mounting plates have a large weight, depending upon the size of the injection molding machine, they must be moved very carefully and meticulously since otherwise a parallel mold closure of the two mold mounting plates during closure of the mold closing unit is not assured and as a consequence a poor injection molding result and damage to the injection molding machine can occur. Often, the introduction of the closing and opening forces is additionally achieved with diagonally arranged hydraulic cylinders, which results in a restricted access to the mold mounting plate region. Furthermore, due to the large weight of the mold mounting plates, tilting moments of the movable mold mounting plate can arise and this can have the result that the two mold mounting plates do not close parallel, but tilted.
From US 2006/0263471 A1, a mold clamping unit suitable for injection molding machines is known, which comprises a stationary mold clamping plate and a movable mold clamping plate movably arranged on a machine bed. A rack and pinion drive is provided as a drive mechanism for moving the movable mold clamping plate for opening and closing the mold clamping unit. Two racks are fixedly connected to the machine bed for this purpose, the drive motor for the rack drive is fixedly connected to the carriage on which the movable mold clamping platen is arranged, so that when the mold clamping platen moves, the drive motor moves synchronously with the movable mold clamping platen in the same direction.
A clamping unit for an injection molding machine with a movable mold mounting plate and a stationary mold mounting plate is known from DE 203 17 114 U1. The movable mold mounting plate is guided on a guideway. The movable mold mounting plate is moved by a drive. The guideway is designed as a linear guideway which prevents the mold mounting plate from tilting from its vertical position. The drive is located beneath the movable mold mounting plate.
From EP 0 427 438 B1, there is known a drive arrangement for an injection molding machine in which, on at least one of the mold plates, a drive unit in the form of a linear drive unit with at least one motor, at least one gearwheel set driven by the motor and a toothed rack is provided. The toothed rack is driven with the aid of the motor and the gearwheel set, whereby the gearwheels and at least a part of the toothed rack are arranged within a housing.
From WO 2016/202509 A1, there is known a toggle lever closing unit for an injection molding machine. A movable cross-head is in operative connection, by means of a toggle lever, with a movable mold mounting plate. The cross-head is moved with the aid of electrical drives such as a toothed rack drive. Furthermore, in addition to the electrical drives, at least one hydraulic drive is provided which is in operative connection with the cross-head and with which a movement of the cross-head along the machine longitudinal axis is possible, wherein the hydraulic drive comprises a piston-cylinder system. In order to move the movable mold mounting plate, the electrical and/or the hydraulic drive can be used.
An injection molding machine with a bar pulling device is known from EP 2 228 192 A1. The bar pulling device has an electric motor drive, for example, a toothed rack drive which is coupled via a gearing device to at least one pullable bar, so that a movable mold mounting plate is displaceably guided during the mold opening and closing movement.
An injection molding machine comprising an injection unit and a closing unit is disclosed in DE 10 2008 051 300 B3. Therein the injection unit is fixed in place and the closing unit is movable relative to the injection unit. Hereby, the complete closing unit is moved relative to the injection unit, which is advantageous for application cases in which a comparatively large injection unit cooperates with a comparatively small closing unit. Within the closing unit, a movable mold mounting plate is moved cyclically by means of a toothed rack drive in that a driven gearwheel engages in a toothed rack mounted on the movable mold mounting plate.
From DE 102 29 060 B4, there is known a closing device for an injection molding machine, wherein the movable mold half of the injection molding tool (injection mold) is advanced by means of a toothed rack drive to the second, fixed mold half, wherein at a particular spacing between the movable mold half and the fixed mold half, a magnetic field is switched on within the fixed mold half and so attracts a magnet which is mounted within the movable mold half by a magnetic force and thus completely closes the two mold halves. The toothed rack drive comprises a toothed rack mounted on the machine bed and a drive motor for a gearwheel engaging in the toothed rack, said motor being movable with the movable mold half.
From EP 1 277 559 B1, there is known a mold closing unit for a plastics injection molding machine in which threads for threaded nuts are provided on the four force transmitting bars, said threaded nuts being actuated together by means of a belt drive to apply the closing force. In order to transfer the mold halves of the injection mold into and out of mold closure, the threaded nuts are decoupled from the thread so that an axial movement of the movable mold carrier, for example, by means of a toothed rack system (FIGS. 11, 12), is possible. The electric motor driving the gearwheel which cooperates with the toothed rack is fastened to the movable mold carrier. For the decoupling and coupling of the threaded nuts, additional mechanisms, and therefore also actuating times, are necessary.
From DE 295 16 559 U1 there is known an injection molding machine with a motor housing which is accommodated between a plurality of toothed racks and in which motors for a mold closing device are accommodated. The motor housing is moved together with the movable mold carrier in that the motors drive gearwheels which mesh with the toothed racks mounted on the force transmitting elements.
From DE 44 03 079 C1 there is known a mold closing device for an injection molding machine with linear roller bearings for a movable mold carrier. Guideways and the movable mold carrier can be aligned to one another by means of an adjusting device.
In all the prior art solutions, a movable mold mounting plate is moved relative to a stationary mold mounting plate for opening or for closing the mold closing unit. As a rule, mold mounting plates have a large mass which severely loads the drives. As the mold mounting plates move, tilting moments can arise during operation of the injection molding machine, in particular during displacement of the mold mounting plates. As a consequence of the resultant forces, a parallel mold closure and parallel movement of the mold mounting plates during closing/opening of the mold closing unit is not assured.
Furthermore, damage to the mold closing unit, the mold mounting plates, the drive and the entire injection molding machine can result from the tilting moments. This is all the more the case if, in place of the market-typical hydraulic cylinders or spindle systems arranged diagonally and therefore usually symmetrically, drive systems arranged asymmetrically, for example, in the machine frame are used, which ensure easier access to the mold clamping space.

Mold closing unit for an injection molding machine


The present invention relates to a method of designing or optimizing a control surface for use with plasma actuators for controlling an aircraft, missile, munition or automobile, and more particularly to controlling fluid flow across their surfaces or other surfaces using plasma actuators, which would benefit from such a method. The various embodiments provide the steps to increase the efficiency of aircraft, missiles, munitions and automobiles. The method of flow control also provides a means for reducing aircraft, missile's, munition's and automobile's power requirements. These methods also provide alternate means for aerodynamic control using low-power hingeless plasma actuator devices.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of controlling aircraft, missile, munition or automobiles with plasma actuators, and more particularly to controlling fluid flow across their surfaces, or other surfaces that would benefit from such a method. The present invention is also a method of designing an aerodynamic surface by introducing geometric features which when used in conjunction with a plasma actuator improve the performance of the surface and enable the use of a plasma actuator for aerodynamic and flight control.
2. Technical Background
Traditionally aircraft, missiles, munitions or automobiles use some type of control surfaces to control aerodynamic stability and/or maneuverability during operation. For example, high-lift systems play an important role in the design of aircraft. The wings on most modern-day aircraft are equipped with high-lift systems that are generally in the form of moveable leading-edge slats and trailing-edge flaps. These devices have been shown to enhance the aerodynamic performance of air vehicles through improvements in the coefficient of lift, lift to drag ratio, and stall-angle. Advantages of such "performance-enhancing" devices include improvements in maneuverability, turn rates, glide range and payload, and reductions in takeoff/landing distances and field length requirements. Other traditional control surfaces in the aerospace application include ailerons, rudders, elevators and elerons. Similarly, examples of traditional control surfaces for missiles/munitions include canards, fins and other body extensions, and for automobiles, front and rear spoilers, inlets, and other body extensions.
While the benefits of these conventional control surfaces are well documented, it is also known that the use of moveable control surfaces increase airframe noise and vibration, particularly at high deflection angles. With these types of surfaces, most of the noise originates from the separated flow in the gap or hinge regions, which contribute to the drag component of the viscous or pressure drag on the control surface. At off-design conditions, the drag penalty from these traditional control surfaces is very high. For example, by some estimates used in wing and tail design, eliminating the hinge gaps would result in a 10% drag decrease. In addition, for military applications, the hinge gap is a source of radar wave reflection resulting in a more detectable radar image. Another significant drawback with traditional moving control surfaces is that motors or pneumatics are required for their operation, which adds volume, weight, and cost to aircraft using these types of systems.
In a relentless pursuit to reduce aerodynamic drag, aircraft designers are continuously researching technologies that aim to optimize airfoil shapes to obtain the lowest possible drag during cruise. In 1970s, NASA developed the Natural Laminar Flow (NLF) airfoil series based on computer optimization techniques which improved lift-to-drag (L/D) ratio of airfoils by maintaining laminar flow up to 50% chord. A general feature of NLF airfoils is that the surface pressures remain nearly constant over a significant portion of the airfoil surface, and the profile of the aft pressure recovery region generally attempts to assume a shape that keeps the boundary layer on the verge of separation (zero-wall-shear). Also, in the late 60s and early 70s, the USAF developed a program called "Controlled Configured Vehicles" (CCV) that focused on integrating aerodynamic control surfaces, flow sensors, and automatic control for flight performance and control improvements. This program was successful in showing how this technology could be used to control wing loading during encounters with turbulence, expanding the flutter boundaries, reducing wing weight, and benefits of reduced static stability. This program played a significant role in the designs of present USAF aircraft. The proposed program seeks to achieve similar revolutionary changes in the design of future aircraft surfaces by incorporating advanced flow control technology with conventional and morphing wings.
Adaptive surfaces have been employed on aircraft for effectively changing the leading- and trailing-edge cambers in flight. This has been shown to eliminate sudden pressure jumps due to discontinuous surfaces such as slats and flaps on the wing. Recently, it was shown that the variable camber trailing edge can prevent roll reversal from occurring at flight speeds where the traditional ailerons are no longer effective. While morphing technology has shown the potential to greatly increase the capability of aerodynamic systems. Adapting the wing shape in flight by changing its camber, span, area, sweep angle or twist, would enable an aircraft to radically expanding its flight envelope.
The USAF-Mission Adaptive Wing program demonstrated the advantages of the morphing camber concept. However, one of the major challenges faced by researchers designing a morphing vehicle is the integration of the morphing mechanism into the wing structure along with the use of efficient actuation devices. It is desired to enhance the extent of flow control over an adaptive wing while relaxing some of the power and magnitude requirements for wing articulation.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages of the presently available and conventional moving control surfaces, it is desirable to formalize a method for optimally shaping flow control surfaces for missiles, aircraft, munitions and automobiles, for use with flow control actuators without compromising baseline aerodynamic performance. In addition, it intends to formalize a method for optimally placing flow control actuators, especially plasma actuators on such shapes to maximize a metric of merit such as lift control or reduced drag.

Plasma optimized aerostructures for efficient flow control


An image-information transmission method comprises a step prior to the transmission of image-information to be transmitted to another party destination, for scanning one portion of a transmission original at a predetermined line-density, and reading one portion of the image-information. Then it judges an optimum scanning line-density on the basis of the one portion of image-information that has been read, determines a transmission line-density of transmission image information, on the basis of the judged optimum scan line-density and information posted from an other party destination connected via circuit connected. An image-information transmission method transmits at the determined transmission line-density, of image-information scanned and read from the transmission original.

The present invention relates to a control method for a facsimile apparatus, and more particularly, to a method for controling a read mode for originals to be transmitted.
Normally, a group III facsimile apparatus performs control for the degree of redundancy suppression coding, and can transmit an A4 size original in approximately one minute. These group III facsimile apparatus have two types of read modes for originals. One of these read modes is a mode having a standard line resolution, and the other mode is a high resolution mode that has the line density in the direction of secondary scan set at twice that of the standard line resolution. When there is transmission, the read mode is set by the user on the transmission side.
In general, the high resolution mode is chosen when the contents of the image recorded on the original has fine characters for graphics; the standard line resolution mode is chosen for handwritten originals and the like. However, users unfamiliar with the operation of facsimile apparatus often use the same read mode indiscriminately.
The conventional method is to have the read mode for the original set by user operation on the side of transmission. Because of this, an image that should be read in the high resolution mode is sometimes read in the standard resolution mode, and sent. Further, some images may be sent in high resolution mode when standard mode is sufficient and this presents the problem that the transmission mode becomes unnecessarily long.

Image-information transmission method and its control circuit


A plug for sealing an aperture in a brake actuator housing is provided that provides improvements in installation and retention of the plug and protection for sealing surfaces. The plug includes a retention member including a body defining an aperture configured for alignment with the actuator housing aperture along an axis extending through the apertures. The retention member further includes a plurality of alignment tabs extending radially from the body. The tabs are configured to be received within a plurality of notches formed in a retaining ring affixed to the housing when the retention member is disposed in an unlocked position and configured to be disposed on a first side of the retaining ring when the retention member is rotated about the axis to a locked position. The plug further includes a seal configured to be received within the aperture in the body. The seal closes the second aperture.

a. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to vehicle brakes. In particular, the invention relates to a plug for sealing an aperture in a brake actuator.
b. Background Art
Conventional spring-based brake actuators typically include one or more apertures in the housing of the actuator to provide access to components within the housing. For example, an actuator housing will often include an aperture permitting access to a parking brake chamber in order to permit manual release of the parking brake. Brake actuator components may degrade over time from fluids and other contaminants that enter the actuator housing through such apertures. In order to address this issue, some brake actuators employ vent holes to permit contaminants to escape from the housing. Other brake actuators attempt to seal apertures in the housing to prevent contaminants from entering the housing. These latter actuators frequently employ a dust plug that is inserted in the aperture when the aperture is not in use. Conventional dust plugs, however, are frequently discarded by vehicle operators and maintenance personnel following removal of the dust plug because they can be difficult to reinstall. Further, if an individual does reinstall the dust plug, the dust plugs is often installed incorrectly. Conventional dust plugs are also subject to displacement by vibration during normal vehicle operation.
The inventor herein has recognized a need for a plug for sealing an aperture in a brake housing that will address one or more of the above-identified deficiencies.

Plug retention system for a brake actuator


A processor implemented method of configuring an application on a mobile device comprising a code reading device is disclosed herein. The method comprises: reading a code with the code reading device, the code relating to an organization; and configuring at least one parameter of a first application of the mobile device based on the code.

When configuring applications of a mobile device, a user is generally required to configure certain parameters of the applications. For example, the user may be required to enter a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) of a portal associated with an organization into the browser of the mobile device. In some cases, the URL may be different than the URL of the main webpage of the organization. Alternatively, the user may be required to configure one or more applications by sending particular values of one or more parameters of the application.
The above information is presented as background information only to assist with an understanding of the present disclosure. No determination has been made, and no assertion is made, as to whether any of the above might be applicable as prior art with regard to the present invention.

Code based configuration of mobile devices


Methods for determining multiplex patterns are provided. More particularly, a multidimensional data structure is used to store multiplex patterns and indexes used to access individual ones of those patterns based on audio channel selection, audio frame size, and what other media channels have frames pending. For example, when using a single audio channel, a two-dimensional look-up table maybe used to store multiplex patterns wherein one index is the audio frame size and the other index is an encoded value formed from bits representing whether any frames are pending for other corresponding media channels.

The present invention relates to communication standards for multimedia communication systems. More particularly, the present invention relates to methods for determining multiplex patterns in a third generation (3G) mobile communication system.
In recent years, much excitement has developed regarding the prospects for mobile communication systems with multimedia capability. For example, there is a great deal of public interest in the notion of a mobile telephone capable of transmitting and receiving both video and audio in real time—i.e., a mobile videophone.
The 3G-324M specification has been adopted to support real-time streaming of multimedia broadband wireless communication. The 3G-324M standard is a derivative of the ITU H.324 standard. The 3G-324M and ITU H.324 standards are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.
Within 3G-324M, various media streams may be defined. For example, such streams could include audio, video, data, speech, and control signals. In order to transmit these various media streams over a single transmission channel, 3G-324M uses the ITU-T H.223 multiplexing protocol. The ITU-T H.223 multiplexing protocol is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. H.223's basic function is to interleave the various media streams for transmission. Within this protocol, multiple multimedia packets are assembled into a single bit stream in accordance with a selected one of 16 available multiplex patterns.
In order to select the best one of the 16 available multiplex patterns, the H.324 and 3G-324M stacks loop over all the multiplex patterns and check which one fits the needs of the current frame being sent on the logical channels. This solution is problematic, however, in that it is overly complex and time consuming to loop through all of the multiplex patterns.
Thus, it is desirable to provide methods for determining multiplex patterns that do not loop through all available patterns.


A refrigerant cycle is provided with a compressor system, capable of simultaneously delivering refrigerant to multiple condensers operating at different temperature levels. A single evaporator communicates with these condensers. One of the condensers receives fully compressed refrigerant while the others receives refrigerant at an intermediate pressure. A control can optionally direct refrigerant to only one of these condensers to achieve desired heat rejection and other operational characteristics. Various system configurations with multiple compressors and condensers are also disclosed.

This application relates to a refrigerant cycle having a common evaporator, but separate condensers, where one of the condensers is connected to an intermediate pressure compression stage, while the other condenser is connected to the high pressure compression stage.
Refrigerant cycles are utilized in applications to change the temperature and humidity or otherwise condition the environment. In a standard refrigerant system, a compressor delivers a compressed refrigerant to a heat exchanger, known as a condenser, which is typically located outside. From the condenser, the refrigerant passes through an expansion device, and then to an indoor heat exchanger known as an evaporator. At the evaporator, moisture may be removed from the air, and the temperature of air blown over the evaporator coil is lowered. From the evaporator, the refrigerant returns to the compressor. Of course, basic refrigerant cycles are utilized in combination with many configuration variations and optional features. However, the above provides a brief understanding of the fundamental concept.
Refrigerant cycles are known, wherein a so-called economizer circuit is incorporated. In an economizer circuit, a first refrigerant line is tapped from a main refrigerant line downstream of the condenser. The tapped refrigerant line is passed through an expansion device, and then the tapped refrigerant and the main refrigerant both flow through an economizer heat exchanger. The tapped refrigerant subcools the main refrigerant, such that when the main refrigerant reaches an evaporator, it will have a greater cooling potential. The tapped refrigerant, having subcooled the main refrigerant, is returned to the compressor at an intermediate compression point.
The present invention redirects the flow of refrigerant from an intermediate compression point in a compressor to selectively provide refrigerant to at least one of a plurality of condensers, where each of the condensers operate at different temperature levels. In this manner, the heat rejection characteristics of the refrigerant cycle can be controlled to provide a variety of options to a refrigerant cycle designer and to satisfy a wide spectrum of applications.

Refrigerant cycle with plural condensers receiving refrigerant at different pressure


A movable contact bridge of a molded case limiting circuit breaker is supported by a bar by a system of springs enabling opening with electrodynamic repulsion. The contact bridge cooperates with stationary contacts rigidly secured to current input conductors in the shape of half-loops. An anvil is adjoined to the rear of the stationary contacts to increase the closing impact effect of the contact bridge and prevent contact resistance dispersions. The anvil is made of ferromagnetic material increase the magnetic field for blowout of the arc to the extinguishing chambers.

The invention relates to a molded case low-voltage limiting circuit breaker comprising a rotary contact bridge, a pair of stationary contacts cooperating with said contact bridge, a conductor for current input to each of the stationary contacts extending in the plane of movement of the contact bridge and shaped to form with the contact bridge a looped trajectory to generate electrodynamic repelling forces, a bar having a transverse opening in which there is located the central part of the contact bridge with a freedom of rotation in the opening direction due to the action of the electrodynamic forces against an elastic force providing the contact pressure, the current input conductor being arranged as a half-loop having a first and a second parallel strand spaced apart, the first strand bearing a stationary contact part.
The current limiting effect by a circuit breaker of the kind referred to depends on the speed of opening of the contacts. Regardless of the operating mechanism, this speed of opening depends on the intensity of the electrodynamic repelling forces and on the weight of the mobile assembly, i.e. the contact bridge. The small weight of the mobile contact bridge presents an unfavorable effect on closing of the circuit breaker. The contact resistance, and therefore the temperature rise, is greater. Moreover, the dispersion of the contact resistances is much greater. Correct operation of the circuit breaker can be affected by these increased dispersion and resistance phenomena and object of the present invention is to enable an improved contact device to be achieved.
According to the document EP-A-28740, a magnetic circuit presents a transverse part having a small thickness with respect to the air-gap separating the central part from the bottom strand of the current input conductor. This part of the magnetic current presents a certain flexibility liable to give rise to bouncing of the movable contact on the stationary contact, when the weight of the movable contact is small.
According to the document DE-B-1,227,978, an insulating shim is inserted without clearance between the two strands of the current input conductor. This shim does not rest on any stop of the case.


An aquarium accessory includes a clear dome which is set in place on the habitat floor. The dome has a side opening and at least one top orifice. Air from an aeration system bubbles into the dome through a floor opening, thus creating a dry zone in the dome. Amphibious animals can enter the dry zone and satisfy their need to leave the water periodically, while being confined within the aquarium and remaining fully visible to observers. Air escapes through the top orifice, enabling constant air exchange within the dome. Dry zone volume is varied by adjusting air flow from the aeration system. The dome includes an outwardly projecting flange which enables aquarium gravel to anchor the dome within the aquarium. The flange includes perforations sustaining water circulation, as for filtration, within the aquarium.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an accessory for modifying the habitat of an aquarium, comprising an air filled dome providing an area having an air environment beneath water.
2. Description of the Prior Art
An owner of an aquarium frequently maintains amphibious animals, such as crustaceans, alive and on display in his or her aquarium. Such animals by nature periodically leave the water and remain on dry land. To satisfy this need, the animal may wander, and eventually escape the aquarium. Concurrently, the owner enjoys observing the animal, which observation may be obscured by water movement. Alternatively, observation of the animal on dry land may be rendered impossible for lack of a suitable dry area within the aquarium.
The closest prior art in this field has generally sought to juxtapose an aquarium and a terrarium. Examples are seen in U.S. Pat. No. 3,269,5578, issued to Robert B. Lewis on Aug. 30, 1966, U.S. Pat. No. 4,958,593, issued to James P. Hurlburt et al. on Sep. 25, 1990, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,056,463, issued to James F. Wilkins et al. on Oct. 15, 1991. Hurlburt et al. discloses an enclosed terrarium submerged within the water of an aquarium. Wilkins et al. provide a terrarium partially submerged in aquarium water, and open to and communicating with open atmosphere above the aquarium.
An aquarium comprising a dome open at the top and a peripheral base comprising an outwardly projecting flange is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 231,677, issued to Robert Erik Miller on May 21, 1974.
Inflatable domes are seen in U.S Pat. No. 3,121,975, issued to Eugene E. Duhamel on Feb. 25, 1964, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,939,607, issued to Donald Spector on Feb. 24, 1976.
An early example of a dome mounted on a radially outwardly projected flange is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 660,782, issued to Oscar Strumpell on Oct. 30, 1900. Strumpell includes a hole in the dome to facilitate filling, as with liquid. This hole is subsequently filled with a cement plug.
The prior art does not afford amphibious animals ready entry to and egress from a dry area of an aquarium, this dry are being submerged under aquarium water. None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention, which provides the above mentioned advantages, as claimed.

Aquarium having submerged dry display area


The magnetic recording medium includes a nonmagnetic substrate having different values of surface tension corresponding to surface free energy in a predetermined magnetic recording direction and in the direction substantially perpendicular thereto, a magnetic film epitaxially grown on the nonmagnetic substrate, and a protective film on the magnetic film. The surface of the nonmagnetic substrate is provided with irregular surfaces having gradients of 45 degrees .+-.10 degrees relative to the substrate surface. The magnetic film has a main component of an easy axis of magnetization in the magnetic recording direction. The hydrogen peroxide aqueous solution and nitric acid used for the surface treatment of the substrate affect differently the critical surface tension. The partial nonmetal layer can be partially worked to provide textures extending in the magnetic recording direction. The nonmagnetic substrate and the magnetic film are respectively made of substantially nickel-phosphorus and cobalt, and the partial nonmetal layer is made of carbon.

This invention relates to a magnetic recording medium for use in a magnetic storage unit, a method for producing the same and a magnetic recording apparatus using the same.
A thin film magnetic recording medium of large residual magnetization for increasing the recording density of magnetic disks has become the object of public attention in place of the conventional widely-used magnetic recording medium having a coated film of magnetic power and binder mixed.
The thin film magnetic disk having a magnetic thin film is generally produced by sputtering a nonmagnetic metal layer on a nonmagnetic substrate, sputtering a magnetic film on the nonmagnetic metal layer and forming a protective film and, if necessary, a lubricant film on the magnetic film. In this case, the nonmagnetic metal layer is sometimes omitted.
Magnetic disks having large residual magnetic flux and a high recording density capability are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,735,840 and Japanese Patent Laid-open Gazettes JP-A-63-98826 and JP-A-1-220217.
The above prior art does not consider the magnetic recording medium having in-surface magnetic anisotropy, and does not make the production method clear.

Magnetic recording medium, method for producing same and magnetic recording apparatus


A convertible automobile has a two-part foldable hard top which can be lowered into a storage area at the rear. The roof part and the rear part are releasably connected with one another in the vicinity of their common contact edge by a sealing arrangement. A separate drive mechanism is provided for the roof part as well as for the rear part. Both drive mechanisms are controllable independently of one another.

This application claims the priority of German application 196 35 536.2, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.
The present invention relates to a removable roof structure for an open automobile, the structure having a dimensionally stable roof part and a dimensionally stable rear part. The roof structure is lowerable into a storage area behind the front seats of the passenger compartment, with the rear part having a rear window as well as two C-pillar sections.
The Mercedes-Benz SLK Roadster provides a convertible automobile with a two-part hard top, consisting of a roof part and a rear part. The roof part and the rear part are connected with one another in a pivotably movable fashion. The entire roof structure in the form of a hard top is foldable and lowerable into a storage area behind the passenger compartment. The C-pillar sections and rear window of the roof structure are integrated in the rear. The roof structure formed by the two-part hard top is thus located either in its closed functional position or in its open resting position, in which the hard top is folded and lowered in the storage area.
An object of the present invention is to provide an improved roof structure of a convertible automobile which ensures a greater number of different opening states for the passenger compartment.
This object has been achieved according to the present invention by releasably connecting the roof part and the rear part with one another in the vicinity of their common joining edges by a latching device. Independent drive mechanisms are provided for both the roof part and the rear part, with both drive mechanisms being controllable independently of one another.
The separate release of the rear part from the roof part has the advantage of making possible movement of the rear part into its lowered resting position independently of the roof part, thus creating a landaulet while the roof part is still closed. By additionally lowering the roof part, a completely open convertible can be created. Depending on the configuration of the drive mechanisms, a "Targa roof" can be achieved with the concept according to the present invention, in which the rear part remains in its closed functional position and only the roof part, conceivably as a result of a brief raising of the rear part, is lowered into the storage area.
In one advantageous embodiment of the present invention, the drive mechanism for the rear part has lever kinematics for rotating the rear part into a resting position and lowering the rear part in which the rear window of the rear part is at the bottom and the C-pillar sections of the rear part are aligned so that they project upward. As a result, in its lowered resting position, the rear part has the shape of a receiving shell within which the roof part can be accommodated with economy of space.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the drive mechanism for the roof part has a parallelogram linkage with which the roof part can be lowered onto the rear part between the C-pillar sections. The provision of a parallelogram linkage constitutes a simple yet functionally reliable configuration.


A barrier metal layer comprises a titanium film having a surface nitrided and modified by a nitrogen compound containing nitrogen atoms, and a titanium nitride film formed on a surface of the titanium film. The titanium film and titanium nitride film are interposed between a base layer, or a lower layer of a semiconductor device, and a metal film or an upper layer of the semiconductor device. A method of forming a barrier metal layer comprises the steps of forming a titanium film on an entire surface of an insulating layer including an inner wall of a hole, which hole is formed in a predetermined portion of the insulating layer to electrically connect a lower wiring layer and an upper wiring layer constituting a multilevel inter-connection structure of a semiconductor device, the upper wiring layer being provided on the insulating layer, the insulating layer being deposited on the lower wiring layer, the hole being formed to reach the lower wiring layer, and also forming the titanium film on a surface of the lower wiring layer exposed to a bottom of the hole, nitriding and modifying the titanium film by exposing the titanium film in an atmosphere of a nitrogen compound containing nitrogen atoms, and forming a titanium nitride film on the modified titanium film, the upper wiring layer being deposited on the titanium nitride layer.

The present invention relates to a barrier metal layer provided in a contact hole, a via hole, etc. formed in a semiconductor device and a method of forming the barrier metal layer.
Recently, semiconductor devices generally tend to adopt a multilevel interconnection structure as a circuit structure thereof, with an increasing demand for higher integration density. In the multilevel interconnection structure, a filling technique for filling a contact hole formed in a connection portion between a lower-level device and a higher-level wiring layer or a via hole formed in a connection portion between a lower-level wiring layer and a higher-level wiring layer is very important in order to ensure electrical connection between the wiring layer and device or between the wiring layers.
An aluminum alloy or a tungsten alloy is used as a filling material to be filled in the contact hole or via hole. If such an alloy is put in direct contact with an underlying silicon substrate or an aluminum wiring layer, a new alloy will form at the contact region (electrical connection region) due to a sucking effect of aluminum, etc. An increase in electric resistance in the electrical connection region due to the formation of the new alloy prevents a reduction in power consumption and an increase in operational speed, which are required in state-of-the-art semiconductor devices. In addition, WF.sub.6 gas, which is one of process gases used in filling the hole with a tungsten alloy, enters the Si substrate and degrades the electrical characteristics, etc. of the Si substrate.
In general, in order to solve the above problems, a thin barrier metal layer of TiN (titanium nitride), etc. is provided on the entire walls of the contact hole or via hole before the aluminum alloy or tungsten alloy is filled in the hole. Then, an aluminum alloy, etc. is deposited on the barrier metal layer, thereby to fill the hole. FIG. 4 shows a wiring structure for electrically connecting upper and lower layers by using a barrier metal layer.
In FIG. 4, reference numeral 2 denotes a substrate formed of a Si wafer, etc. A predetermined metal film 4 is provided on the substrate 2. An insulating layer 6 formed of SiO.sub.2, etc. is provided on the metal film 4. A contact hole 10, for example, is formed in a predetermined portion of the insulating layer 6 so as to reach the metal film 4. The contact hole 10 will ensure electrical contact between the metal film 4 and a metal film 8 of an aluminum alloy or a tungsten alloy which is to be provided over the insulating layer 6. A barrier metal layer 16 comprising a lamination structure of a Ti film 12 and a TiN film 14 is provided on the entire surface of the insulating layer 6 including the inner wall of the contact hole 10. The metal film 8 of the aluminum alloy or tungsten alloy is deposited on the barrier metal layer 16 so as to fill the contact hole 10.
As the design rule becomes stricter in accordance with the development in miniaturization and integration density of semiconductor devices, the line width and hole diameter decrease and the aspect ratio increases. The hole filling technique becomes difficult more and more. If the barrier metal layer is formed by physical vapor deposition (PVD) with a low step coverage performance, a problem will arise in that electrical resistance increases because a layer is not adequately deposited on the bottom of the hole. Under the circumstances, the use of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) with a high step coverage performance has been studied at present. When a CVD method is applied to the formation of the barrier metal layer, the Ti film is, in general, formed by a physical vapor deposition (PVD) method such as plasma sputtering, and then the TiN film of the barrier metal layer is formed by the CVD method. When the TiN film is formed by the CVD method, the following material gas is mainly used: TiCl.sub.4 (titanium tetrachloride), NH.sub.3 (ammonia), or molecules including nitrogen atoms (e.g. methyl-hydrazine). In this case, the TiCl.sub.4 corrodes the underlying Ti film and the contact between the Ti film and TiN film deteriorates.


The invention concerns the automatic determination of an emission value for a motor vehicle. For this purpose, a system for the automatic determination of an emission value for a motor vehicle 4 is described that comprises the following: a fuel quantity sensor 1, an identification device 3 for registering an account identification, an account database 7 containing at least one account information item for each of a multitude of accounts 8, and a determination device 6, where: the fuel quantity sensor 1 determines a fuel quantity added to the tank and transmits it to the determination device 6; an account identification registered by the identification device 3 is transmitted to the determination device 6 and is associated with the fuel quantity added to the tank; and where the determination device 6 determines the emission value on the basis of the fuel quantity added to the tank and at least one account information item of the account 8 associated with the account identification. This permits a simple and reliable determination of the emission value that also meets with a high degree of acceptance by the users.

In the past few decades, a slow rise in the average temperature of the atmosphere in close proximity to the earth has been observed, a phenomenon that is commonly called global warming. At the present time, it is assumed that the so-called greenhouse effect is a significant cause of global warming. This effect is intensified by the combustion of fossil fuels and other human interventions in the environment, such as deforestation, since this increases the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere.
The contribution of individuals to global warming is determined, among other things, by the operation of motor vehicles that consume fossil fuels like gasoline or diesel fuel. It is known from the state of the art that possibilities exist for persons to pay fees that are intended to compensate for their activities that increase global warming. In this context, for example, opportunities are provided to compensate for the emissions caused by a person's vehicle by means of equivalent compensation payments. For example, this is currently done by voluntarily paying an additional lump sum per liter of fuel when fueling a motor vehicle. In addition, as regards voluntary CO2 compensation, so-called "CO2 calculators" are known that can be used to calculate the annual emission of CO2 on the basis of the total kilometers driven per year. The compensation payments help to fund such projects that are intended to counteract the rise of CO2 in the atmosphere. On this basis, a voluntary fee for compensating for the CO2 emissions is determined that the person is question can then transfer, for example via a broker, to an appropriate project. Such projects include reforestation projects, or the construction of windmill parks or of solar power plants that emit reduced quantities of CO2 when generating electric power.
However, these existing procedures known from the state of the art for CO2 compensation by individual persons are not satisfactory. The existing procedures are imprecise and not source-specific in determining the quantity of the emissions, i.e., they do not take into account characteristics that are typical for a driver or a vehicle (for example, they only take into account the kilometers driven). Furthermore, these procedures are costly. They require the active updating of the determination factors necessary for calculating the compensation, and the performance of an individual compensation process for each procedure. Even for dedicated and environmentally concerned persons, these inaccuracies and their costly use are reasons that discourage an adequate use of such procedures.

Automatic determination of an emission value for a motor vehicle