A structural attaching plate bracket system for use to temporarily support the forms used to construct concrete walls, slabs, or foundations. The structural attaching plate bracket system includes a linear plate affixed to a support member with removable fasteners. The attached plate bracket is positioned long the full length of the support member. Mounting devices included attach surfaces which are provided along the full length of the support members. A series of brackets are positioned intermediate along the attached plate brackets for attachment of a load bearing member into the concrete wall construction. The brackets can be positioned intermediate along the attached plate brackets for the attachment for two or more load bearing members in the concrete wall construction. The attached plate brackets includes an integral attachment fastener to secure the load bearing members to the attached plate bracket where attachment of the bracket to the load bearing member in the concrete wall, slab and foundation construction.

The present invention relates to a concrete form structural attaching plate system, and more particularly, to a structural attaching plate system for the use as temporary attachment, such as in concrete falsework forming for bridge deck, concrete slab construction, concrete wall construction and the like.
Various types of structural concrete attach systems are used to assemble concrete falsework forms in bridge deck overhang concrete, concrete slab construction, concrete wall construction and the like. Most of such structural attach systems incorporate a fastener or wedge assembly component that serves as a structural-attaching component in the system. For example, one such system made by Universal form clamp co., Bellwood, Ill. includes a coil loop straight insert, which incorporates a single or double coil loop component. The double loop component allows a fastener to be used through the loops and through a support member. The support member, wood, steel, or the like is attached to a system of load carrying components to control the pressure or weight of a concrete form or slab. Plywood or other forms of sheathing is attached to the support member to mold or form the surface of structural concrete. The load carrying components are spaced according to their load carrying capacity along the length of the support member. The support member is held into a firm position using the coil loop straight insert and against the support component. A load-carrying tie is positioned through the load carrying component, between the support members and through the plywood or sheathing. The various locations and spacing of the load carrying component along the support member requires a hole that is fixed in location for the fastener.
Another type of system is shown in the B3S L-Bolts made by the Williams Form Engineering Corporation of Grand rapids, Mich. includes an L-shaped rod, threaded on each end, which is attached to a support member. The support member is attached to an alignment member or load-carrying member at the free end of the L-Bolt. Plywood or sheathing is attached to the support member for the molding or support of structural concrete. A hole that has a fixed location must be incorporated and positioned in the support member to attach the L-Bolt.
Another type of system is shown in the F1D-02 made by the Williams Form Engineering Corporation of Grand Rapids, Mich. includes a wedge type L-Bolt, which has a pressed recess on each end of the L-Bolt. The pressed recess incorporates as wedge device to tighten against the support member. The support member is attached to an alignment member or load-carrying member at the free end of the L-Bolt. Plywood or sheathing is attached to the support member for the molding or support of structural concrete. A hole that has a fixed location must be incorporated and positioned in the support member to attach the wedge type L-Bolt.
Another type of system is shown in the F1D-06 made by the Williams Form Engineering Corporation of Grand Rapids, Mich. includes a steel plate for positioning the support member onto the load carrying component. The attachment plate incorporates a series of holes to fix the attach plate to the support member. The load-carrying member is then set atop the plate and supported by the attachment plate. Plywood or sheathing is attached to the support member for the molding or support of structural concrete. A fixed steel plate location must be positioned. in the support member to attach the load-carrying member.
Another type of system is shown in the F2E Coil Waler Holder made by the Williams Form Engineering Corporation of Grand Rapids, Mich. includes a coil thread welded to an attachment plate forming an attachment holder which is fastened to a support member. A coil bolt fastener and plate is used to attach the load carrying member to the support member. Plywood or sheathing is attached to the support member for the molding or support of structural concrete. An attachment holder is positioned and attached for each load-carrying member.
Another type of system is shown in the B9G Slotted coil bolt made by the Williams Form Engineering Corporation of Grand Rapids, Mich. includes a threaded fastener and attachment plate. The support member is attached to a modular forming surface and is used can be used as an alignment component or load-bearing member. The modular forming component is used for the molding or support of structural concrete. A fixed position must be incorporated into the modular forming surface to attach the support component.
Another type of system is shown in the A2I linear clamp made by the Williams Form Engineering Corporation of Grand Rapids, Mich. includes an attachment plate, a looped rod component and a rotating wedge. The attachment plate is fastened to a support member and the looped rod encases the load carrying or alignment member. The wedge component is engaged onto the load carrying or alignment member and tightened. Plywood or sheathing is attached to the support member for the molding or support of structural concrete. The attachment plate must be positioned and fixed on the support member for each alignment or load-bearing member attachment. As the spacing of the alignment or load-bearing member is changed, the attachment plate must be moved or an additional A2I system installed.
Another type of attach system is shown in the Cam-Lock Forming System, which is made by Gates and Sons, Inc. of Denver, Colo. which includes a cam lock bracket and lever assembly. The support member is attached to the plywood or sheathing using the cam lock bracket and a load-bearing tie assembly. Plywood or sheathing is attached to the support member for the molding or support of structural concrete. The support member will support the plywood or sheathing between each cam lock bracket. The alignment member is attached to the support member with the use of a stiff-back cam. A hole must be positioned in the plywood or sheathing to locate and position the cam lock bracket. A cam lock bracket must be fixed and positioned to attach an alignment member. As the spacing of the cam lock bracket is required, a hole must be re-positioned into the plywood or sheathing for the attachment of the cam lock bracket. As the spacing of the stiff-back cam is required, the cam lock bracket must be re-positioned.
Another type of attach system, which is in the system made by Symons Corporation, of Des Plaines, Ill. include the use of a attachment clip, clamping nut and fastener bolt. The aluminum support member has a fixed formed slot along the length of the support member for the clamping nut engagement. The clamping nut is contained within the support member""s formed slot and the attachment clip is fastened to the load-bearing member. The aluminum support member contains a wood nail strip to attach plywood or sheathing. Plywood or sheathing is attached to the support member for the molding or support of structural concrete. The formed slot in the support member is an integral component of the support member. The nail strip for plywood or sheathing attachment can be replaced, as usage requires.
Another type of attach system, which is in the system made by Doka International, of Deutsche Doka, Schalungstechnik GmbH, include the use of H20 flange clamp on an I-shaped wood support member, the attachment will include a U-shaped loop plate component and two fastener components. The U-shaped loop plate component will engage the flange of a steel load-carrying member and will engage the two fastener components on the opposite flange of the load-bearing member. The plate portion of the U-shaped loop plate component will engage the lower flange surface of the I-shaped wood support member. A fastening nut on the two fastening components will draw the plate portion of the U-shaped loop plate component against the lower flange surface of the I-shaped wood support member. Plywood or sheathing is attached to the I-shaped wood support member for the molding or support of structural concrete.
Another type of attach system, which is in the system made by Peri Formwork Engineering, of Peri GmbH, Weissenhorn, include the use of HB24-hook strap on an I-shaped lattice-web wood support member, the attachment will include a V-plate component and two fastener components. The V-plate component will engage through the open web portion the wood I-shaped support member. The hook portion of the attachment component will engage the flanges of a steel load-carrying member and will engage the V-plate component member. The V-shaped portion of the attachment component will engage against the web portion of the I-shaped wood support member. Plywood or sheathing is attached to the I-shaped wood support member for the molding or support of structural concrete.
Another type of attach system, which is in the system made by Peri Formwork Engineering, of Peri GmbH, Weissenhorn, include the use of the HB girder claw clamp used to attach an I-shaped wood support member, the attachment will include a claw-leg bearing component and a hooked threaded fastener component. The claw-leg-bearing component will engage the flange portion of the load-bearing member and the flange of the wood I-shaped support member. The hook portion of the attachment component will engage the flanges of the load-carrying member and through the claw-leg-bearing component. The threaded portion of the hook component will compress the claw leg component against the flange of the I-shaped wood support member using a fastener nut. The claw leg portion of the attachment component will bear against the flange portion of the I-shaped wood support member and the flange surface of the load-bearing member. Plywood or sheathing is attached to the I-shaped wood support member for the molding or support of structural concrete.
Another type of attach system, which is in the system made by SGBxe2x80x94Scaffold Great Britain, of SGB International, include the use of the timber waling clamp used to attach a wood support member, the attachment will include a U-shaped bearing component and a J bolt threaded fastener component. The U-shaped bearing component will engage the flange portion of the load-bearing member and the threaded J-Bolt threaded fastener component attached to the wood member. The hook portion of the U-shaped bearing component will engage the flanges of the load-carrying member and against the wood member. The threaded portion of the J-bolt component will compress the U-shaped bearing component against the wood support member using a fastener nut. Plywood or sheathing is attached to the wood support member for the molding or support of structural concrete.
Another type of attach system, which is in the system made by SGBxe2x80x94Scaffold Great Britain, of SGB International, include the use of the Universal Anchor Clamp used to attach an T150 Aluminum support member, the attachment will include a U-shaped bearing component and a T-bolt threaded fastener component. The U-shaped bearing component will engage the flange portion of the load-bearing member and the threaded T-Bolt threaded fastener component attached to the T150 Aluminum support. The hook portion of the U-shaped bearing component will engage the flanges of the load-carrying member and against the T150 Aluminum support. The threaded portion of the T-bolt component will compress the U-shaped bearing component against the wood support member using a fastener nut. Plywood or sheathing is attached to the T150 Aluminum support for the molding or support of structural concrete.
While such aforementioned attachment systems have inherent advantages including being adjustable, providing good attachment characteristics, and being durable for long use, there are some inherent drawbacks. First of all, several of the above-mentioned structural attaching systems requires the support member incorporate a fixed location attachment hole for each attachment location. When the spacing or location of the load-bearing member, along the length of the support member, is to be changed, another hole must be located in a fixed location into the support member to make the attachment. Such prior art attachment require the attachment components pass through and against the outer surface of the load-bearing member to complete the system. The additional cost of such prior art devices is higher than it needs to be. These prior art systems are limited to the function set forth, when additional attach requirements, such as a different size or type of load-bearing component, would require a additional size attach component, which would increase the overall cost of the attach systems.
Other such drawbacks would be that particular prior art systems would require the support member be attached to the sheathing at a fixed location and have a support member attachment at all such locations to allow the load-bearing component an attachment location These systems limit the attachment from the support member to the load-bearing member by requiring that the sheathing be part of the attachment system. This would not provided the desired versatility an attachment system requires and thereby has limited the productivity of construction workers in using such prior art systems.
Other such drawbacks would be that particular prior art systems would require the support member be attached to the load carrying members at a fixed bearing location and have a support member attachment at all such locations to allow the load-bearing component an attachment location. These systems limit the attachment position of the load carrying member or sheathing for only a particular side of the support member to the load bearing member by requiring that the sheathing be attached to only one side of the support member and system. This would not provided the desired versatility an attachment system requires and thereby has limited the productivity of construction workers in using such prior art systems.
Other such drawbacks would be that particular prior art systems would require the support member is of such a shape or material to be of a cost that is higher than it needs to be. Such support members must incorporate a flange within the body of the support member to allow attachment and such flange is a permanent part of the support member. These support members must incorporate a separate device to allow additional attachment of sheathing for formwork molding or formwork support.
Other such drawbacks would be that particular prior art systems would require attachment components be of a cost that is higher than it needs to be. These support members are of such a shape that the attachment components be limited in their use. The shape of such attachment components would require a limited type of load-bearing member be used. These attachment components would be limited in their purpose or usage and would not provide the adjustability required to be used on other formwork molding or formwork support applications.
Other such drawbacks would be that particular prior art systems would only allow the support member to be attached to the load-bearing member in a fixed angle relative to the shape of the load-bearing member. Limiting the connection application of the support member to the load bearing member would restrict their purpose or usage and would not provide the adjustability required to be used on other formwork molding or formwork support applications.
Among the several objects and advantages of the present invention include:
The provision of a new and improved structural attaching plate system for use as a temporary attach in concrete wall formwork construction, concrete slab support construction and the like, for example, concrete wall forming in concrete bridge pier construction, which systems overcome the aforementioned deficiencies of the prior art;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system which substantially reduces the amount of material and components required, as compared to prior art design, while increasing versatility, adjustability and productivity in the use of such systems;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system would allow the use of conventional support members, support members of such shape and material to be economical;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system that includes a linear attachment plate means used along the length of the support member. The attachment plate means provides adjustable attachment locations along the length of the support member, adjustment made as the attach requirements change in the concrete wall formwork construction, while permitting the adjustment of one attachment component along the length of the support member to increase or decrease the spacing thereof;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system that include support members that are made from lightweight materials such as laminated veneer lumber, aluminum, composite materials and the like;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system with the attach plate bracket affixed to the support member with removable fasteners;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system with attach plate brackets affixed to one or two of the bearing surfaces of the support members;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system with attach plate brackets affixed to the support member allowing the support member to be attached in a load-bearing member element location;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system with attach plate brackets affixed to the support member allowing the support member to be connected to another support member;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system with attach plate brackets affixed to the support member allowing the connection of various accessories as the construction environment demands;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system which can be used on a variety of construction form settings and environment, depending upon the manner in which it is used;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system which will allow the use of various attaching components to attach the load-bearing member, depending on the manner in which the support member is used;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system which will allow the affixing of the load-bearing member at various angles relative to the support member, depending on the manner in which the support member is used;
The provisions of the aforementioned structural attaching plate system which is inexpensive and easy to manufacture; is simple and easy to install and use; provides versatility and flexibility in the use of such systems in different construction environments; increases the productivity of construction workers in the use of such systems, is long wearing and durable in use; and is otherwise well adapted for the purposes intended.
Briefly stated, the structural attaching plate system of the present invention is constructed for the use in concrete wall forming in concrete falsework construction and the like and includes a linear plate affixed to a support member using removable fasteners. The structural attaching plate will allow the use of standard attaching components present in current construction environments. The attach plate bracket include mounting means for the connection of load-bearing members in concrete falsework construction and concrete wall forming and molding. Specifically, the mounting means include attach surfaces which occur along the full length of the support members. The mounting means allows the support member to also be used as a load-bearing member. The mounting means also allows the load-bearing member to be attached at various angles relative to the support member.
The support members captured by the attach plate bracket are formed from laminated veneer lumber or aluminum, or other equivalent structure, in order to provide a lightweight construction.
One attach plate bracket can be affixed to the side surface of a support member allowing the bearing surface to be uses to support sheathing elements or a attach plate bracket can be affixed to each side surface of a support member to provide this member as a load-bearing element. The attach plate bracket affixed to the support member provides for attachment along the full length of the support member as needed to the concrete form construction. The attaching means include an integral attach plate bracket which extends along the side surface of the support member. The plate has at least one, preferably many slotted holes to allow the engagement of removable fasteners.
The attach plate bracket can also allow the connection of various types of load-bearing members as the demands require.
These and other advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the ensuing description.

Attach plate bracket for structural concrete forming


A latch mechanism includes a hook, a displaceable handle, and links connected between the handle and hook for the operation of the latch mechanism. The handle and links cooperate with the hook to hold the latch mechanism in a locked position.

Many types of latches are used in connection with aircraft to releasably secure two members or structures of the aircraft together in a closed position, such as the housing portions of an engine nacelle. Such latches are subjected to substantial forces during use while securing two aircraft members together in a closed position. Aircraft latches must also prevent inadvertent opening of the latch that could be caused by vibratory or other forces applied to the latch.
This background information is provided to provide some information believed by the applicant to be of possible relevance to the present disclosure. No admission is intended, nor is such an admission to be inferred or construed, that any of the preceding information constitutes prior art against the present disclosure. Other aims, objects, advantages and features of the disclosure will become more apparent upon reading of the following non-restrictive description of specific embodiments thereof, given by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings.


The present disclosure provides a C-terminal tethered amino acid for modulating the thrombolytic, fibrinolytic and/or anticoagulant properties of a coagulation protein. The present disclosure also provides a coagulation protein having a catalytic site modified, either at the histidine or serine residue, with the C-terminal tethered amino acid as well as therapeutic applications of those modified coagulation proteins.

A major cause of heart disease and stroke is the formation and persistence of aberrant clots that block the flow of blood. The predominant clot busting medicine is tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) and its recombinant derivatives. The main medical and commercial problems with tPA are that: 1) it may cause hemorrhage most likely because it is a functional enzyme exhibiting detrimental systemic effects; 2) about half of patients' clots are resistant to tPA and 3) it has only ˜4% penetrance into the target market because of a finite time of efficacy (3-5 hours after the onset of symptoms).
It would be highly desirable to be provided with a safer therapeutic agent capable of accelerating the dissolution of a clot and/or preventing the formation of a clot. When used alone, the safer therapeutic agent would preferably have limited or no undesirable systemic effect (such as bleeding for example). When used in combination with known clot-busting medicine, the safer therapeutic agent would preferably increase the thrombolytic potential of the combined known clot-busting medicine, reduce the dose required of the known clot-busting medicine to observe beneficial therapeutic effects and ultimately limit the side effects associated with known clot-busting medicine.

C-terminally tethered amino acids and their fibrinolytic therapeutic uses


An LED driver circuit is disclosed that can drive a plurality of LED strings that are arranged in parallel, each LED string having a plurality of component LEDs that are series-connected. The LED strings can be the same type of LEDs in each string, or have different types of LEDs from one string to another. The LED driver includes a voltage control loop that dynamically regulates the output voltage across the parallel arrangement of LED strings. The output voltage is dynamically adjusted to accommodate the LED string with the largest operational voltage drop. This enables LED displays to constructed using different types of LEDs strings, but still supply the LED strings in a power efficient manner. Further, each LED string also includes its own individual current regulation loop so that the current, and therefore brightness, of each LED string can be individually adjusted.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a driver circuit for a Light Emitting Diode (LED) display system that can be used, for example, in cellular phones, PDAs, and other similar visual display units. More particularly, this invention is directed to providing driver circuitry to drive a multi-string configuration of different types of LEDs used in display systems.
2. Background Art
Modern day display systems increasingly rely upon LEDs to render a high quality visual display. The applications can include displays for cell phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), wireless email devices, etc. It is important that the color, tone (hue), contrast, brightness, and other visual parameters remain consistent per the tolerance limits of the desired application and the specifications. To this aim, the driver circuitry used to drive any such LED display system plays a crucial role in terms of controlling the variations in the parameters and providing stability in the operation of the LED grid used in the display.
Depending on the particular application, the display system could have a submodule where a series of flash LEDs are used in parallel with regular back-lighting LEDs. The voltage and current requirements for these two types of LEDs are different and so is their operation. Also, different LEDs will have different forward voltage drops due to variations in manufacturing tolerances. This results in different output voltage requirements across the LED terminals, and therefore a different optical output for each LED if a common voltage driver is applied. Since multiple LEDs are in use in display systems, such a variation in the optical output of the LEDs leads to a degradation in the overall quality of the display images and may lead to failure in operation due to reduction in the life of an LED.
FIG. 1 shows the schematic for a conventional serial LED driver 100 that drives a single string of LEDs 110 containing 'n' number of LEDs, where 'n' is an integer. Each of the n LEDs 110a to 110n of the single LED string 110 is connected in a series configuration. The cathode of the last LED 110n of the LED string 110 is connected to one of the two terminals of a resistive component RB 112 at a node 124. The second terminal of the resistive component RB 112 is connected to a ground 128. Since the member LEDs 110a-110n of the LED string 110 are connected in a series configuration, there is a voltage drop as one moves along the electrical path connecting nodes 123 and 124. As the number of LEDs increases in the LED string 110, the voltage drop across the nodes 123 and 124 increases. Accordingly, the output voltage VOUT 108 that is required to drive the single LED string 110 will increase as the number of LEDs increases. For example, assuming a voltage drop of 3-4 volts per LED, an input voltage VIN 102 of approximately 30 Volts would be needed to drive an LED string 110 with 8 LEDs. If the input voltage VIN 102 is powered from a battery, it can be as low as 2.7 Volts for a Li-ion battery and even lower for a single cell or a two cell alkaline battery, which is the common energy source for most displays used in mobile devices. Boosting from such low input voltages to 30 Volts is not very efficient and not feasible since the duty cycle required for such a process approaches 100%.
The feedback loop 122 is a voltage feedback loop that includes the control loop 117 and the FET 116 to regulate the voltage Vout 108 that supplies the LED string 110. The feedback loop 122 measures the voltage across the resistor 112 at node 124 and controls the FET 116 to drive the voltage at node 124 to equal the reference voltage 102. In other words, the control loop 117 compares voltage at node 124 to the reference voltage 102, and controls the on-off duty-cycle of the FET 116 to increase or decrease the output voltage 108 so as to drive the voltage at the node 124 to be equal to the reference voltage 102. The feedback loop 122 operates so as to time average the output voltage 108 by controlling the on-off duty-cycle of the FET 116. Finally, the Schottky diode 106 prevents any reverse current flow from the charge stored on the capacitor 114.
The conventional serial LED driver 100 is undesirable if all the member LEDs 1101-110n of the single LED string 110 are not of the same type. For example, if some of the LEDs are used for back-lighting and others are used for flash (flash LEDs), due to the series configuration, the same current will flow through all of them. However, flash LEDs need a higher current than that needed by LEDs for back-lighting purposes.
FIG. 2 shows another conventional LED driver 200 that is used to drive multiple parallel LED strings 210a-n that are terminated in corresponding resistors 216a-216n. These strings can be part of a main display, a sub display, a flash LED or a key pad LED, among many other things. Each of the LED strings 210 are parallel connected with each, but the LEDs in a particular string are series connected with each other. Therefore, the same current flows through each LED in a particular string. The feedback loop 122 provides a voltage feedback path to control the Vout 208, similar to that described in FIG. 1. More specifically, the control loop 117 measures the voltage at the midpoint 218 of the resistor divider 220, and controls the FET 116 to drive Vout 208 so that the midpoint 218 is equal to Vref 102.
The conventional serial LED driver 200 has poor performance if all the LED strings 210 do not have the same voltage/current characteristics. Since there is no individual current regulation for the each LED string, then the LED brightness from one string to another will vary if the LEDs are not matched. As the forward voltage of the LEDs in each of the parallel LED strings 210 changes, the current flowing in them also changes. Accordingly, there is a variation in the brightness or the optical output of the display system. The variation in forward voltage of the LEDs can be attributed, amongst many other factors, to temperature variations or manufacturing mismatches. Further, different types of LEDs require different voltage drops, for example, flash LEDs have different voltage drop requirements when compared to other LEDs.
In addition, the LED current matching in the parallel LED strings 210 is not guaranteed and depends on the forward voltages of the individual LEDs. Such a current mismatch again leads to a degradation in the output of the display. In other words, the LED driver 200 does not have any method to regulate the current in the individual LED strings, and thus falls short of attaining maximum optical output efficiency of the display system.
Additionally, the LED driver 200 is not power efficient. The output voltage VOUT 208 needs to be set to drive the LEDs with the largest forward voltage drop. If the output voltage VOUT 208 is less than the largest forward voltage drop, the whole string containing that particular LED will not light up. For example, if the maximum expected LED forward voltage drop is 4 Volts, then to drive 4 LEDs in series, the output voltage VOUT 208 needs to be set higher than 4×4 Volts=16 Volts. However, if one of the LED strings only requires 3 volts/per LED for a total of 12 Volts, then the extra 4 Volts is dissipated across one of the resistors 216a-n, which is an efficiency loss of 25% (4 Volts/16 Volts*100).
In view of the foregoing, there is a need for a low cost LED driver for display systems which overcomes the problems associated with the fluctuations in current and voltage for each of the strings of the LEDs and the concomitant fluctuations and inconsistencies in the optical output of the display systems.

Single inductor serial-parallel LED driver


In a robot apparatus and a control method therefor, firstly, partial or whole state space of a behavioral model is expanded or reduced, secondly, transition to a predetermined node in the behavioral model is described as transition to a virtual node and a node group to be allotted to the virtual node is sequentially changed, thirdly, the number of emotions and/or desires which are used for generating actions is gradually increased, and fourthly, an environment is evaluated to update each sensitivity corresponding to each emotion and desire, on the basis of the evaluated. In the robot apparatus and the character discriminating method for the robot apparatus, a pet robot is provided with: detecting means for detecting outputs from other pet robots; character discriminating means for discriminating characters of the pet robots on the basis of the result detected by the detecting means; and character changing means for changing the character on the basis of the result judged by the character discriminating means.

As the first background art, in recent years, a four-legged walking type pet robot has been proposed and developed by the applicant of the present application. Such a pet robot has a shape similar to a dog and a cat which are raised in a general home, and is adapted to be able to autonomously act in response to approach from the user such as "patting" or "petting," a surrounding environment or the like.
Also, this pet robot is mounted with a learning function to change revelation probability of corresponding action on the basis of approaches such as "patting" and "petting" from the user, a growth function for stepwise changing the degree of difficulty of the action and the level of complicatedness on the basis of accumulation, elapsed time or the like of the approaches concerned, or the like to thereby provide high marketability and amusement characteristics as the "pet robot."
In such a pet robot, there are prepared behavioral models consisting of individual probability state transition models for each growth stage (hereinafter, referred to as "growth stage"), and the behavioral model is switched to the behavioral model of the above described "growth stage" on the basis of approaches from the user, accumulation of elapsed time or the like to thereby express the "growth." Also, in the pet robot, the transition probability at a corresponding place in the behavioral model is caused to change in response to approaches from the user is changed to thereby express the above described "learning."
According to this method, however, the behavioral model is switched to a new behavioral model every time the pet robot "grows," and therefore, the pet robot starts a new action for each "growth" as if the character was suddenly changed, and the result of the "learning" until then is to be canceled. This has led to a problem that the user, who has been used to and familiar with the action pattern until then, feels unnaturally.
Also, according to the method, even if there is any duplicate action pattern, it is necessary to prepare a behavioral model portion for the action pattern for each "growth stage," and therefore, there is a problem that an operation for generating the behavioral model will become complicated by that much.
Therefore, if it is made possible to carry forward the action pattern or the learning result to the next "growth stage" during, for example, "growth," it will be possible to get rid of such unnaturalness during "growth" as described above for expressing more organism-like "growth," and it is considered that the entertainment characteristics could be that much improved.
Further, as the second background art, in recent years, a study for modeling the emotion of a human being on a computer and expressing the emotion has been vigorously promoted. As the robot technological attempts of such modeling, there have been known in Japan, the face robot of a laboratory of Fumio Hara in the Tokyo science college, or WAMOEBA 2 of a laboratory of Sugano in the Waseda University, the cat robot of OMURON Co., Ltd. or the like ("Model and Expression of Generation of Artificial Emotion" by Fumio Hara; Mathematical science, vol. 32, No. 7, page 52–58, 1994, "Study of Emotional Exchange between Human Being and Robot, Setting and Trial of Robot for Evaluation "WAMOEBA-2" by Ogata, Sugano; Lecture thesis of robotics and mechatronics lecture meeting of Japan mechanics learned society, vol. A, 1996, pp 449–452, and "Interactive Pet Robot having Emotion" by Tajima, Saito, Osumi, Kudo, Shibata; Preparatory copies of science lecture meeting of Japan Robot learned society, vol. 16, page 11–12, 1998).
In these studies, their subjects reside in how behaviors or expressions similar to those of a living thing can be obtained by initially employing already completed emotion and instinct models. However, in the case where the growth processes of the living thing are taken into consideration, it is impossible to estimate that the emotion and instinct thereof always work on the basis of the same models from a BABY period to an adult period. Therefore, the above mentioned modeling of human emotion has involved an unnatural problem from the viewpoint of "growth".
Further, in the case where an application that an autonomous robot treated as a pet is equipped with emotion or instinct is considered, it is difficult for a user to understand and accept the robot which has initially perfect emotion and instinct. For example, in a robot having a plurality of desires (for instance, "affection desire" and "exercise desire", etc.) as the instinct and a plurality of emotional behaviors (for instance, "joy", "sadness" and "fear", etc.) as the emotion, since the internal motions of the robot are complicated, the user hardly understand what the robot currently wants or how the robot currently feels.
Further, in the above robot, if the emotion and the instinct of the robot do not change and are always the same, the user is liable to lose interest in the robot. Thus, the robot is disadvantageously insufficient in view of commercialization and amusement characteristics.
Furthermore, as the third background art, there have conventionally been proposed and developed the so-called quadruped walking type pet robots which act in accordance with users' commands and surrounding environments. This kind of pet robot has a form quite similar to that of a quadruped animal such as a dog or a cat which is bred at home and is configured to assume a posture of prostration when the robot receives an order of "prostrate" and take an action of "hand lending" when the user stretches out his hand before a mouth of the robot.
By the way, such a pet robot has a model of emotion as well as a mechanism which determines an action by himself and a feature of the pet robot which can be called as a character is changed under no influence due to another robot.
Here, the character of an animal is formed under influences due to surrounding environments and when two pets are bred together, for example, existence of a pet influences largely on forming of a character of the other pet in actual circumstances.

Robot apparatus, control method thereof, and method for judging character of robot apparatus


There is provided an information communication system or the like that reduces load to a node device or the like for transmitting information when information is transmitted to a plurality of node devices. In an information communication system formed by participation of a plurality of node devices, mutually connected through a communication route, a node device X determines representing node devices included in each of groups divided into a plurality of (four) groups in accordance with a predetermined rule (for example, DHT), transmits main information to node devices A, B, and C thus determined, and in a case where destination of main information received from another node device is the group the node device X belongs to, transmits the main information thus received to a node device representing a group, to which the node device X belongs.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technical field of information communication system and a method of a peer to peer (P2P) type, including a plurality of node devices, which are mutually connected through a network.
2. Discussion of Related Art
When identical information is transmitted to a plurality of terminal apparatuses, belonging to a network, a terminal apparatus on a sending side produces copies of the information as many as number of the terminal devices on the receiving side, and the information thus copied is sent to the terminal devices.
Further, there is known a technique (IP multicast) that a router corresponding to such a plurality of transmission destination terminal devices is intervened, and one information transmitted by the terminal device for transmitting information is copied at a branch point of a destination by the router, and such the information is transmitted to the plurality of terminal devices (vide, for example, Patent Document 1). This technique reduces load of a terminal device which transmits information.
In addition, there is a known technique by which terminal devices are divided into groups, a group management server is provided to each group, and information one by one is transmitted to each group so that the information is transmitted to all the terminal devices, belonging to each of the groups (vide, for example, Patent Document 2).
Meanwhile, a technique called peer to peer is attracting attention in recent years. In the peer to peer information delivery system, for example, in an overlay network which is logically configured by use of a delivered hash table (hereinafter referred to as DHT), each of node devices participating in the overlay network does not recognize link information (for example, IP address) of all the node devices, but retains only part of link information obtained on participation or the like, and data inquiry or the like is performed on the basis of such the link information.
In an overlay network thus structured, it is necessary that delivery of load is appropriately shared even when participation and withdrawal of node devices occur often. Non-patent Document 1 discloses a technique that enables to appropriately share load even when participation and withdrawal often occur.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-49822
Patent Document 2: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2002-344477 (FIG. 9)
Non-patent Document 1: T. Oka, H. Morikawa, and Y. Aoyama, "Lightweight Load Balancing for Distributed Hash Tables", Technical Report of the Institute of Electronics, Information, and Communication Engineers Feb. 5, 2004, No. 103 issue, No. 650, p. 7-12

Information communication system, information communication method, node device included in information communication system, and recording medium having information processing program recorded on it


When forming a p+ area and n+ area on the same surface of an n− semiconductor wafer, a first ion implantation forms the p+ area on the entire rear surface of the n− semiconductor wafer. Next, a resist mask selectively covering the rear surface of the n− semiconductor wafer is formed. With this resist mask as the mask, an n-type impurity is injected into the rear surface of the n− semiconductor wafer through a second ion implantation to form the n+ area on a portion deeper from the rear surface of the n− semiconductor wafer than the p+ type area. Thereafter, the n− semiconductor wafer is exposed to an oxygen (O2) gas atmosphere with fluorine (F) gas added to remove the resist mask and a silicon part between the rear surface of the n− semiconductor wafer in an FWD area not covered by the resist mask and the n+ area.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device.
2. Description of Related Art
In vertical semiconductor devices such as IGBTs (insulated-gate bipolar transistors) and FWDs (free-wheeling diodes), it is common for the respective semiconductor areas constituting surface element structures to be formed on the surface of a semiconductor wafer, and for p-type or n-type areas to be formed on the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer. In a Reverse Conducting IGBT (RC-IGBT) that has an IGBT and FWD embedded in the same semiconductor chip, for example, both the p-type and n-type areas are formed on the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer.
A well-known method (hereinafter, the first conventional method) of forming the p-type and n-type areas on the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer includes covering the formation area for one of the p-type and n-type areas with a resist mask, performing ion implantation with this resist mask as the mask in order to inject impurities into the formation area for another semiconductor area, and repeating this twice while changing the conductivity type of the portion covered by the resist mask and the impurities injected during the ion implantation.
Specifically, in the first conventional method, first the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer is coated with resist, and this resist is patterned to form a first resist mask that covers the FWD area and exposes the IGBT area. Next, boron (B) is implanted into the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer with the first resist mask as the mask in order to form a p+ area that serves as a p+ collector region in the IGBT area on the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer. Then, the first resist mask is removed by ashing. Thereafter, the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer is coated with resist again.
Next, the resist is patterned to form a second resist mask that covers the IGBT area and exposes the FWD area. Then, with this second resist mask as the mask, phosphorous (P) is injected into the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer by ion implantation to form an n+ area that serves as an n+ cathode region in the FWD area on the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer. Next, the second resist mask is removed by ashing. Thereafter, the p+ and n+ areas are activated with heat treatment to form the p+ collector region on the IGBT and the n+ cathode region on the FWD.
Another well-known method (hereinafter, the second conventional method) of forming p-type and n-type areas on the rear surface of a semiconductor wafer includes forming one of the p-type and n-type areas on the entire rear surface of the semiconductor wafer by ion implantation, covering the formation area for this semiconductor region with a resist mask, and reversing the conductivity type in the formation area of another semiconductor area exposed to the openings in the resist mask by ion implantation in order to form the other semiconductor area.
FIGS. 8 to 10 are cross-sectional views of a conventional semiconductor device during manufacturing. Specifically, in the second conventional method, a first ion implantation 121 of boron is performed first to form a p+ area 102 on the entire rear surface of an n− semiconductor wafer 101 (FIG. 8). Next, a resist mask 122 that covers an IGBT area 112 and exposes an FWD area 113 is formed on the rear surface of the n− semiconductor wafer 101 (FIG. 9). Then, a second ion implantation 123 is performed to inject phosphorous into the rear surface of the n− semiconductor wafer 101 with the resist mask 122 as the mask, and this converts a portion of the p+ area 102 to an n-type.
The conversion of a portion of the p+ area 102 to the n-type forms an n+ area 103 that serves as an n+ cathode region in the FWD area 113 on the rear surface of the n− semiconductor wafer 101 and leaves the p+ area 102 that serves as a p+ collector region in the IGBT area 112 (FIG. 10). Next, the resist mask 122 is removed by ashing. Thereafter, the p+ area 102 and n+ area 103 are activated with heat treatment to form the p+ collector region of the IGBT and the n+ cathode region of the FWD.
In the first and second conventional methods described above, in general the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer is ground to make the semiconductor wafer thinner, and the above-mentioned methods are used to form the p-type and n-type areas on the thinned rear surface of the semiconductor wafer. Furthermore, the ashing treatment of the resist mask is performed with a conventional ashing device. A device having a structure that raises wafer temperature by using a wafer heating lamp and that is provided in a vacuum preparation chamber connecting a resist ashing treatment chamber to an atmospheric section is proposed as an ashing treatment device used for the ashing treatment of the resist mask, for example (see Patent Document 1 below, for example).
Forming p-type or n-type areas in recesses in the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer are well-known methods, and a method similar to this is proposed as follows. First, a resist is formed on the bottom of the semiconductor layer. At this time, the resist is patterned such that the bottom of the semiconductor layer is exposed in the area where the recesses will be formed. Next, wet etching is performed to form the recesses in the semiconductor layer where the bottom thereof is exposed. Thereafter, the resist is removed. Then, a p-type impurity is injected in the entire bottom of the semiconductor layer to form a p+ area on the entire bottom of the semiconductor layer (see Patent Document 2 (paragraphs 0021 and 0022, FIGS. 3 and 4), for example.)
Another method of forming p-type or n-type areas in recesses in the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer is proposed as follows. Recesses are formed in the bottom of a semiconductor substrate. Wet etching such as isotropic etching using a mixed liquid of hydrofluoric acid and nitric acid or crystalline anisotropic etching using an alkaline solution such as TMAH or KOH is used in the formation of the recesses. Reactive ion etching using a gas containing fluorine or dry etching such as sputter etching can also be used. After the recesses are formed, a collector layer and cathode contact layer are formed on the bottom the semiconductor substrate (see Patent Document 3 (paragraph 0022), for example).

Method of manufacturing semiconductor device


The invention relates to pressed paperboard containers, such as disposable paper plates and bowls, having increased strength and rigidity, and the processes used to form such containers by the formation of non-radial pleats at outer regions of the container. The invention also provides pleats about the outer periphery that are non-linear along the length of the pleat. Such non-radial and non-linear pleats are formed by forming non-radial and non-linear scores in a blank of paperboard converted into the container geometry.

Pressed paperboard containers, including plates, bowls, platters, etc., with any appreciable vertical draw generally have some form of material gathering in the drawn regions, usually depicted as a structure commonly called pleats. The pleats are located around the periphery of a container, in areas in which the vertical drawn portion follows a curved path about the periphery.
During the manufacturing process of forming the container, a process referenced herein as "conversion" of the paperboard blank into a container, the paperboard stock at the outer regions of blank fold to accommodate the excess material gathering at regions where the vertical draw follows such a curved path. As the conversion process continues, mating dies that are used to form the depth or draw of the container move toward each other, and are typically configured as mating dies with little or nominal die clearance between the mating surfaces. In this manner, the mating conversion dies act on each folded segment of paperboard in the outer regions of the container to create formed pleats. As is well known in the art, tightly packed and ironed out pleats, and preferably ones with at least some degree of bonding of pleat layers or integration and re-bonding of the layers of paperboard fibrous material, will provide resistance from separation of the pleat layers when the container is in use.
Thus, one of the ways to improve the appearance and the rigidity of a formed paperboard container it to provide generally inseparable pleats in normal-use conditions, resulting in greater resistance from deformation of the container such as when a load of food items are placed on the container. Further, it is known that poorly formed pleats will result in an unattractive appearance, and regions of delaminated paperboard that act as lines of weakness for possible catastrophic buckling of the paperboard container, sometimes even when the user places a normal load (amount of food) on the container. Thus, prior attempts at increasing plate rigidity have focused on applying increased heat and pressure by the dies to iron out the pleats.
Prior art paperboard plates generally have either randomly-formed pleats, or radially-extending linear pleats that are formed by scoring along a radial line. Such scored pleats are formed in a desired pattern or arrangement by scoring the blank between dies prior to converting the container into its drawn shape. Scoring weakens the material at the points of scoring by damaging the laminar structure of the paperboard, which influences the paper to fold at the scored areas when the paperboard is pressed into a container, such as a plate. Thus, scoring of paperboard prior to converting the plate results in a catastrophic de-lamination of the paperboard in the scored regions, which causes a loss of integrity of the rigid paperboard.
Prior art containers with scored pleats are made with linear pleats formed of linear scores in the blank, and pleats/scores extend radially outward relative the center of the plate. Thus, such pleats common to prior art plates and processes may be described as "linear" along their length, and "radial" as they extend along a radial line across the diameter of the container. Similarly, therefore, such pleats are created by first forming scores in the paperboard blank, wherein such scores are linear along their entire length and extend radially outward along a respective radial line across the diameter of the blank. Such common structure and method of pleated paperboard containers is described in numerous patents, including the following: U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,609,140; 4,606,496; 4,721,499; 5,938,112; and, 7,048,176.
Prior art scored pleats are formed in the shape of the linear radial score. If there is no scoring of the blank for pleats, then randomly-formed pleats result as the paperboard blank is converted into a depth by forming dies. Such randomly formed pleats then naturally form in unspecified arrangements around the outer regions of the container. Randomly-formed pleats often have a linear length and reside along a radially extending line of the container. Randomly formed non-scored pleats may also include non-linear portions of the pleats and portions that do not extend along a radial line. As is known in the art, random non-scored pleats are not desirable, as the uncontrolled pleat formation causes inconsistencies and generally inferior pleats.
Non-scored randomly-formed pleats are not desired due to being less attractive in appearance and non-uniformity of pleats along the outer region of the container. The poor formation of such pleats is due in part to the natural occurrence of an uncontrolled amount of paperboard material gathered into a pleat, simply due to a lack of scoring that would be needed to provide weakened paperboard regions to direct and disperse the "gathering" of paperboard. Similarly, the lack of such score arrangement results in the randomly-formed pleats having undesirable variation in the orientation and/or frequency of such pleats.
Although scoring the blanks for pleat formation, and forming such scored pleats in finished paperboard containers is advantageous and desirable for numerous reasons as described above, such pleats may result in a linear path of weakened paperboard susceptible to creasing or folding when the container is in use and is subject to a load or distortion by being carried by the user. For example, when a container, such as a paper plate, is subject to a heavy load of food and is held by a user in a manner that potentially distorts a region of the plate, the pleat may then act as a line of weakness of the rigidity of the paperboard. The result, of course is that the plate folds along the line of weakness of the pleat, which may be even more likely as the hinge-line of the fold reaches a similar radially extending pleat on the other side of the plate.
Further, linear and/or radial-extending pleats are believed to be susceptible to separation of pleat layers when subject to the compressive and tensile stresses in use, such as when food is loaded on a plate. This is believed to be primarily due to the linear and radial path of the pleat, such that separation of the paperboard propagates along a directly linear path of the radial pleat.
As an example of such features and problems in the prior art, a prior art circular paperboard container (1) is shown in FIGS. 1-2, having a bottom wall 2 with an annular recessing 3 encircling the bottom wall 2, an upturned sidewall 4 extending upward from the bottom wall 2, a relatively flat rim 5 extending outwardly from the sidewall 4, and a downturned lip 6 extending downward from the rim 5 to the edge of the plate 1.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a plurality of pleats 7 are located around the peripheral region of the container. The pleat typically extends from an area in the sidewall 4, and extends radially outward through the rim 5 and the lip 6 and to the outer edge of the container. The pleats 7 of the container shown in FIGS. 1-2 are linear and each aligned along a respective radially extending axis A-A. This is depicting what is being described as both "linear" and "radially extending" pleats, residing along a cross sectional line of the container diameter.
A alternative specific geometry of the plate structure is common. For example, prior art container geometry may not include a recess ring 3 around the bottom wall 2, and may have a curved or rounded rim 5, rather than a flat or substantially horizontal portions of the rim 5. Still other paperboard designs are elliptical, obround, or rectangular in shape rather than substantially round. In such non-circular containers, pleats generally form where the container has curvature in the well or drawn region. Thus, much like the linear and radially extending pleats shown in FIGS. 1-2, non-round containers typically include pleats that are linear, and reside along a radially extending line relative the radial line of the curved segment of the container.
Also, the method of manufacturing plates after forming a scored blank are well accepted and common. Paperboard containers are formed from a blank cut from paperboard sheet stock. Typically, the score lines are formed as the blank is cut from the sheet. Thus it is known that the containers must be formed by pressure exerted between mating manufacturing ("conversion") dies, while preferably optimizing the moisture content of the paperboard and subjecting the paperboard to heat and pressure from the dies to facilitate pleat forming. A prior art circular blank 8 is shown in FIG. 3, such as would be suitable for forming the paperboard plate container of FIGS. 1 and 2, when drawn into the shape shown in the cross-section view of FIG. 4. A plurality of non-segmented radial, linear score lines 9 are located around the edges of the blank 8, which are designed to form the radial, linear pleats 7 in the plate of FIGS. 1-2. thus, the scores 9 formed in the manner of the prior art are formed as thin bands of disrupted or delaminated paperboard that have score lengths that are linear and which extend radially outward relative a cross sectional line B-B of the diameter of the paperboard blank.
Other shapes and sizes of blanks are used to create other types of prior art containers, and these prior art blanks may be scored as desired. In sharply curved areas of the blank and smaller round plates or similar containers, where pleats form close to one another, scoring is usually closely spaced. Regardless of the number or arrangement of score lines in such prior art containers, however, linear radial scores result in radial linear pleats in the container 1. Such pleats are subject to susceptibility to separate along the linear pleat path. Further, the general alignment of opposed straight pleats at opposite edges of the plate is susceptible of forming a crease line across the width of the container, resulting in buckle failure of the structure. Thus, there is a need for an improved paperboard container structure, and method for manufacturing the same, which has increased rigidity and optimized gathering of pleated material.
The present invention is provided to solve the problems discussed above and other problems, and to provide advantages and aspects not provided by prior containers of this type. A full discussion of the features and advantages of the present invention is deferred to the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Paperboard container having increased rigidity and method of manufacturing thereof


A convertible vehicle includes a U-shaped top storage well having rear and side edges that are defined by body sheet metal, a front edge defined by the vehicle rear seat, and forwardly-projecting side quarter portions having a front and spaced side walls. A boot for covering the stored top comprises a semi-rigid laminate of vinyl and foam layers having a smooth top surface. The bottom surface has two longitudinal grooves enabling folding for storage. The periphery of the rear surface has spaced indentations between the grooves for locating and mounting peripheral C-shaped clips which grip the well rear and side edges, and quarter side and front walls. A tongue is mounted on the boot front edge and includes a latch bead. The tongue is inserted into the slot of a receiver mounted on the rear seat back. The receiver comprises a base having a recess for receiving the latch bead and an opposing flexible wall which clamps the tongue to latch the bead into the recess. The tongue has a handle to facilitate boot installation. The boot is slightly larger laterally and longitudinally than the well opening to place the boot in compression to assist boot retention and to accommodate vehicle build variations. The boot is readily manually-installed and -removed in a matter of mere seconds.

This invention relates generally to convertible vehicles and, more particularly, to a boot for covering a lowered convertible top in a storage well.
Convertible tops are conventionally stored in a storage well when lowered. Some vehicles utilize a convertible top storage arrangement in which only a portion of the top is located in the storage well when lowered, while the remainder projects out of the well above the vehicle exterior sheet metal. This protrusion of a portion of the top is aesthetically undesirable, since it interrupts the exterior styling lines of the vehicle. It is aesthetically more desirable to store the entire top completely within the well when lowered. This enables maintenance of the exterior styling lines of the vehicle when the top is lowered.
Convertibles utilize a boot to cover the lowered top, whether it is only partially or completely located in the well. This boot usually takes the form of a soft vinyl and foam laminated cover that is attached to the vehicle body surrounding the storage well by snaps, or hook-and-loop fasteners (e.g. "Velcro" brand fasteners), or a combination thereof. They are normally compactly folded to utilize minimal space when stored.
In the case of a boot which covers a top stored completely (or substantially completely) in the well, these soft boots are usually stretched somewhat to provide a smooth appearance in conformance with the vehicle exterior styling lines when installed. This stretching complicates boot installation, especially in cooler weather which stiffens the boot material. Sunlight and high ambient temperatures also tend to soften the boot material which then sags into the well, which detracts from the desired aesthetic appearance.
Some convertibles utilize hard covers which are attached by snaps or other fasteners. These hard boots are easier to install, but are difficult to store, even if they fold in half, because of their shape and rigidity. Also, since these boots are rigid, they do not easily accommodate dimensional differences in well openings caused by dimensional "growth" or "shrinkage" of the well due to vehicle build tolerances.
The currently available boots are secured to the vehicle body by some snaps, clips, hook-and-loop fasteners or some combination thereof. These boots do not install easily or quickly and often require two people to install.
It would be desirable to provide a boot which presents a smooth appearance despite the ambient temperature, yet which utilizes minimal space when stored, thus combining the features of both soft and hard boots.
It would also be desirable to provide a boot which readily accommodates vehicle build dimensional variations without affecting the appearance of the boot when installed.
It would further be desirable to provide a boot which can be readily and quickly manually installed and removed by one person.


Methods and system for recovering metals from combustion ash containing ferrous and nonferrous metals, including the steps of providing a feedstock source of ash, comminuting the ash to substantially reduce the particle size and liberate metal particles therein, separating the metal particles from the comminuted ash by particle size to obtain ash with a reduced metal content, at least one ferrous product and at least one nonferrous product.

The quantity of municipal waste generated each day creates numerous problems and costs to society. Among these are the huge volume of landfill space consumed each day, the fuel costs and emissions involved in transporting these wastes to the landfill, the ecological liabilities in both air and water emissions associated with burying these wastes, the lack of any energy benefit from most of the green house gas emissions coming from the landfill, the leaching of materials into the waste water coming from the landfills, and the tremendous loss of valuable energy and material resources buried within the landfill.
Some regions and municipalities have created Municipal Recycling Facilities (MRFs), which capture a portion of the material resources from the waste stream, such as glass, metals, plastics, and paper. Others capture little if any of these materials, and in any case, there are very significant material resources that still end up in the landfill solid waste stream.
The application of waste-to-energy (WTE) captures the bulk of the recoverable energy from such waste, and, in the process, reduces the solid waste going to the landfill by around 70-80%; conserving landfill space, reducing landfill-related emissions, and reducing the transportation fuel consumed and its associated cost and emissions. WTE ash generally consists of two types or components of ash, designated as bottom ash and fly ash. The relative portions of bottom ash vs. fly ash depend on the manner of preparation of the municipal solid waste prior to burning and on the manner of burning. By way of example only, bottom ash commonly will constitute around 70-80% of the total WTE ash and fly ash will be around 20-30%. The "bottom ash", i.e. the larger portion of the ash that remains on the "bottom" of the incinerator hearth after combustion, contains the bulk of recoverable metals. Fly ash is made up of the smallest, least massive particles of ash that are carried upward with the exhaust gases produced during incineration. The concentration of heavy metals in fly ash can and often does, make them a hazardous waste because it does not pass leaching toxicity testing (TCLP, Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure).
Some WTE facilities do an additional post-combustion processing of the bottom ash to further remove ferrous and nonferrous metals from the ash prior to disposal. The conventional approach for ash recycling utilizes single-stage magnetic separation to remove iron and steel followed by an eddy current separator to remove some of the remaining nonferrous metals (see, e.g., FIG. 1A). Eddy current separators conventionally could be used to separate metal particles only down to around 0.25 inches, while more modern higher-frequency eddy current separators can separate down to around 0.125 inches but only at a large capital cost per ton of capacity. Therefore, due to limitations of the conventional technologies, current ash recycling approaches miss a substantial amount of metal, particularly the smaller metal particles and non-ferrous materials.
Furthermore, the metal concentrates produced by WTE facilities have relatively low metal concentrations, typically in the range of about 50-70% metal. More specifically, because substantial amounts of remnant ash remain associated with these metal concentrates, the resultant metal concentration (i.e. the quality and value of the metal concentrates) is low. There is also a relatively low level of liberation of the metal from the ash, which has the effect of reducing the percentage of recovery of the metals within the ash stream, particularly for the smaller metal sizes.
Ash has the commercial potential for use in construction material applications (e.g. an aggregate in concrete). In some instances, the chemical composition of the ash can also make it useful as a chemical raw material additive to a process. However, the applicability of WTE ash for use as a product is related to how "clean" the ash is with regard to its chemical composition and the completeness of metal removal. Remnant metals in the ash typically cause a more reactive ash product in which the remnant metal particles can corrode and react with the environment, and leach metals during its life cycle. Such leaching presents potential environmental liabilities and product life/performance liabilities for product applications using the ash. Therefore, when a significant amount of magnetic and nonferrous metals and materials are left behind in the ash, the applicability and appropriateness of such ash for use as a product rather than as a landfill waste is low.
There remains, therefore, a need for an ash recycling method and system for removing and recovering free and combined metals from combustion ash that 1) increases the yield of the recovered metal products and improves the quality of the recovered metal products; and 2) where appropriate, increases the yield of a cleaner ash and improves the properties of the clean ash to produce a superior, higher quality mineral sand product that can be utilized in concrete and other construction materials and other product applications.
The process described herein achieves a high level of liberation of metals and other phases within the ash to enhance the separation and extraction of high quality metal concentrates, and the process technologies for extracting the metal concentrates operate to a fine particle sizes. The amount, size and shape of the metal particles, the quantity of metal particles trapped within or tightly adhered to the ash particles, and likewise the quantity of ash particles trapped within or tightly adhered to metals within the ash, vary widely from ash-to-ash depending upon the composition of the combustion ash and the technology used to create the ash. As described herein, substantial liberation of metal particles from the ash and the use of processes to facilitate extraction and concentration of smaller particles improves metal recovery.
Furthermore, in certain embodiments (by way of example only, when bottom ash is used as an ash source), the process can produce a "clean" ash that is commercially valuable for end-product applications. More specifically, the ash produced has an extremely low remnant metal content which enhances the quality of the ash and its product applicability. The near-absence of any remnant metals in the ash makes the ash less reactive, more stable, less susceptible to corrosive reactions and the associated deleterious effects of corrosion on ash products, and a superior recycled raw material and aggregate for use in ash-based products. The resulting clean ash product is more appropriately referred to as a "mineral sand" or "mineral aggregate".
Thus, the current invention can produce superior quality in the metal end-products, and at times the ash product, plus superior economic value for those products.


A digital audio radio service (DARS) antenna system is provided. The DARS antenna system includes a broadcast antenna mounted on a spacecraft. The broadcast antenna includes a slotted waveguide direct radiating array (SWDRA). The DARS antenna system also includes a mobile user receive antenna having a quadrifilar helix antenna (QHA). The DARS antenna system further includes a parallel plate polarizer arranged on the broadcast antenna for generating circular polarization. In an embodiment, the polarizer has a plurality of thin plates arranged perpendicular to the SWDRA surface. Broadcast antenna is optimized for overall system performance and is capable of high RF power and beam shaping. The DARS antenna system is also highly reliable and easily deployed from a spacecraft. An embodiment of the DARS antenna system of the present invention further includes "universal" model and "regional" model mobile antennas to easily accommodate personal travel and commuter needs.

The present invention is generally related to antennas and in particular, a novel antenna system architecture and implementation that addresses the unique requirements of a digital audio radio service (DARS) system and optimizes the performance for the environment in which the system operates. Specifically, the antenna system described herein includes a downlink broadcasting antenna on board a spacecraft and a receive mobile antenna installed on various user vehicles or portable radios.

Antenna system for satellite digital audio radio service (DARS) system


The present disclosure relates to a power connector which comprises an insulative housing and a terminal. The insulative housing defines a terminal receiving groove therein and comprises a stopping wall. The terminal is positioned in the terminal receiving groove and comprises a mating portion, a stopping portion and a wire connecting portion. The stopping portion abuts against the stopping wall and comprises a first horizontal portion and a second horizontal portion. The first horizontal portion comprises a first front end edge. The second horizontal portion comprises a second front end edge. A portion of a front end of the first horizontal portion and a portion of a front end of the second horizontal portion are cut off, therefore when the terminal clamps the wire, the first front end edge and the second front end edge do not splay forwardly and outwardly to protrude forwardly, but are parallel to each other or respectively extend backwardly, which thus can avoid the first front end edge and the second front end edge of the stopping portion from abutting against the stopping wall first due to the protruding.

A power connector has been widely used in electronic products, and comprises a terminal for connecting a wire and an insulative housing receiving the terminal.
FIG. 1 is an exploded schematic view of an existing power connector, FIG. 2 is a assembled schematic view of the existing power connector of FIG. 1, which are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,458,511. Referring to FIG. 1, the existing power connector comprises an insulative housing A1 and a terminal A3, the terminal A3 comprises a stopping portion A31. Referring to FIG. 2, the insulative housing A1 comprises a stopping wall A11. When the terminal A3 is mounted in the insulative housing A1, the terminal A3 are fixed by that the stopping portion A31 of the terminal A3 abuts against the stopping wall A11. FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are schematic views of the terminal A3 of the existing power connector. FIG. 3 shows a state before the terminal A3 clamps a wire, FIG. 4 shows a state after the terminal A3 clamps the wire. Referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, before the terminal A3 clamps the wire, two front end edges A311 of the stopping portion A31 are horizontal; after the terminal A3 clamps the wire, the two front end edges A311 of the stopping portion A31 protrude forwardly due to a bending and wire pressing process, the amount of the protruding is varied with the variation of the bending and wire pressing process with respect to the terminal, and the amounts of the protruding of the two front end edges A311 may also be varied. When the terminal A3 is mounted in the insulative housing A1, what will abut against the stopping wall A11 of the insulative housing A1 first are the two front end edges A311 which protrude forwardly, thereby resulting in that the terminal A3 cannot be mounted to a correct position.
FIG. 5 is an exploded schematic view illustrating an existing power connector set, which is disclosed in Chinese Patent Application No. CN01109445.1 (Chinese Patent issued Publication No.: CN100428577C). Referring to FIG. 5, the existing power connector set comprises a first insulative housing B1, a second insulative housing B2 and a lock assembly B11. The first insulative housing B1 is, for example, an insulative housing of a receptacle connector, the second insulative housing B2 is, for example, an insulative housing of a plug connector. The lock assembly B11 is mounted on an outer surface of the first insulative housing B1. The second insulative housing B2 comprises a protruding block B21. The first insulative housing B1 and the second insulative housing B2 are assembled with each other by that the lock assembly B11 and the protruding block B21 of the second insulative housing B2 are latched with each other. FIG. 6 is a structural schematic view illustrating the first insulative housing B1 and the lock assembly B11. Referring to FIG. 6, the lock assembly B11 comprises two legs B111, a pressing handle B112, two elastic arms B113 and a latch arm B114. The lock assembly B11 increases rigidity of the pressing handle B112 to properly reinforce mutual latching force and improve mechanical strength of the connector. However, in the existing power connector, the elastic arms B113 extend outwardly from the pressing handle B112 and then directly connect downwardly with the first insulative housing B1, which results in poor flexibility of the lock assembly B11, makes the pressing handle B112 difficult to press down and operate. In addition, the latch arm B114 of the existing power connector is a piece which is entirely solid, a thickness of the latch arm B114 is large, which will increase the difficulty of manufacturing, particularly result in uneven wall thickness in the mold injection process, and result in the subsequent problem of sink mark deformation.


A lighting device with at least one lighting unit for vehicles, preferably motor vehicles. The lighting device comprises at least one illuminant unit with one circuit board, and with at least one illuminant attached to the circuit board, connected to the conductive paths of the circuit board through contacts. The illuminant is positioned at the front face of the circuit board in order to configure the lighting device so that it can be manufactured simply and economically in a particularly flat configuration and in any curved shape. The lighting device is advantageously used in vehicles, preferably in motor vehicles.

The invention is related to a lighting device with at least one illuminant unit for vehicles, preferably motor vehicles, according the German patent application DE 102006021973.2, which is incorporated by reference.
Lighting devices with illuminant carriers, in which LEDs are disposed on circuit boards, are known. These circuit boards may have conductive paths on both surfaces of the circuit board, whereby the circuit board material is typically resin impregnated board, fiber-reinforced resin, and/or ceramics. The circuit boards have conductive tracks that serve for contacting and positioning of the LEDs. Furthermore, additional electronic components are frequently disposed on the circuit boards in addition to the LEDs.
The assembly of the LEDs onto a circuit board into an illuminant unit for the utilization in lighting devices is highly intricate due to the LEDs' requiring to be brought into an exact installation position. Such illuminant units require extensive installation space in lighting devices, which makes the lighting devices or their respective lighting device housings complicated and bulky. Curved lighting device housings furthermore require that the circuit boards be provided in individual segments, requiring positioning according to the lighting device/housing contour. This requires a plurality of fastening and positioning means, typically rendering the lighting device/housing very complex and expensive.
Such conventional lighting devices or illuminant units are not self-contained components, but rather require additional components for their optically efficient functioning that also need securing and fastening within the lighting device and/or its housing. The dimensions of all components relative to each other are of paramount importance, as even small variances can produce large optical errors. Due to the large installation space required, these lighting devices, or their housings need to be configured appropriately spacious corresponding to the additional elements to be installed. The resulting additional complexity causes weight increase and higher material use and, considering the increased assembly labor cost, leads to a significant cost increase for the complete Module. Additionally, these parameters have a significantly restrictive impact on the design options, or allow the implementation of specific designs only through extreme engineering and fabrication measures.

Lighting device with at least one illuminant unit for vehicles, preferably motor vehicles


An imager may include hybrid pixels that can be operated in first and second configurations. A hybrid pixel may include a floating diffusion region and first and second photodiodes that are coupled to the floating diffusion region. The second photodiode may be coupled to the floating diffusion region by a transfer gate. The first photodiode may accumulate charge during a first integration period, whereas the second photodiode may accumulate charge during a second integration period. The imager may operate the hybrid pixel for improved dynamic range by controlling the configuration of the hybrid pixel.

This relates generally to imaging systems, and more particularly to imaging systems with high dynamic range.
Modern electronic devices such as cellular telephones, cameras, and computers often use digital image sensors. Imagers (i.e., image sensors) may be formed from a two-dimensional array of image sensing pixels. Each pixel receives incident photons (light) and converts the photons into electrical signals. Image sensors are sometimes designed to provide images to electronic devices using a Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) format.
Pixels can be characterized by the maximum charge capacity relative to a noise floor (e.g., pixel noise that generates charge even when the pixel is exposed to minimal or no incident light). The ratio of the maximum amount of measurable light intensity or maximum charge capacity to the noise floor may sometimes be referred to as the dynamic range of a pixel. The dynamic range of each pixel is typically predetermined for conventional imagers. However, having a single predetermined dynamic range can result in poor performance for imaging conditions such as when incident light exceeds the maximum measurable light intensity or when the amount of incident light is less than the noise floor of the predetermined dynamic range.

Imaging pixels with improved dynamic range

Semiconductor Components Industries, LLC


A process for producing a polycarbonate resin with high flowability having a viscosity average molecular weight (Mv) of 13,000 to 20,000 according to an interfacial polymerization method which comprises the steps of forming a reaction mixture while injecting phosgene into bisphenol, after the completion of injection of phosgene, adding a tetraammonium salt to the reaction mixture, then, conducting polycondensation reaction, after a viscosity average molecular weight (Mv) of a reaction mixture containing the resultant reaction products has reached to 3,000 or above and less than 6,000, adding a molecular weight modifier to the reaction mixture, further conducting polycondensation reaction, and thereby obtaining the polycarbonate resin.

1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for producing a polycarbonate resin with high flowability, and more particularly to a process for producing a polycarbonate resin with high flowability in which both molding transcription and cycle times-shortening ability suitable for the production of CD, LD, Read Only Memory (ROM) disk, Direct Read After Write (DRAW) disk, Erasable Direct Read After Write (E-DRAW) disk, etc, are excellent and furthermore the amount of stain on a stamper is small.
2) Prior Art
Polycarbonate resin is used as molding materials for optical parts such as materials for optical recording media, lenses, fibers, etc., since it has excellent optical characteristics and furthermore low equilibrium water absorption rate, excellent heat resistance, dimensional stability and mechanical characteristics such as impact strength, etc.
Particularly, in optical recording media, a high quality of polycarbonate resin is required from the aspects of prevention against stain on stamper during production of substrate, improvement of molding transcription, durability of recording layer, long time reliability of polycarbonate resin substrate per se, etc. For example, as described in Japanese Patent Kokai (Laid-open) Nos. 63-278929, 63-316313 and 1-146926, it has been suggested to reduce low molecular weight carbonate compounds and unreacted bisphenol.
However, even in the above-mentioned prior arts, it is still unsatisfactory to prevent stain on a stamper.
Further, as a method for reducing low molecular weight carbonate compounds being formed during polycondensation reaction, Japanese Patent Kokoku (Publication after examination) No. 6-23243 discloses a method for specializing a procedure for charging raw materials and a caustic alkali concentration in polymerization reaction. Japanese Patent Kokai (Laid-open) No. 3-109420 discloses a method for reducing a production amount of dimer of molecular weight modifier by using a tubular reactor in phosgenating reaction and adding the molecular weight modifier inside the tubular reactor or in its exit.
However, in the above-mentioned methods, the content of low molecular weight carbonate compounds having the range of molecular weight 1,000 or below is not sufficiently reduced.
Japanese Patent Kokai (Laid-open) Nos. 6-336522 and 7-165899 describe the production of an aromatic polycarbonate having a low content of low molecular weight oligomers and a narrow molecular weight distribution. However, when an aromatic polycarbonate having a viscosity average molecular weight (Mv) of 13,000 to 20,000 is produced, low molecular weight carbonate compounds having the range of molecular weight 1,000 or below is not sufficiently reduced. Further the aromatic polycarbonate thus obtained has low flowability since the amount of produced oligomers to provide high flowability is very small, so that it is difficult to use it as the material for optical recording medium.
Also a method for removing low molecular weight carbonate compounds, unreacted bisphenol and remained halogenated solvent in a purifying process has been suggested. For example, the methods for extracting the above-mentioned substances with acetone as a poor solvent for polycarbonate have been suggested (Japanese Patent Kokai (Laid-open) Nos. 63-278929 and 4-306227) However, the above-mentioned methods have such drawback that deterioration of flowability of molten resin itself is caused during molding since, in comparison with a case of not conducting extraction with acetone, not only low molecular weight compounds to stain on a stamper, but also polycarbonate oligomer contributing much to flowability is removed during production of substrate. Furthermore, in the methods, a slight amount of acetone remains in a product, i.e, pellets since extraction with acetone is conducted, so that thermal degradation such as lowering of molecular weight and coloration during molding occurs.
Further, as the optical recording media, materials having high flowability during melting have been required in a disk injection molding from the viewpoints of reduction of birefringence and improvement of molding transcription and cycle times-shortening ability.
For example, as methods for improvement of flowability during melting, Japanese Patent Kokai (Laid-open) No. 60-215020 discloses that high flowability is provided by modifying terminal groups of polycarbonate to long chain alkyl groups and Japanese Patent Kokai (Laid-open) No. 61-123658 discloses that high flowability during melting is provided by adding oligomer to a polycarbonate resin. However, although improvement into materials with high flowability can be attained by modification of terminal groups or addition of oligomer, it is impossible to prevent stain on stamper in the production of substrate because low molecular weight carbonate compounds having the range of molecular weight 1,000 or below are still contained.

Process for producing polycarbonate resin with high flowability


A combination lock and padlock combination as a lock is disclosed that includes a spring-biased pivot assembly comprising a locking dog and an engagement member; a push button pivotably disposed on the pivot assembly; a U-shaped shackle comprising a slotted leg for locking the locking dog; a spring-biased L-shaped catch assembly comprising a sliding member at one end and a tab projected from the other end; and a spring-biased opening warning assembly pivotably provided in the housing and comprising a locked mark at one end exposed at a window in a locked position of the lock and an open mark adapted to switch with the locked mark. Once the lock is opened by a key by one of a number of persons sharing the lock, the open mark is exposed on the window and other person(s) may be aware of same by seeing the open mark.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to combination lock and padlock combinations and more particularly to such a combination lock and padlock combination (i.e., lock) having means for warning that the lock has been opened by a key by another person who shares the ownership of the lock.
2. Related Art
Combination lock and padlock combinations are well known. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,928,842 and 6,792,778 both disclose a combination lock and padlock combination which have the same inventor as the present application.
However, means for warn that the lock has been opened by a key by another person who shares the ownership of the lock is not disclosed in either prior patent. Hence, a need has arisen for an improved combination lock and padlock combination having means for warning that the lock has been opened by a key by another person who shares the ownership of the lock in order to overcome the inadequacy of the prior art and contribute significantly to the advancement of the art.

Combination lock and padlock combination with opening warning device


A processor core associated with a first cache initiates entry into a powered-down state. In response, information representing a set of entries of the first cache are stored in a retention region that receives a retention voltage while the processor core is in a powered-down state. Information indicating one or more invalidated entries of the set of entries is also stored in the retention region. In response to the processor core initiating exit from the powered-down state, entries of the first cache are restored using the stored information representing the entries and the stored information indicating the at least one invalidated entry.

Conventional processing systems include processing units, such as central processing units (CPUs) and graphics processing units (GPUs), which typically include multiple processor cores for executing instructions concurrently or in parallel. Information representing the state of the processor cores is stored in caches. The information stored in the caches is used to speed up operation of the processor cores. For example, translation lookaside buffers (TLBs) are used to cache translations of virtual addresses to physical addresses so that the TLB can perform virtual-to-physical address translations without a time-consuming page table walk. For another example, a cache hierarchy stores instructions that are executed by the processor core and data that is used by the instructions when executed by the processor core so that the instructions or data do not have to be fetched from external memory every time they are needed. A cache hierarchy includes an L1 cache for caching information for each processor core, an L2 cache to cache information for a subset of the processor cores in the processing unit, and an L3 cache to cache information for all of the processor cores in the processing unit. An inclusive cache hierarchy implements an L3 cache that is inclusive of the information stored in the L2 cache, which is inclusive of the information stored in the L1 cache.
Processor cores are placed in a powered-down state (which can be referred to as a C6 or CC6 state) to reduce leakage current when the processor cores are not actively performing operations such as executing instructions. The caches that store state information for the processor cores are flushed and then powered-down prior to placing the corresponding processor cores in the powered-down state. For example, entries in the TLB of a processor core are lost when the processor core is powered-down. For another example, cache entries in the L1 cache or L2 cache associated with a processor core are flushed to an L3 cache or an external memory such as a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) or a disk drive. The cache entries are then lost from the L1 or L2 caches when power is removed from the processor core and the L1 or L2 caches. The absence of up-to-date information in the caches reduces the performance of the processor core when it exits the powered-down state.

Retaining cache entries of a processor core during a powered-down state