An apparatus for processing radiographic image signals, including a photographing device for detecting an amount of radioactive rays transmitted through a subject and for converting the rays into original digital image signals in the form of pixels, and a signal processing circuit for processing the original digital image signals so as to decrease the amplitude of a low frequency component of the original digital image signals.

The present invention relates to a processing apparatus for radiographic image signals, and particularly to image processing (frequency processing) in a medical radiographing system.
A radiographic image such as an X-ray image is widely used for medical purposes. There is a known radiographic method in which a fluorescent material layer (fluorescent screen) is irradiated with radioactive rays passed through an object, and a film to be developed, on which a silver halide photosensitive material is coated, is irradiated with a visible light emitted from the fluorescent screen.
Recently, due to the progress of radiographic image diagnosis technology, a method has been invented by which the aforementioned radiograph is scanned, a radiographic image information recorded on the radiograph is read out, and the read out image information is regenerated on a CRT or a photosensitive material after it has been digitalized. Due to the aforementioned, various diagnostic information can be obtained from radiography at one time, and thereby diagnosis can be improved and an exposure dose can be lowered. This is expected from the following, in which the radiographic image information can be stored, and information retrieval can be conducted efficiently.
In the radiographic image information reading apparatus using a film, a photographing film in which a radiographic image is recorded, is exposure-scanned by a reading light, and the reflected light or the transmitted light at the time is detected by an photo-detector and is converted into an electric signal.
On the other hand, a method has been invented in which the radiographic image information is obtained without using a radiographic film made of a silver halide photosensitive material. In this method, radioactive rays which have passed through a subject are made to be absorbed into some kind of a fluorescent substance, then the fluorescent substance is excited by, for example, light or heat energy, thereby radioactive ray energy which is accumulated in the fluorescent substance by the aforementioned absorption is radiated as fluorescent light, and the fluorescent light is detected, so that the image can be formed. Concretely, this method is disclosed in, for example, U.S Pat. No. 3,859,527, or Japanese Patent Specification Open to Public Inspection No. 12144/1980. According to these disclosures, a stimulative fluorescent substance is used, and a radiographic image conversion method in which a visible light or infrared ray is used as a stimulation excitation light, as follows. A radiographic image conversion panel which a stimulative fluorescent substance layer is formed on a support, is used; the stimulative fluorescent substance layer is irradiated with the radioactive rays which have passed through a subject, and radioactive ray energy corresponding to radioactive ray transmittance of each portion of the subject is accumulated to form a latent image; then, the stimulative fluorescent substance layer is scanned by the aforementioned stimulation excitation light, and thereby the radioactive ray energy which is accumulated in each portion of the radiographic image conversion panel is radiated and converted into light; and a light signal according to the strength of the light is detected by a photoelectric conversion element such as a photo-multiplier, a photodiode, or the like so that the radiographic image information can be obtained.
On the other hand, there is a method in which: radioactive rays which have transmitted through the subject is absorbed in an uniformly charged semiconductor panel having a photoconductive layer composed of selenium, silicon, or the like so that a latent image can be formed, and after that, the electrostatic latent image on the panel is electrically detected by optical scanning of the semiconductor panel so that the image can be formed. (For example, refer to Japanese patent Specification Open to Public Inspection No. 31219/1979).
The radiographic image information thus obtained, is used without being further processed, or after being image-processed in order to improve the diagnostic property of an X-ray image, by conducting spatial frequency processing or gradation processing, and is outputted onto a silver halide film, or a CRT to be visualized, or stored in an image memory such as a semiconductor memory, a magnetic memory, an optical disc memory or the like, and after that, it is read out as necessary from these image memories and outputted onto a silver halide film, a CRT or the like to be visualized.
As one of the aforementioned spatial frequency processing methods, the following method has been known in which an unsharpness mask signal Sus is obtained, and an original image signal Sorg, the unsharpness mask signal Sus and an emphasis factor .beta. are used in the following equation, EQU S'=Sorg+.beta.(Sorg-Sus)
Due to this equation, spatial frequency emphasis, so-called edge emphasis can be conducted so that the sharpness of the image can be improved. (Refer to Japanese Patent Examined Publication No. 62372/1987.)
However, in the above-described spatial frequency processing method, there is a problem in which a large number of operations are required, and it is difficult to conduct image processing in real time. Further, in the above-described method, there are problems in which image noises are emphasized since a high spatial frequency area is emphasized, and thereby, image quality is lowered due to the image noises. In particular, the method has a disadvantage in that the image quality is extremely low in a portion in which a quantity of radiation is small (the signal is small).
In view of the foregoing, an object of the present invention is to provide a new frequency processing apparatus in which arithmetic processing is simple, and the processing speed is improved. Another object of the present invention is to provide a new frequency processing apparatus in which image quality of a portion having a small signal is not deteriorated due to noises even when contrast (sharpness) of a high frequency area is improved. The first object of the present invention is to provide a new frequency processing apparatus in which image quality deterioration of a portion having a small signal due to noises can be improved while contrast in the high frequency area is maintained.

Processing apparatus for radiographic image signals


A microwave sensor includes a cloud of particles, e.g., Rubidium 87 atoms. A probe laser beam transitions ground-state particles in its path to an excited state. A set of one or more coupling laser beams causes excited particles to transition to a first Rydberg state so that particles in the intersection of the laser beams are in a dark superposition which is transparent to the probe laser beam so that a frequency spectrum of the probe laser beam shows a transmission peak at the laser frequency. A microwave lens focuses a microwave vector (e.g., a microwave signal) within the intersection, causing particles in the first Rydberg state to transition to a second Rydberg state, splitting the transmission peak into a pair of peaks. The intensity of the microwave vector can be calculated based on the frequency difference between the pair of peaks. The direction of the microwave vector can be determined from the location of the laser-beam intersection.

Microwaves have many applications including those in point-to-point communication links, satellite and spacecraft communication, remote sensing, radio astronomy, radar, and medical imaging. "Microwave", as broadly defined herein, encompasses electromagnetic radiation of wavelengths of one meter (corresponding to a frequency of 300 megahertz (MHz)) down to 100 micrometers (corresponding to a frequency of three terahertz (THz)); in other words, "microwave", as defined herein, encompasses ultra-high frequency (UHF), super high frequency (SHF), extremely high frequency (EHF), also known as "millimeter wave", and tremendously high frequency (THF) frequency ranges defined by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).
In many microwave applications, it can be important to determine the propagation direction and electric-field strength of a received microwave vector. Herein, "microwave vector" refers to a propagating microwave field or field component that can be characterized by a combination of 1) a propagation direction that corresponds to the orientation of the vector; and 2) an electric-field strength that corresponds to the magnitude of the vector. If the vector is information-bearing, then it qualifies as a microwave signal. For example, characterizing the direction and strength of an information-bearing microwave signal can be used to locate its transmitter, e.g., to orient a receiver's antenna or for geolocation purposes. While microwave sensors have been realized using a variety of technologies, performance has been limited by a lack of sensitivity. What is needed is an approach to microwave sensing that provides for greater sensitivity in direction and intensity measurements.

Microwave sensor using rydberg particles

The Regents of the University of Colorado


A management system includes a recording device recording an image of a gaming chip and an inspection device determining a type and authenticity of the gaming chip. The gaming chip has a multilayer structure in which both sides of a colored layer are sandwiched between light color layers, surface printing representing a type of the gaming chip is performed on outer sides of the light color layers, and an authenticity recognition mark is printed on the colored layer of an inside of the light color layers by an infrared absorbing material. A visible light camera photographs a visible light image of the surface printing, and an infrared light camera photographs an infrared image of the internal printing. The inspection device determines the type and authenticity of the gaming chip using the visible light image and the infrared image.

Conventionally, in a game place such as a casino, a table game using a gaming chip has been carried out. Counterfeiting of the gaming chip is strictly controlled because the gaming chip can be cashed. Various technologies for discriminating a counterfeited gaming chip from an authentic gaming chip have been proposed and adopted. As known technologies, there is disclosed a method for determining authenticity by embedding a wireless tag, in which identification information is recorded, in a gaming chip and reading the identification information with a reader (for example, PATENT LITERATURE 1).
Meanwhile, different values are defined for each type of gaming chips, and a technology for detecting a value of a gaming chip has also been proposed to automate a table game. There is disclosed a method for determining authenticity by embedding a wireless tag, in which information on a type or a value of gaming chips is recorded in a gaming chip and reading the information with a reader (for example, PATENT LITERATURE 1).


The multi wireless charging apparatus of the present invention includes a control unit generally controlling a wireless charging procedure; a plurality of wireless charging units electrically connected to the control unit; and folding units connecting between the wireless charging units, the folding units each having a void therein, which passes through both lateral surfaces thereof, and thereby to be folded up or down.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a multi wireless charging apparatus and a method for manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a wireless charging technology, power necessary for charging a battery is transmitted wirelessly without a power code or a connector for charging. This technology is applied only to limited uses, such as an electric toothbrush, a wireless telephone for home use, electric tools, and the like, in the prior art.
However, the use of the wireless charging technology is increasingly expanding, with a recent explosive increase of the smart phone markets. Smart phones allow users to enjoy various contents and multimedia freely at any time, but there is a limit to the usage time thereof due to limitation in battery capacity. The wireless charging technology in the smart phone market has largely changed since 2010, after a smart phone wirelessly charged appeared. In 2011, products mounting wireless charging modules for wirelessly charging a cellular phone and a smart phone are successively being reported domestically and internationally.
Since the wireless power consortium (WPC), which aims at broadening the use of non-contact type standards, reported the first standard features for devices with 5 W or lower in July, 2010, more and more manufactures are joining this consortium. The wireless charging technology, of which a market is expanding due to employment of the smart phone, is expected to be increasingly applied to high-power devices such as a digital camera, a tablet PC, a monitor, a digital TV, and the like, in the future.
Among several methods enabling wireless charging, an electromagnetic induction method is excellent in view of commercialization and practicality. The electromagnetic induction method, as disclosed in Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2010-0094197 (laid-open published on Aug. 26, 2010), uses the combination of electromagnetic energy generated from a coil wound several times.
This embodies products based on Faraday's rule that an electromagnetic field generated by a coil on which AC or high-frequency current flows induces electromotive force at an output terminal of an adjacent coil. When a general cellular phone, a smart phone, a digital camera, a tablet PC, a monitor, a notebook, or the like, on which a wireless charging receiving module is mounted, is placed on a charging surface of a wireless charger constituted of a wireless charging transmitting module, an analog circuit, a power circuit, a control circuit, a rectifying circuit, a charging circuit, and the like are run, and thereby charge a battery installed in a device.
However, this wireless charging apparatus is inconvenient to keep and carry out due to a large volume thereof, and it is difficult to wirelessly charge a plurality of devices at the same time.

Multi wireless charging apparatus and method for manufacturing the same

Abstract: Also, in the multi wireless charging apparatus of the present invention, each of the wireless charging units includes a shielding film made of a conductive material, such as conductive paste or ferrite, and formed on a lower surface thereof, for electromagnetic field shielding.


A bipolar battery comprising a plurality of bipolar electrodes stacked together, each bipolar electrode comprising a conductive septum having positive and negative active material on opposite faces thereof. Each electrode has a nonconductive frame formed thereabout, and a mesa-like lattice which is integral with the frame, overlays the faces of the septum and is defined by an annular shoulder formed between the border of the lattice and the frame. Discrete spacer frames interjacent the electrode frames separate the electrodes from each other and define a region thereabout for retaining the battery's electrolyte. The faces of the spacer include an annular recess contiguous an inner rim thereof which receives, in nesting fashion, the mesa-like lattices for interlocking the several frames together.

Bipolar batteries employ either one of two types of bipolar electrodes, i.e., face-to-face or side-by-side. Face-to-face type bipolar electrodes, utilize an electrolyte resistant, impervious, substantially planar conductive septum having a first polarity active material on one face thereof and an opposite polarity active material on the opposite face thereof. The bipolar electrodes are mounted in nonconductive frames and stacked together such that opposite polarity faces of adjacent bipolar electrodes oppose each other across an electrolyte-filled gap which also contains an electrolyte-permeable, dendrite-suppressing separator (e.g., microporous polyethylene, glass mat, microporous PVC, etc.). The frames are typically either clamped or adhesively secured together. One such battery is exemplified by the patent to Poe et al U.S. Pat. No. 3,728,158, assigned to the assignee of the present invention.
It is known for the electrically conductive septum that separates the opposite polarity active materials of the bipolar electrode to comprise either (1) a thin metal plate (e.g., lead in the case of a Pb-acid battery), (2) an electrically conductive polymer, or (3) a nonconductive polymer having a plurality of rivet-like conductors embedded therein for electrically communicating one face of the septum to the other. For a number of reasons, the use of solid metal plates is preferred for long-lived, high power, bipolar batteries. A metal plate septum particularly useful for lead acid batteries is described in copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 079,030 filed Jun. 21, 1993 and assigned to the assignee of the present invention. Other metal or conductive septums are useful with other types of battery systems (e.g., alkaline batteries) as is well known in the art. Two of the problems associated with the commercialization of face-to-face type bipolar batteries are (1) insuring that the active material remains in contact with the septum throughout the life of the battery, and (2) manufacturing problems associated with the handling, alignment, assembly and reliable sealing of so many individual components to form the finished battery.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a unique bipolar battery packaging arrangement for face-to-face type bipolar batteries which addresses both the aforesaid problems by providing a conductive septum engaged on its perimeter by a nonconductive frame, and having mesa-like lattices which (1) are integral with the frame inboard its periphery, (2) provide a plurality of active-material-retaining-pockets across the faces of the septum, and (3) are designed and constructed to securely nest within spacer frames positioned between adjacent bipolar electrodes. This and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent from the detailed description thereof which follows.


A transfer laminating element for laminating ink jet prints comprising a flexible, polymeric support having thereon a porous, fusible, transferable protection layer comprising fusible, thermoplastic polymeric particles in a polymeric binder, the protection layer having a thickness of between about 2 and about 100 xcexcm and a particle-to-binder ratio of between about 95:5 and about 70:30, the thermoplastic polymeric particles having a particle size of less than about 10 xcexcm and a Tm or softening point of greater than about 50xc2x0 C. and the polymeric binder having a Tg of less than about 20xc2x0 C.

This invention relates to an element for laminating ink jet prints, more particularly to a polymeric support having thereon a porous, fusible, transferable protection layer.
In a typical ink jet recording or printing system, ink droplets are ejected from a nozzle at high speed towards a recording element or medium to produce an image on the medium. The ink droplets, or recording liquid, generally comprise a recording agent, such as a dye or pigment, and a large amount of solvent. The solvent, or carrier liquid, typically is made up of water, an organic material such as a monohydric alcohol, a polyhydric alcohol or mixtures thereof.
An ink jet recording element typically comprises a support having on at least one surface thereof a base layer for absorbing fluid and an ink-receiving or image-forming layer, and includes those intended for reflection viewing, which have an opaque support, and those intended for viewing by transmitted light, which have a transparent support.
Ink jet prints prepared by printing onto ink jet recording elements are subject to environmental degradation such as water smearing and light fade. For example, since ink jet dyes are water-soluble, they can migrate from their location in the ink-receiving layer when water comes in contact with the recording element after imaging.
To reduce the vulnerability of prints to degradation and to enhance gloss, ink jet prints are often laminated. Typically, such conventional lamination is a process whereby a continuous polymeric film bearing an adhesive is brought into contact with the surface of the print. Heat and/or pressure is then used to affix the continuous polymeric film to the print surface. The continuous polymeric film then serves as a barrier layer that is impermeable to water and further acts to diminish the fading of the print image caused by light.
However, there is a problem with prior art laminating films since they are typically supplied in roll format and must be cut, or less desirably torn, to separate the laminated print from the continuous roll of laminating film. A requirement to cut adds expense to a laminator design that is required to run in a continuous mode.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,662,976 discloses an assembly for creating laminated cards which comprises a sheet of card stock with a release coating and a sheet of laminating film adhering to the release coating. A card form is cut into the sheet of card stock, and a lamination strip, which is sufficiently large to fold over so as to laminate both surfaces of the card, is cut into the lamination sheet. After printing, the card and the lamination strip are removed, and the lamination strip folded over to laminate the card. However, there is a problem with this laminating film in that expensive cutting and perforating steps are required to prepare the laminated card.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,387,573 discloses a dye-donor element for thermal dye transfer comprising a support and a transferable protection layer wherein the transferable protection layer is less than about 1xcexc thick and contains particles in an amount of up to about 75% of the transferable protection layer. However, there is no disclosure in this patent that the protection layer can be used with ink jet prints.
It is an object of the invention to provide a transfer laminating element for laminating ink jet prints wherein the protection layer is sufficiently thick to protect ink jet images from degradation by water, and yet can be employed without resort to expensive cutting steps. It is another object to provide a transfer laminating element for laminating an ink jet print of arbitrary geometric shape. It is still another object to provide a transfer laminating element that allows for the direct visual distinction between laminated and unlaminated regions of the print.
These and other objects are provided by the present invention which comprises a transfer laminating element for laminating ink jet prints comprising a flexible, polymeric support having thereon a porous, fusible, transferable protection layer comprising fusible, thermoplastic polymeric particles in a polymeric binder, the protection layer having a thickness of between about 2 and about 100 xcexcm and a particle-to-binder ratio of between about 95:5 and about 70:30, the thermoplastic polymeric particles having a particle size of less than about 10 xcexcm and a Tm or softening point of greater than about 50xc2x0 C. and the polymeric binder having a Tg of less than about 20xc2x0 C.
In using the invention, the transfer laminating element is contacted with an ink jet image using heat and pressure to form a fused composite. Within the composite, the porous, fusible, transferable protection layer fuses to become a substantially continuous film which is optically clear. After cooling below the Tg of the polymer used to make the particles, the support is peeled from the composite. The substantially continuous film easily separates, without cutting, from the unfused porous region, thereby forming a protection layer on the surface of the inkjet image.
As noted above, the particle-to-binder ratio in the protection layer is between about 95:5 and about 70:30. If the particle-to-binder ratio is above the range stated, the layer will not have any cohesive strength. If the particle-to-binder ratio is below the range stated, the layer will not be porous, and on peeling the support away from the cooled composite after laminating, a continuous film is present which must be cut.
It is believed that when a fusible, transferable protection layer is used which is porous, cutting is obviated by the weak cohesive strength at the interface between the area of the substantially continuous film formed on fusing and the unfused, porous area. Thus, the interface acts as a micro-perforated edge of the film that facilitates a clean rupture. Further, during the fusing step, otherwise entrained air escapes via the interface between the substantially continuous film and the unfused, porous area.
The polymer used to make the fusible, thermoplastic polymeric particles employed in the invention may be an amorphous polymer which has softening point greater than about 50xc2x0 C., such as an amorphous polyester, e.g., Kao C(copyright) (Kao Corp.) or an acrylic polymer such as Carboset 526(copyright) (BF Goodrich Specialy Chemicals); or a partially crystalline polymer having a Tm greater than about 50xc2x0 C., such as a partially crystalline polyester, e.g., Griltex Polyester(copyright) (EMS American Grilon Corp) or an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer such as Elvax(copyright) (DuPont Corp.); or a thermoplastic, modified cellulose such as Ethocel(copyright) (Dow Chemical Co.), etc. In a preferred embodiment, the fusible, thermoplastic polymeric particles are made from an amorphous polyester having a silica shell. In another preferred embodiment, the fusible, thermoplastic polymeric particles contain a UV-absorber.
The fusible, thermoplastic polymeric particles used in the invention may be made using various techniques, such as, for example, evaporative limited coalescence as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,833,060, limited coalescence as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,354,799, grinding as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,304,360, or cryogenic grinding as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,273,294.
As noted above, the polymer used to make the fusible, thermoplastic particles will have a Tm or softening point greater than about 50xc2x0 C., preferably between about 60xc2x0 C. and 150xc2x0 C. The Tm is measured using a differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). In a preferred embodiment, the Tm is between about 60xc2x0 C. and 120xc2x0 C. A softening point of a polymer can be measured by the Ring and Ball method as described in ASTM E28. In addition, the polymer used to make the fusible, thermoplastic particles usually will have a Tg of less than about 100xc2x0 C., preferably between about 0xc2x0 C. and 90xc2x0 C.
As noted above, the polymeric binder used in the invention has a Tg of less than about 20xc2x0 C., preferably between xe2x88x9260xc2x0 C. and 20xc2x0 C. The polymeric binder used in the invention may be, for example, a polyurethane such as a Witcobond(copyright) Aqueous Urethane Dispersion (Witco Corp.), a vinyl acetate-ethylene copolymer emulsion, an ethylene-vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion, a vinyl acetate-vinyl chloride-ethylene terpolymer emulsion such as Airflex(copyright) (Air Products Corp.), or an acrylic emulsion such as Flexbond(copyright) (Air Products Corp). In a preferred embodiment, the binder comprises a polyurethane.
A subbing/release layer may also be used to provide adhesion between the porous, fusible, transferable protection layer and the support. The subbing/release layer must be capable of initially adhering the protection layer to the support and must be capable of subsequently releasing the protection layer from the support upon application of heat and pressure followed by cooling. Any material that performs this adhesion/release function can be used. In general, a coated subbing/release layer has a final coating weight of about 90 mg/m2. Suitable materials include, for example, lattices such as a terpolymer latex of acrylonitrile, vinylidene chloride and acrylic acid, or partially hydrolyzed vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymers. Alternatively, a subbing/release layer can be generated directly on the support surface by corona-discharge-treatment of the support prior to applying the porous, fusible, transferable protection layer.
As the flexible, polymeric support for the invention, there may be used, for example, various plastics including a polyester-type resin such as poly(ethylene terephthalate), poly(ethylene naphthalate), polycarbonate resins, polystyrene resins, polysulfone resins, methacrylic resins, cellophane, acetate plastics, cellulose diacetate, cellulose triacetate, vinyl chloride resins and polyester diacetate. The thickness of the support may be, for example, from about 12 to about 500 xcexcm, preferably from about 75 to about 300 xcexcm. In a preferred embodiment, the support is a transparent poly(ethylene terephthalate) film.
Since the transfer lamination element may come in contact with other image recording articles or the drive or transport mechanisms of laminating devices, additives such as surfactants, lubricants, matte particles and the like may be added to the element to the extent that they do not degrade the properties of interest.
The protection layer described above may be coated by conventional coating means onto the support such as wound wire rod coating, slot coating, slide hopper coating, gravure, curtain coating and the like.
Ink jet inks used to prepare the images to be laminated by the transfer lamination element of the invention are well-known in the art. The ink compositions used in ink jet printing typically are liquid compositions comprising a solvent or carrier liquid, dyes or pigments, humectants, organic solvents, detergents, thickeners, preservatives, and the like. The solvent or carrier liquid can be solely water or can be water mixed with other water-miscible solvents such as polyhydric alcohols. Inks in which organic materials such as polyhydric alcohols are the predominant carrier or solvent liquid may also be used. Particularly useful are mixed solvents of water and polyhydric alcohols. The dyes used in such compositions are typically water-soluble direct or acid type dyes. Such liquid compositions have been described extensively in the prior art including, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,381,946; 4,239,543 and 4,781,758, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
Although the elements disclosed herein have been referred to primarily as being useful for laminating ink jet prints, they also can be used to protect images created employing other technologies such as photographic prints, laser printer prints, prints made via offset lithography and the like.


The present technology relates to an information processing device, an information processing method, and an information processing system by which a user can easily recognize a position of a sensor having a defect from among sensors mounted on a vehicle. Position-related information about a relative position or direction with respect to a vehicle is acquired, and a combined image obtained by combining a defect image representing a position of the sensor having a defect from among the sensors mounted on the vehicle with a vehicle image reflecting the vehicle is displayed in response to the position-related information. The present technology can be applied so that a user can recognize a sensor having a defect from among the sensors mounted on a vehicle.

Recently, a large number of sensors such as cameras have been provided outside a vehicle such as a four-wheeled vehicle for driving assistance and the like such as with an automatic brake.
Dirt easily adheres to sensors provided outside a vehicle, and dirt adhering to a sensor hinders sensing of the sensor and thus it is necessary to clean such dirt adhering to a sensor.
For example, PTL 1 proposes a technology for displaying an image captured using a camera as a sensor on a portable terminal and notifying a user of a contamination state of the sensor.

Device, method, and system for displaying a combined image representing a position of sensor having defect and a vehicle

SONY SEMICONDUCTOR SOLUTIONS CORPORATION


In an image forming apparatus, a rotary developing device or revolver has a plurality of developing sections each storing a developer of particular color thereinside. The revolver is rotatable to sequentially move the developing sections to a preselected developing position so as to develop toner images sequentially formed on an image carrier. Toner cartridges are each removably mounted to the respective developing section. Only one of the cartridges located at a preselected replacing position can be pulled out and replaced. A toner cartridge is prevented from being accidentally mounted to the developing section located at the replacing position and whose cartridge has already been replaced.

The present invention relates to a copier, facsimile apparatus, printer or similar image forming apparatus using, e.g., a rotary developing device having a plurality of developing sections and sequentially moving the developing sections to develop latent images electrostatically formed on an image carrier with developers of different colors.
Image forming apparatuses of the type described include one having a rotary developing device, or revolver as often referred to, adjoining a photoconductive drum or similar image carrier. The revolver has a plurality of developing sections arranged in preselected positions inside of a rotary body. While latent images are sequentially formed on the drum, the developing sections are sequentially moved to a preselected developing position to develop the latent images with toner of different colors. In a color image forming apparatus, for example, the developing sections of the revolver usually store black toner and toner of three complementary primary colors, i.e., cyan, magenta, and yellow, respectively.
Today, there is an increasing demand for a space-saving developing device capable of implementing a miniature image forming apparatus. The revolver is one of measures for meeting the above demand. To further save space, there has been proposed a revolver omitting tubings communicating toner cartridges each storing toner of particular color and developing sections, and positioning the cartridges in the vicinity of the developing sections. In this kind of revolver, every time the color for development is switched, the developing section storing the toner of necessary color is brought to a stop at the developing position. At the same time, the other developing sections are each brought to a stop at a particular position. The replenishment of toner from each cartridge to the associated developing section is effected via an opening provided at the portions of the cartridge and developing section joining each other. Because a single position is available for the above opening to be so oriented as not to fall the toner in the event of replacement of the cartridge, only one cartridge can be replaced at a time in the event of replenishment.
When any one of the toner cartridges runs out of toner, it is replaced with a new toner cartridge. After the replacement of the cartridge, a toner content in the developing section associated therewith must be restored to the original content, so that images can be formed with stable density even just after the replacement. A recovery operation for the restoration of the toner content is under study. For example, a discharge lamp or quenching lamp QL, a main charger, a bias for development and so forth are sequentially turned on in order to form a preselected pattern for density measurement on the photoconductive drum. The preselected pattern is read by an optical sensor for sensing density. The toner is repeatedly replenished from the toner cartridge to the developing section until an adequate toner content has been set up in the developing section. Then, the main charger, bias for development, QL and so forth are sequentially turned off, and the drum is brought to a stop. The procedure from the rotation of the drum to the formation of the density pattern will be referred to as pre-rotation processing. Also, the procedure from the formation of the density pattern to the establishment of the adequate toner content will be referred to as recovery processing. Further, the procedure from the end of the replenishment to the stop of the drum will be referred to as post-rotation processing. The pre- and post-rotation processing each needs a certain period of time because it continues until the surface of the drum reaches a stable state.
It has also been proposed to use toner sensing means for determining whether or not the toner is present in each toner cartridge either directly or indirectly, and reporting means for urging, based on the output of the sensing means, the operator to replace the cartridge needing replacement.
However, the conventional revolver has some problems yet to be solved, as follows.
Problem 1!
The revolver is so constructed as to allow only one toner cartridge located at the replacing position to be replaced. Therefore, if the cartridge reached a toner end or toner near end condition is not located at the replacing position in the event of replenishment, the operator must move the cartridge to the replacing position by hand. Particularly, it is difficult to rotate conventional revolvers by hand, so that an implementation capable of enhancing efficient replenishment is desired.
Problem 2!
Assume that the recovery operation is performed every time a cartridge is replaced. Then, the pre-rotation processing, recovery processing and post-rotation processing are repeated each time. When a plurality of cartridges are replaced, the above procedure restricts the operator to the apparatus until the replacement of the last cartridge completes, resulting in low operation efficiency. Further, such a procedure effected with a plurality of cartridges increases the overall recovery time and causes the operator to wait a long period of time up to the start of image formation. Moreover, when any one of the cartridges is replaced while a power switch provided on the apparatus is in its OFF state, which cartridge has been replaced cannot be seen when the power switch is turned on. Executing the recovery operation with all the cartridges, including even those not replaced, is wasteful. This would also causes the operator to wait a long period of time up to the start of image formation.
Problem 3!
Assume that the previously mentioned reporting means ends a report after the recovery operation has been completed. Then, because a certain period of time is necessary between the replacement of the cartridge and the end of the recovery operation, the operator is likely to inadvertently replace the cartridge associated with the same developing section twice during, e.g., recovery operation following the replacement. This is particularly true when the person replaced the cartridge leaves the apparatus, and another person uses the apparatus. Such repeated replacement simply wastes labor. In addition, it is likely that the toner existing at the portion where the cartridge and revolver join each other flies about.
Problem 4!
Assume that any one of the cartridges is absent on the revolver. Then, the rotation of the revolver is likely to cause the toner to fly about from the portion where the revolver is expected to join the above cartridge. For example, assume that the apparatus has a cover member which the operator may open and close for the replacement of the cartridge. Then, when the operator opens the cover member, the rotation of the revolver is stopped for safety operation. When the cover member is again closed, the revolver may be rotated for homing. Alternatively, while the cover member is open, the revolver may be rotated for the recovery operation. In such a case, if any cartridge is absent, the toner flies about from the above portion during the rotation of the revolver.
Problem 5!
Assume that cartridge sensing means responsive to the cartridge is located at a preselected position on a path along which the revolver moves the cartridges, and that when the operator opens the cover member for replacement, the rotation of the revolver is stopped for safety operation. Then, the cartridge sensing means is apt to operate erroneously. Specifically, it occurs that when the revolver in rotation is stopped for the safety purpose due to the opening of the cover member, no cartridges exist at the above preselected sensing position despite that all the cartridges are present on the revolver. If the revolver is stopped at such a position, the sensing means does not sense any cartridge despite that all the cartridges are present. As a result, if the apparatus operates on condition that the sensing means senses the cartridge, the apparatus will remain inoperative.
Problem 6!
The erroneous operation of the sensing means stated above also occurs when the revolver is stopped due to the turn-off of the power switch.
Problem 7!
The recovery operation is executed, based on a preselected criterion, when the cartridge is determined to have been replaced. It is likely, depending on the criterion, that the cartridge is determined to have been replaced despite that it has not been replaced, resulting in wasteful recovery operation. Specifically, assume that the cartridge is determined to have been replaced if it is in the toner end or toner near end condition when the cover member is opened and closed by the operator for replacement. Then, the recovery operation occurs even when the operator simply opens and closes the door without replacing the cartridge.

Image forming apparatus that searches for toner cartridges in need of replacement


The invention relates to a transfer plant, especially for loading and unloading ISO containers from container ships at seaports, comprising a vertical support which is propped up on the land side and on which a horizontal extension arm is braced. Said horizontal extension arm, along which a horizontal conveying device can be displaced, protrudes across the ship that is to be unloaded on the sea side. The horizontal conveying device cooperates with hoisting and lowering devices which pick up and put down the containers. The aim of the invention is to create a redesigned transfer plant and a method for loading and unloading containers, preferably ISO containers, from container ships in seaports, which allow the transfer rate to be significantly increased and consequently the lay times of the container ships at the pier to be substantially reduced. Said aim is achieved by disposing at least two horizontal conveying devices (9, 10) on the horizontal extension arm (1.4, 1.5, 1.6), which can be displaced independently of each other along said horizontal extension arm (1.4, 1.5, 1.6) between the hoisting and lowering devices (11, 13) that are located on the land side and the sea side. In addition, intermediate storage devices (12, 14), into which the containers can be placed and from which said containers can be picked up by the hoisting and lowering devices (11, 13) that are located on the land side and the sea side and the horizontal conveying devices (9, 10), are disposed on the horizontal extension arm in the area of the hoisting and lowering devices (11, 13) that are located on the land side and the sea side.

The invention relates to a transfer plant, especially for loading and unloading containers from container ships at seaports, with a vertical support which is propped up at the land side and on which a horizontal extension arm is braced, which protrudes across the ship that is to be unloaded on the sea side and along which a horizontal conveying device can travel, which cooperates with hoisting and lowering devices that pick up and put down the containers, being arranged at the land and sea side and also on the horizontal extension arm.
The invention also relates to a method for loading and unloading containers from container ships at seaports, making use of the aforesaid transfer plant.
A container transfer plant with the above described features is known, for example, from DE 40 40 072 A1. The known solution attempts to reduce as much as possible the lost time during the loading and unloading of container ships, which arises at full extension of the hoisting distance during the loading and unloading of the containers. It was recognized that the handling rate of a known system can be considerably abbreviated by appropriately shortening the hoisting and lowering distances.
The problem is solved in the state of the art by using a transport car for the heavy horizontal conveying in such a loading bridge, whose carrying platform is adjustable in height due to lengthwise adjustable carrying elements, so that the carrying platform can be adjusted optimally to the heights of the load transfer.
However, the hoisting and lowering events represent only one of many lost times, and a prime criterion for the handling capacity of the container bridge is first and foremost the duration of a load alternation of the crane trolleys. With increasing size of ship and, thus, increasing width of ship, the sea-side extension arm and thus the horizontal travel distance of the trolleys becomes increasingly longer, and this cannot be balanced out by higher speeds of travel of the trolleys. The maximum trolley travel speeds currently achieved in container bridges of around 4 m/s are on the order of magnitude just within the capabilities of the crane operators; any further increase in trolley speed is hardly feasible.

Transfer plant and method for loading and unloading containers from container ships


The present invention relates to a microfluidic assay system and associated reading device, as well as the individual components themselves. The present invention also relates to methods of conducting assays, using a disposable system and associated reading device, as well as kits for conducting assays.

Microfluidic cartridges are routinely used for carrying out a variety of assays, both biological and chemical and/or physiochemical and the results of the assays are often determined using an associated reader device into which the cartridge has been introduced.
Fluid movement within the cartridge is often required in order to ensure that a sample is able to contact reagents which are deposited within the cartridge and which are capable of reacting with one or more target analytes which may be present in a sample. Following reaction with one or more reagents, it is often desirable for the sample to be removed from the area where the reaction has taken place, in order that a further reaction can occur, or simply to allow the detection of any reaction product, which can be difficult to achieve when the sample remains in place, due to optical interference for example.
Fluid movement within the cartridge may occur by capillary action alone, or control of fluid within the cartridge may be effected by an active force provided, for example, by the use of micro pumps and valves which may be present in the cartridge, or by way of mechanisms present in the reader device which are designed to interact with the cartridge and pump a fluid into and/or out of the cartridge in order to control fluid movement within the cartridge itself—see for example EP2613881. Alternatively a combination of capillary action and an active force may be used.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,238,324, for example, describes a microfluidic device which employs both capillary action and the application of an external pump. A sample is allowed to enter the microfluidic cartridge through a first port by capillary action and flows to a sensing chamber where the assay occurs. Following the assay reaction, liquid is introduced into the chip through a second port by use of an external pump. The purpose of this liquid is to wash away the original sample, leaving only the reaction products behind which can be detected. However, this means that a separate liquid must be introduced to the chip from the outside and through a further port, which could become clogged and/or subject to contamination. Moreover, the liquid may become contaminated or degrade over time. Thus, there is a need to provide microfluidic cartridges in which it is not necessary to introduce fluids, other than the sample, from outside the cartridge and/or have ports, other than the sample port through which the sample is to be introduced. Some designs are known to include liquid filled pouches within the cartridge itself in order to provide suitable wash reagents/buffers etc, but this significantly increases the complexity and expense of the cartridges and the liquid reagents may also be susceptible to degradation.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,821,399 describes a system and cartridge employing electrical conductivity to measure samples and fluid between samples. Rinse fluid is provided in a fluid filled pouch within the cartridge, which can be transported within the cartridge and detected by its electrical conductivity by the reader. The difference in electrical conductivity between a sample and the rinse fluid or air segment can easily be determined.
WO2013154946 describes a microfluidic system which uses a combination of capillary action and gas pressure to control the movement of liquid samples within a microfluidic device. Initially a liquid sample which is introduced into the device is transported by capillary action partly along a capillary channel. As the liquid advances the gas pressure at the distal gas-liquid interface increases by an amount sufficient to stop the movement of the liquid. To initiate further movement of the liquid sample, a pump connected to a distal portion of the capillary channel decreases the pressure of the gas acting upon the distal gas-liquid interface of the liquid sample by an amount sufficient to permit the liquid sample to move by capillary action further along the capillary channel of the microfluidic device.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,096,669 describes a disposable device for use in conjunction with a reader device. A sample may be initially drawn into the disposable device by way of capillary action and further movement of the sample within the device may be effected by the reader automatically depressing a gas bladder comprising a flexible membrane, within the device, so as to cause the fluid sample to flow over sensors and the concentration of a chemical species to be determined.
WO2013/096801 describes a lateral flow detection system, which can include fluidic features. In one embodiment, there is described a cartridge which includes the lateral flow device which includes chromatographic media and immobilised antibodies, but further includes a gas bladder which is actuated by a pump within the reader. Depression of the gas bladder serves to move the fluid sample within the fluidic channels of the cartridge and into the capture zone. Following appropriate capture the fluid sample is further pushed by action on the gas bladder, into a wash chamber. The use of a wash fluid is described to flush away components of the sample fluid, such as red blood cells, which may interfere with detection. However, combining lateral flow features with microfluidic features provides a degree of complexity and lateral flow tests are generally for qualitative or semi-quantitative measurement, rather than being quantitative.
EP2613881, an earlier application from the current applicant, describes a microfluidic cartridge and associated reader. A fluid port within the cartridge is designed to form a fluid-tight seal with the reader such that gas may be transported within and throughout the cartridge by the reader.
WO03/049860 describes a complex device for chemical or biochemical analysis, comprising first and second layers separated by a frangible third layer. Upon breaking the frangible third layer, fluid present in the second layer is able to enter the fluidic network of the first layer. Many chambers are provided which have to be sequentially compressed in order to provide various reagents and conduct any particular assay.
US2015/0004680 describes biosensor cartridges for detecting one or more components in a sample. Each cartridge comprises as well as microfluidic channels, an air pump chamber and a reagent pump chamber which comprise pores on their upper surface. When an associated sensor employs optical detection, wash buffers are also provided in the cartridge. The chambers are described as separate pouches which are inserted within recesses of the cartridge. The reagent and buffer pouches are filled with suitable liquid.
There is also a need to be able to test fluid, such as blood samples, from subjects more quickly and with less complexity. There is even the desire for subjects to be able to test themselves at home.
Typically when a subject presents at a local medical clinic or even at a hospital, relatively large samples of fluid or blood are taken to be analysed and depending on the tests carried out, a number of separate vials or samples may be required. Also, where the test is not carried out at the time of sample collection, it is often necessary to store the sample in a manner which minimises degradation or loss of a particular analyte to be detected. Some tests are time sensitive and the time taken to conduct a test can result in the disease progressing undesirably, when the subject could have been being treated.
There are also diseases and conditions where it would be desirable for the subject to be able to test themselves on a regular basis and be able to self-medicate on the basis of the test results. In this manner the subject can be directed on the basis of a test result, possibly with input from a healthcare worker, as to the medication which should be taken.
Moreover, clinical analysis of samples has traditionally been conducted using clinical analytical techniques which require the use of specialist laboratories with large scale machines for carrying out the analyses. Over the last few years, there has been a drive to develop benchtop sized or even handheld devices which are capable of conducting such tests. However, the ability of such devices to be able to handle only small sample volumes and/or carry out a variety of different types of analyses is limited. Moreover, it would be desirable if a single reader were able to carry out a variety of different panels of tests, such that the user does not have to have a number of different readers in order to be able to conduct different types of tests.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,435,738, for example, describes a modular system which is capable of conducting a number of assays from a single blood sample. However, it is clear that individual and separate modules are provided to carry out different functions and the sample is transported to each module by way of a sample handling system. It also appears that the system comprises a housing which is designed to handle the sample preparation as well as carry out the various assays, but it is unclear what happens to each sample once it has been analysed.


A power supply circuit for any kind of loads or power consuming devices which are connected to an electrical power supply; especially lamps, such as at least one glow or gas discharge lamp, wherein a pulse width modulator controls electronic switches of a push-pull oscillator, and wherein the pulse frequency of the pulse width modulator is tuned to the resonant frequency of a resonant transformer of the push-pull oscillator which has the secondary side thereof connected to the gas discharge lamp. A control circuit monitors a current and/or voltage value and/or time value which is characteristic for the presence of the resonance and which, upon a change in the resonant frequency, will change the pulse frequency of the pulse width modulator to ensure operation at the new resonant frequency.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a power supply circuit for any kind of loads or power consuming devices which are connected to an electrical power supply; especially lamps, such as at least one glow or gas discharge lamp, wherein a pulse width modulator controls electronic switches of a push-pull oscillator, and wherein the pulse frequency of the pulse width modulator is tuned to the resonant frequency of a resonance transmitter of the push-pull oscillator which has the secondary side thereof connected to the gas discharge lamp.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
A power supply circuit of that type for a gas discharge lamp is described in the specification of German Laid-Open Patent Appln. 40 05 776 A1. In order to be able to attain a high degree of efficiency, the frequency of the current flowing through the lamp is adjusted by the pulse frequency of the pulse width modulator to the resonant frequency of an oscillating circuit of the resonance transformer. Hereby, the resonance frequency is independent of that of the power supply.
The pulse frequency of the pulse width modulator is thusly tuned or adapted through the intermediary of a variable impedance or resistance to the resonance frequency of an oscillating circuit formed from the secondary winding of the resonance transformer, a capacitance and the lamp. However, when the resonance frequency changes, there is then encountered a mistuning which places into question the attainment of the desired high degree of operating efficiency. Such a change in the resonance frequency can be encountered, for example, through the ageing of the components or in response to temperature changes. Moreover, in the utilization of different gas discharge lamps possessing differing resonance frequencies, it is possible that in German 40 05 776 A1, in every individual instance there would be required a correlation of the pulse frequency of the pulse width modulator to the current resonance frequency.
In the disclosure of German 40 05 776 A1 there is proposed that for the dimming of the gas discharge lamp, there is correspondingly adjusted or set the keying ratio of the pulse width modulator.
In the disclosure of German 40 05 776 A1, by means of a transistor of a rectifying bridge there can be controlled the preheating of the electrodes of the gas discharge lamp.
Circuit arrangements in which the gas discharge lamp are operated at the frequency of an alternating current power supply are set forth in the disclosures of German Patent Publications 33 27 189 A1 and 25 12 918 B2. In those instances, it is not contemplated to connect the gas discharge lamps to a direct-current voltage supply, or to operate the gas discharge lamps at a frequency which is higher than the frequency of the alternating-current power supply which powers the lamps.

Power supply circuit for gas discharge lamps operating at a resonant frequency


There is provided a system and method for creating model of a subsurface region based on multiple depth values. The method includes selecting seeds that represent a starting location within a desired horizon surfaces and generating a plurality of candidate horizons from the selected seeds. A number of depth values from the candidate horizons may be combined into a representative depth value and an uncertainty may be computed based on discrepancies among the depth values. A model of the subsurface region may be created using the depth values and the uncertainty.

This section is intended to introduce various aspects of the art, which may be associated with embodiments of the disclosed techniques. This discussion is believed to assist in providing a framework to facilitate a better understanding of particular aspects of the disclosed techniques. Accordingly, it should be understood that this section is to be read in this light, and not necessarily as admissions of prior art.
Seismic interpretation generally involves a person skilled in geologic interpretation, referred to as an interpreter, who manually identifies seismic horizons by reviewing seismic reflections and mapping the seismic reflections into seismic horizons. A seismic horizon may include boundaries in the subsurface structures that are deemed important by an interpreter. Finding the seismic horizon can be a subjective, time consuming process.
Tool sets for computer-aided volume interpretation typically include horizon tracking techniques that are used to determine seismic horizons. One horizon tracking technique may follow the peaks of seismic amplitudes, beginning with a user provided seed point in a vertical seismic section. The vertical seismic section can be either a cross-line vertical section in the y-z plane or an in-line vertical section in the x-z plane.
Another horizon tracking technique is known as "seed detection," which is a technique for growing a region in a three dimensional seismic data volume. Seed detection may result in a set of connected voxels in a 3D seismic data volume that fulfills user-specified attribute criteria. To find the set of connected voxels, seed detection may begin with a point in a data volume that connects with admissible neighbors in order to fully define the connected voxels. Admissible neighbors are the points that meet some user defined criteria that surround the starting point. The new points are added to the current connected voxels and the procedure continues until it reaches a point where no further admissible neighbors exist.
An example of a horizon tracking technique is discussed in United States Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0285384 by James. The application discloses a seed picking algorithm that can use a first point for picking a set of second points from a data set. Each of the points in the set of second points can be redefined as the first point, and the algorithm may repeat. An iteration number or other attribute can be assigned to the points and the iteration number can correspond to the number of times the algorithm has been repeated to process the point. The attribute or a number of attributes can be displayed as a visual characteristic for each point. An iterative process can be applied to a set of seismic data points, starting at a seed data point and finding a set of next iteration seed points from the set of points neighboring the seed point, continuing only with next iteration seed points. The number of points that are found by the process when the point is used as a seed data point can be recorded for each of a set of data points.
International Patent Application Publication No. 2010/047856 by Mark Dobin et al. discloses a method and system that may identify a geologic object through cross sections of a geologic data volume. The method includes obtaining a geologic data volume having a set of cross sections. Then, two or more cross sections can be selected, and a transformation vector can be estimated between the cross sections. Based on the transformation vector, a geologic object can be identified within the geologic data volume.
The existing techniques described above tend to find geologic objects, including horizons, without addressing the uncertainty or consistency associated with the resulting geologic objects. Even when multiple seeds are used, the existing techniques offer little insight to the relationships or consistencies among the seeds.

Method of generating and combining multiple horizons to determine a seismic horizon and its uncertainty


A temperature-controlled hot edge ring assembly adapted to surround a substrate support in a plasma reaction chamber. The assembly includes a conductive lower ring, a ceramic intermediate ring, and an upper ring. The intermediate ring overlies the lower ring and is adapted to be attached via the lower ring to an RF electrode. The upper ring overlies the intermediate ring, and has an upper surface exposed to an interior of a plasma reaction chamber.

Since the mid-1960s, integrated semiconductor circuits have become the primary components of most electronics systems. These miniature electronic devices may contain thousands of the transistors and other circuits that make up the memory and logic subsystems of microcomputer central processing units and other integrated circuits. The low cost, high reliability, and speed of these chips have led them to become a ubiquitous feature of modem digital electronics.
The fabrication of an integrated circuit chip typically begins with a thin, polished slice of high-purity, single-crystal semiconductor material substrate (such as silicon or germanium) called a "wafer." Each wafer is subjected to a sequence of physical and chemical processing steps that form the various circuit structures on the wafer. During the fabrication process, various types of thin films may be deposited on the wafer using various techniques such as thermal oxidation to produce silicon dioxide films, chemical vapor deposition to produce silicon, silicon dioxide, and silicon nitride films, and sputtering or other techniques to produce other metal films.
After depositing a film on the semiconductor wafer, the unique electrical properties of semiconductors are produced by substituting selected impurities into the semiconductor crystal lattice using a process called doping. The doped silicon wafer may then be uniformly coated with a thin layer of photosensitive, or radiation sensitive material, called a "resist." Small geometric patterns defining the electron paths in the circuit may then be transferred onto the resist using a process known as lithography. During the lithographic process, the integrated circuit pattern may be drawn on a glass plate called a "mask" and then optically reduced, projected, and transferred onto the photosensitive coating.
The lithographed resist pattern is then transferred onto the underlying crystalline surface of the semiconductor material through a process known as etching. Vacuum processing chambers are generally used for etching and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of materials on substrates by supplying an etching or deposition gas to the vacuum chamber and application of a radio frequency (RF) field to the gas to energize the gas into a plasma state. However, in plasma processing of wafers, process drift (i.e., the change of process performance over a certain amount of time) can occur. Accordingly, there is a need for apparatuses and methods for improving etch rate uniformity in plasma reactor processing.

Temperature controlled hot edge ring assembly for reducing plasma reactor etch rate drift


A resistive sensor read-out apparatus is disclosed. In one embodiment, the resistive sensor read-out apparatus comprises an active sensor, a reference element, a bias circuit, a current-to-voltage converter, an analog-to-digital converter and a calibration processor. The bias circuit is coupled to the active sensor and the reference element and configured to calibrate one or more mismatches between the active sensor and the reference element. The current-to-voltage converter is coupled to an output of the bias circuit. The analog-to-digital converter is coupled to an output of the current-to-voltage converter. The calibration processor is coupled to an output of the analog-to-digital converter and configured to estimate an error caused by limited resolution mismatch calibration. The calibration processor is also configured to at least partially control calibration performed at the bias circuit based on the error.

Resistive sensors are used in many applications, such as thermal detection and thermal imaging systems. A thermal imaging system or camera uses a large array of sensors to construct an image, wherein the new images are generated at short intervals to create a moving picture. Due to physical variations between the sensors, each pixel must be calibrated individually before the pixel outputs are combined into a picture. In other thermal sensor systems calibration may also be necessary to avoid saturating the read-out electronics. Thermal sensors are well known to have high temperature sensitivity, and thus, are significantly affected by changes in ambient temperature as well as changes in the incident thermal radiation that is to be measured. Accordingly, a shielded or thermally shorted reference sensor may be used to mitigate the sensitivity to operating conditions by skimming off such variations caused by environmental changes.
FIG. 1 shows the prior art technique of having a current skimming sensor bridge with digital calibration electronics. The active sensor Ract 101 is subjected to incident thermal radiation which affects and alters its resistance. To reduce the sensitivity to operating conditions, the current is skimmed off through a reference resistor or sensor element Rref 102, with the same nominal resistance and similar thermal properties to Ract 101. In a thermal imaging array, Rref 102 can be shielded or thermally shorted. The output current is given by:
                                                                        I                out                            =                                                                                V                                          bias                                                                                1                                                                            R                    act                                                  -                                                      V                                          bias                                                                                2                                                                            R                    ref                                                                                =                                                                            I                  act                                -                                                      I                    ref                                    .                                                                                (        1        )            The output current is converted to a voltage by a current-to-voltage (IV) amplifier 105 and converted to digital data with an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) 106 before being fed to the digital output 107.
Since Vbias1 and Vbias2 are controlled by Vb1 and Vb2 through the bias transistors M1 103 and M2 104, the calibration processor 109 can calibrate for mismatches between the active sensor and the reference element by adjusting Vb1 and Vb2 individually, using digital algorithms based on an analysis of the ADC output. However, the calibration processor is a digital signal processor (DSP) that produces digital data. The data must be converted to voltages Vb1 and Vb2 by means of digital-to-analog converters (DACs) 108a and 108b. Therefore, the resolution of the mismatch calibration is limited by the resolution of the DACs used to control the biasing, and consequently, the required resolution of the mismatch calibration must be at least as high as that of the signal chain and ADC. In applications involving large sensor arrays, such as thermal imaging systems, the implementation is substantially complex because the typical sensors are simultaneously biased and a large number of high resolution DACs will use a lot of power and chip area.
Based on the foregoing, there is a need for resistive sensor bridges which may be used with thermal detection and thermal imaging systems and overcomes deficiencies of the prior art. More specifically, there is a need for a resistive sensor bridge with calibration and compensation schemes which are less complex and provide better resolution.

Calibration and compensation method and apparatus for resistive sensor measurement bridge


The invention features a multiple compartment drainage conduit with a plurality of diverter pipes connected thereto. The conduit is generally triangular in shape making leveling and burying less labor intensive, and resulting in less settling of fill material. The attached plurality of diverter pipes discharge a portion of the conduits' flow during periods of heavy rainfall or flooding, preventing a backup at the conduit inlet. The multiple compartment conduit includes a plurality of knock out plugs for the connection of diverter pipes at desired locations. Snap connections at opposite ends of the conduit are provided so that plural conduits can be interconnected.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a storm water drainage system, and more particularly to a unitary multiple compartment drainage conduit to which a plurality of side diverter pipes may be connected. The invention is extremely useful in control and removal of surface storm water from a given area, in addition to carrying the excessive surface runoff that takes place during periods of excessive rainfall. Excessive surface water is diverted and discharged at predesignated locations, thus relieving any excess volume carried by the conduit and preventing the backup within the conduit and its inlet due to a lack of capacity in such emergency situations.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A common problem throughout the country and especially to residents of low lying areas, as in the Carolinas, Gulf states, Florida or other low lying areas is the problem of flooding which occurs frequently in the spring and summer months due to heavy rain storms, tropical storms and the like.
This flooding is partially the result of conventional, cylindrical drainage systems having insufficient capacity to conduct excessive storm water during these peak periods. Discharge flow rate is simply not fast enough to eliminate water or flooding at its origin. A major cause of the problem of insufficient storm water flow is simply in the circular or oval cross-section traditionally chosen for the drainage pipes. My tests have shown that an ellipsoidal cross-section will begin to cause turbulence in the flow when the water depth exceeds 60% of the pipe height. This turbulence, in turn, greatly reduces flow efficiency effectively choking off the drainage pipe at 60% of the flow rate it supposedly can handle. A choked drainage pipe translates immediately into flooded streets and major property damage. Comparison tests on my unique triangular drainage pipe show no turbulence generated at any fluid height within the pipe. This unexpected result could lead to astonishing consequences in the field of storm water drainage systems.
Drain pipes have been utilized for various applications as exemplified in the following United States Patents.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,480,260, issued to Dennis R. Shattuck and Eric C. Volpenhein, on Jan. 2, 1996, there is disclosed a generally cylindrical ground water collection method and apparatus used to segregate ground and storm water. By contrast, the present invention is basically triangular in shape and is used for the collection and transportation of surface storm water. The multiple compartment drainage conduit is easier to install than cylindrical drainage conduits due to its triangular shape. The time-consuming process of hand filling under and around the arcuate base portion of conventional conduits is eliminated. Also, greater compaction of fill dirt covering the multiple compartment drainage conduit is possible, thereby substantially reducing ground settling after installation.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,695,188, issued to Jorma Pulkkinen, on Sep. 22, 1987, relates to a lined rock cistern having a watertight sprayed concrete lining wherein plastic pipes are embedded to carry off ground water which would accumulate and build up pressure in the concrete lining. By contrast, the instant multiple compartment conduit diverter system is basically triangular in shape and employs a multiple compartment conduit having primary and secondary compartments, with a primary compartment carrying the normal load and secondary compartments carrying any additional load and then diverting it at prespecified locations.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,389,138, issued to Gert W. Soderstrom, on Jun. 21, 1983, discloses a partitioned two chamber drainpipe which is generally cylindrical and open at its bottom. By contrast, the subject multiple compartment drainage conduit with diverters is generally triangular in cross-section with three flow chambers. A primary flow compartment, which carries approximately 75 percent of the flow volume, is interconnected with two upper chambers which carry overflow from the lower chamber and divert it to predesignated locations.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,968,654, issued to Robert S. Auriemma, on Jul. 13, 1976, discloses a coupling for underground drainage pipes. The coupling includes openings which allow drainage into a smaller set of openings in the main conduit for receiving ground water in the area. By contrast, the present invention is generally triangular in shape and provides a means for relieving overflow from the primary conduit. The instant invention further includes a self aligning and interlocking means for joining sections in a system.
A brochure of Contech Construction Products Inc., Edition 7, dated December, 1996, discloses fluted cylindrical storm drainage pipes which are made of corrugated galvanized steel and require special coupling bands to join sections together. By contrast, the instant invention does not require special coupling bands, and also is provided with diverter means which are utilized to release excess flow and eliminate a back-up at the inlet during periods of excessive rainfall.
None of the prior mentioned patents have addressed the problem of flooding or excessive surface water due to the limited flow capacity in prior drainage conduits. I have concluded that the most effective method of handling excessive discharge volume is to divert portions of the flow at specific locations.
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as hereinafter described and claimed.

Multiple compartment drainage conduit with diverters


A substrate stage for mounting a substrate thereon includes a peripheral stage member on which a peripheral substrate portion of the substrate may be mounted, the peripheral substrate portion controlling a temperature of the peripheral substrate portion, a central stage member on which a central substrate portion of the substrate may be mounted, the central substrate portion controlling a temperature of the central substrate portion, and a support base that supports the peripheral stage member and the central stage member. A gap is formed between the peripheral stage member and the central stage member to keep the peripheral stage member and the central stage member from coming in contact with each other.

When processing a substrate (wafer) in a semiconductor manufacturing process in a vacuum, a temperature control operation for making the surface temperature of the substrate uniform has been performed to enhance processing uniformity. As a substrate temperature control means, a temperature control operation may be performed by forming a coolant flow path within a substrate stage for mounting a substrate. Coolant may be allowed to flow through the flow path thereby cooling the surface of the substrate mounted on the substrate stage with radiant heat radiating from the substrate stage.
For example, JP9-17770A discloses a plasma processing apparatus in which two concentric coolant flow paths are formed within a substrate stage. The temperature of the coolant flowing through the outer flow path differs from that of the coolant flowing through the inner flow path. Thus, the peripheral portion of a substrate exposed to radiant heat radiating from the inner wall of a chamber is cooled more heavily than the central portion of the substrate, thereby attempting to keep the surface temperature of the substrate uniform.
In the plasma processing apparatus disclosed in JP9-17770A, however, the two coolant flow paths, through which coolants differing in temperature flow, are arranged adjacent to each other within one substrate stage. Thus, the temperatures of the two coolant flow paths affect each other, and there is a concern that the cooling operations of the central portion and the peripheral portion of the substrate cannot be independently controlled. In other words, it becomes impossible to precisely manage and control the temperatures of the central portion and the peripheral portion of the substrate mounted on the substrate stage. This makes it difficult to make the surface temperature of the substrate uniform because the surface temperature of the peripheral portion of the substrate is greatly influenced by the radiant heat radiating from the inner wall of a chamber and the surface temperature of the central portion of the substrate is less affected by the radiant heat. Thus, since the entire surface of the substrate is not kept at a uniform temperature when processing the substrate, the substrate cannot be processed uniformly. Moreover, the integral formation of the substrate stage within the plasma processing apparatus is also the reason why the temperatures of the two coolant flow paths have an influence on each other and the temperatures of the central portion and the peripheral portion of the substrate cannot be independently controlled.

Substrate stage, substrate processing apparatus and substrate processing system


Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer program products, for determining a complexity value for a subregion of an electronic document page that includes one or more objects. In one aspect, a method includes dividing a subregion of an electronic document page into a plurality of cells, where the electronic document page includes one or more objects, the objects include one or more transparent objects, the subregion includes at least part of a transparent object, and each cell has an associated cell counter. The method includes, for each object partly or completely located in the subregion, identifying cells that are overlapped by the object, and increasing the associated cell counter for each of the identified cells. The method includes summing all cell counters associated with all cells in the subregion to determine a complexity value for the subregion.

This invention relates to rendering of graphics objects in a computer graphics application.
A page in an electronic document can include various types of graphics objects, such as text, line arts, and images. Electronic documents can generally be viewed, created, and edited by a user on a computer using a computer graphics application. Most computer graphics applications can also be used to produce (directly or indirectly) printed output defined by the electronic document. When a user wishes to create a printed copy of the electronic document, the high-level description of each document page must be converted into a two-dimensional array of colored dots, also referred to as pixels, which can be directly printed by the printing device. This conversion process is commonly known as rendering. Examples of computer graphics applications include the Adobe® Illustrator® and Adobe® Photoshop® applications, both available from Adobe Systems Incorporated of San Jose, Calif.
A given page of an electronic document can include objects that are to some degree transparent, such that objects that are placed behind the transparent objects can be seen through the transparent objects. Since Postscript® printers have no notion of transparent objects, if one or more pages of an electronic document contain a combination of transparent and opaque graphics objects, the graphics objects must typically be broken up into non-intersecting opaque components, which can be printed on the printing device. The process in which the opaque components are created is known as flattening. For a number of reasons, flattening can be prohibitively expensive in terms of memory, even for transparent objects with a relatively simple shape.
Graphics objects with a simple shape can intersect one another in complex ways and generate a large number of opaque components. During the printing process, an artwork tree is typically created, which represents all of the objects to be printed on a single page. Each leaf in the artwork tree represents an individual object, and each non-leaf node in the artwork tree represents a transparency group. Since opaque components are not necessarily generated in the order in which they must be printed, the entire artwork tree (and the opaque components corresponding to the objects in the artwork tree) must be kept in the main memory of the printer throughout the rendering process. Optionally, the artwork tree could be saved to a hard disk or other non-volatile storage medium, but retrieving the information from this memory could make the time for printing the document page prohibitively long.
Furthermore, flatteners typically require that object boundaries be represented as polygons (that this, a sequence of straight lines) for efficient computation of object intersections. However, the polygonal approximation of objects having even moderately complex boundaries typically requires a large number of line segments, where each line segment is represented by at least four numbers describing the start and end coordinates for the straight line segment. Such polygonal representations of the boundaries of all objects in the artwork tree must also be kept in the memory of the printer. For complex curves, there may not be enough available memory space to keep all the polygonal representations in the memory of the printer. In addition, printers usually have a higher resolution than display devices, so polygonal representations of curves must be more precise to achieve a good printing quality, requiring an even larger number of polygons and raising the memory requirements of the printers further.
Last but not least, PostScript printers typically use different color schemes for rasterized images and graphic objects. Consequently, even if parts of the document page are rasterized in order to bypass the flattener and address the memory problems described above, the resulting output from the printer is often unsatisfactory.


A crucible has a first resistance heater is disposed in spaced relation above the top of the crucible and a second resistance heater with a first resistive section disposed in spaced relation beneath the bottom of the crucible and with a second resistive section disposed in spaced relation around the outside of the side of the crucible. The crucible is charged with a seed crystal at the top of an interior of the crucible and a source material in the interior of the crucible in spaced relation between the seed crystal and the bottom of the crucible. Electrical power of a sufficient extent is applied to the first and second resistance heaters to create in the interior of the crucible a temperature gradient of sufficient temperature to cause the source material to sublimate and condense on the seed crystal thereby forming a growing crystal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to growing industrial-size SiC single crystals by sublimation and, more specifically, to such growth by the technique of Axial Gradient Transport (AGT).
2. Description of Related Art
Wafers of silicon carbide of hexagonal 4H and 6H polytypes serve as lattice-matched substrates to grow epitaxial layers of SiC and GaN, which are used for the fabrication of SiC- and GaN-based semiconductor devices utilized in power and microwave electronic applications.
Large SiC single crystals are grown conventionally by sublimation using the technique of Physical Vapor Transport (PVT). A schematic diagram of a common PVT arrangement is shown in FIG. 1. PVT growth is carried out in vertical crucible 11, which is generally made of graphite. Sublimation source material 13 is disposed at the bottom of the crucible, while a growing crystal (or boule) 15 grows on a seed crystal 14 disposed at the crucible top, for instance, attached to the interior of the crucible lid 12. Most commonly, inductive heating with a single RF coil is utilized for PVT growth. This heating arrangement is shown in FIG. 1 which includes a cylindrical RF coil 19 positioned coaxially with growth crucible 11.
PVT growth is carried out at temperatures generally between 2000° C. and 2400° C. In order to control the vapor transport rate, PVT growth is carried out under a small pressure of inert gas (e.g., helium and/or argon), generally between 1 Torr and 100 Torr.
At these temperatures and pressures, source material 13 vaporizes and fills the interior of crucible 11 with volatile molecular species, such as Si, Si2C and SiC2. During the growth of growing crystal 15 on seed crystal 14, the temperature of source material 13 is maintained higher than that of the seed crystal 14, typically by 10 to 200° C. This temperature difference forces the vapors to migrate and condense on seed crystal 14 causing the growth of growing crystal 15.
The quality of PVT-grown SiC crystals depends on growth conditions, such as the sign and value of radial temperature gradients in the upper part of crucible 11 where the growth of growing crystal 15 occurs. Strong temperature gradients in growing crystal 15, especially radial ones, cause thermo-elastic stress and the generation of defects and cracking in growing crystal 15.
It is known in the art of SiC sublimation growth that the crystal growth interface closely follows the shape of isotherms in the crystal and its vicinity. Positive radial gradients (where the temperature inside of the growth crucible increases in the radial direction from the crucible axis toward the crucible wall) produce a convex (toward source material 13) growth interface. Negative radial gradients (where the temperature decreases in the radial direction from the crucible axis toward the crucible wall) produce a concave (toward source material 13) growth interface. Zero radial gradient (where the temperature does not change in the radial direction from the crucible axis toward the crucible wall) produces a flat growth interface.
Curved growth interfaces, convex or concave, can lead to the appearance of crude macrosteps on the growth interface causing polytype instability and generation of defects. Accordingly, it is generally believed that a flat growth interface is the most conducive to the growth of high quality crystals, such as growing crystal 15.
Generally, the conventional PVT heating geometry shown in FIG. 1 creates an axisymmetric thermal field in crucible 11 with strong radial temperature gradients which are difficult to control.
Another problem of single-RF coil PVT heating shown in FIG. 1 is that it is difficult to scale up for the growth of larger-diameter crystals. With increase in the crucible diameter and the coil diameter, radial gradients become steeper, while electromagnetic coupling between the coil and crucible becomes less efficient.
A PVT sublimation growth technique called Axial Gradient Transport (AGT) is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,800,136 (hereinafter "the '136 patent") and has as its goal to reduce undesirable radial temperature gradients. A conceptual diagram of the AGT growth geometry from the '136 patent is shown in FIG. 2.
The AGT technique utilizes two independent flat heaters, namely, a source heater and a boule heater. The heaters can be either inductive or resistive. The heaters are positioned coaxially with the crucible, with the source heater disposed below the source material and the boule heater disposed above the growing crystal.
The AGT technique includes means for reducing heat flow in the radial direction, desirably to zero. This means includes cylindrical thermal insulation and an additional heater disposed around the AGT growth cell. A properly adjusted combination of the cylindrical thermal insulation and the heater can reduce radial heat losses to zero. The AGT geometry shown in FIG. 2 allegedly leads to strictly axial heat flow with essentially zero radial gradients.
The AGT apparatus utilizing inductive heating is described in detail in the '136 patent, which is incorporated herein by reference. This inductively heated AGT arrangement is shown in FIG. 3. It employs two flat RF coils, namely, top coil 30a and bottom coil 30b. The cylindrical crucible 31 including source material 32 and a seed crystal 33, upon which a growing crystal 35 grows, is disposed between these coils, whereby the top and bottom of the crucible serve as flat RF susceptors. Arrows 34 signify vapor transport in the growth crucible in the direction from source to crystal.
A disadvantage of the AGT cell design shown in FIG. 3 is related to the character of RF coupling between the flat coils 30a and 30b and the flat top and bottom of the crucible 31. There are two main types of flat RF coils, commonly known as "snail" and "snake" coils. When coupled to a disk-like susceptor, a "snail" coil will deposit its RF energy mostly at the susceptor edges due to skin-effect, as shown in FIG. 3. This type of coupling leads to poorly controllable radial temperature gradients in the crucible. "Snake" coils offer better uniformity of energy deposition, but their overall coupling efficiency is low.
An AGT apparatus utilizing flat resistive heaters is also disclosed in the '136 patent. At source material sublimation temperatures, radiation is the main mechanism of heat transfer from the heater to the crucible. Therefore, flat resistive heaters should be free from the disadvantages of flat RF coils.
A simple resistively heated AGT arrangement is shown in FIG. 4A. The cylindrical crucible 41 is placed between two flat resistive heaters 40a and 40b, which are shaped as disks with their diameters larger than that of the crucible. The upper heater 40a is disposed above a seed crystal 43, upon which a growing crystal 45 grows, while the lower heater 40b is disposed below source material 42. Arrows 44 denote the direction of vapor transport in the crucible.
The arrangement of FIG. 4A has the disadvantage that it creates negative radial gradients (concave isotherms) in the vicinity of the growing crystal. This is illustrated in FIG. 4B which shows the results of finite element simulation of the AGT cell shown in FIG. 4A. The strongly concave isotherms 46 are clearly visible. The root cause of these concave isotherms 46 is radial heat losses.
To some degree, concave isotherms 46 can be reduced by increasing the thickness of cylindrical thermal insulation around the AGT growth cell and/or by using additional cylindrical heater(s), as described above in connection with FIG. 2. However, this will make such AGT growth systems prohibitively large, complex, and expensive.
For SiC sublimation growth, graphite is a natural choice of heater material. In order to achieve the required temperature inside the growth crucible (up to 2400° C.), the heater temperature should be by 100-200° higher. Stability and reliability of graphite heaters at such high temperatures are poorly studied.
One particular problem of all resistive heaters operating at high temperatures in an inert gas atmosphere is the phenomenon of thermionic emission. At high temperatures, electron clouds form around the heater. Driven by the electric field created by electric current passing through the heater, these electrons migrate in the gas-filled space and contribute to the total current between the heater terminals. With increase in the heater voltage, the electrons can acquire enough energy for gas ionization. The produced gas ions can cause secondary (cascade) gas ionization leading to glow discharge.
Glow discharge alters the heating geometry and leads to the erosion of the graphite crucible, the heater, and the thermal insulation. Also, with the onset of glow discharge, the electric current across the heater becomes unstable, thus creating growth instabilities leading to stress and defects in the growing crystal.
Gas ions accelerated by the electric field bombard the heater surface and can cause secondary electron emission. This chain of surface bombardment and ionization events at high temperatures is called thermionic emission (glow discharge is, in fact, the first stage of thermionic emission). With further increase in the heater temperature and voltage, and with a sufficient supply of gas ions, glow discharge evolves into arc. Such arc can cause severe damage to the heater, crucible and power supply. Therefore, in order to realize the advantages of resistive heating in AGT growth of SiC crystals, glow discharge in the growth system is desirably avoided.

Axial gradient transport growth process and apparatus utilizing resistive heating