A swivel end fitting for rope, cord or leash designed to allow said rope to be attached to another object and thereafter withstand considerable shock without coming apart or becoming disengaged from said rope. The invention is made up of a pointed screw-shaped base element permanently attached to the rope; a central socket element for receiving the screw-shaped base element at one end, and receiving a rounded terminal element at the other end; and a swivel eye terminal element having a stem and head thereon, said stem and head being bisected by a linear gap. As the terminal element is pressed into the socket element, the head is squeezed together over the gap until it crosses a collar on the socket element at which point the head pops back into its original position, now able to freely pivot. Then the screw-shaped base element is fully inserted into the opposite end of the socket such that the point thereof protrudes into said gap, preventing the head from squeezing back out of the collar.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to end fittings for rope, and particularly to a fitting having a swivelling terminal element having a swivel eye thereon allowing attachment to other objects.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous swivels providing joints between two parts such that the parts may pivot freely are well known in the art. A basic swivel assembly includes a pair of elements, one having a bore therein, and the other having a stem that fits into said bore. At the end of the stem is a head which is wider in diameter than the bore. Once engaged, the large size of the head prevents the two elements from coming apart, but allows them to pivot. See U.S. Pat. Nos. 51,023, 3,504,937, 4,037,978, 4,955,749 and 5,024,548.
The persistent problem presented in swivel manufacture has always been devising an economical yet effective means for connecting the two elements together. Since the diameter of the head must be larger than that of the collar of the bore, various methods have been employed to introduce said head into said bore below the collar, without adhering the head to the collar or the bore.
The most common method for causing a collar to surround a swivel shank above the head is to manufacture the collar in two pieces. This way, the collar may be attached around the stem, which may still pivot within the collar. Thereafter, the collar may be attached by screw threads, welding, or other means to another element to complete the swivel, as in U.S. Pat. No. 5,024,548. Of course, the obvious drawback of such method is that the collar must be created in two parts, requiring expensive manufacturing and assembly.
Another means for solving this problem is to cause the stem and head assembly to be slided under the collar by way of an opening on the side of the lower element, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,037,978. However, the opening into which the stem-and-head must slide, must also be closed in some fashion, which requires additional parts, labor, and more expensive manufacture.
Another method of assembly is the insertion of a two-pronged screw eye piece through the collar of the lower element as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 515,023. In this patent, once the stem is inserted through the collar, a spreading dog is put in place in the screw eye to open the protruding ends to prevent the head from coming back through the collar. The swivel described in this particular patent is not suited for any permanent or rigorous use, since the insertion of a rope or other material into the screw eye may dislodge the spreading dog resulting in the release of the screw eye element from the collar.


An alloy having an excellent corrosion resistance and workability and being suitable particularly for seamless tubes of the industrial waste incineration boiler. The alloy consists essentially of, in weight %,:. ______________________________________ up to 0.05% C, up to 0.5% Si, up to 0.5% Mn, up to 0.01% P 20-25% Cr, 8-12% Mo, more than 0.5% and up to 1.0% Nb, more than 15% and up to 20% Fe, up to 0.4% Al, up to 0.1% in total of rare earth metals, up to 0.01% Ca, up to 0.01% Mg, up to 0.01% B, ______________________________________. and the balance Ni and incidental impurities, wherein the Fe content and the Nb content are defined so as to satisfy the following formula (a): EQU Fe(%).gtoreq.4.times.Nb(%)+12.5 (a)

Metallic materials such as pipes, tubes and other structural members of apparatus for chemical plants and petroleum plants arc often used in environments wherein the materials are exposed to alkaline or acidic solution at high temperatures. Superheater tubes, evaporator tubes and structural members of boilers; heat exchanger tubes and condenser tubes of heat exchanging apparatus; and catalyst tubes are used in high temperature, high pressure and corrosive environments.
Boiler tubes, particularly for waste incinerating heat recovery boilers and black liquor recovery boilers (these boilers are referred to collectively as "industrial waste incinerating boilers" hereinafter) are subjected to severe attack of strong corrosive gas such as chlorine gas and hydrogen chloride gas, hydrochloric acid and sulfuric acid at elevated temperatures.
Corrosion resistant alloys are used for the materials of tubes which are exposed to such corrosive environments as mentioned above. For example, Ni-Cr-Fe alloys standardized in JIS G 4903 or 4904 are used for super sometimes. In six alloys standardized in said JIS, alloys named NCF 625 TP or NCF 625 TB which contain 8-10% Mo ("%" in chemical composition means "weight percent" herein) are often used particularly in severe corrosive environments.
NCF 625 TP alloy and NCF 625 TB alloy (referred to as "alloy 625" hereinafter) are Ni-based alloys containing 20-23% Cr, 8-10% Mo, up to 5% Fe and 3.15-4.15% "Nb+Ta" as the major alloying elements, and Al and Ti as the additional elements. The Ni content is restricted to be not less than 58%. The alloy 625 has an excellent corrosion resistance in the extremely severe corrosive environments due to beneficial effects of Cr, Ni and Mo.
Seamless tubes of the alloy 625 for a heat exchanger tube etc. are manufactured usually in a process comprising a step for making a tube blank by a hot extruding process such as Ugine-Sejournet process, and a step of cold rolling or cold drawing of the tube blank. Hot workability of the alloy 625 is so poor that the tube blank made by hot extruding has many surface defects generally. The surface defects should be removed before cold working. Since cold workability of the alloy 625 is not good, cold rolling or cold drawing ought to be performed by repeated passes at a rather small working ratio of each pass.
The productivity of the alloy 625 is low because of the above-mentioned complicated working process, and the low productivity together with high price of raw materials (Ni, Mo, Cr, etc.) makes the alloy 625 very expensive.
Since the alloy 625 originally has precipitation hardening property at about 650.degree. C., toughness of the alloy is considerably reduced during long period use at temperatures over 500.degree. C. Products of the alloy 625 for high temperature use may be broken by thermal-fatigue when they are subjected to heating and cooling cycles. Accordingly the reliability of the alloy 625 products at elevated temperatures is not large, and usage of the alloy is rather limited.
A high Mo nickel-based alloy having a workability better than that of the alloy 625 is disclosed in WO 095/31579 (PCT International Publication). In the alloy, Nb (which has a negative effect on the workability) is restricted to up to 0.5%. In spite of the small amounts of Nb, corrosion resistance of the alloy is said to be as good as the alloy 625. However, the "good corrosion resistance" has been found in a test wherein probes were placed at a specific location in a waste incinerator. Corrosion conditions vary broadly dependent on locations and combustion conditions in the incinerator. The "good corrosion resistance" described in WO 095/31579 is a property which has been recognized under a very specific corrosive condition.
The alloy disclosed in said WO 095/31579 contains Ti as a substantially indispensable component. Extruded tubular products of this alloy have surface defects, because Ti in the alloy combines with N in the air and forms massive TiN on the surface of the product during the tube making process.
Some superheater tubes and heat exchanger tubes are used at elevated temperature after forming, e.g., bending at room temperature. When tubes are installed in a water-wall panel of a boiler as steam generating tubes, they should be welded. The corrosion resistant alloy such as the alloy 625 becomes sensitive to corrosion when it is used at elevated temperatures without any heat treatment after cold forming. The welded portion (more specifically heat affected zone, HAZ) also becomes corrosion sensitive. Therefore, a reliable alloy for practical use ought to have good corrosion resistance after cold working or welding.

Nickel-based alloy excellent in corrosion resistance and workability


A lightweight shaft 22 includes a plurality of non-metallic fibers 42, 63, 66 and 70 arranged in prescribed orientations from one end of the shaft to the other and carried by a cured plastic material 103. Additional fibers 82 and 84 are carried by the cured plastic material 103 and are located at a butt end 28 of the shaft 22 to form a strengthening band 104 which precludes splitting and cracking of the shaft at the butt end. A lightweight filler element 106, which is composed of a rigid foam material, is located within a portion 27a of an opening 27 at a tip end 30 of the shaft 22 to strengthen the tip end.

This invention relates to a lightweight shaft and methods of making the shaft and particularly relates to a lightweight shaft which forms a portion of a golf club and to methods of making the lightweight shaft for a golf club.
Golf clubs typically include a club head secured to a tip end of a club shaft and a hand grip assembled at a butt end of the shaft. The butt end of the shaft is formed with a uniform diameter of a first prescribed axial length which is larger than a uniform diameter of the tip end of a second prescribed axial length. A shaft of this type is referred as having a parallel butt and a parallel tip. The portion of the shaft which extends between the butt end and the tip end thereof is usually tapered from the larger diameter at the butt end to the smaller diameter of the tip end. The butt end and the tip end of the shaft could also be tapered or straight with a uniform diameter as noted above, or one could be tapered and the other straight.
In playing the game of golf, a golfer swings the club and aims the head thereof toward a golf ball which is located, for example, on a ground level surface. Ideally, when the club head strikes the ball, the ball is directed in a long trajectory toward, and on line with, an associated hole-like cup located on a fine grass surface.
Many years ago, shafts for golf clubs were made from wood such as, for example, hickory which was suitable for the bending and twisting to which the club was subjected when swung by the golfer. However, the use of wood for the shafts influenced the manner in which the golfer had to swing the club. Later, clubs with metal shafts, such as steel shafts, were developed and evolved into a highly successful product which enhanced the golfers playing of the game. In recent years, clubs with non-metallic shafts have been developed and provide a viable and popular option to the use of the metal shafts. The non-metallic shafts are typically made from blended layers of fiber reinforced polymer matrix composites such as, for example, graphite fibers carried in a prescribed pattern within an epoxy matrix.
There are several factors which are considered when designing a golf club to enhance the playing of the game. Perhaps the most important factor is the weight of the shaft. One of the parameters which is considered in the use of a golf club is the "swing weight" of the club. The swing weight parameter represents generally the weight of the club as it is being swung and is related to the overall weight and the weight distribution in the club. Clubs are classified in several principal grades, and several sub grades within each principal grade, based on the swing weight of the clubs. Generally, the lighter weight clubs are used by the weaker hitters while the heavier weight clubs are used by the stronger hitters such as the low-handicap and professional golfers.
The development of the composite shaft resulted in a shaft which is lighter in weight than the steel shaft and thereby presented a weight enhancement, particularly for the weaker hitters who use the low swing-weight clubs.
When the composite shaft was developed, it provided an option for some golfers to switch from a club with the heavier metal shaft to a club with the lighter composite shaft if the golfer experienced improved play with the lighter club. Also, with the lighter composite club, the weight of the club head could be increased slightly whereby the speed of the head is increased which translates into increases in ball speed and distance thereby further enhancing the golfers playing of the game.
With the realization and recognition that the above-noted advantages can be attained by using the lighter composite clubs, there is a need to develop even lighter clubs to provide further enhancement of the playing of the game by golfers.

Lightweight shaft and methods of making same


Series interconnection of optoelectronic device modules is disclosed. Each device module includes an active layer disposed between a bottom electrode and a transparent conducting layer. An insulating layer is disposed between the bottom electrode of a first device module and a backside top electrode of the first device module. One or more vias are formed through the active layer, transparent conducting layer and insulating layer of the first device module. Sidewalls of the vias are coated with an insulating material such that a channel is formed through the insulating material to the backside top electrode of the first device module. The channel is at least partially filled with an electrically conductive material to form a plug that makes electrical contact between the transparent conducting layer and the backside top electrode of the first device module. Portions of the backside top electrode and insulating layer of a second device module are cut back to expose a portion of the bottom electrode of the second device module. The first and second device modules are attached to an insulating carrier substrate. Electrical contact is made between the backside top electrode of the first device module and the exposed portion of the bottom electrode of the second device module.

Optoelectronic devices generally include light-emitting devices and photovoltaic devices. These devices generally include an active layer sandwiched between two electrodes, sometimes referred to as the front and back electrodes, at least one of which is typically transparent. The active layer typically includes one or more semiconductor materials. In a light-emitting device, e.g., a light-emitting diode (LED), a voltage applied between the two electrodes causes a current to flow through the active layer. The current causes the active layer to emit light. In a photovoltaic device, e.g., a solar cell, the active layer absorbs energy from light and converts this energy to electrical energy exhibited as a voltage and/or current between the two electrodes. Both types of optoelectronic devices often use a layer of transparent conductive oxide (TCO), such as zinc oxide, in the transparent electrode. A common problem to both types of optoelectronic devices is the relatively high electrical resistivity of the TCO, which leads to resistive losses and consequent inefficiencies in the device.
To overcome this, optoelectronic devices have been developed with electrically isolated conductive contacts that pass through the cell from a transparent "front" electrode through the active layer and the "back" electrode to an electrically isolated electrode located beneath the back electrode. U.S. Pat. No. 3,903,427 describes an example of the use of such contacts in silicon-based solar cells. Although this technique does reduce resistive losses and can improve the overall efficiency of solar cell devices, the costs of silicon-based solar cells remains high due to the vacuum processing techniques used in fabricating the cells as well as the expense of thick, single-crystal silicon wafers. This has led solar cell researchers and manufacturers to develop different types of solar cells that can be fabricated less expensively and on a larger scale than conventional silicon-based solar cells. Examples of such solar cells include cells with active absorber layers comprised of silicon (e.g. for amorphous, micro-crystalline, or polycrystalline silicon cells), organic oligomers or polymers (for organic solar cells), bilayers or interpenetrating layers or inorganic and organic materials (for hybrid organic/inorganic solar cells), dye-sensitized titania nanoparticles in an liquid or gel-based electrolyte (for Graetzel cells), copper-indium-gallium-selenium (for CIG solar cells), cells whose active layer is comprised of CdSe, CdTe, and combinations of the above, where the active materials are present in any of several forms including but not limited to bulk materials, micro-particles, nano-particles, or quantum dots. Many of these types of cells can be fabricated on flexible substrates (e.g., stainless steel foil).
A further problem associated with existing solar fabrication techniques arises from the fact that individual optoelectronic devices produce only a relatively small voltage. Thus, it is often necessary to electrically connect several devices together in series in order to obtain higher voltages in order to take advantage of the efficiencies associated with high voltage, low current operation (e.g. power transmission through a circuit using relatively higher voltage, which reduces resistive losses that would otherwise occur during power transmission through a circuit using relatively higher current).
Several designs have been previously developed to interconnect solar cells into modules. For example, early photovoltaic module manufacturers attempted to use a "shingling" approach to interconnect solar cells, with the bottom of one cell placed on the top edge of the next, similar to the way shingles are laid on a roof. Unfortunately the solder and silicon wafer materials were not compatible. The differing rates of thermal expansion between silicon and solder and the rigidity of the wafers caused premature failure of the solder joints with temperature cycling.
A further problem associated with series interconnection of optoelectronic devices arises from the high electrical resistivity associated with the TCO used in the transparent electrode. The high resistivity restricts the size of the individual cells that are connected in series. Consequently, a large number of small cells must be connected together, which requires a large number of interconnects. Arrays of large numbers of small cells are relatively difficult and expensive to manufacture. Further, with flexible solar modules, shingling is also disadvantageous in that the interconnection of a large number of shingles is relatively complex, time-consuming and labor-intensive, and therefore costly during the module installation process.
Thus, there is a need in the art, for a technique for series connection of optoelectronic devices that overcomes the above disadvantages.

Series interconnected optoelectronic device module assembly


A patient support stretcher which includes a base and a main frame portion coupled to the base through at least one pair of crossbars forming an X-shaped configuration. The crossbars are pivotally connected to one another and are pivotally connected to the base and the main frame portion. A back support or a fowler section is hinged to the main frame portion and a strut interconnects the back support to the main frame to provide the requisite balanced leverage for effecting the simultaneous lift of the main frame and the fowler section.

With patient support stretchers, it is desirable to have the patient at a height which is easily accessible by medical personnel standing by the stretcher. Additionally, it is desirable to have a stretcher which is low so that the patient can easily be placed on the stretcher. Typically, stretchers will employ hydraulic cylinders having very long rods to accomplish both of these desired results. By lowering the hydraulic cylinders, the patient can be positioned onto the stretcher and then by pumping the hydraulic cylinder, the patient can be raised to the desired height. However, the hydraulic cylinders that are employed are expensive and there is a rather long period of time required to pump the cylinder to raise the patient from the lower position to the desired higher position.
It is an object of the present invention, to make it possible for the medical personnel to merely pull the fowler portion back which raises the patient a portion of the required height. The remaining height can then be obtained by use of a smaller hydraulic cylinder which takes less time to raise the patient support to the desired height.


A physical configuration for a parallel multi-junction superconducting quantum interference device that can be used for a variety of applications involving the detection of magnetic flux, including applications where it is desired to measure the absolute magnitude of the flux. The device of this invention features a novel geometry for a multi-junction interference device which significantly enhances the flux-to-voltage transfer function, thereby yielding a significant improvement in the device sensitivity in its use in a magnetometer, gradiometer, or other applications.

1. Field Of the Invention
This invention relates to a parallel multi-junction Superconducting QUantum Interference Device (SQUID), or a Superconducting QUantum Interference Grating (SQUIG), that can be used for a variety of applications involving the detecting of magnetic flux, including applications where it is desired to measure the absolute magnitude of the magnetic field. More specifically, the device of this invention features a novel geometry for a SQUIG which significantly enhances the flux-to-voltage transfer function to yield an improvement in the device sensitivity in its use as a magnetometer, a gradiometer, and in other applications.
2. Description of Relevant Art
In order to understand this invention, it is first necessary to understand the conventional SQUID. A SQUID (Superconducting QUantum Interference Device) is the most sensitive detector of magnetic flux currently available.
SQUIDs combine the two physical phenomena of flux quantization (the fact that the flux .PHI. in a closed superconducting loop is quantized in units of .PHI..sub.0), and Josephson tunneling, or coupling.
A SQUID is, in essence, a flux-to-voltage transducer, providing an output voltage that is related to and is periodic in the applied flux. The period is one flux quantum, or: EQU .PHI..sub.0 .ident.h/2e.congruent.2.07.times.10.sup.-15 Wb
It is typically possible to detect an output signal corresponding to a flux change of much less than .PHI..sub.0.
A SQUID is extremely versatile, being able to measure any physical quantity which can be converted into a flux. For example, magnetic field, magnetic field gradient, current, voltage, displacement, and magnetic susceptibility can all be measured using a SQUID. As a result of this versatility, the SQUID has been used in a wide variety of applications, ranging from the detection of tiny magnetic fields produced by the human brain and the measurement of fluctuating magnetic fields in remote areas, to the detection of gravity waves and the observation of spin noise in an ensemble of magnetic nuclei.
There are two basic types of SQUIDs. See, for example, Clark, in Superconducting Devices, edited by Steven T. Ruggiero and David T. Rudman, Academic Press, 1990, ch. 2, pp. 51-99, for a detailed review of SQUIDs. The dc SQUID consists of two Josephson junctions connected in parallel on a superconducting loop. The dc SQUID is so named because it typically operates with a steady current bias. The other type of SQUID, the rf SQUID, involves a single Josephson junction interrupting the current flow around a superconducting loop and is typically operated with a radio frequency (rf) flux bias.
This invention relates to the geometric parallel of a multi-junction dc SQUID, or a SQUIG (Superconducting QUantum Interference Grating). In order to better teach the invention and to explain its principles of operation, it is necessary to describe SQUIDs in general and dc SQUIDs in particular. It is further necessary to describe the operation, advantages, and drawbacks of a SQUIG.
A number of different types of Josephson junctions, or weak links, have been demonstrated. These include superconductor-insulator-superconductor (SIS)junctions, superconductor-normal metal-superconductor (SNS) junctions, superconductor-semiconductor-superconductor (S-Sm-S) junctions, microbridges, ion irradiated links, and grain boundary junctions. One skilled in the art would appreciate that the superconducting regions used in each type of Josephson junction may be of the same type or may be of different types. For example, one could have a Nb-I-Nb junction or a Nb-I-Pb junction. See Likharev, Rev. Mod. Phys., Vol. 51, p. 101 (1979).
The dc SQUID consists of two shunted Josephson junctions interrupting a superconducting ring as shown in FIG. 1a. Each junction, represented by crosses, , may have a capacitance C ranging from zero to several picofarads, and each junction is shunted by a resistance R. The junctions are resistively shunted to eliminate hysteresis in the current-voltage (I-V) characteristic, which is shown for an unshunted junction in FIG. 1b for .PHI. equal to n.PHI..sub.0 and .PHI. equal to (n+1/2).PHI..sub.0, where .PHI. is the external flux applied to the loop and "n" is an integer. The constant bias current, I.sub.B, (greater than two times the critical current, or 2I.sub.0) maintains a non-zero voltage across the SQUID, which has a non-hysteretic current-voltage characteristic. If the magnetic flux, .PHI., threading the SQUID ring is slowly varied, the critical current will oscillate as a function of .PHI. with a period that is just .PHI..sub.0. The critical current is a maximum for .PHI.=n.PHI..sub.0, and a minimum for .PHI.=(n+1/2).PHI. .sub.0.
The effect of the magnetic field is to change the phase difference between the two junctions. The oscillating behavior arises from interference between the wave functions at the two junctions in a manner analogous to interference in optics--hence the term "Interference Device." At low voltages, the current-voltage characteristic is also modulated because the current contains a contribution from the time averaged ac supercurrent. As a result, when the SQUID is biased with a constant current, the voltage is periodic in .PHI. with period .PHI..sub.0, as shown in FIG. 1c.
Modern dc SQUIDs are invariably made from thin films, with the aid of either photolithography or electron beam lithography. In most, although not all, practical applications, the SQUID is used in a feedback circuit as a null-detector of magnetic flux. A small modulating flux is applied to the SQUID with a frequency usually between 100 and 500 kHz, as indicated in FIG. 2. If the quasistatic flux in the SQUID is exactly n.PHI..sub.0, the resulting voltage across the SQUID is a rectified version of the input signal, that is, it contains only the second harmonic of the reference frequency, as indicated in FIG. 2a. If this voltage is sent through a lock-in detector referenced to the fundamental frequency, the output will be zero. On the other hand, if the quasistatic flux is (n+1/4).PHI..sub.0, the voltage across the SQUID is at the fundamental frequency, as shown in FIG. 2b, and the output from the lock-in detector will be a maximum. Thus, as one increases the flux from n.PHI..sub.0 to (n+1/4).PHI..sub.0, the output from the lock-in detector will increase steadily; if one reduces the flux from n.PHI..sub.0 to (n-1/4).PHI..sub.0, the output will increase in the negative direction, as indicated in FIG. 2c.
A typical modulation and feedback circuit for a dc SQUID is shown in FIG. 3. This circuit is essentially a flux-locked loop. The alternating voltage across the SQUID is coupled to a low-noise preamplifier, usually at room temperature, via either a cooled transformer or a cooled LC series-resonant circuit. An oscillator applies a modulating flux to the SQUID via a feedback and modulation coil. The geometry, dimensions, efficiency, and actual construction of the feedback coil are not critical; the feedback coil's magnetic field should simply be isolated from the pickup loop or gradiometer winding and be uniform over the loop created by the SQUID. After amplification, the signal from the SQUID is lock-in detected and sent through the integrating circuit. The smoothed output is connected to the modulation and feedback coil via a large series resistor R.sub.f. Thus, if one applies a flux .delta..PHI. to the SQUID via the input coil (or otherwise), the feedback circuit will generate an opposing flux of -.delta..PHI., and a voltage proportional to .delta..PHI. appears across R.sub.f. This technique enables one to measure changes in flux ranging from much less than a single flux quantum to many flux quanta.
Applications of the SQUID. One of the simplest instruments using a SQUID is the magnetometer. A pickup loop is connected across the input coil (as shown in FIG. 3), which couples the flux into the SQUID, to make a superconducting flux transformer, as shown in FIG. 4a. The SQUID and input coil are generally enclosed in a superconducting shield. The pickup loop and flux transformer function as a magnetic "antenna," or magnetic "hearing aid," where the flux passing through the pickup loop is coupled into the much smaller loop of the SQUID. An important requirement for optimum sensitivity is that the inductance of the pickup loop should be about equal to the inductance of the much smaller input coil, which typically has between ten and one hundred turns. Since the size of the SQUID is restricted by other considerations, such as the increase of noise with SQUID loop area, this requirement imposes constraints on the maximum size of the pickup loop and, therefore, the overall sensitivity of the magnometer. Magnetometers have usually involved flux transformers made of Nb wire. Magnetometers with typical sensitivities of 0.01 pT Hz.sup.-1/2 have been used in geophysics in a variety of applications, such as magnetotellurics, active electromagnetic sounding, piezomagnetism, tectonomagnetism, and the location of hydrofractures.
An important variation of the magnetometer is the gradiometer. The pickup and input coils for an axial gradiometer that measures .differential.B.sub.z /.differential.z is shown in FIG. 4b. The two pickup loops are wound in opposition and balanced so that a uniform field B.sub.z, such as the z-component of the earth's field, links zero net flux to the flux transformer. A gradient .differential.B.sub.z /.differential.z, on the other hand, does induce a net flux and thus generates an output from the flux-locked SQUID. FIG. 4c shows the pickup and input coil for a second-order gradiometer that measures .differential.B.sub.z /.differential.z.sup.2.
The most important application of the gradiometer is in neuromagnetism, notably to detect weak magnetic signals emanating from the human brain, The gradiometer discriminates strongly against distant noise sources, which have a small gradient, in favor of locally generated signals, One can thus use a second-order gradiometer in an unshielded environment, although the present trend is towards using first-order gradiometers in a shielded room of aluminum and mumetal that greatly attenuates the ambient magnetic noise, In this application, axial gradiometers of the type shown in FIG. 4b actually sense the magnetic field, rather than the gradient, because the distance from the signal source to the pickup loop is less than the baseline of the gradiometer. The magnetic field sensitivity referred to the pickup loop is typically 10 fT Hz.sup.-1/2. There are two basic types of measurements made on the human brain. The first detects spontaneous activity with a classic example being the generation of magnetic pulses by subjects suffering from focal epilepsy. The second type involves evoked response, for example, Romanie et al., 216 Science 1339 (1982), detected the magnetic signal from the auditory cortex generated by tones of different frequencies.
Conventional dc SQUIDs have been used for a number of years to measure extremely small values of voltage, magnetic flux, and magnetic flux gradients at low frequencies. Low T.sub.c superconductors, requiring liquid helium cooling, have been used to form the dc SQUID superconducting loop. The recent advent of high temperature superconducting materials, which allow operation at liquid nitrogen temperatures, has strengthened interest in the dc SQUID.
The most distinctive property of a superconductive material is its loss of electrical resistance when it is at or below a critical temperature. This critical temperature is an intrinsic property of the material and is referred to as the superconducting transition temperature of the material, T.sub.c.
Research into the ability of specific materials to superconduct began with the discovery in 1911 that mercury superconducts at a T.sub.c of about 4.degree. K. Since then, many applications for superconducting materials have been conceived, but such applications could not be commercialized because of the extremely low T.sub.c of the superconducting materials then available. Liquid helium, which is itself expensive, and the complicated refrigerant units required for liquid helium, were cost prohibitive to the use of such low T.sub.c superconductors in many applications.
Until about 1986 the highest temperature superconductor known was Nb.sub.3 Ge having a critical temperature, T.sub.c, of approximately 23.2.degree. K. Before 1987, superconducting devices, even those which employed the Nb.sub.3 Ge superconductor, required the use of liquid helium as the refrigerant-coolant.
In late 1986, Bednorz and Muller disclosed that certain mixed phase compositions of La-Ba-Cu-O appeared to exhibit superconductivity being at an onset temperature, T.sub.co, of about 30.degree. K. Bednorz et al, Z. Phys. B., Condensed Matter, vol. 64, pp. 189-198 (1986). The upper temperature limit of superconducting onset, T.sub.co, of superconductors of a this type crystalline structure is no greater than about 38.degree. K. Liquid helium was still required as the coolant for such a 214 type of material.
A new class of rare earth-alkaline earth-copper oxides was then discovered that are superconductive at temperatures above the boiling point of liquid nitrogen, 77.degree. K. These new rare earth-alkaline earth-copper oxides are now commonly referred to as "123" high-temperature superconductors, in reference to the stoichiometry in which the rare earth, alkaline earth, and copper metal atoms are present, namely a ratio of 1:2:3.
With the discovery of the 123 class of "high temperature superconducting" (HTS) compounds--HTS compounds are those which superconduct at a T.sub.c above the temperature at which liquid nitrogen can be used as a refrigerant--it has become economically possible to pursue many previously conceived applications of the superconductivity phenomena which before were commercially impractical wherein cooling by liquid helium was required. Since they superconduct at temperatures greater than 77.degree. K., the new 123 high temperature superconductors may in practical applications be cooled with liquid nitrogen--a more economically feasible refrigerant. Liquid nitrogen is about 2000 times more efficient to use in terms of cost, both of the refrigerant itself and the associated refrigerant unit design.
Detection of Magnetic Flux with Parallel Josephson Junction Arrays.
The sensitivity of the magnetometer is dependent on the flux-to-voltage transfer coefficient V.sub.101 of the active device, such as the dc SQUID. One way to increase V.sub..PHI. is to produce a device with sharper peaks in a plot of total critical current versus flux for the active device. A dramatic enhancement and sharpening of the peaks in critical current versus flux, resulting from quantum interference, was first predicted by Feynman et al., The Feynman Lectures on Physics, Vol. III, Chap. 21, pp. 21-18 (1965), for an array consisting of many Josephson junctions (JJs) in parallel, by analogy to the enhancement of the peaks in an optical slit diffraction pattern when a double slit is replaced by N slits or, equivalently, a diffraction grating. This enhancement was first observed experimentally in the mid- to late 1960s using superconducting point contact junctions. Zimmerman & Silver, 141 Physics Review 367 (1966); Waele, et al., 40 Physics 302 (1968). Three- and four-junction interferometers were developed for logic and switching applications in the 1970 s. Stuehm & Wilmsen, 20 Appl. Phys. Lett. 456 (1972); Zappe, 27 Appp. Phys. Lett. 432 (1975). More recently, a parallel array of several (3-5) weak links near a control line has been successfully utilized in a high T.sub.c "superconducting flux flow transistor." Hohenwarter, et al., MAG-25 IEEE Trans. Mag 954 (1989); Martens, et al., 65 J. Appl. Phys. 4057 (1989). However, since the 1960s there has been virtually no art except for recent work by the inventors involving the use of parallel JJ arrays, or multi-junction interferometers, for the detection of magnetic flux, and no magnetometer or gradiometer incorporating a JJ array with many junctions in parallel has ever been built. Miller, et al., 59 Appl. Phys. Lett. 3322 (1991). One problem has been that the effects of nonuniformity of the junction critical currents are nonobvious.
Consider the N-loop interferometer, or Superconducting QUantum Interference Grating (SQUIG), illustrated in FIG. 5, in which N+1 junctions are in parallel. In FIG. 5, the Josephson junctions are represented by crosses , .delta..sub.i represents the phase difference between the "wavefunctions," or order parameters on opposite sides of each junction, and .PHI..sub.i represents the magnetic flux passing through each loop. In the low inductance limit, the flux .PHI..sub.i through each loop is equal to the externally applied flux per loop .PHI., but this is no longer the case when the loops have significant, finite self- and mutual- inductances. The total critical current as a function of applied flux .PHI. is therefore nonobvious for the case of finite inductance.
Practical SQUIGs often have significant nonuniformity of the junction critical currents, which must be taken into account in order to meaningfully assess the viability of SQUIGs for magnetic flux detection. For a ten-junction SQUIG with .delta.=0.4, with increasing values of the standard deviation .sigma., are shown in FIG. 6, which illustrates that randomizing the critical currents only slightly reduces the principal maxima in critical current versus flux. This result indicates that nonuniformity of the junction critical currents has a substantially less adverse impact than nonuniformity of the flux coupled into each loop, the latter of which could be minimized by utilizing a suitable geometry designed to minimize nonuniformity of the flux coupled from the input coil to the SQUIG loops.
There has been a long-felt need for a device which would be capable of more accurately measuring magnetic fluxes. More particularly, there has been a need for a device based on SQUID technology which would be able to detect and accurately measure small absolute fluxes or small flux changes.

Parallel N-junction superconducting interferometer with enhanced flux-to-voltage transfer function


An energy expenditure garment includes various elastic resistance elements located on the garment so as to help in the training of a user while participating in a swinging sport, such as golf or racquet sports. The garment could also include a biofeedback sensor to indicate when a proper swing has or has not been performed.

The present invention relates to garments which would be used during an exercise or sport involving swinging an object, such as a golf club or racquet. Garments for expending energy have been known which incorporate elongated elastic resistance elements as separate cords or bands or as panels of the garment. In use of the garments when the user performs certain activities such as bending motions of the hands, legs or body, energy is expended in stretching the resistance material and then in resisting the material returning to its original condition. It would be desirable to make use of such concepts where the activity performed is a swinging of a club or racquet, such as in playing golf or various racquet sports such as tennis, racquetball, etc. It would also be desirable if such a garment could be used as an aid in training to assure a proper swing.


A LIDAR-type device for a remote spectroscopy of a matter includes an optical emission channel that includes a laser source and an optical waves frequency generator to generate a first comb, a second comb, and a local comb. Each comb includes at least one stripe. A transmit telescope emits an emission signal. A reception channel includes a receive telescope that receives a signal reflected by the matter traversed by the emission signal and a detection system that detects a first beat signal of the at least one stripe of the local comb with the corresponding first stripe of the first reflected comb, a second beat signal of the at least one stripe of the local comb with the corresponding second stripe of the second reflected comb, and a third beat signal of the at least one first beat signal with the at least one second beat signal.

The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
It is known to use a laser source configured, from a first narrow spectral band light emission, centered on a first frequency, to generate a first light wave comprising a first plurality of spectral components, each component covering a band, or stripe, which is a narrow spectral band or stripe centered on a frequency different from the other components, such that, in the frequency space, the spectral composition of the light wave has the shape of a first spectral comb, the height of each stripe of the comb corresponding to the light energy of the spectral stripe of the first light emission distributed over each stripe of the comb.
It is also known to generate, from the first light emission, not only a first light luminous wave, but also and simultaneously generate a second light wave, which is coherent with the first one, and comprising like the first light wave, a second plurality of spectral components, forming a second spectral comb, each spectral stripe of the second comb being associated with a spectral stripe of the first comb slightly shifted in frequency relative thereto.
It is finally known to emit the first and the second light comb in the direction of a target, for example a portion of the atmosphere, and then to pick up the signal sent back by this target so as to make beat, i.e. to modulate the received signal corresponding to a stripe of the first comb with the signal received and associated with the stripe of the second comb, then to filter the radiofrequency (RF) component of the modulated signal. This modulation occurs for each pair of stripes (first comb-second comb).
One drawback of this device is that, for each emitted stripe, the signal received from the target is attenuated by the round trip of the wave between the emitter and the receiver, therefore of a low level if this distance is large. The power of the filtered RF component is in turn twice as attenuated as the signal received from each stripe considered individually; the signal-to-noise ratio of the signal is therefore very degraded if the experimental conditions make the photon noise not dominant.
One improvement in the case of a single or double emission stripe and a single light wave emitted to the target, consists in mixing its feedback with the stripe of a local oscillator in order to take advantage of the power of the latter, which has not undergone the attenuation over a long distance. This device called «heterodyne detection» or «coherent detection» can be limited in the optical frequencies by the coherence length of the laser source, which results in a random phase-shift between the feedback light wave and the local oscillator. This phase-shift randomly modulates the radiofrequency signal, which requires performing an averaging of several random intensity measurements, with an unfavorable statistical standard deviation, and therefore a degraded final signal-to-noise ratio.
These and other issues are addressed by the present disclosure.

LIDAR for heterodyne detection by a local oscillator and a dual probing beam, at one or several simultaneous frequency(ies), and LIDAR detection method by dual heterodyning detection

OFFICE NATIONAL D'ETUDES ET DE RECHERCHES AEROSPATIALES


A method and system using a single pass sequencer having a transport system for transporting the mail pieces to a transport system having a moveable carriage system and a stationary carriage system with a plurality of holders slidable between the moveable carriage system and the stationary carriage system. The plurality of holders hold a mail piece of the mail pieces received from the transport system. The mail pieces are sequenced as they are transported or moved from the stationary carriage to the moveable carriage.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention generally relates to a single pass sequencer and process and, in particular, to a system and method for sequencing mail pieces in a single pass to reduce overhead space and costs as well as minimize mail damage.
2. Background Description
The delivery of mail such as catalogs, products, advertisements and a host of other articles have increased exponentially over the years. These mail pieces are known to be critical to commerce and the underlying economy. It is thus critical to commerce and the underlying economy to provide efficient delivery of such mail in both a cost effective and time efficient manner. This includes, for example, arranging randomly deposited mail pieces into a sequential delivery order for delivery to a destination point. By sorting the mail in a sequential order based on destination point, the delivery of mail and other articles can be provided in an orderly and effective manner.
In current sorting processes, optical character recognition systems may be used to capture delivery destination information. A host of feeders and other complex handling systems are then used to transport the mail to a host of bins or containers for sorting and future delivery. To this end, central processing facilities, i.e., United States Postal Service centers, have employed a high degree of automation using bar code readers and/or character recognition to perform basic sorting of articles to be transported to defined geographic regions or to local offices within those regions. It is also known to manually sort mail pieces, but this process is very labor intensive, time consuming and costly.
As to known automated sorting processes, currently, for example, a two pass algorithm process is used as one method for sorting mail based on delivery destination. In this known process, a multiple pass process of each piece of mail is provided for sorting the mail; that is, the mail pieces, for future delivery, are fed through a feeder twice for sorting purposes. In general, the two pass algorithm method requires a first pass for addresses to be read by an optical character reader and assigned a label or destination code. Once the mail pieces are assigned a label or destination code, they are then fed to bins based on one of the numbers of the destination code. The mail pieces are then fed through the feeder a second time, scanned, and sorted based on the second number of the destination code. It is the use of the second number that completes the basis for sorting the mail pieces based on delivery or destination order.
The two pass algorithm method may present some shortcomings. For example, the mail pieces are fed through the feeder twice, which may increase the damage to the mail pieces. Second, known optical recognition systems typically have a reliability of approximately 70%; however, by having to read the mail pieces twice, the rate is multiplied by itself dramatically reducing the read rate and thus requiring more manual operations. That is, the read rate is decreased and an operator may have to manually read the destination codes and manually sort the mail when the scanner is unable to accurately read the destination code, address or other information associated with the mail pieces two consecutive times. Additionally, bar code labeling and additional sorting steps involves additional processing time and sorting machine overhead as well as additional operator involvement. This all leads to added costs and processing times.
It is also known that by using the two pass algorithm method as well as other processing methods, the containers and bins may not be efficiently utilized, thus wasting valuable space. By way of illustrative example, a first bin may not be entirely filled while other bins may be over-filled. In this scenario, the mail pieces are not uniformly stacked within the bins, wasting valuable space, causing spillage or an array of other processing difficulties.
However, U.S. application Ser. No. 10/265,570 solves these problems and provides many advantages over known systems. For example, in U.S. application Ser. No. 10/265,570, a novel single pass system and method has been devised to sort and sequence mail pieces in a single sorting pass, thus eliminating the need for a two pass algorithm and accompanying system. The system and method of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/265,570 minimizes damage to flats, provides a single drop point, as well as increases the overall efficiency by ensuring that "tubs" or other transport containers are efficiently utilized by evenly filling the tubs to a maximum or near maximum level. But, further advances in such system are still possible such as, for example, still further reductions in component parts and use of flooring space.

Method and system for sequentially ordering objects using a single pass delivery point process


Tie-down assemblies and methods of their use are provided. In one embodiment, a tie-down assembly may include a buckle, a first strap, and a second strap. The buckle may include a frame, a handle pivotably attached to the frame and configured to pivot about a first axis between an open position and a closed position, and a drum rotatably attached to the handle and configured to rotate about a second axis, wherein the second axis is spaced apart from and extends parallel to the first axis. The first strap may be attached to the frame, and the second strap may be configured to removably attach to the drum.

Various types of tie-down members or assemblies may be used to secure cargo to a support structure during transport or storage of the cargo. For example, in light-duty applications, simple straps, ropes, or bungee cords may be used to secure cargo to a truck bed, a trailer, or a container of a vehicle. In some instances, one or more straps may be used together with a buckle, such as a cam buckle or a spring buckle, to facilitate a reliable hold between the cargo and the support structure upon tightening of the straps. In heavy-duty applications, more complex tie-down assemblies may be used to ensure that the cargo is maintained in a secure manner with respect to the support structure. For example, ratchet tie-down assemblies often may be used to secure heavy cargo, such as a car, a motorcycle, or an all-terrain vehicle to a support structure, such as a trailer, in a manner that reliably inhibits movement of the cargo relative to the support structure during transport.
A ratchet tie-down assembly generally may include a ratchet buckle, a first strap that is fixedly attached to the buckle, and a second strap that is removably attached to the buckle. The first strap may include a first end that is attached to the ratchet buckle and a second end that is attached to a first hook or other hardware component for removably attaching to a cargo item or a support structure. The second strap may include a first end that is configured for removably attaching to the ratchet buckle and a second end that is attached to a second hook or other hardware component for removably attaching to the cargo item or the support structure. The ratchet buckle may be configured for tightening the first strap and the second strap between the attachment points provided by the first hook and the second hook. Although various configurations may be used, the ratchet buckle generally may include a frame, a drum, a ratchet mechanism, a handle, and a release mechanism. The first strap may be fixedly attached to the frame and extend therefrom for connecting the frame to the cargo item or the support structure via the first hook. The drum may be rotatably attached to the frame and configured to receive the second strap therethrough. Upon rotation of the drum relative to the frame in a first direction, the second strap may be wrapped around the drum in an overlapping manner, thereby securing the second strap to the drum. The ratchet mechanism may be attached to the frame and/or the handle and configured to engage the drum. In particular, the ratchet mechanism may be configured to allow the drum to rotate in the first direction and to inhibit rotation of the drum in an opposite second direction. The handle may be pivotably attached to the frame and configured to pivot relative to the frame between an open position and a closed position. When the handle is pivoted from the open position to the closed position, the handle may cause the drum to rotate in the first direction, thereby wrapping the second strap around the drum. When the handle is pivoted from the closed position to the open position, the ratchet mechanism may maintain the existing rotational orientation of the drum. The release mechanism may be attached to the frame and/or the handle and configured to engage the ratchet mechanism. When the release mechanism is disengaged from the ratchet mechanism, the drum may be allowed to rotate in the second direction, thereby allowing the second strap to be unwrapped and removed from the drum.
Use of such a ratchet tie-down assembly may begin by attaching the first hook to one of a cargo item or a support structure. In this manner, the ratchet buckle may be connected to the one of the cargo item or the support structure via the first strap and the first hook. Meanwhile, the second hook may be attached to the other of the cargo item or the support structure. The first end of the second strap then may be passed through an opening of the drum and back over a top portion of the drum toward the second hook. In this manner, the ratchet buckle may be connected to the other of the cargo item or the support structure via the second strap and the second hook. In some instances, the first end of the second strap may be pulled toward the second hook to remove some slack in the second strap. The ratchet buckle then may be actuated to tighten the first strap and the second strap between the attachment points provided by the first hook and the second hook. In particular, the handle may be pivoted from the open position to the closed position, thereby causing the drum to rotate in the first direction and the second strap to be wrapped around the drum. In this manner, the degree of tension in the second strap may be increased as the second strap is wrapped around the drum. In many instances, a single actuation of the handle (i.e., pivotal movement of the handle from the open position to the closed position) may be insufficient to cause the drum to grab the second strap. The second strap generally may not be grabbed by the drum until the second strap is wrapped around the drum in an overlapping manner to generate a sufficient amount of friction between overlapping layers of the second strap. With many existing ratchet tie-down assemblies, a single actuation of the handle generally may not result in a desired degree of wrapping of the second strap around the drum and thus may not generate a desired degree of tension in the second strap. Accordingly, the handle may be moved from the closed position to the open position and then back to the closed position to wrap the second strap further around the drum and further increase tension in the second strap. In some instances, numerous actuations of the handle may be carried out in order to achieve the desired degree of wrapping of the second strap around the drum and the desired degree of tension in the second strap. After doing so, the handle may be maintained in the closed position, and the ratchet mechanism may maintain the drum in the existing rotational orientation. The tension generated in the first strap and the second strap may ensure that the cargo item is secured relative to the support structure by the ratchet tie-down assembly during transport. After transporting the cargo item to its destination, the ratchet tie-down assembly may be removed from the cargo item and the support structure. In particular, the handle may be moved from the closed position to the open position, and the release mechanism may be actuated to disengage the ratchet mechanism. Actuation of the release mechanism may allow the second strap to be removed from the drum. For example, the portion of the second strap between the drum and the second hook may be pulled away from drum, thereby causing the drum to rotate in the second direction and the second strap to be unwrapped from the drum. Finally, the first hook and the second hook may be detached from the cargo item and the support structure.
Although conventional ratchet tie-down assemblies generally may be suitable for securing a cargo item to a support structure for transport or storage, the use of such assemblies may suffer from certain drawbacks. For example, ratchet tie-down assemblies may be cumbersome and time-consuming to use. As described above, achieving a desired degree of wrapping of the second strap around the drum and a desired degree of tension in the second strap often may necessitate numerous actuations of the handle. As a result, a user may waste a significant amount of time and effort in actuating the handle multiple times. This may be undesirable in certain applications, particularly when several tie-down assemblies are being used to secure a cargo item. Furthermore, a user may experience confusion in determining how many actuations of the handle may be necessary to achieve a desired degree of wrapping of the second strap around the drum and a desired degree of tension in the second strap. Additionally, when using certain ratchet tie-down assemblies, it may be challenging to feed the second strap through and around the drum due to the configuration of the other components of the ratchet buckle. For example, it may be difficult to access the drum and clearly view the first end of the second belt while the first end is fed through and around the drum. Removal of the second strap after use of certain ratchet tie-down assemblies also may be challenging. For example, when the second strap has been wrapped around the drum multiple times, it may be difficult for a user to remove the second strap from the drum simply by pulling the portion of the second strap between the drum and the second hook. As a result, the user may have to unwrap the second strap manually from the drum, which may be challenging due to the configuration of the other components of the ratchet buckle. Further drawbacks may result from the use of the ratchet mechanism for controlling rotation of the drum. For example, certain ratchet mechanisms may include numerous moving components that cooperate with one another in order to ensure proper operation of the tie-down assembly. Such configurations may increase the complexity and overall cost of the tie-down assembly. Additionally, over time, such components may become worn and/or debris may be introduced into exposed portions of the ratchet mechanism, which may prevent proper operation of the tie-down assembly and jeopardize the cargo item secured thereby.
There remains a need for improved tie-down assemblies and methods of using such assemblies to secure cargo to a support structure for transport or storage. In particular, it would be advantageous to provide a tie-down assembly that addresses one or more of the above-described drawbacks associated with conventional ratchet tie-down assemblies and includes a robust mechanism for securing a cargo item to a support structure in a simple and intuitive manner.

Ratchetless tie-down assemblies and related methods


A method for fabricating an interconnection in an insulating layer on a wafer is described. A wafer having a plurality of conductive lines thereon is provided. An insulating layer is formed over the conductive lines. Two via holes are formed in the insulating layer to expose two of the conductive lines waiting to be repaired. A first conductive layer is filled into the via holes to form two pattern marks. A mask is formed over the wafer to cover the insulating layer and the two pattern marks. The mask located above and between the two pattern marks is removed to form a trench exposing the two pattern marks and a portion of the insulating layer. A second conductive layer is formed over the mask to cover the two exposed pattern marks and the exposed insulating layer. The mask and the second conductive layer above the mask are removed simultaneously.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor process. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method of fabricating an interconnection in an insulating layer on a wafer and a structure thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
Integrated circuit fabrication is a high-tech industry that involves four major subsystems including integrated circuit design, wafer manufacturing, wafer testing and wafer packaging. After all the steps necessary for fabricating a complete integrated circuit have been completed, a series of tests is carried out to ensure the quality of the final products and/or to modify the circuit fabrication process according to the test results. Furthermore, at the end of a wafer fabrication cycle, the wafer frequency undergoes many types of wafer tests. If defects or out-of-spec elements are found in the circuit on the wafer, a repair operation is often carried out to form a repair circuit. This kind of operational mode not only saves the trouble of producing rework photomask and some other costs, but also significantly increases overall yield of the wafer.
In 1988, Intel's researcher Richard Leven-good uses a focused ion beam (FIB) device to 'deposit' a section of absent circuit on a microprocessor chip. Thereafter, the chip is tested and found to operate normally. From that time on, FIB has become one of the principal techniques for repairing defective circuits or out-of-spec circuits of a silicon wafer. However, there are a still a few drawbacks in using the FIB technique to repair wafer circuits. Because a FIB device is an expensive piece of equipment, using the FIB technique to repair circuits on the wafer separated by a long distance is rather expensive. Furthermore, it takes considerable time to repair each stretch of circuit using the FIB technique. The repairing time is even longer if the circuits to be repaired are separated by a long distance.

Method for fabricating interconnection in an insulating layer on a wafer


A surgical apparatus having a locking mechanism that receives a cutting burr and that may include a loading and running position. The locking mechanism may include a motor driven spindle that carries a locking pawl and a detent pawl that lock the cutting burr in place an prevent the cutting burr from inadvertently falling out of the surgical drill instrument when in its load position. A diamond-shaped portion of the cutting burr may be formed in a six-sided diamond configuration and a perpendicular back end surface. The end of the cutting burr may include another diamond-shaped portion formed in a six-sided diamond shape surface that mates with a complementary surface formed in the receiving end of the spindle of the motor/locking mechanism. In an aspect, the attachment of the cutting burr is such that the cutting burr has substantially zero axial movement and runs true in the running condition.

Surgical drilling instruments may include two releasably attached modular components, e.g., a motor/locking mechanism and an attachment, where the attachment attaches to the end of the locking mechanism. These modular components serve to receive and drive a high speed cutting burr that fits through the attachment and is engaged by the locking mechanism for high speed drilling, for example, at 80,000 to 90,000 R.P.M. The motor/locking mechanism may accept different kinds and sizes of cutting burrs or bits and different kinds and sizes of attachments.
The attachment of the cutting burr or bit to the motor/locking mechanism of may be difficult to use. For example, to install the cutting burr into some surgical drills, the operator may need to attach the attachment to the locking mechanism, position a lever on the surgical drill, and then insert the cutting burr into the attachment. To remove the cutting burr, the tasks may be reversed by placing the lever into a raised position and removing the cutting burr. The process is then repeated to insert the next cutting burr. In the above process, an operator may encounter problems if the lever position is moved from the raise position before the cutting burr is inserted.
Other quick release coupling mechanisms include the use of a posterior and an anterior Double D collet. The collet housing is mounted in line with the instrument's housing and is rotatable to two positions. Rotation of the collet housing to first, locking position causes a ball to ride in a helical slot for positioning a closure sleeve to urge the locking ball into the annular groove formed in the distal end of the cutting burr to lock the cutting burr in place. For removal of the cutting burr the reverse procedure is performed. For example, the collet housing is rotated to a second position causing the closure sleeve to move away from the ball and allow it to release itself from the annular groove in the cutting burr and allowing the cutting burr to be remove. To insert another cutting burr, the cutting burr is inserted and the collet housing is rotated back to the locking position. The cutting burr cannot be inserted if the collet housing is in the locked position.
Thus, quick release coupling mechanisms pose difficulties in their use, especially during operations where a cutting burr may only be useable for less than 10 minutes, and may have to be changed several times during a surgical procedure. As such, the efficiency, ease and timeliness of the cutting burr changing procedure may affect the surgical procedure.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Surgical drill instrument with motor and locking mechanism to receive an attachment and a cutting burr


A method of transmitting a large amount of data with priority for use with a CSMA/CD system includes the steps of checking to see if a transmission line has a free space in response to a data transmission request from a node serving as a source node, transmitting, if the transmission line has a free space, a priority transmission notice carried by a data-link-layer protocol signal of the CSMA/CD system from the source node to the other nodes, transmitting data for which the data transmission request has been made from the source node to a node serving as a destination node, and putting the nodes except the source node in a transmission-disabled, reception-enabled state when the priority transmission notice is received by the nodes. Also provided is an apparatus for achieving such a method.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a LAN (local area network) employing a CSMA/CD (carrier sense multiple access with collision detection) system. In particular, the present invention relates to a method of, and an apparatus for, transmitting a large amount of data with priority in a LAN employing the CSMA/CD system.
2. Description of the Related Art
The CSMA/CD system has been developed as an access control system for Ethernet, which is a kind of a LAN, and has been standardized as IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) 802.3. The CSMA/CD system is widely used for bus-topology LANs and tree-topology LANs.
FIG. 1 shows relationships between IEEE 802.3 layers and OSI (open system interconnection) reference model layers.
IEEE 802.3 specifies a PLS (physical layer signaling) sublayer, an MAC (media access control) sublayer, and an LLC (logical link control) sublayer. The PLS sublayer corresponds to a physical layer of an OSI reference model, and the MAC and LLC sublayers correspond to a data link layer of the OSI reference model. The present invention relates to the data link layer and a network layer of the OSI reference model depicted with thick continuous lines in FIG. 1.
FIGS. 2 and 3 briefly explain the operation of the CSMA/CD system.
FIG. 2 shows collision detection by the CSMA/CD system, and FIG. 3 shows a resending operation by the CSMA/CD system after detecting a collision.
In FIG. 2, a transmission line 10 may be a twisted-pair cable or a coaxial cable. Nodes A to D (11 to 15) are connected to the line 10 and always monitor, in the PLS sublayer, a carrier detection signal that corresponds to a carrier signal transmitted through the line 10.
One of the nodes 11 to 15 transmits data if the node detects according to the carrier detection signal that none of the other nodes is using the-line 10. If any one of the nodes is using the line 10, the other nodes postpone transmitting data. A node starts to transmit data after a carrier detection signal disappears and after a minimum frame-to-frame spacing time (9.6 xcexcs) elapses.
If the node 12 transmits data to the node 15, and at the same time, if the node 13 sends data to the node 14, a collision occurs. Then, a jam signal or an interference signal is sent for a predetermined time (3.2 to 4.8 xcexcs) to all nodes (the nodes 11 to 15 in this example) connected to the same segment of the line 10 or contained in the same broadcast range to inform the nodes of the collision.
In FIG. 3, the nodes 12 and 13 that have caused the collision calculate respective back-off times according to a probability algorithm to avoid another collision. After the back-off times, the nodes 12 and 13 resend the data. In FIG. 3, the node 13 has a shorter back-off time, and therefore, succeeds to send the data to the node 14. At this time, the node 12 having a longer back-off time delays resending the data according to a carrier detection signal.
In this way, the CSMA/CD system gives the same priority to all nodes 11 to 15 connected to the line 10. Namely, the CSMA/CD system is unable to give priority to a specific node to access the line 10.
As the number of nodes connected to the line 10 increases, the traffic of the line 10 increases to rapidly increase the number of collisions. This deteriorates the transmission efficiency of the line 10 because many resending operations must be carried out as explained with reference to FIG. 3.
To solve this problem, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 05-300153 gives priority to a node and makes the node send a jam signal to forcibly stop communication between the other nodes. Thereafter, the node with priority starts transmitting data before the shortest back-off time elapses. To achieve the forcible stoppage of communication, this prior art uses the standard collision detecting and data resending functions in the PLS sublayer (corresponding to the physical layer of the OSI reference model).
An object of the present invention is to provide a method of, and an apparatus for, realizing priority data transmission for the CSMA/CD system. The present invention uses the data link or network layer of the OSI reference model depicted with thick continuous lines in FIG. 1. The present invention gives priority to a node to access a transmission line and makes the node send a frame or packet with a priority transmission notice through the data link or network layer to all nodes connected to the same segment of the transmission line to which the node in question is connected. Thereafter, the node in question temporarily exclusively uses the line to transmit a large amount of data in a short time without forcibly cutting communication between the other nodes.
In order to accomplish the object, the present invention provides a method of realizing priority data transmission for the CSMA/CD system, including the steps of checking to see if a transmission line has a free space in response to a data transmission request from a node serving as a source node, transmitting, if the transmission line has a free space, a priority transmission notice with a protocol signal from the source node to the other nodes in a data link layer of the CSMA/CD system, transmitting data for which the data transmission request has been made from the source node to a node serving as a destination node, and putting the nodes except the source node in a transmission-disabled, reception-enabled state when the priority transmission notice is received by the nodes.
The method may include the steps of transmitting a release notice from the source node, and restoring the transmission disabled nodes to a transmission-reception-enabled state when the release notice is received by the nodes or when a predetermined time elapses after the priority transmission notice is received by the nodes.
The method may include the steps of attaching a priority assigned to the source node to the priority transmission notice and transmitting the priority transmission notice from the source node to the other nodes, and comparing, at each of the nodes except the source node, the priority assigned to the source node with priority assigned to the node in question, and if the priority assigned to the source node is higher than that assigned to the node in question, putting the node in question in the transmission-disabled, reception-enabled state.
The protocol signal in the data link layer of the CSMA/CD system may be an MAC frame. The MAC frame has a frame type field and an LLC header field, one of the fields being used to carry the priority transmission notice with or without a value indicating the priority assigned to the source node, or the release notice.
Instead of the protocol signal in the data link layer of the CSMA/CD system, a protocol signal in a network layer of the OSI reference model may be used. The protocol signal in the network layer may be an IP datagram signal having an option field and a TOS field. The option field is used to carry any one of the priority transmission notice and the release notice. The TOS field is used to carry a value indicating the priority assigned to the source node.

Method of and apparatus for realizing priority data transmissions for CSMA/CD system


In a process for separating carbon dioxide from a waste gas (3) of a fluid bed catalytic cracking installation (1) containing carbon dioxide, nitrogen and possibly carbon monoxide, the waste gas (3) is separated by adsorption to form a gas enriched in carbon dioxide and depleted in nitrogen (29) and a gas rich in nitrogen and depleted in carbon dioxide (31), and at least a portion of the gas enriched in carbon dioxide and depleted in nitrogen is separated in a separation device (30) by way of separation at a temperature of less than 0° C. by partial condensation and/or by distillation to form a fluid rich in carbon dioxide (35) and a fluid depleted in carbon dioxide (37).

The present invention relates to a process and an apparatus for separating carbon dioxide from a waste gas of a fluid bed catalytic cracking installation.
The percentages indicating purities in this document are molar percentages, unless otherwise indicated.
One of the main sources of CO2 emissions in petroleum refining is fluid bed catalytic cracking, often denoted by the acronym FCC. Cracking produces between 20% and 50% of the refinery emissions and the waste gas it produces contains between 10% and 20% carbon dioxide and possibly contains carbon monoxide.
Fluid bed catalytic cracking is a refining process which has the aim of transforming, in the presence of a catalyst, the long-chain hydrocarbon heavy fractions into light fractions in order to be used in the production of fuel.
In the presence of the catalyst, at high temperature (450 to 550° C.) and at almost atmospheric pressure, large hydrocarbon molecules are broken in order to obtain small molecules having a high octane number.
The industrial process, known since 1928, is based on the use of a fluidized catalyst bed which circulates between a reactor and a regenerator. The feedstock (typically originating from distillation and vacuum distillation units of the refinery) is injected with the catalyst entering the reactor in a pipeline (also called "riser") in which the cracking reaction takes place. The products of the catalytic cracking reaction exiting the pipeline are separated from the catalyst by means of mechanical separators (typically cyclones) and then are sent into the fractionating tower. During the cracking reaction, coke forms on the surface of the catalyst which flows continuously between the reactor and the regenerator where this coke will be at least partially oxidized, mainly into CO and CO2, by injection of (possibly oxygen-enriched) air. The catalyst may thus be totally or partially (meaning that the coke is not completely removed) regenerated and then returns to the reactor.
A waste gas, called flue gas, containing carbon dioxide and nitrogen and possibly carbon monoxide, for example between 10% and 20% CO2 and between 0% and 10% carbon monoxide, typically 12.5% CO2, 7.5% CO, 80% N2, all percentages in this document being molar percentages (on a dry basis), is produced in the regenerator.
It is separated again from the catalyst and dust by mechanical gas/solid separators (generally cyclones) in the regenerator and then possibly in an electrostatic precipitator. The conditions of this waste gas at the outlet from the regenerator are typically a temperature of between 500 and 850° C. and a pressure between atmospheric pressure and 5 barg. The examples in this document shall consider as assumptions a temperature of 715° C. and a pressure of 2.4 barg. The waste gas is then expanded (in a turbine or else in a valve) to atmospheric pressure and then, if it contains CO, is treated to convert the carbon monoxide into carbon dioxide in a converter referred to as a "CO boiler". This converter produces heat which is used to produce steam or to heat another fluid (for example hot oil).
In the case of CO2 capture, the prior art then proceeds to treat this waste gas enriched in carbon dioxide by amine scrubbing to remove the carbon dioxide it contains. This scrubbing consumes a great deal of steam which is not necessarily available in excess on site and the production of which consumes fossil fuels.
It is known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,542,114 to modify an FCC to feed the regenerator with an oxidizing gas consisting of a mixture of carbon dioxide (possibly recycled) and between 24% and 30% oxygen instead of air. The gas reacts with the coke to release heat and regenerate the catalyst. The waste gas formed in the regenerator contains 83% carbon dioxide, 9% water, 7% carbon monoxide, 0.5% oxygen, 0.5% sulfur oxides and 500 ppm NOx. The carbon monoxide is oxidized to carbon dioxide in the presence of oxygen. The hot combustion gases are cooled while generating steam. They may then be purified (to remove impurities such as SOx, NOx, and also the oxygen excess and other air gases (N2, Ar)) and possibly compressed and dried (or even liquefied, depending on their final use. It is known to use an FCC in oxycombustion mode. A portion of the waste gas produced is recycled to the combustion. In this case, the waste gas produced by the regenerator generally comprises between 80 and 98 vol. % carbon dioxide (dry basis).
The FCC processes using oxycombustion in the regenerator entail significant modifications to the core of the process, to the way in which the subtle equilibria of this unit (flow rate of circulating catalyst, heat transfer, residual coke on the catalyst) are regulated in stable operation, and to the way in which the operation of the unit is started/stabilized. This is the reason why FCC operators are currently reluctant concerning this technology which is not yet established on the industrial scale.
In order to overcome these difficulties, the present invention proposes not significantly modifying the core of the FCC process (=the reactor and the regenerator), but rather treating the waste gas of the regenerator in an innovative manner to produce an FCC waste gas which is "concentrated" but contains less than 80% carbon dioxide, preferentially between 60% and 70% CO2, indeed even slightly less than 50% carbon dioxide. This concentration can be affected by enriching the waste gas in CO2 in an adsorption unit after having possibly converted the carbon monoxide still present in the waste gas into CO2.

Process and apparatus for separating carbon dioxide from a waste gas of a fluid bed catalytic cracking (FCC) installation

L'Air Liquide, Société Anonyme our l'Étude et l'Exploitation des Procédés Georges Claude


A camouflage net, in particular for covering persons and articles in the desert against detection in a thermal image, has a knitted fabric with a hole structure. The knitted fabric in this case has condensed and/or sealed-off regions.

A generic camouflage net is known from DE 40 23 287 C2.
Camouflage nets of this type serve for the camouflaging of buildings and of fixed and mobile military equipment, such as, for example, motor vehicles, tanks and the like. Camouflage nets of this type are intended to make it possible to camouflage against infrared cameras or thermal-image detectors and against radar contacts. The camouflaging is therefore to be afforded in the infrared, thermal-image, millimeter and centimeter radar radiation range.
The generic camouflage net consists of a polyester knitted fabric with a hole structure, the holes having a diameter or a width and/or height of approximately 2 to 3 mm, and the mutual spacing of the holes ranging approximately within the same order of magnitude. Metal fibers are also worked into the knitted fabric, and the knitted fabric is provided on both sides with a polymer layer which contains approximately 30 to 40% by weight of absorber pigments active in a range of 10 to 100 Ghz.
The generic camouflage net constitutes an advantageous, multi-spectrally active, flame-retarding camouflage net which affords protection in the visual and near IR range. Furthermore, the generic camouflage net has good damping values over a broad spectrum of the microwave range and has low emission in the thermal-image range.
Moreover, the camouflage net offers good mechanical strength and flexibility over a wide temperature range.
In comparison with other camouflage nets known from the prior art, for example from DE 38 10 121 A1 and DE 31 17 245 A1, the camouflage net known from the publication forming the preamble has improved camouflaging properties.
In all the camouflage nets known from practice, there is a problem, when they are used in desert regions, that the camouflage nets, which are based on the principle of convection, are too cold by day and too warm at night when used in the desert. The sand, rocks and vegetation heat up to an extreme extent in the desert throughout the day due to the sun. The region which is covered by the camouflage nets is shaded by the camouflage nets and thus becomes colder since the covered ground surface cannot heat up to the same extent. A signature which differs from the surroundings therefore appears in the thermal infrared range.
The situation at night with regard to the signature which is different in the thermal infrared range is not as extreme as during the day, but, here too, improvement or optimization is necessary.
There has hitherto been no practicable possibility known from the publications mentioned and from practice which makes it possible to match the temperature of the net or of the camouflaged region in desert areas. A further problem, in this case, is that the various desert areas make it necessary for the camouflage nets to meet different requirements with regard to a matching of the temperature.


Provided are a method, system, and article of manufacture for a replication engine communicating with a splitter to split writes between a storage controller and replication engine. Communication is initiated with the splitter implemented in a storage controller managing access to primary volumes. A command is sent to the splitter to copy writes to one primary volume to the replication engine. Write data is received from the splitter to one of the primary volumes following the splitter receiving the command to copy the writes to the replication engine. A determination is made of a copy services function to use for the received data. The determined copy services function is invoked to transfer the received data to a secondary storage volume.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method, system, and article of manufacture for a replication engine communicating with a splitter to split writes between a storage controller and replication engine.
2. Description of the Related Art
In current network storage systems, a splitter can be implemented in a host or a switch to split writes directed to a volume managed by a storage controller to another storage device. The splitter sends a copy of the data to the storage controller and another copy to a replication engine that implements copy services to copy the data to a storage. The replication engine may comprise a separate network device or appliance.
In one implementation, a splitter is implemented in the host software stack, such as the device driver or logical volume manager. In another implementation, the splitter may be implemented in the fabric, such as in a switch. In a yet further implementation, the splitter and the replication function are implemented within the storage controller, such as the case with Peer-to-Peer-Copy ("PPRC"), where a primary storage controller continuously mirrors or replicates data to a remote secondary site.

Replication engine communicating with a splitter to split writes between a storage controller and replication engine

International Business Machines Corporation


A method for designing a core bit to control and reduce the cutting forces acting on a core of rock is disclosed. The method includes generating a model of a core bit including a plurality of cutting elements on a plurality of blades. The method may additionally include simulating a coring operation with the model of the core bit. The method may further include calculating at least one force vector generated by at least one of the plurality of cutting elements on the model of the core bit during the coring operation. The method may further include determining at least one force acting on a core in the model of the core bit based on the at least one force vector and generating a design of the core bit based on the at least one force acting on the core.

Various types of drilling tools including, but not limited to, rotary drill bits, reamers, core bits, under reamers, hole openers, stabilizers, and other downhole tools have been used to form boreholes in associated downhole formations. Examples of such rotary drill or core bits include, but are not limited to, fixed cutter drill or core bits, drag bits, polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC), thermo-stable diamond (TSD), natural diamond, or diamond impregnated drill or core bits, and matrix or steel body drill or core bits associated with forming oil and gas wells extending through one or more downhole formations. Fixed cutter drill bits or core bits such as a PDC drill bit or core bit may include multiple blades that each include multiple cutting elements.
Hydrocarbons, such as oil and gas, often reside in various forms within subterranean geological formations. Often, a core bit is used to obtain representative samples of rock taken from a formation of interest. These rock samples are generally referred to as "core samples." Analysis and study of core samples enable engineers and geologists to assess formation parameters such as the reservoir storage capacity, the flow potential of the rock that makes up the formation, the composition of the recoverable hydrocarbons or minerals that reside in the formation, and the irreducible water saturation level of the rock. For instance, information about the amount of fluid may be useful in the subsequent design and implementation of a well completion program that enables production of selected formations and zones that are determined to be economically attractive based on the data obtained from the core sample.

Core bit designed to control and reduce the cutting forces acting on a core of rock


A leveling door for sealing a leveling opening of a coke oven door has a leveling door body, a diaphragm sheet mounted on the leveling door body at its side facing a leveling opening so as to cover the leveling opening, the diaphragm sheet having an edge and being provided on the edge with a circumferential sealing frame, a plurality of pressing elements acting on the sealing frame and distributed over a periphery of the sealing frame, a plurality of socket pins mounting the pressing element on the leveling door body, and an exchangeable heat protective screen arranged in front of the diaphragm sheet at a side facing the leveling opening.

The present invention relates to a leveling door for sealing a leveling opening of a coke oven door, in which a flexible sealing element is pressed against a sealing surface surrounding the leveling opening.
During the end phase of the filling process of the oven chambers of coke oven batteries it is necessary to make uniform the height of the coal bulk in the respective filled oven chamber. This is performed with the aid of a leveling rod arranged on the coke ejecting machine. In order to introduce the leveling rod into the oven chamber and reciprocate it inside the chamber, the coke oven door is provided at its machine side in the region of the collecting chamber with a leveling opening which is closed by a leveling door when the leveling rod is withdrawn from the oven chamber. In order to prevent uncontrollable discharge of the gaseous products produced during the coking process, the leveling opening must be tightly closed with the leveling door.
In old leveling door constructions the required sealing was performed with the help of so called hammer strike strips. Hammer strike strips are mounted by clamping screws on the edges of the door body and brought to abutment against a sealing surface which surround the leveling openings by means of hammer strikes. This sealing principle which is identified as "iron-to-iron" requires expensive maintenance and is not always satisfactory with respect to its sealing properties. It operates only in proper conditions when on the one hand the sealing surfaces are retained very clean and on the other hand the temperature position of the seal provides the formation of sufficient quantity of the tar condensate on the sealing surfaces as a lock.
A leveling door is proposed in the German document DE-PS 2,426,476. It has a shell-shaped closing element composed of a material with springy properties. The flexible sealing edge of this closing element is pressed by a force acting in the middle against the sealing surface surrounding the leveling opening. The disadvantage of this construction is that on the one hand the production of such shall-shaped closing element is relatively expensive and on the other hand the force which acts only in the middle does not provide a sufficient adjustment to different conditions on the sealing edge or the sealing surface.


An integrated power-converting module includes a bobbin, a primary coil, a magnetic core assembly, and a plurality of power-converting units. The bobbin includes a main body, a plurality of winding portions and a plurality of receiving portions, and the winding portions and the and the receiving portion are arranged in a staggered manner. The primary coil is wound on the winding portions and the magnetic core assembly is assembled with the bobbin. Each power-converting unit includes a circuit board, a rectifier, and a filter, the rectifier and the filter are placed on a base portion of the circuit board and electrically connected thereto. An extending portion of the circuit board connect to the base portion is inserted into a slot formed within the receiving portion, and a penetrating hole formed on the extending portion is aligned with and communicated with a first channel formed on the main body.

Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to a power-converting module. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to an integrated power-converting module.
Description of Related Art
Electric power is used in almost all electronic devices, and it is the core and can affect performance thereof.
The demands for electric power follow the trend towards downsizing, high efficiency, and lower cost as energy saving and carbon reduction keeps promoting. A conventional power converter includes a flat circuit board, at least one transformer, and a plurality of electrical components, and the converter and the electrical components are individually placed on the circuit board for electrically connecting each other via traces formed on the circuit board. In such manner, the transformer and electrical components occupy a lot of space in the circuit board, this becomes the main obstacle of the high power converter to achieve miniaturization. Therefore, there is a need of providing an integrated power-converter in order to obviate the drawbacks encountered in the prior art.


According to an exemplary embodiment, a voltage controlled oscillator includes a PFET having a first gate terminal, a first source terminal, a first drain terminal, and a first body terminal, where the first source terminal is coupled to a bias voltage and the first body terminal is coupled to a first tuning voltage. The voltage controlled oscillator does not include a discrete varactor diode. The voltage controlled oscillator further includes an NFET having a second gate terminal, a second source terminal, a second drain terminal, and a second body terminal, where the second body terminal is coupled to a second tuning voltage. The first and second drain terminals drive an output of the voltage controlled oscillator, where a frequency of the output is responsive to a change in the first tuning voltage. The change in the first tuning voltage causes a change in source-to-body capacitance of the PFET.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally in the field of electrical circuits. More specifically, the invention is in the field of voltage controlled oscillators.
2. Related Art
In the field of wireless communication, such as radio frequency ("RF") communication, voice and data signals are encoded over a carrier signal prior to transmission. Typically, the carrier signal used for RF communications is a sine wave generated by an oscillator. For example, a typical oscillator used to generate a sine wave for RF communication is a voltage controlled oscillator.
A conventional voltage controlled oscillator generally includes a tank circuit for establishing the oscillation frequency of the output signal generated by the voltage controlled oscillator, where the tank circuit includes a combination of inductive and capacitive components. In the conventional voltage controlled oscillator, the capacitive component typically comprises a variable capacitor, which can be adjusted to allow the output of the voltage controlled oscillator to be tuned to a desired oscillation frequency. In the conventional voltage controlled oscillator, a varactor diode, which has a capacitance that varies according to a voltage applied across the varactor diode, is typically used as the variable capacitor.
Thus, in the conventional voltage controlled oscillator, the output of the voltage controlled oscillator can be tuned by varying the voltage applied across the varactor diode.
However, the varactor diode can cause undesirable tuning non-linearity in the voltage controlled oscillator, which increases design constraints on the circuit in which the voltage controlled oscillator is typically used, such as a phase locked loop. Additionally, the varactor diode can reduce the quality factor of the voltage controlled oscillator, which can cause an increase in phase noise of the voltage controlled oscillator in the gigahertz frequency range.
Thus, there is a need in the art for a voltage controlled oscillator having reduced tuning non-linearity and increased quality factor.

Voltage controlled oscillator with varactor-less tuning