A knee joint prosthesis includes a femoral component, a tibial plateau, and a tibial bearing member. The design and geometry of the articulation surfaces of the condylar elements of the femoral component and tibial bearing member is such that contact area between the articulation surfaces is maximized during flexion of the prosthesis. This is achieved by increasing the coronal radius of the bearing surfaces of the femoral component in the anterior to posterior direction along the bearing surface, i.e., increasing the coronal radius of the bearing surfaces of the femoral component as the femoral component transitions from extension to flexion.

This invention relates to implantable bone prostheses, and more particularly to knee joint prostheses.
Joint replacement surgery is quite common and enables many individuals to function normally when otherwise it would not be possible to do so. Artificial joints are normally composed of metallic, ceramic and/or plastic components that are fixed to existing bone.
Knee arthroplasty is a well known surgical procedure by which a diseased and/or damaged natural knee joint is replaced with a prosthetic knee joint. Typical knee prostheses include a femoral component, a patella component, a tibial tray or plateau, and a tibial bearing member. The femoral component generally includes a pair of laterally spaced apart condylar portions, the distal surfaces of which articulate with complementary condylar elements formed in a tibial bearing component.
In a properly functioning artificial knee joint, the condylar portions of the femoral component must slide and roll freely over the articulation surface formed by the condylar elements of the tibial bearing member. Natural friction within a replaced, artificial joint can lead to the development of wear debris in which minute particles of debris (e.g., metal or plastic from the prosthesis) become dislodged and migrate within the joint. The phenomenon of wear debris within artificial joints is a serious problem that can inhibit the proper mechanical functioning of the joint. Moreover, wear debris can lead to osteolysis and bone deterioration. When wear debris develops within an artificial joint, surgical removal of the debris or subsequent replacement of the artificial joint is often necessary.
During normal usage of a properly implanted prosthetic knee joint, load and stress are placed on the tibial bearing member. The tibial bearing member is typically made of an ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE). Friction, continuous cycling and stress can cause some erosion and/or fracture of the tibial bearing member, thus leading to wear debris. The risk of wear debris can be even greater during malalignment of an artificial knee joint, which can result from normal usage or from imperfect and/or inaccurate implantation of the prosthesis within a patient. As a result of malalignment, the load upon the tibial bearing member is not evenly distributed. Instead, excess load is placed on certain areas of the tibial bearing member. This uneven distribution of load (or edge loading) can accelerate the development of wear debris. Contact stresses on the tibial bearing member increase substantially with malalignment of the joint, thus increasing the risk that wear debris will develop when a prosthetic knee joint is subjected to malalignment conditions.
Contact stresses on the tibial bearing member also tend to increase when the prosthetic knee joint is rotated into flexion. This increased contact stress results from a corresponding decrease in tibio-femoral contact area.
There is thus a need for knee joint prostheses that have reduced tendency to develop wear debris due to the maintenance of good contact area and low contact stress between femoral and tibial components, even during the dynamics of daily activity and in various conditions of flexion and malalignment.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide knee joint prostheses with improved performance and a longer use for life. It is also an object of the invention to provide knee joint prostheses having reduced tendency to develop wear debris. A further object of the invention is to provide knee joint prostheses which are able to maintain relatively high contact area and low contact stress between femoral and tibial components throughout the normal range of motion and in conditions at malalignment. Another object of the invention is to provide knee joint prostheses that exhibit acceptable levels of laxity despite maintaining good tibio-femoral contact area in conditions of flexion. These and other objects will be apparent from the description that follows.

Femoral component condyle design for knee prosthesis


A port injection valve injects fuel into an intake passage. A base injection amount is an injection amount proportional to an amount of fresh air introduced into a cylinder of an internal combustion engine. A division process involves dividing the base injection amount into a synchronous injection amount and an asynchronous injection amount. In an intake-synchronous injection, the fuel is injected in synchronization with a period in which an intake valve is open. In an intake-asynchronous injection, the fuel is injected at a time advanced with respect to the intake-synchronous injection. In a selective correction process, the asynchronous injection amount is corrected according to a required correction amount for the base injection amount, and the synchronous injection amount is not corrected.

The present disclosure relates to a controller and a control method for an internal combustion engine. The internal combustion engine which incorporates the controller or to which the control method is applied includes a port injection valve through which fuel is injected into an intake passage.
For example, the controller described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-256172 divides the required injection amount, which is determined based on the amount of fresh air introduced into a cylinder of an internal combustion engine, between a leading injection, which is an injection during the intake stroke, and a trailing injection, which is an injection during the subsequent combustion stroke. More specifically, the controller calculates the required injection amount by correcting the injection amount depending on the amount of introduced fresh air according to coolant temperature. Furthermore, the controller divides the required injection amount by a division ratio and corrects one of the divisional injection amounts to determine the final injection amount for the leading injection.
That is, the fuel injection controller according to the literature described above executes a multiple injection process that involves dividing the required amount of fuel, which is based on the amount of intake air, between an intake stroke injection and an exhaust stroke injection and manipulating a port injection valve to inject the fuel in a divisional manner. The intake stroke injection is an injection of fuel in the intake stroke, and the exhaust stroke injection is an injection of fuel in the exhaust stroke.

Controller and control method for internal combustion engine


An intermediate transfer sheet for use in an intermediate transfer type thermal transfer recording method is disclosed which comprises a support, and at least a protective layer and a receptive/adhesive layer laminated on the support in this order, the protective layer comprising as a main component by weight an acryl-silica hybrid resin curable by irradiation with an ionizing radiation.

The present invention relates to an intermediate transfer sheet. More particularly, the invention relates to an intermediate transfer sheet for use in an intermediate transfer type thermal transfer recording method wherein an ink image is first formed on the intermediate transfer sheet by a thermal transfer method using a thermal transfer sheet and the ink image on the intermediate transfer sheet is then transferred onto a final image receptor including resin shaped articles such as cards (e.g. identification card), CD-Rs, and plates by a thermal transfer method using a thermal transfer printer equipped with a thermal head, a hot roller, or a hot press. In the present specification, the transfer of the ink image on the intermediate transfer sheet onto the final image receptor is sometimes referred to as "retransfer".
Images formed on identification cards (ID cards) such as credit cards and membership cards by a melt-transfer type thermal transfer method are frequently required to have high level durability. In the conventional intermediate transfer type thermal transfer recording method, there has been adopted a method wherein an intermediate transfer sheet having a protective layer is used to improve the durability of the image on the final receptor (see patent reference 1). Thermoplastic resins having good durability such as acrylic resins are used in the protective layer. When a durability better than that of the thermoplastic resins is required, a method wherein the protective layer is composed of a thermosetting resin is used. Generally the curing of the protective layer is conducted by using heat or ionizing radiation. In the case of curing with heat, the protective layer is previously cured in a state wherein it is present in an intermediate transfer sheet because the heat curing usually needs a long period time and the heat curing of the protective layer after being transferred results in degradation in easiness of the system. Further the heat curing after the transfer frequently causes drawbacks such as heat deformation of image bearing articles.
In the case of curing using ionizing radiation, the protective layer may be cured either before or after the transfer from the viewpoint of easiness of the system. However, when the protective layer is previously cured in a state wherein it is present in the intermediate transfer sheet to improve the durability as described above, the heat-meltability of the protective layer is markedly degraded resulting in poor selective transferability of the protective layer. The term "selective transferability", as used herein, refers to the property that only a heated portion of a transfer layer is transferred but unheated portions in the periphery of the heated portion are not transferred. As a result, in the transfer of the protective layer at the edge portion of character, there sometimes occurs a phenomenon that a heated portion of the protective layer is transferred together with an unheated portion adjacent to the heated portion (this phenomenon is referred to as "planar peeling"). In this case, it is necessary to make the protective layer thinner to obtain a satisfactory selective transferability and the thickness of the protective layer is limited to a relatively smaller one, resulting in failure to achieve high level durability.
In the case of curing the protective layer by irradiation with an ionizing radiation after the transfer, there are no such problems as mentioned above but there is another problem as follows: Generally ionizing radiation-curable resins have tackiness before curing. It is difficult to form a receptive/adhesive layer, which is provided to print a good image on the intermediate transfer sheet, onto the protective layer due to the tackiness of the protective layer, resulting in failure to obtain a satisfactory intermediate transfer sheet.
Patent reference 1: JP A 10-297122
It is an object of the present invention to provide an intermediate transfer sheet on which a satisfactory ink image is formed by a thermal transfer method using a thermal transfer sheet and which provides an image having excellent durability on a final receptor.
This and other objects of the present invention will become apparent from the description hereinafter.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


New ecological operating mode that limits ventilation and air conditioning in the cabin (3) of the aircraft when the ecological operating mode has been selected, the aircraft is stationed on the ground, the engines are off, the engines' start up system has not been activated, the pneumatic or electrical energy supply system that typically controls ventilation and air conditioning in the aircraft has been activated and is supplying air, to provide a new method of operating at an established minimum limit independent of the difference between the selected temperature and the temperature measured, saving energy, and reducing pollutant emissions and noise.

Current commercial aircraft typically have two or more propulsion elements, main engines, and an auxiliary power unit (APU). The APU provides electrical or pneumatic energy, or a combination of both, when the aircraft is on the ground. The main engines usually perform this function during other operations. The majority of APUs can also provide energy during flights, and are generally seen as a backup electrical and/or pneumatic energy generation system in the event that either of the energy systems fails.
When the plane is stationed on the ground, the APU supplies electrical and pneumatic energy for the following operations: refueling, passenger boarding and debarking, restocking consumables and provisions for subsequent flights, loading and unloading, cleaning, aircraft maintenance tasks, etc., and to start up the main engines, either electrically or pneumatically.
When the main engines are turned off the APU supplies pneumatic power to the cabin's ventilation and air conditioning system; alternatively the support services on the ground provide energy for this operation. However some cabin ventilation and air conditioning systems can be powered electrically if electrical architecture is installed on the aircraft together with a pneumatic energy generation system independent of a power plant, engines and APU. This system simply requires electricity, which can be supplied by the APU or support services on the ground.
A pneumatic energy generation system can exist independently of an electrical system. The air conditioning system renews the air in the aircraft based on the difference between the selected temperature (for the entire plane or sections of the plane) and the actual temperature inside the cabin. Demand is lower the closer the two temperatures. When they are equal they are said to have reached a steady state condition. The steady state condition corresponds to a constant demand signal as long as all the aforementioned parameters remain steady. It will require an increasingly strong flow the greater the heat in the plane. For example, a pneumatic cabin air conditioning system powered by an APU pneumatic energy supplier typically operates when there is a demand signal of 0% to 100%. When there is a major gap between the selected and actual cabin temperature there is a high level of demand, that is, 100% or close to 100%. As the gap between the two temperatures diminishes the level of demand decreases until it reaches a point of equilibrium in terms of demand, either equivalent to or less than the initial value. The point of equilibrium will be higher the more heat that there has be released (hot days when the temperature in the cabin needs to fall), or the higher the demand for heat (cold days when the temperature in the cabin is required to rise).
The demand signal is sent between the pneumatic air conditioning system controllers and the APU controller.
The cabin temperature can be selected in the cockpit or at different control panels throughout the aircraft cabin and may be adjusted by the cabin crew or maintenance personnel.
When demand increases power increases, independent of whether the pneumatic generator is the APU or the electrically powered pneumatic compressors. Increased demand translates as an increase in the fuel consumption of the power generator. For example if the APU is generating pneumatic power and the demand signal increases by 10%, the level of power the APU has to provide increases by the same measure. This translates as an increase in fuel consumption and an increase in noise generated by the APU. If demand increases 10% the electricity the electrically powered pneumatic compressors consume increases by the same measure. If the APU generates electrical energy, fuel consumption increases, simultaneously increasing pollutant emissions and noise.
An aircraft's ventilation and air conditioning system is designed to provide maximum comfort, even when the aircraft is on the ground. In most cases, maximum comfort requirements fall when the aircraft is stationary.
The technical report indicates there is no device that can control ventilation and air conditioning in the cabin based on environmental variables such as outside ambient temperature, height, or a pre-established limit, to minimize fuel consumption, pollutant emissions or noise.

Device to control the ventilation and air conditioning of aircraft on the ground


An automatic tuning procedure can be used to allow a small, high efficiency ferrite antenna assembly to be used in various FM frequency based devices. The ferrite antenna can take the form of a rod or flat disk, for example, which can use a pick-up coil and tuning coil to provide sufficient signal strength using a small FM antenna. A balanced amplifier can be used to provide differential input in order to further reduce noise. A microcontroller can determine the strength of the FM signal at various frequencies and can automatically tune the operating frequency to optimize system performance.

An increasing number of automobiles and other vehicles are including devices such as navigation systems, which use satellite or GPS information to track and provide navigation information to the driver. Some of these systems also provide additional "real-time" information, such as traffic information or gas price information, which is added on top of the geographic data displayed to the driver. While some systems utilize satellite radio signals, others utilize common FM frequencies. When common FM frequencies are used, a common quarter-wave antenna typically is needed to pick up the signal with acceptable strength. Since an FM frequency of about 100 MHz has a quarter wavelength of about 31 inches, this typically requires accessing the automobiles' rod antenna, or an antenna directed through the front or rear window in order to obtain acceptable length.
Accessing this antenna typically requires a rewiring of the car, first disconnecting the antenna and then wiring the radio and navigation system to share the antenna. As navigation systems presently are installed primarily in newer and more expensive cars, people may be reluctant to have the internal wiring redone by an outside vendor. Further, such rewiring can void the warranty on the radio and/or wiring system, and can be somewhat expensive. Some manufacturers use proprietary devices, such as amplifiers and amplifier systems, which may not function properly after such an installation. Further still, sharing the antenna can result in a reduction in quality of the existing radio, as the shared antenna typically introduces additional noise into the FM signal input to the radio.
Even in simple FM radios or other FM-frequency devices, it is common to require a quarter-wave antenna. In automobiles, these antennas are subject to breakage and can be somewhat unsightly. The antennas can be included in the glass or other areas or devices of the vehicles, but this increases the cost and complexity of these parts. In handheld FM radios, the earphone wires often are used as the antenna, which has not proven to provide optimal reception. Further, portable radios often require an extendable antenna, which may not be practical for systems places in areas with minimal space, such as a bookshelf or cabinet.
It therefore is desirable to obtain a method of receiving FM signals that does not require a large quarter-wave antenna, and that allows separate devices to easily include their own antennas without the need to share a large antenna.


A method for producing a semiconductor device, is composed of steps of: covering a lower side of a semiconductor wafer with a heavy metal and disposing the semiconductor wafer in a chamber; causing the heavy metal to diffuse into the semiconductor wafer by heating the semiconductor wafer with a heat source having a small thermal capacity; and thereafter, ceasing to heat with the heat source, then charging the chamber with a cooling gas.

The present invention relates to a method for producing a semiconductor device, and more particularly to such a method for producing a semiconductor device capable of diffusing a heavy metal such as gold, platinum or the like at a high concentration in a lattice of a semiconductor crystal layer, the heavy metal acting as a life time killer.
Conventionally, to improve the switching velocity of a semiconductor device such as transistor, diode or the like, the way wherein a heavy metal such as gold, platinum or the like is diffused in a silicon (silicon) crystal substrate so as to reduce the life time of minority carriers is widely employed. Introduction of, for example, gold into a silicon crystal structure causes the gold atom to serve as a trap which assists in recombination of the minority carriers thereby shortening the life time thereof.
Diffusion of gold atoms in the crystal lattice is very rapidly achieved. Specifically, a diffusing treatment at about 1000.degree. C. for several minutes allows the gold atoms to be uniformly delivered at a concentration which is equal to a solid solubility of gold in silicon at about 1000.degree. C., taking the same effect as that exhibited with such treatment infinitely conducted. However, the solubility of gold in silicon greatly depends on the temperature; for instance, the concentration of gold at 1150.degree. C. in a stable state is 5.times.10.sup.16 /cm.sup.3 while it decreases to 2.times.10.sup.16 /cm.sup.3 with a drop of temperature to 1050.degree. C. An excess amount of gold resulting from the decrease in concentration, or substantially half of the total amount of gold contained in silicon crystal at 1150.degree. C. goes out of the crystal lattice and is scatteredly separated in such a state as to come into fine masses and is deposited in silicon crystal. The deposited gold is electrically inert and no longer assists in recombination of the minority carriers. Accordingly, very rapid cooling is needed to maintain the effective concentration of gold in the crystal lattice which is obtained at a high temperature. This is because the rapid cooling will not give gold a sufficient time to diffuse and hence a high gold concentration can be maintained in the crystal lattice.
A conventional method for diffusing gold in a silicon crystal substrate is effected in such a manner as shown in FIG. 4. Specifically, a semiconductor wafer 6 formed with a semiconductor circuit such as transistor on the front side thereof and covered with a gold film on the reverse side thereof is placed on a quartz boat 15; and the wafer on the boat 15 is loaded into and taken out manually from a chamber 17 of a lateral-type furnace at a velocity of about 3 to 20 cm/second. The furnace has such a heater surrounding it. The reason why it is mannually conducted is that an autoloader for conveying the quartz boat cannot follow the velocity needed for the above-mentioned rapid cooling.
Recently, however, as the diameter of a wafer increases to improve the productivity of semiconductor devices, the quartz boat is also up-scaled in length as well as in width. Accordingly, the boat becomes too heavy for an operator to move it. While the velocity for conveying the boat cannot be controlled accurately. Further, there is another problem that the operation of taking the boat out from the chamber is very dangerous because the temperature immediately after the semiconductor wafer and quartz boat is taken out is very high.
Moreover, the quartz boat is stopped once in the neighborhood of the exit of the chamber in the takeout operation, and the temperature of the chamber in the neighborhood of the exit is substantially low, while there exists an isothermal zone at a portion of more than 70 cm from the exist as can be seen from FIG. 5 showing a temperature distribution in the chamber of the lateral-type furnace. Therefore, if an up-scaled quartz boat (for example, 67.3 cm in length B.sub.2 ; whereas the length B.sub.1 of a conventional boat of usual size is 30.5 cm) is stopped at 15 cm inside from the exit, the wafers in the inner side are located near the high temperature zone and hence cannot be rapidly cooled. This results in a problem that the above-mentioned object of rapid cooling cannot be attained, and the quality of wafer becomes instable depending on the loading location.
Thus, an object of the present invention is to provide a producing method which is capable of efficiently diffusing a heavy metal in crystal lattice, as a life time killer such as gold or the like at a high concentration while being applicable to a semiconductor wafer having an enlarged diameter.

Method for producing semiconductor device

FSS DIG. 4;DIG. 6;DIG. 23;DIG. 40;DIG. 62


A patient handling apparatus includes a frame, a base, and a lift assembly supporting the frame relative to the base, the lift assembly configured to extend or contract to raise or lower the base or the frame with respect to the other of the base and the frame. The patient handling apparatus further includes a control system, which comprises at least one hydraulic cylinder to extend or contract the lift assembly, a hydraulic circuit to direct the flow of hydraulic fluid to and from the hydraulic cylinder, and a controller operable to control the hydraulic circuit. Based on an input signal, for example, an input signal that is indicative of a status or condition of the patient handling apparatus, the controller is configured to open, optionally automatically, fluid communication between the rod end chamber and the cap end chamber to redirect a portion of the fluid output from the rod end chamber to the cap end chamber when the rod is extending to thereby increase the extension speed of the rod.

The present invention relates to a patient handling apparatus, such as emergency cot, medical bed, stretcher, stair chair, or other apparatuses that support a patient and, more particularly, to a patient handling apparatus that provides a control system that can increase the deployment speed of a component of the patient handling apparatus.
For example, when a patient handling apparatus, such as an emergency cot, is unloaded from an emergency vehicle, such as an ambulance, the patient handling apparatus must typically be moved out of the vehicle sufficiently far where the base of the patient handling apparatus clears the ambulance deck and bumper so that the base can then be lowered. The faster the base can be lowered, the faster the patient handling apparatus can be unloaded, and the quicker the patient can be retrieved and delivered to the medical facility, typically an emergency room. Therefore, quick deployment of the base can be critical in some cases.
Accordingly, there is a need to provide a patient handling apparatus with a control system that can quickly move one component relative to another component, such as an emergency cot's base relative to the cot's frame.

Patient handling apparatus with hydraulic control system


The invention describes rolled electroactive polymer devices. The invention also describes employment of these devices in a wide array of applications and methods for their fabrication. A rolled electroactive polymer device converts between electrical and mechanical energy; and includes a rolled electroactive polymer and at least two electrodes to provide the mechanical/electrical energy conversion. Prestrain is typically applied to the polymer. In one embodiment, a rolled electroactive polymer device employs a mechanism, such as a spring, that provides a force to prestrain the polymer. Since prestrain improves mechanical/electrical energy conversion for many electroactive polymers, the mechanism thus improves performance of the rolled electroactive polymer device.

The present invention relates generally to electroactive polymer devices that convert between electrical energy and mechanical energy. More particularly, the present invention relates to rolled electroactive polymer devices and methods of fabricating these devices.
In many applications, it is desirable to convert between electrical energy and mechanical energy. Exemplary applications requiring conversion from electrical to mechanical energy include robotics, pumps, speakers, sensors, microfluidics, shoes, general automation, disk drives, and prosthetic devices. These applications include one or more transducers that convert electrical energy into mechanical work—on a macroscopic or microscopic level. Exemplary applications requiring conversion from mechanical to electrical energy include sensors and generators.
New high-performance polymers capable of converting electrical energy to mechanical energy, and vice versa, are now available for a wide range of energy conversion applications. One class of these polymers, electroactive elastomers, is gaining wider attention. Electroactive elastomers may exhibit high energy density, stress, and electromechanical coupling efficiency. The performance of these polymers is notably increased when the polymers are prestrained in area. For example, a 10-fold to 25-fold increase in area significantly improves performance of many electroactive elastomers.
Conventionally, bulky and static frames are used to apply and maintain prestrain for a single layer of electroactive polymer. The frames also allow coupling between the polymer and the external environment. These frames occupy significantly more space and weigh much more than a single polymer layer, and may compromise the energy density and compact advantages that these new polymers provide.
Thus, improved techniques for implementing these high-performance polymers would be desirable.


A parallel folding apparatus of a folding machine comprises a first cylinder in contact with a second cylinder. A guide plate guides a signature transported on the lower circumferential surface of the second cylinder after being double-folded by grippers of the second cylinder in cooperation with knives of the first cylinder. The guide plate comprises a stationary guide located downstream, in the rotating direction, of the point of contact between the first cylinder and the second cylinder and disposed continuously along the circumferential surfaces of the first cylinder and the second cylinder, and a moving guide movable in accordance with the operating speed of the folding machine between a position, closer to the circumferential surface of the first cylinder than the stationary guide, and a position, more remote from the circumferential surface of the first cylinder than the stationary guide.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a parallel folding apparatus of a folding machine, which can smoothly perform transfer of a signature between a first jaw cylinder and a second jaw cylinder during parallel folding.
2. Description of the Related Art
A web rotary printing press is equipped with a folding machine for cutting a web, which has been dried and cooled after printing, into predetermined lengths, and folding the cut web in a width direction or a lengthwise direction.
The folding machine is available with various structures and, for example, is equipped with a parallel folding apparatus as shown in FIG. 4 or FIG. 5 (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-95431; hereinafter referred to as Patent Document 1).
The parallel folding apparatus has a cut-off cylinder 1, a folding cylinder 2, a first jaw cylinder 3, and a second jaw cylinder 4 opposed to one another in contact with one another and rotating in directions of arrows in FIG. 4. A web 8, which has been fed between nipping rollers 5→cross perforation cylinders 6→nipping rollers 7, is cut to predetermined dimensions by a cut-off knife (not shown) of the cut-off cylinder 1. The front end of the cut web is transported by a pin (not shown) of the folding cylinder 2, and then the cut web is parallel-folded between a single folding knife (not shown) of the folding cylinder 2 and a site between a gripper board 10 and a gripper jaw 11 of the first jaw cylinder 3 to form a signature 9. In the case of a single parallel fold, the signature 9 is transported, unchanged, toward a chopper 14 by a gripper 12 and a gripper pad 13 of the second jaw cylinder 4. In the case of a double parallel fold or a delta fold, the signature 9 is further parallel-folded between a double folding knife (not shown) of the first jaw cylinder 3 and a site between a gripper board 15 and a gripper jaw 16 of the second jaw cylinder 4 to form a double parallel fold. The so folded signature 9 is transported toward the chopper 14.
In FIG. 5, 17a to 17c denote signature transport/holding brushes used in the transfer of the signature 9 between the first jaw cylinder 3 and the second jaw cylinder 4. Instead of these signature transport/holding brushes 17a to 17c, a continuous guide plate 18 may conventionally be provided to provide along the circumferential surface of the first jaw cylinder 3 and the circumferential surface of the second jaw cylinder 4, as shown in FIG. 6.
In providing the continuous guide plate 18 along the circumferential surface of the first jaw cylinder 3 and the circumferential surface of the second jaw cylinder 4 in a folding machine as described in patent document 1, it has been conventional practice to provide the guide plate 18 stationarily (although its initial position can be adjusted) with respect to a stay bar 19 extending between frames.
To have a double parallel fold or a delta fold, the front end of the signature 9 gripped between the gripper board 10 and the gripper jaw 11 (see FIG. 4) of the first jaw cylinder 3 is released at a predetermined time point (the time point before the folded portion of the signature 9 is gripped, for gripping change, between the double folding knife of the first jaw cylinder 3 and the site between the gripper board 15 and the gripper jaw 16 of the second jaw cylinder 4) after passing through the point of contact between the first jaw cylinder 3 and the second jaw cylinder 4. During a low speed operation of the folding machine (during acceleration at the start of operation, or during speed reduction at completion of operation), the following problem may occur at the time of release: That is, the front end of the signature 9 is not guided into a clearance between the guide plate 18 and the circumferential surface of the first jaw cylinder 3, but enters a space between the guide plate 18 and the circumferential surface of the second jaw cylinder 4. As a result, the trouble may occur that the signature 9 is folded up in a curled state, or dropped without being folded up, whereby a jam is caused. That is, during a low speed operation, the front end of the signature 9 is not guided into the clearance between the guide plate 18 and the circumferential surface of the first jaw cylinder 3, but enters the space between the guide plate 18 and the second jaw cylinder 4, because of weak inertia. Consequently, the signature 9 is not guided by the guide plate and the circumferential surface of the first jaw cylinder. In other words, during a high speed operation (during a routine constant speed operation), the front end of the signature 9 is positively guided into the clearance between the guide plate 18 and the circumferential surface of the first jaw cylinder 3 by means of inertia, so that there is no problem. If the guide plate is located toward the site of contact between the first jaw cylinder and the second jaw cylinder, on the other hand, the front end of the signature 9 is guided by the guide plate during a low speed operation, but the trouble arises that the signature is rubbed by the guide plate during a high speed operation. Even in the case of the signature transport/holding brushes 17a to 17c, the brushes 17a to 17c wear and become unable to guide the signature, presenting the same problems as those caused by the guide plate 18.

Parallel folding apparatus of folding machine


A variable valve timing camshaft which may be connected to a continuous variable valve timing apparatus having a rotor and a stator which are adapted to relatively rotate with each other and may be operated so as to vary open/close timing of valve may include a non-control camshaft coupled to the continuous variable valve timing apparatus, having a first drive gear rotating together with the rotor and a second drive gear rotating together with the stator, and rotating according to rotation of an engine without varying a phase along a circumferential direction, a control camshaft having an outer shaft rotating according to one of the first drive gear or the second drive gear, an inner shaft rotating according to the other of the first drive gear or the second drive gear, an outer cam, and an inner cam and a limiting device limiting end play of the inner shaft.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a variable valve timing camshaft. More particularly, the present invention relates to a variable valve timing camshaft which is adapted to vary open/close timing of a valve.
Description of Related Art
Generally, an intake valve which is selectively opened or closed so as to supply fuel for combustion and an exhaust valve which is selectively opened or closed so as to exhaust exhaust gas formed by the combusted fuel are provided in a combustion chamber of an engine.
The determining of open/close timing of the valve (intake valve or exhaust valve) may depend on a shape of a cam, rotation speed of a camshaft, and so on.
In detail, the cam rotates together with the camshaft to drive the valve, and the camshaft rotates by receiving torque from an engine. In addition, the time from when opening of the valve is started to when closing of the valve is ended and the lift of the valve are determined according to the shape of the cam, and the time from when opening of the valve is started to when closing of the valve is ended and the repetition cycle of opening/closing the valve are determined according to the rotation speed of the camshaft.
The rotation speed of the camshaft is generally proportional to the rotation speed of the engine. In addition, the optimally required open/close timing of the valve is varied according to the rotation speed of the engine. Therefore, it is required that the open/close timing of the valve is suitably varied according to the rotation speed of engine. Particularly, output and fuel consumption of the engine can be improved and simultaneously exhaust gas can be decreased if the open/close timing of the intake valve is suitably varied according to driving conditions including the rotation speed of the engine.
Meanwhile, the open/close interval between valves which are respectively disposed at combustion chambers which are provided in the engine may be determined by a phase difference along a circumferential direction between cams which open/close each valve.
An apparatus for controlling the open/close timing of the valve is one such as a continuous variable valve timing (CVVT) apparatus. In addition, the CVVT apparatus is operated to control the rotation speed of the camshaft and vary a phase difference along a circumferential direction between the cams.
However, reactivity or durability may be deteriorated if a connection structure with or composition of the CVVT apparatus for controlling the open/close timing of the valve and the camshaft is complex. In addition, interference with surrounding devices may occur.
The information disclosed in this Background of the Invention section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.


To provide a hydraulic controller for automatic transmission use which commonalizes a lockup control valve and a friction engagement element control valve, thereby simplifying a hydraulic circuit, reducing the number of parts, and achieving low cost, a lockup solenoid to control engagement or release of a lockup clutch, a first friction engagement element to engage an friction engagement element only in a portion or entirety of a shifting stage to prohibit lockup, and a manual shift lever to determine whether a vehicle exists in a lockup prohibition condition are provided. A switching valve selectively switches the lockup solenoid to either communicate with the lockup clutch or communicate with the foregoing first friction engagement element. The manual shift valve is disposed in a path extending from the switching valve to the first friction engagement element.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a hydraulic controller for automatic transmission use to control gear changing in a gearbox of an automatic transmission by hydraulic pressure.
2. Description of Related Art
An automatic transmission widely utilized in vehicles and the like performs gear changing control by switching, with a hydraulic valve, hydraulic pressure applied to several friction engagement devices to smoothly convey rotational driving force in accordance with load. Gear changing control is performed by manual operation by a rider to select either forward, neutral, or reverse by a select lever, or by automatic transmission to determine an engaged state of a friction engagement device so that a suitable gear ratio is obtained by an engine controlling computer from throttle opening or the like of the engine.
A torque converter to convey motive power of an engine to a gearbox with fluid as a medium in an input side of such a hydraulic controller for automatic transmission use according to the prior art is known. Because this torque converter employs fluid as a medium, vibrational shock can be absorbed, and there exists a function as a startoff device which permits suitable slippage and prevents engine stalls. Because the torque converter is inherently a slippage element, loss of motive power is unavoidable. In this regard, direct coupling of an input shaft to an output shaft (termed "lockup") is performed to improve the fuel consumption performance of the vehicle. This direct coupling of the input shaft to the output shaft (lockup) is not performed in the state of a first speed which is a low speed range. switching lockup on and off is generally performed by a solenoid to switch lockup on and off.
As a method for implementing this hydraulic controller in a simple manner, a structure jointly using a solenoid for lockup control use and a solenoid for use of friction engagement elements such as a brake, a clutch, and the like is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. Hei 6-26568 and 5-10430.
The system disclosed in the foregoing Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-26568 jointly uses a duty solenoid to control a slip ratio of slip control of a lockup device in an engagement control switching valve of a low reverse brake. That is to say, a solenoid for lockup control use substitutes for engagement control of friction engagement elements operating outside a lockup region.
The system disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 5-10430 causes the hydraulic systems and valve systems for two friction engagement elements which are not simultaneously supplied with hydraulic pressure, that is, which do not operate simultaneously, to be commonalized.
However, problem points such as the following exist in a hydraulic circuit for automatic transmission use disclosed in the foregoing publications commonalizing the above-described solenoid for lockup control use and solenoid for friction engagement element control use:
because the duty solenoid valve for controlling the slip ratio of lockup slip control becomes the pilot valve of the solenoid for lockup control use and the solenoid for friction engagement element control use, the number of parts is large and the hydraulic circuit is complex; PA1 because the switching device of the communicated destination of the foregoing duty solenoid valve is an on-off solenoid, the number of parts increases and the hydraulic circuit becomes complex, and current consumption increases, due to employment of a special solenoid; and PA1 when the lockup shift valve sticks or the on-off solenoid is locked, output pressure of the duty solenoid valve acts upon the lockup controller via a differential pressure control valve (i.e., the lockup control valve 50 disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 6-26568), and so vehicle travel may be impeded.

Hydraulic controller for automatic transmission use


An electron beam exposure apparatus, which has an electron source for emitting an electron beam, and an irradiation electron optical system which is arranged between the electron source and a first object, including a portion for transmitting an electron beam, and includes a plurality of electron lenses, and projects the electron beam transmitted through the first object onto a second object to expose it via a reduction electron optical system, acquires information associated with the intensity distribution of the electron beams to be irradiated onto the first object, and adjusts the electron optical characteristics of the irradiation electron optical system on the basis of the acquired information associated with the intensity distribution.

The present invention relates to an electron beam exposure apparatus and, more particularly, to an electron beam exposure apparatus for irradiating electron beams from an electron source and drawing a pattern on a wafer or on a mask or reticle using the electron beams, its control method, and an electron beam irradiation device suitable for the electron beam exposure apparatus.
An electron beam exposure apparatus includes a point beam type that uses a beam having a spot-like sectional shape, and a variable rectangular beam type that uses a beam having a rectangular sectional shape of a variable size.
The point beam type electron beam exposure apparatus is used for only research and development purposes since it draws using a single electron beam and has a low throughput. The variable rectangular beam type electron beam exposure apparatus has a higher throughput than the point type apparatus by about one to two orders of magnitudes but also suffers many problems of throughput since it basically draws using a single electron beam, when a pattern including fine patterns as small as about 0.1 .mu.m at a high degree of integration is to be exposed.
As an apparatus that can solve such problems, a stencil mask type electron beam exposure apparatus is known. In this apparatus, the pattern to be drawn is formed as a pattern through holes on a stencil mask, and is transferred onto a reticle surface via a reduction electron optical system by illuminating the stencil mask with an electron beam. Also, a multi electron beam type exposure apparatus is known. In this apparatus, a substrate having a plurality of apertures is illuminated with an electron beam, a plurality of electron beams coming from the plurality of apertures are irradiated onto a reticle surface and are deflected to scan the reticle surface, and these electron beams are individually turned on/off in correspondence with the pattern to be drawn, thereby drawing a pattern. Both the apparatuses can improve the throughput since the area to be exposed, i.e., the exposure area is broader than the conventional apparatuses.
However, in the stencil mask type electron beam exposure apparatus, if the electron beam that illuminates the stencil mask is nonuniform, the transferred pattern is distorted. On the other hand, in the multi electron beam type exposure apparatus, if the plurality of electron beams have intensity variations, again the drawn pattern is distorted.


A collapsible steering column for a motor vehicle has an elongated hollow cylinder slidably mounted on a piston while also fast to the piston for rotary movement. The space between the interior wall of the cylinder and the piston is sealed in a gas-tight fashion. A head is attached to the top of the cylinder. The head has a frangible seal hermetically secured inside it so that the top of the piston, the interior wall of the cylinder and the seal define an air cavity. The cavity is under pressure such that the cylinder is supported by a column of pressurized gas. A coil spring inside the cylinder urges the piston and the bottom of the cylinder apart. The seal has a bore in which resides an explosive compound. Lead lines connect the explosive compound with an electronic collision sensor, which is located in the front of the vehicle. When a collision occurs, the sensor sends an electronic signal which ignites the explosive compound and fractures the seal permitting the gas to escape from the cavity causing collapse of the cylinder. The vehicle's steering wheel is secured to the top of the head, and the piston is connected by way of appropriate linkages to the front wheels of the vehicle so that axial rotation of the cylinder, by way of the steering wheel, causes the front wheels to turn in accordance with normal vehicle operations. An air bag stowed in the steering wheel may be connected to the top of the head to capture the air released from the cavity providing additional protection to the occupant.

The present invention pertains to automobile safety apparatus and more particularly pertains to a motor vehicle steering column safety device.
Modern vehicles, especially passenger cars, include a variety of passive safety mechanisms; e.g., head restraints, energy absorbing steering columns, and safety glass. However, no other single passive safety feature has had as dramatic effect on reducing the human cost of automobile fatalities and serious injuries as has the air bag. Thus, air bags are being introduced into automobiles at a very rapid rate. Effective Jan. 1, 1998, all U.S. fleet passenger cars must be equipped with air bags. Although analysis shows that air bag systems are working generally as intended, these systems still have some drawbacks.
First, in order to inflate the air bag in a fraction of a second, the inflating gas must be rapidly expanded into the air bag upon collision. To achieve this, some systems use mini chemical explosions which generate extreme heat. Some of these devices follow-up by introducing extremely cold gasses into the reaction so the occupant is not burned by the heat. These explosive gas apparatus require complicated gas storage, separation and flow control means which can sometimes fail. The complex design and manufacture of these systems add significantly to the cost of motor vehicles. As a result, cheaper model cars do not have air bags.
Another problem with the exploding gas systems is the noise. Testing data is replete with instances of vehicle glass being shattered by the blast. Besides frightening the occupants of the vehicle, deployment of the air bag, even in cases where deployment is accidental, can cause personal and/or property damage. The most common alternative to these "hybrid" chemical systems is the sodium azide inflator. Many air bags still use sodium azide inflators, but sodium azide is more toxic and expensive to produce than the hybrid design alternatives.
Third, canisters of these special chemicals along with the air bag often reside within the steering wheel. Thus, one can obtain a completely functional air bag safety device by stealing another's steering wheel. Steering wheel theft is a growing and unacceptable trend which promises only to get worse after Jan. 1, 1998.
Fourth, air bags are, for the most part, engineered for the average-sized-belt-restrained occupant. Thus, pregnant, obese, small and large-sized, and out-of-position occupants are more likely to collide with the steering column and suffer personal injury during collision. Therefore, the provision of a collapsible steering column has been recognized as desirable to provide an added safety factor for all occupants. Some prior systems combine the collapsible steering column and air bag safety devices together, but the prior art depends upon two independent systems: (1) an air bag inflator system, and (2) an independent steering column collapsing means.
Two independent systems take longer to achieve the desired result than a single actuating means. None of the preceding devices collapses the steering column concurrently with inflating the air bag, and the timing of air bag inflation and steering column collapse may be the difference between life and death. Some collapsible steering column safety devices heretofore available use cables and pulleys. Cable and pulley systems can wear out, break, or not respond properly in connection with the inflation of the air bag. The cable may become dislodged from the pulley track, for example.
Other energy absorbing steering columns have also been developed, but upon collision these apparatus deform and (1) make it impossible for the driver to transmit steering torque and/or (2) jeopardize rapid and efficient air bag inflation.
Finally, it is important that a steering column safety device meet original equipment manufacturer's (OEM) specifications and government standards and be economically feasible to implement into all foreign and domestic fleet automobiles.
Therefore, it is highly desirable to provide a new motor vehicle steering column safety device.
It is also highly desirable to provide a new motor vehicle steering column safety device which inflates an air bag faster than prior inflator systems.
It is also highly desirable to provide a new motor vehicle steering column safety device which inflates an air bag without the use of toxic chemicals or chemicals which generate extreme heat and/or cold.
It is also highly desirable to provide a new motor vehicle steering column safety device which does not require complicated gas storage, separation and flow control means.
It is also highly desirable to provide a new motor vehicle steering column safety device which does not utilize a loud mini-explosion in order to rapidly expand the inflator gas into the air bag.
It is also highly desirable to provide a new motor vehicle steering column safety device which collapses the steering column concurrently with inflating an air bag.
It is also highly desirable to provide a new motor vehicle steering column safety device with the inflator gas and gas flow control means contained within the steering column.
It is also highly desirable to provide a new motor vehicle steering column safety device which does not use pulleys, cables and other movable parts which can break or become worn.
It is also highly desirable to provide a new motor vehicle steering column safety device capable of delivering steering torque while collapsing the steering column concurrently with inflating an air bag upon collision.
It is also highly desirable to provide a new motor vehicle steering column safety device capable of damping the force delivered to the steering column by an occupant upon impact.
It is also highly desirable to provide a new motor vehicle steering column safety device which meets all of the original equipment manufacturer's (OEM) specifications and required regulations, can be cheaply manufactured and easily installed into any make and model of vehicle.
It is finally highly desirable to provide a new motor vehicle steering column safety device which meets all of the above desired features.

Motor vehicle steering column safety device


A resistive sensor for an analyte comprises a substrate, a conductive polymer layer and an oxidase layer. Hydrogen peroxide is produced via the reaction between analyte and oxidase when a liquid sample is applied to the sensor of the present invention. The produced hydrogen peroxide can oxidize peroxidase, which can be reduced by oxidizing the conductive polymer, thus resulting in decreased conductivity of the conductive polymer for determining the analyte concentration in the liquid sample. The present invention may be used for developing miniaturized and disposable electronic microsensors with high sensitivity and fast response, which can detect analyte level in typical physiological environment for routine monitoring.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to resistive sensor, particularly to resistive cholesterol sensor based on conductivity change of the conductive polymer.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Cholesterol detection draws a lot of attention because the abnormal cholesterol level may indicate clinical disorders such as heart disease, hypertension, arteriosclerosis, and cerebral thrombosis etc. According to the report published by World Health Organization, 17.3 million people were estimated that died in cardiovascular diseases in 2008 globally and the death toll keeps increasing annually. It is crucial to monitor cholesterol level in blood for estimating the potential risk of cardiovascular disease and preventing deaths from the disease. Many researches have been devoted in the development of cholesterol sensors.
There is an increasing demand on for cheap and disposable electronic cholesterol sensors for the point-of-care health monitoring. Electronic biosensors, such as electrochemical, field-effect-transistor-based, or resistive biosensors are cheap and small thanks to the mature microfabrication techniques. Therefore, it is possible to develop miniaturized and disposable electronic microsensors with high sensitivity and fast response, which can detect cholesterol level in typical physiological environment for routine monitoring.
Most electrochemical sensors detect cholesterol by voltammetry, in which, cholesterol oxidase was immobilized on electrode and oxidize cholesterol into cholestenone.
The reduced cholesterol oxidase will then be oxidized via the electrode and therefore the catalysis of the enzyme reaction can continue. Different materials were used for the electrode to enhance charge transfer rate or to immobilize cholesterol oxidase (ChOx) more efficiently.
Multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT), conducting polymer-MWCNT composite, MWCNT/Screen Printed Carbon Electrode (SPCE), conducting polymer, graphene, or nano structured metal oxides such as ZnO nanorods (NRs), ZnO nano sphere, anatase-titanium dioxide and SnO2 nanoparticles were reported for electrode materials which can improve the charge transfer rate or ChOx immobilization. ChOx-immobilized ZnO NR-gated field-effect-transistor (FET) was also reported to be able to sensitively detect cholesterol.
However, compared to resistive biosensors, electrochemical sensors and FET-based sensors are more complicated in sensor design or the measurement system. The resistive type of sensors exhibits conductivity change, which is directly proportional to the cholesterol level, and therefore is much simpler for device fabrication and signal measurements.

Resistive sensor based on conductivity change of conductive polymer and measuring method thereof


In a method of recording an information signal by using a single light beam on a recording medium which is changeable between first and second states which are optically distinguishable from each other, record marks are formed each by the application of the light beam for a predetermined duration to cause the recording medium to melt and thereby result in the first state. The light beam is applied to an area between the record marks after having been modified to have a reduced energy so as to cause the area to melt and result in a state substantially identical to the second state, whereby the record marks can be read highly reliably. In another aspect, each record mark is formed in a symmetrical shape by the application of a train of light pulses providing an energy level which is gradually reduced from the beginning to the ending of the predetermined pulse train duration.

1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method of recording an information signal on an optical information recording medium by irradiating high density energy flux thereon.
2) Description of the Prior Art
Technology that an information signal is recorded and reproduced by using a laser beam is well known and there is an increasingly active trend recently to use it for document and data filing applications. In addition, examples of the research and development on the rewritable recording systems having a erasing function have been reported. Out of them, a phase difference type optical disk is one method available in which the state change either between an amorphous state and a crystalline state or between two different crystalline states is used. Thin recording film to be used in this method features the fact that either an amorphous state or a crystalline state is formed in accordance with temperature rising and cooling conditions when a laser beam is irradiated and that these states are reversibly changeable.
The amorphous state and the crystalline state are different from each other in the complex index cf refraction, which can be expressed by refractive index n and extinction coefficient k, and the signal recording is achieved using the thus generated difference in transmittance and reflectance of a recording medium. In order to realize this, when referred to, for example, SPIE's 30th Annual International Technical Symposium on Optical and Engineering, Conference 695: Optical Mass Data Storage 2,695-17, August, 1986, a method has been proposed in which a laser beam modulated between two power levels of writing power Pw and erasing power Pe (Pw>Pe) is irradiated on a recording medium. When a laser beam with its strength modulated according to a signal to be recorded is radiated on the recording medium, a portion where the writing power Pw was irradiated becomes an amorphous state and a portion where the erasing power Pe was irradiated becomes a crystalline state no matter whether the state of an area to be irradiated thereon had been the amorphous or crystalline state before irradiation. As a result, writing and erasing are simultaneously carried out with a single laser beam, which means that an overwrite is carried out.
In the above, we described the change in state between the amorphous state and crystalline state, but when the change in state is between two different crystalline states, the same result as above can be obtained by corresponding the above-mentioned amorphous state to a second crystalline state.
As described above, writing on an optical disk is possible by irradiating a laser beam which has been modulated between two power levels. However, if a signal is reproduced after the overwrite has been repeatedly carried out, a component of the previous signal is superimposed upon the read signal due to incomplete erasures. Such superimposed signal would cause an error when the read signal is demodulated thereafter.
In addition, through detailed observation of the shape of a recording mark formed by the above-mentioned method, it was found that the mark thus formed is not symmetrical in shape at the beginning point and finishing point of writing and the read signal has a waveform distortion corresponding to the asymmetrical shape of the mark.
For this reason, when a recording method that one to closely determine both the rise position and the fall position of a reproduced signal waveform, such as, for example, the pulse width modulation (PWM) method, is to be introduced in order to improve the recording density of an optical disk, the above-mentioned conventional recording method cannot be used.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A monolithic magnetic device having a plurality of transformer elements having single turn primaries and single turn secondaries fabricated on a plate of ferrite which has the outline of a ceramic leadless chip carrier. Each of the magnetic elements has a primary winding formed from a copper via plated on the ferrite. Each element's secondary is another copper via plated over an insulating layer formed over the first layer of copper. The elements' primaries are interconnected on the first copper layer and the elements' secondaries are interconnected on the second copper layer. The configuration and turns ratio of the transformer are determined by the series and or parallel interconnections of the primary and secondaries. Some of the interconnections can be provided by the next higher assembly level through the circuit card, with the same magnetic device providing many turns ratio combinations or values of inductors.

The present invention relates to magnetic devices, such as transformers and inductors, that can be assembled using automated equipment, and surface mounted as other electronic components on circuit cards.
The magnetic components used in power technology do not lend themselves to automated assembly and are therefore expensive to fabricate. Power transformers and output inductors are massive devices which require multiple manual assembly operations.
Power processors have been evolving from large, bulky, central power supplies toward modular, low profile, distributed power supplies. While memory, digital processor, and I/0 pages are assembled using automated handling procedures, the power supply components have unique shapes that do not conform to automated handling equipment. The magnetic components of the power supply are particularly troublesome in this regard. Standard magnetic fabrication techniques are better suited for devices that have a cubic or high profile outlines. Automatic handling equipment requires low profile components typically less than 0.2 inches.
One way of reducing the profile of conventional transformers is to use planar construction techniques. The planar transformer has the winding etched on a printed circuit board and sandwiched between core pieces. Standard planar transformers are available with profiles as low as 0.325 inch. There is an optimum profile for the maximum power density of planar pot core transformers. At profiles below the optimum, the power density decreases rapidly, due to the thickness of the circuit board material, making it difficult to fabricate a planar transformer having a thickness less than 0.1 inches.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a low profile magnetic device that is compatible with automated assembly equipment.
It is another object of the present invention to provide magnetic devices that can be placed on circuit cards and surface mounted the same way as electronic components.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a reconfigurable and expandable transformer that is compatible with automated assembly equipment.

Monolithic magnetic device with printed circuit interconnections

International Business Machines Corporation


A rotary fluid machine, such as a pump or motor, is provided with a fluid flow control mechanism that allows the flow of fluid to be easily and precisely controlled. The device has a housing with a spherical interior in which primary and secondary vanes rotate, with the secondary vane reciprocating between open and closed positions. The primary and secondary vanes define fluid chambers within the housing that communicate with inlet and outlet ports of the device. An adjustable fixed shaft, about which the secondary vane rotates, allows the degree of communication to be varied between the inlet and outlet ports and the chambers formed by the primary and secondary vanes. In this way, the flow rate or fluid capacity of the device, and even the direction of fluid flow, can be changed.

Rotary motors, pumps and compressors have been known for many years. Generally these devices consist of a housing or casing within which one or more vanes rotate. This is in contrast to those devices which utilize a reciprocating, linearly moving piston. In the case of rotary pumps or compressors, the vanes are rotated by a shaft to pressurize or cause the fluid to flow through the device. In the case of a rotary motor, the opposite occurs. Fluid is introduced into the device under pressure to displace the vanes, which in turn rotates and powers a drive shaft to which the vanes are coupled.
For rotary fluid pumps, the flow of fluid is typically controlled by the rate at which the rotary vanes are rotated. By increasing the speed, more fluid is pumped through the device, while decreasing the speed decreases the amount of fluid pumped. Further, reversing the flow through the device, if possible at all, requires the vanes to be rotated in the opposite direction or requires that the inlet and outlet ports be reconfigured or reversed.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,199,864 discloses a rotary fluid pump that employs vanes rotating within a spherical housing. These devices are highly efficient, and are capable of displacing large quantities of fluid. The flow capacity of these devices, however, is also usually controlled by varying the speed at which the vanes are rotated within the housing. Because this typically requires varying the speed of the motor that rotates the rotary shaft, the flow rate is often difficult to control with any degree of precision. Further, the direction of flow cannot be reversed without modifying the device or reversing the direction of rotation of the drive shaft that drives the vanes.
Other mechanical limitations apply to these prior art devices, such as inadequate removal of heat from the devices, the construction of the vanes to provide improved performance, and methods of securing together the components of the spherical race assembly about which the vanes rotate.
What is therefore needed is a fluid machine or device, such as a rotary motor, pump or compressor, in which the fluid flow through the device can be controlled in an effective, simple and precise manner, and which allows the rotary or drive shaft of the device to be rotated at a generally constant rate or direction of rotation while the direction or rate of fluid flow is varied, and which also addresses the mechanical limitations of the prior art devices.

Spherical fluid machine with flow control mechanism


In a method for selectively sorting out free-flowing products (4) which are conveyed in a preferably groove-shaped conveying track (3) in a conveying direction (2) along a conveying path (1), the conveyed products (4) are checked by an inspection apparatus in an inspection portion of the conveying path (1). In a sorting-out portion arranged downstream along the conveying path (1), the product (4) that does not fulfil a predefinable inspection criterion is then sorted out and removed from the conveying track (3) by a suction device (8). To do this, the suction device (8) is arranged on the conveying path (1) and a suction flow that flows away from the conveying track (3) is generated for a predetermined suction duration in order to suction-off the product (4) out of the conveying track (3). According to the invention, it is provided that a suction tube (10) of the suction device (8) comprising a suction opening (9) is arranged at a front end (5) of the groove-shaped conveying track (3), in order to suction-off the product (2) that is falling from the conveying track (3) along a fall trajectory (6) at the front end (5) of the conveying track (3) through the suction opening (9).

The invention relates, according to an aspect thereof, to a method for selectively sorting out free-flowing products which are conveyed in a conveying track in a conveying direction along a conveying path, wherein the conveyed products are checked by an inspection apparatus in an inspection portion of the conveying path, and wherein in a sorting-out portion arranged downstream along the conveying path, the product that does not fulfil a predefinable inspection criterion is sorted out and removed from the conveying track by a suction device, by the suction device being arranged on the conveying path and a suction flow that flows away from the conveying track being generated for a predetermined suction duration in order to suction the product out of the conveying track.
Various applications are known from practice in which free-flowing products are conveyed along a conveying path during production or when they are being packed into packaging. In many cases, the products are first singulated in order to be conveyed in succession in the conveying direction in a conveying track, which is usually formed by a groove-shaped indentation. In this case, the conveying track may be designed as a vibrating conveyor, for example, in order to convey the products located in the conveying track in the conveying direction over the conveying path by means of a continuous, directed vibrating motion. One field of application of this kind of conveying of products that is very relevant to the pharmaceutical industry in particular is singularization and conveying individual tablets or capsules during a production method or when packaging the tablets or capsules into containers, such as bottles or cardboard boxes.
In order to prevent damaged or defective products from continuing to be conveyed and from possibly being filled into packaging, it is known from practice that, using suitable methods, the products that do not fulfil a predetermined inspection criterion are sorted out and removed from the conveying path. Therefore, the individual products can be detected by a camera, for example, and checked for visual deviations from a predetermined appearance. It is also conceivable for the weight of the individual products to be checked by means of the inspection apparatus. For many applications, it is expedient and advantageous to at least also carry out an inspection for impurities in the products, wherein the impurities may relate to the visual perception, a chemical composition or metal particles or dirt particles. If an individual product does not fulfil the predetermined inspection criterion, such as a predetermined appearance or a predetermined minimum weight, the product in question should be sorted out wherever possible, so that it does not continue to be processed and possibly being packaged and shipped.
From practice, various methods for selectively sorting out products within a conveying path of this kind are known. Therefore, for example, products to be sorted out can be displaced from the conveying track by a targeted compressed air jet and can be excluded from being conveyed any further. It is likewise known to displace the products to be sorted out from the conveying track or from a predetermined conveying route and to exclude said products from being conveyed any further by means of suitable mechanical devices, such as flaps or movable discharge plates.
It has been proven in practice to suction the products to be sorted out from the conveying track by means of a suction device. For this purpose, a suction tube is usually guided to the product to be sorted out so as to be directly above or beside the conveying track and a suction flow that flows away from the conveying track, by means of which the product is suctioned out of the conveying track, is generated for a predetermined suction duration. The suctioned-off product can be fed to a storage container for sorted-off products through the suction tube. By contrast with blowing a defective product out of the conveying track, suctioning-off of the product by means of a suction device prevents the sorted-off products, or dust or contaminants therefrom, for example, from being more or less uncontrollably blown out of the conveying track.
It has, however, been found that, when suctioning-off a first product to be sorted out using a suction device arranged above the conveying track by means of the suction flow that is necessarily generated in the process, a subsequent second product in the conveying track is also seized by the suction flow and, as a result, is at least accelerated or is even likewise suctioned off, despite the subsequent second product in question not being defective. If the suction-off process is shortened in order to prevent an undesired impact on a subsequent second product or if the suction power used for generating the suction flow is reduced, the first product to be sorted out may often no longer be suctioned-off reliably.
It is desirable to configure a method for selectively sorting out free-flowing products according to the type mentioned at the outset in such a way, that a product to be sorted out can be sorted out as reliably as possible, with the intention being that a subsequent second product is impacted as little as possible.
According to an aspect of the invention, a suction tube of the suction device comprising a suction opening is arranged at a front end of the conveying track, in order to suction the product that is falling from the conveying track along a fall trajectory at the end of the conveying track through the suction opening. By contrast with the conventional methods, in which the suction device is arranged above the conveying track and the product to be sorted out is usually suctioned upwards by a suction tube, the suctioning-off in the method according to an aspect of the invention takes place at the front end of the conveying track, with the product to be sorted out not having to be suctioned out of the conveying track, but instead being able to be suctioned-off while falling along a fall trajectory. In this case, the fall trajectory corresponds to the flight path of a product that is falling undisturbed from the conveying track at the front end. Advantageously, the suction opening in the suction tube may be arranged below the upper face of the conveying track and optionally completely below the conveying track, such that a suction flow suctioned through the suction opening is not suction from the conveying track and a product subsequent to the product to be suctioned-off in the conveying track is not impacted. When the suction tube having the suction opening is arranged close to the front end of the conveying track, the product to be suctioned-off is at the start of its falling motion along the fall trajectory and is still comparatively slow, such that the falling product stays in a suction region around the suction opening in the suction tube for a relatively long period of time. Irrespective of the configuration and orientation of the conveying track, the suction tube may be arranged with its suction opening in the immediate vicinity of the fall trajectory of the falling product. The method according to an aspect of the invention may be particularly advantageously used with a groove-shaped conveying track.
According to an advantageous configuration of the concept of an aspect of the invention, it is provided that the suction tube having the suction opening is guided towards the front end of the conveying path before a suction-off process and is arranged with the suction opening in or directly on the fall trajectory of the falling product in order to suction-off the sorted-out product while it is falling along the fall trajectory, and that the suction tube having the suction opening is moved away from the front end of the conveying track after a suction-off process in order not to prevent a subsequent product in the conveying path that is not intended to be sorted out from falling along the fall trajectory. The suction tube can be moved, with the suction opening, directly into the fall trajectory of the falling product, such that even a low suction power is sufficient to suction the falling product through the suction opening into the suction tube. Here, the suction opening can be arranged and oriented such that the fall trajectory of the falling product extends through a cross-sectional area of the suction opening that is as large as possible and is directed perpendicularly to the fall trajectory. It may also be expedient for a suction portion of the suction tube adjacent to the suction opening to have a small angle of less than 45° and preferably of less than 20° relative to the fall trajectory of the falling product, such that a suction flow suctioned through the suction opening extends substantially in parallel with the fall trajectory and the product that is falling along the fall trajectory is already moving towards the suction opening during its falling motion. In this process, the suction flow assists the falling product in being collected by the suction opening in the suction tube and in the suctioned product being subsequently removed through the suction tube.
By optionally displacing the suction tube towards the fall trajectory or even into the fall trajectory and by subsequently moving the suction tube away in order not to disrupt the fall of a subsequent product, defective products that do not fulfil a predetermined inspection criterion can be sorted out in a particularly reliable manner.
According to an particularly advantageous configuration of the concept of an aspect of the invention, it is provided that a collection device, adjacent to the suction opening, for the product to be sorted out is arranged on the suction tube, and that the collection device is arranged in the fall trajectory before a suction-off process in order to collect the falling product by means of the collection device, and that the product collected by the collection device is then suctioned-off through the suction opening. In this process, a suction flow suctioning-off the product is generated before the falling product can be collected by the collection device and can additionally suction the falling product towards the collection device. It is likewise conceivable for the suction flow suctioning-off the product to only be generated when the product has already been collected by the collection device. In this case, a subsequent product can be largely or completely prevented from being impaired in an undesired manner when the product to be sorted out is being suctioned off. By means of the collection device, the suction flow required for suctioning-off the product or a minimum required suction power of the suction device can be reduced, since the suction flow is not used and required for deflecting the falling product out of the fall trajectory, but instead is only required for subsequently conveying the product that has already been collected out of the collection device through the suction tube.
The collection device may be a separately produced collection tray, which is fastened to the suction tube in the region of the suction opening such that an air flow suctioned through the suction opening can suction-off the product collected by the collection device out of the collection device through the suction tube. The collection device may also be a collection trough or collection tray formed on the suction tube. The collection device may also comprise a collection region encased with an air-permeable material. The collection region may for example be formed by a grating, a net, or a textile material, such that an air flow suctioned through the suction opening can also flow through the collection region of the collection device.
According to an optional configuration of the concept of an aspect of the invention, it is provided that the collection device is moved relative to the suction opening after collecting the product to be sorted out in order to facilitate suctioning-off of the product through the suction opening. Therefore, the collection device may for example be folded towards the suction opening or may be pivoted or moved into an arrangement that almost completely covers the suction opening, in order to convey the product to be sorted out through the suction opening into the suction tube. In this process, it may additionally also be achieved that the product collected in the collection device during a subsequent movement of the suction tube can no longer fall out of the collection device.
It may be expedient for a suction portion of the suction tube adjacent to the suction opening to be oriented at an angle of less than 45°, preferably of less than 20°, relative to a horizontal plane during a suction-off process. A substantially horizontal orientation of the suction tube and therefore of the air flow suctioned through the suction opening into the suction tube may cause a comparatively strong deflection of the falling product from the fall trajectory. If the suction opening is arranged directly at the end of the conveying track, the air flow suctioned into the suction tube through the suction opening can be oriented such that it substantially coincides with the movement of the sorted-out product in the conveying direction along the conveying track and the movement of the product near the end of the conveying track is used to facilitate the product being sorted out while it is being suctioned-off by means of a suction flow oriented in the same direction.
According to an advantageous configuration of the concept of an aspect of the invention, it is provided that the suction opening in the suction tube of the suction device surrounds the front end of the conveying track at least in portions during the suction-off process. Here, the suction tube may have a shape adapted to the conveying track or to the front end of the conveying track in the region of the suction opening, such that the suction opening fits closely to the front end of the conveying track. The suction flow suctioned through the suction opening is then very effectively suctioned from the conveying track, such that a product located therein that is to be sorted out is reliably suctioned-off even with a low suction power. By the suction tube surrounding the front end of the conveying track at least in portions, the position of the suction opening relative to the front end of the conveying track can be particularly reliably predetermined by the suction tube contacting the front end of the conveying track. It is likewise possible to arrange the suction tube having the suction opening at a short distance from the front end of the conveying track. A small gap does not significantly impair suctioning-offofa product to be sorted out and may provide advantages in terms of design, for example. The suction opening comprising the suction portion adjacent to the suction opening may be guided towards the front end of the conveying track and positioned during the suction-off process at an angle from above or from below the conveying direction.
The invention also relates, according to an aspect thereof, to a device for selectively sorting out free-flowing products, comprising a conveying track that extends in a conveying direction as far as a front end of a conveying path, and comprising a suction device comprising a suction tube that opens into a suction opening. The conveying track may be groove-shaped here and may convey a plurality of products beside one another or may comprise only one narrow, groove-shaped indentation or a plurality of narrow, groove-shaped indentations, with just one row of products arranged one behind the other in the conveying direction being located in each groove-shaped indentation.
In conventional devices, in which a product is sorted out from a conveying path using a suction device, the suction tube having the suction opening is usually arranged directly above the conveying track in order to suction the product to be sorted out upwards from the conveying track before the product leaves the conveying path. It cannot be ruled out here that a subsequent product is influenced by means of the suction-off process using the suction device and, for example, the fall trajectory of the falling product is changed owing to its acceleration, such that reliable conveying and further processing of the product is put at risk.
According to an aspect of the invention, it is therefore provided that the suction tube is movably mounted at the front end of the conveying path such that the suction tube having the suction opening can be moved into or onto a fall trajectory of a product falling from the conveying track at the front end below an upper face of the conveying track and can be moved away from the fall trajectory after the suction-off process is completed. While falling from the front end of the conveying path, the product to be sorted out can be suctioned-off in a laterally or downwardly directed manner without the suction flow required for suctioning-off being able to influence a subsequent product on the conveying track. Here, the suction tube can be moved directly into the fall trajectory of the falling product, such that the product falling along the fall trajectory falls through the suction opening into the suction tube, and can be reliably sorted out as a result, even without a suction flow or already with a low suction flow. At the same time, by subsequently moving the suction tube away from the fall trajectory, it can be ensured that neither the suction tube itself nor a suction flow generated in the surroundings of the suction opening can influence and therefore disrupt the fall of a subsequent product.
According to a particularly advantageous configuration of the concept of an aspect of the invention, it is provided that a collection device, adjacent to the suction opening, for the product to be sorted out is arranged on the suction tube. The collection device expediently comprises a trough-shaped or tray-shaped collection region for the product to be sorted out. In this case, the collection device is expediently arranged in the fall trajectory of a falling product to be sorted out such that the product falls into the collection device without a suction flow and is collected by the collection device. By means of the suction flow, the collected product can then be suctioned-off from the collection device through the suction tube.
In order to suction-off the product that has already been collected in the collection device as advantageously and efficiently as possible, it may optionally be provided that the collection device comprises at least one air-permeable flow opening, through which a suction flow directed towards the suction opening in the suction tube can flow at least in part. The air-permeable flow opening may for example be formed by a grating, a net, or a textile material, which is arranged in a collection region of the collection device and is surrounded by a suitable frame.

Method for selectively sorting out flowable products


A semiconductor integrated circuit including an LDMOS device structure comprises a semiconductor layer with a pair of spaced-apart field effect gate structures over an upper surface of the semiconductor layer. First and second spaced-apart source regions of a first conductivity type are formed in a portion of the layer between the pair of gate structures with a first region of a second conductivity type formed there between. A lightly doped body region of a second conductivity type is formed in the semiconductor layer, extending from below the source regions to below the gate structures and extending a variable depth into the semiconductor layer. This body region is characterized by an inflection in depth in that portion of the body region extending below the first region.

The level of device integration continues to rise and the performance requirements of power devices on integrated circuitry continue to be more demanding. As digital circuit components become more compact it is desirable to reduce overall size of lateral power devices. However, as feature sizes shrink it is difficult to maintain voltage operating ranges and tolerance to reverse bias conditions.
These issues are especially relevant to the consumer portable electronic market. Performance demands require a growing array of peripheral functions, most commonly including display drivers, RF interfacing, and battery operation. To meet ever increasing consumer demands the portable designs must perform energy management and power conversion functions with increased efficiency.
Power integrated circuitry such as used in portable power supplies typically incorporates high voltage transistors with low voltage circuitry to efficiently manage battery usage and energy conversion. Due to performance requirements of the power device (e.g., fast switching speed, low "on" resistance and low power consumption during switching operations) the power device of choice for many power integrated circuits is the Lateral Double Diffused MOS transistor (LDMOS). When compared to bipolar transistor devices the LDMOS can provide relatively low on-resistance and high breakdown voltage. However, with the drive to further reduce device sizes and improve operational efficiencies, there remain limited means for sustaining or improving these device characteristics.
Further reductions in on-resistance could be achieved by increasing the dopant level in the LDMOS conductivity path, e.g., the drift region, or by reducing the length of the drift region, but such approaches have trade-offs impacting other aspects of device performance. For example, the lower resistances which would be achievable with higher dopant concentrations can degrade device breakdown voltage characteristics. Reductions in the length of the drift region can result in higher field concentrations near the gate and also lead to lower breakdown voltages.
Because the consumer market of today demands integrated circuitry having the combination of increased device density and lower power consumption, e.g., to both extend battery life and reduce overall cost, the progression to finer line geometries presents a challenge to develop techniques to design around inherent limitations in device on-resistance and breakdown voltages. Generally, it is a desire in the art to improve the safe operating area of such devices while reducing power dissipation.

Integrated circuit structure with improved LDMOS design