A structure for reinforcing a seat mounting portion of a vehicle body may include a floor panel having a tunnel portion that protrudes in a height direction of a vehicle, side sill members extended in a length direction of the vehicle and coupled to the floor panel at both left and right sides in a width direction of the vehicle, a seat inner member coupled to the tunnel portion, a seat cross member extended in the width direction of the vehicle and having an outer tip portion coupled to the side sill members and an inner tip portion coupled to the seat inner member, a seat outer member coupled to the outer tip portion of the seat cross member and attached to the side sill members and the floor panel, and a reinforcing member inserted into the seat outer member to reinforce rigidity.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a structure for reinforcing a seat mounting portion of a vehicle body, and more particularly, to a structure for reinforcing a seat mounting portion of a vehicle body, which may stably protect an occupant by stably supporting a seat on a vehicle body at the time of a frontal collision or broadside collision accident of the vehicle.
2. Description of Related Art
A seat of a vehicle in the related art is mounted and supported on a floor panel, which constitutes a bottom of the interior of the vehicle, in an internal space of the interior of the vehicle which is formed in a vehicle body.
The seat of the vehicle needs to be stably mounted and supported on the floor panel so that an occupant may be more stably seated on the seat. To this end, in the related art, separate mounting reinforcing members are used when the seat of the vehicle is mounted on the floor panel.
Among the seat mounting reinforcing members of the vehicle, there is a seat cross member that is formed to be extended in a width direction of the vehicle, and mounted on the floor panel. The seat cross member has a structure in which an approximate ""-shaped cross section, which is opened toward a lower side of the vehicle, is formed to be extended in a length direction thereof.
An outer tip portion of the seat cross member in the width direction of the vehicle is attached to a side sill inner member that is formed to be extended in a length direction of the vehicle, and an inner tip portion of the seat cross member in the width direction of the vehicle is attached to a tunnel portion of the floor panel.
The side sill member is a constituent element of the vehicle body which is positioned outward in the width direction of the vehicle, and serves to absorb and reduce an impact at the time of a broadside collision accident of the vehicle, and a bulk head is inserted and mounted in the side sill member in order to reinforce rigidity of the side sill member.
In order to mount the seat of the vehicle, a seat mounting inner member and a seat mounting outer member are applied.
The seat mounting outer member, which has a structure that is extended in the length direction of the vehicle, is superposed on the outer tip portion of the seat cross member, and attached to an inner surface of the side sill member in the width direction of the vehicle, and the seat mounting inner member, which also has a structure that is extended in the length direction of the vehicle, is superposed on the inner tip portion of the seat cross member, and attached to the tunnel portion, such that the seat of the vehicle is mounted and supported on the seat mounting inner member and the seat mounting outer member.
The seat mounting outer member serves to reinforce the side sill member and absorb and disperse an impact at the time of a broadside collision accident of the vehicle, and the seat mounting inner member serves to disperse impact energy, which is transferred through the seat cross member, to the tunnel portion, and reinforce rigidity of the tunnel portion at the time of a broadside collision accident of the vehicle.
The seat cross member is typically made of a high tensile steel plate in order to cope with a broadside collision of the vehicle such that formability of the seat cross member deteriorates, and a length of a flange, which is adhered to the side sill member, is short such that it is difficult to perform welding, and as a result, there is a problem in that connection rigidity between the side sill member and the seat cross member deteriorates.
In addition, since the bulk head is locally inserted into the side sill member so as to reinforce the side sill member, which does not effectively handle a broadside collision, and as a result, there is a problem in that a connection part between the side sill member and the seat cross member easily buckles at the time of a broadside collision accident of the vehicle.
The information disclosed in this Background 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.

Structure for reinforcing seat mounting portion of vehicle body


A method and system using a novel user display. The user interface device includes a display for an embroidery design. The display is coupled to a micro processing device such as a microprocessor, microcomputer, or the like. The display also has a representation a stitch on a first axis of the display. The display also shows a property of the stitch on a second axis of the display, where the second axis intersects the first axis. Other features can also be included depending upon the application.

The present invention relates generally to embroidery applications. More particularly, the present invention provides a technique including a method, system, and device for analyzing stitch information on embroidery patterns, which are used on commercial and non-commercial sewing applications.
Many embroidery techniques are known. In the early days, people manually sewed colored threads into decorative patterns on small pieces of cloth by hand. The cloth was often held by a frame, which firmly held it in place, while skilled hands applied colored thread to the cloth to form patterns. These patterns included flowers, cartoons, and other decorative features. Multi-colored patterns often required the use of different colored threads, which had to be applied to sewing needles by hand. Since the patterns were generally sewn by hand, conventional embroidery was often time consuming and difficult to perform. Sewing machines replaced, in part, some of the conventional hand sewing techniques for embroidery. These sewing machines often provided a semi-automatic process for sewing patterns of threads onto pieces of cloth. Since sewing machines could stitch much faster than a human being, embroidery using sewing machines was more efficient. Sewing machines still required a skillful operator in order to make embroidery patterns in a high quality and efficient manner.
With the electronic age, computerized sewing machines evolved to automatically stitch patterns onto pieces of cloth to create an embroidery design. This design is derived from embroidery stitch data. In the sewing machine, embroidery stitch data translates into a series of stitches to be sewn on a work cloth to form an embroidery design. The stitch data include an ordered set of stitch coordinates or displacements and interspersed control codes. The stitch coordinates generally specify a spatial location where the embroidery needle pierces the work cloth. The control codes generally specify events. These events include thread changes used mainly to change the color of the thread; long or jump stitches: and end of the embroidery design.
The stitches are often numbered as coordinates from xe2x80x9c1xe2x80x9d to xe2x80x9cn,xe2x80x9d where n is the number of stitches in the design. For example, stitch number 1 corresponds to the first needle pierce, stitch number 2 corresponds to the second needle pierce, and stitch number n corresponds to the last needle pierce. The set of embroidery stitch data for a design is commonly called a stitch-based design, and is often saved as a computer file. Embroidery stitch data are generally derived from outline data derived from a scanned or bitmap image (or drawn by a user in an embroidery drawing program). Outline data or compressed data process into embroidery stitch data using many well-known techniques. Normally the outline data represent a plurality of figures, where each figure is a separate object in the overall design. As merely an example, a flower pattern includes three elements, each representing a petal of the flower.
It is often useful to analyze a stitch-based design before sending the design to an automatic embroidery machine. Such analysis may include detecting the stitch numbers of long stitches, detecting stitch density, or detecting stitch type, for example, zigzag, fill, or satin stitch type. Unfortunately, most conventional analysis techniques are limited. For example, most analysis tools only provide a picture of an embroidery design, which shows the design and the stitches that make up the design in a two-dimensional coordinate space. Some tools provide a textual list of stitch coordinates and control codes, but such a list is of limited value because a typical design contains many thousands of stitches. Furthermore, conventional tools cannot determine which stitches to modify in order to modify one or more figures of a stitch-based design. Although there are automatic methods that convert embroidery stitch data back to outline date, these methods are often complex and expensive; they occur for the most part automatically and out of the control of the user; and they do not always give the result the user intends. The data processing that originally creates embroidery stitch data from outline data normally processes each element in a design into one or several blocks of consecutive stitches. Thus the problem of determining which stitches to modify in order to modify one or more figures of a stitch-based design can largely be reduced to a problem of determining the starting and ending stitch number, where the starting stitch and ending stitch and the stitches in between comprise the element in question.
From the above, it is seen that improved tools for computer aided embroidery designs are desirable.
According to the present invention, a technique for analyzing stitch information on an embroidery pattern is provided. In exemplary embodiment, the present invention provides a user device and method for identifying characteristics of stitch data using a computer interface device. The present user device and method allow, for example, a user to easily identify characteristics of the embroidery data such as stitch length and stitch angle, and to use those characteristics in order to determine the stitches that comprise individual elements of a design.
In a specific embodiment, the present invention provides a graphical user interface device. The user interface device includes a display for an embroidery design, which is shown in electronic form. The display is coupled to a micro-processing device such as a microprocessor, microcomputer, or the like. The display also has a representation of a stitch (or plurality of stitches) in electronic form on a first axis of the display. The display also shows a property of the stitch in electronic form on a second axis of the display, where the second axis intersects the first axis for reference. The property of the stitch can include, among others, stitch length, stitch angle, and stitch color. Other features can also be included depending upon the application.
In an alternative aspect, the present invention provides a method for selecting an element from a plurality of elements in a complex embroidery design. The method includes providing stitch data that defines an embroidery design, where the stitch data include an element or a plurality of elements, which are separable discrete features of the complex design. The element includes a plurality of stitches in between a starting stitch number and an ending stitch number. The element is derived from or is one of a plurality of elements, which define the embroidery design. The method also includes selecting long stitches as the starting stitch number and/or the ending stitch number. The long stitches define a beginning and/or an end of the plurality of stitches defining the element.
Still further, the present invention provides a method for selecting a region in a complex embroidery design. The complex embroidery design is displayed on a user device coupled to a computing device. The method includes providing a stitches in time graph, which includes a plurality of stitches, on a user display. The plurality of stitches comprise at least a first group of stitches and a second group of stitches, where the first group of stitches is separated from the second group of stitches by a long stitch. The method also includes selecting a portion of the plurality of stitches, using a cursor applied to the portion of the plurality of stitches. The selected portion is from a group consisting of the first group of stitches, the second group of stitches, a portion of the first group of stitches a portion of the second group of stitches or any combination of the first group of stitches and the second group of stitches.
Numerous benefits are achieved by way of the present invention over conventional techniques. In a specific embodiment, the present invention provides easy to use tools to analyze a stitch-based embroidery design. Here, a goal is attained through a novel display of several charts and graphs, which we collectively call the xe2x80x9cStitches-in-Timexe2x80x9d view or graph. Stitches-in-Time(trademark) is a trademark term owned by the present Applicants. Each chart or graph has stitch number or time as one axis, and some property of each stitch as the other axis. The present embodiment charts the properties stitch length, stitch angle, and stitch color. In an alternative embodiment, the present invention provides an improved method to select one figure from a plurality of figures in a stitch-based design. Here, the present invention uses Stitches-in-Time charts and graphs, especially the stitch length chart, by enabling a user to easily select a run of consecutive stitches between any two long stitches in a stitch-based design. Because long stitches often delimit different figures in a stitch-based design, this method often can be used to select one figure from a plurality of figures in a stitch-based design. Depending upon the embodiment, one or more of these advantages may exist, without limiting the scope of the claims herein. These and other benefits will be described in more detail throughout the present specification, and more particularly below.
These and other embodiments of the present invention, as well as its advantages and features, are described in more detail in conjunction with the text below and attached Figs.

Method and system for computer aided embroidery


Methods and compositions employing as active ingredient hepoxilins and hepoxilin analog useful for inhibiting thromboxane formation and antagonizing thromboxane activity. Methods and compositions employing these compounds provide treatment for a number of disease conditions.

The maintenance of normal vascular tone in mammals involves a homeostatic balance between factors which promote vasodilation and factors which promote vasoconstriction. Thromboxane A2 (TxA2), for example, is a powerful vasoconstrictor (1) and also a potent mediator of platelet aggregation (14). Prostaglandins such as prostaglandin E2 and prostacyclin, on the other hand, have vasodilatory and anti-platelet aggregation effects.
Many diseases involve a perturbation of this normal homeostatic balance. For example, diabetes mellitus (5-7), hypertension (8-13), thrombosis (14-16) and septic shock (17-19) are associated with an imbalance of the thromboxane: prostacyclin or thromboxane: prostaglandin E2 ratios in favour of thromboxane. There is therefore considerable interest in finding ways of selectively controlling thromboxane formation, so as to block the vasoconstrictor and aggregatory component of the prostaglandin system (thromboxane) without affecting the vasodilator and anti-aggregatory prostaglandins.
Prostaglandins, including thromboxane, are formed from a common precursor, PGH2. This precursor is formed through the action of cyclooxygenase (COX) and is transformed by specific enzymes into each of the prostaglandins and thromboxane. Platelets convert PGH2 selectively into thromboxane A2 through the action of the PGH2 metabolizing enzyme, thromboxane A2 synthase. In other tissues and cells, PGH2 is converted into other prostaglandin types, e.g. prostaglandin E2 and I2. Since thromboxane A2 (TxA2) has a very short half life in the body (30 sec), stable analogs of TxA2 which mimic its actions have been explored; two such analogs are U44609 (20, 21) and U46619 (22). These analogs cause actions similar to TxA2, i.e. they cause platelet shape change and aggregation, as well as contraction of smooth muscle. These TxA2 mimics have also been used to develop inhibitors of TxA2 action as they work through the activation of the thromboxane receptors called TP receptors.
Several thromboxane synthase inhibitors (TSI) have been reported, some based on imidazole (23). In general, the IC50's of the imidazole-based inhibitors were in the range 10−4-10−7 m (24). Undesirable pressor effects that could not be resolved from their anti-thrombotic actions have been noted upon administration of these drugs, making the substituted imidazoles unsuitable for drug development.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as aspirin have also been used to inhibit thromboxane synthesis. Aspirin, however, has frequent side effects, including gastric ulcers and Reye's syndrome. Attempts have been made to avoid these problems by developing COX-2 inhibitors such as CELEBREX® (Celecoxib) and VIOXX® (Rofecoxib) (42, 43). These drugs do not, however affect thromboxane formation in platelets where COX-1 is present and therefore are not of assitance in combatting thrombosis.
The hepoxilins are biologically active metabolites of arachidonic acid formed through the 12(S)-lipoxygenase pathway and hence are structurally unlike the prostaglandin endoperoxides (25-27). Four natural hepoxilins have been identified, the A-type hepoxilins consisting of two epimers having a hydroxyl group at carbon 8 (8(S, R)-hydroxy-11(S), 12(S)-epoxy-eicosa-5Z, 9E, 14Z-trienoic acid) and the B-type, two epimers having a hydroxyl group at carbon 10 (10(S,R)-hydroxy-11(S), 12(S)-epoxy-eicosa-5Z, 8Z,14Z-trienoic acid). Pharmacological studies have provided evidence that these compounds raise intracellular calcium by activating calcium stores in human neutrophils (28, 29). A hepoxilin-specific receptor responsible for this action has been suggested (30). The hepoxilins activate potassium channels in platelets (31) and in the Aplysia brain (32, 33). In platelets, the hepoxilins are formed endogenously in response of the cell to hypertonic volume expansion, and function to normalize cell volume (31).
Neither the hepoxilins nor the hepoxilin analogs described herein have previously been reported to affect thromboxane formation and action.

Inhibitors of thromboxane formation and action


An automotive lock mechanism is disclosed having a housing with a cylindrical bore, a key cylinder rotatably received within the housing cylindrical bore, a flexible cable having first and second ends, the first end rotatably engaging the key cylinder, and a rotatable release cam receiving the second end in a rotatable, detachable relationship, the release cam adapted to operatively engage a latch mechanism.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to automotive lock mechanisms. More particularly, the present invention relates to torque cable drives for such mechanisms.
2. Disclosure Information
Conventional automotive lock mechanisms generally comprise a key cylinder, levers or rods, and a latch mechanism. Typically, actuation of the key cylinder causes the levers or rods to transfer motion to the latch mechanism. This manipulation facilitates locking or unlocking of a vehicle door or trunk for example. Car thieves can break into vehicles by defeating conventional lock mechanisms in a number of ways.
One way of defeating a conventional lock mechanism is by using an elongate thin piece of metal, often with a hook at the end, sometimes referred to as a Slim Jim. By sliding the Slim Jim between the windshield and the windshield seal, the levers may be manually actuated to transfer motion to the latch mechanism, thereby bypassing having to use a key.
Another way of defeating such lock mechanisms is by translating or rotating the key cylinder with respect to the vehicle body to actuate the levers. This is done by forcing a tool, such as a screw driver, into the key cylinder and forcibly manipulating the screw driver until the key cylinder breaks free of the vehicle body. Once broken free, the key cylinder is manipulated, via the screw driver, in a translational or rotational fashion to manually actuate the levers and transfer motion to the latch mechanism.
Attempts to combat such methods of defeating a lock mechanism have taken a number of forms. One method is to include large steel shields in the door, close to the windshield and windshield seal, to prevent accessing the levers with a Slim Jim. Another method is to reinforce the attachment of the key cylinder to the vehicle door to inhibit breaking the cylinder free from the door. These methods, however, have proven to be costly and ineffective. Someone wishing to defeat such methods, for example, need only employ tools that are capable of imparting greater destructive force to the particular area.
It would therefore be desirable to provide an automotive vehicle lock mechanism, capable of defeating conventional theft methods, that overcomes the deficiencies associated with previous designs.

Automotive lock mechanism using a torque cable drive


A method and an associated computer program product are provided for obtaining interrupt requests (IRQ) routing information in a more efficient and intuitive manner. In this regard, a graphical representation of the routing of a plurality of IRQs capable of being asserted by respective peripheral devices is constructed. The graphical representation may then be automatically converted into at least one source file containing at least some of the IRQ routing information organized in predefined manner. In this regard, at least one IRQ routing table may be constructed based upon the graphical representation of the IRQ routing.

Personal computers and other computing systems generally include a central processing unit (CPU) operating under control of an operating system and/or other software. Peripheral devices are generally connected to the CPU via one or more busses. In order to notify the CPU and/or the operating system of a pending task, the peripheral devices are typically configured to issue interrupts. In order to controllably direct the interrupts to the CPU, a personal computer or other computing system may include an interrupt handler, such as a Programmable Interrupt Controller (PIC), that receives the interrupts from the peripheral devices and issues an appropriate interrupt signal to the CPU. As such, the interrupt handler effectively serves to multiplex the interrupts from the peripheral devices for presentation to the CPU. The CPU, in turn, responds to the interrupt and interacts with the peripheral device issuing the interrupt to perform the desired task or the like.
For personal computers, peripheral devices are oftentimes connected to a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus. The PCI bus is, in turn, connected via a PCI bridge to a host bus which serves to interconnect the CPU and the main memory associated with the CPU. The PCI bus generally includes a number of slots for receiving respective peripheral devices, i.e., peripheral devices may be plugged into respective slots. While a variety of peripheral devices may be connected to the PCI bus via respective slots, typical examples include a graphics adapter, a Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI) host adapter, a local area network (LAN) adapter, an input/output (I/O) unit and an audio and motion video unit.
The slots of a PCI bus are generally capable of issuing four IRQs, typically designed as INTA, INTB, INTC and INTD. The interrupts generated by each slot are directed to a PCI interrupt router, hereinafter referenced as a PCI router, which, in turn, issues an appropriate signal to the interrupt handler for notifying the CPU of the pending interrupt. In embodiments in which the interrupt handler is a PIC, for example, the PCI router will direct the interrupt to the PIC via a PIC bus that extends between the PCI router and the interrupt handler.
A PCI router generally includes a plurality of links, such as four links designated LNKA, LNKB, LNKC and LNKD, for receiving IRQs. In this regard, the interrupts issued by the devices inserted into respective slots of the PCI bus are connected to respective links and are therefore directed to the PCI router. Upon receipt of an interrupt via one of the links, the PCI router issues a signal to the interrupt handler which, in turn, notifies the CPU. An interrupt handler generally includes a plurality of IRQ inputs, such as sixteen IRQ inputs designated IRQO, IRQ1, . . . IRQ15. The PCI router may therefore be connected to one or more of the IRQ inputs of the interrupt handler, such as via the PIC bus or the like. For example, a PCI router may be connected to four of the IRQ inputs of an interrupt handler such that interrupts provided to the PCI router via LNKA cause an interrupt request to be asserted via a first IRQ input, interrupts provided to the PCI router via LNKB cause an interrupt request to be asserted via a second IRQ input and so on. The interrupt handler will then provide an appropriate IRQ to the CPU which, in turn, will attend to the task that originally triggered the interrupt.
Initially, the interrupts generated by the devices inserted into each slot of a PCI bus were connected to the links of the PCI router in the same fashion. In this regard, INTA of each slot was typically connected to LNKA, INTB of each slot was connected to LNKB, INTC of each slot was connected to LNKC and INTD of each slot was connected to LNKD. Since the interrupts generated by each slot were connected to the links of the PCI router in the same manner, it was difficult to identify the peripheral device that generated an interrupt. Thus, upon receiving an interrupt request, each peripheral device generally had to be polled to determine which peripheral device had generated the interrupt. In this regard, each peripheral device could include a status register that could be set to a predefined value upon the issuance of an interrupt. As such, in polling the peripheral devices, the status register of each peripheral device could be examined to determine if the peripheral device had issued the interrupt. As will be apparent, this process of polling the peripheral devices to determine which peripheral device had generated the interrupt may be somewhat time-consuming and delay the handling of the interrupt.
In order to permit the peripheral device that issued an interrupt to be identified in a more efficient manner, the interrupts generated by the respective slots of a PCI bus have been connected to the links of the PCI router in a round-robin fashion. In this regard, the interrupts generated by different slots of the PCI bus were connected to the links of the PCI router in different manners. In a round-robin configuration, the interrupts of the first slot of the PCI bus are connected such that INTA is connected to LNKA, INTB is connected to LNKB, INTC is connected to LNKC and INTD is connected to LNKD. Further, the interrupts of the second slot of the PCI bus are connected such that INTA is connected to LNKB, INTB is connected to LNKC, INTC is connected to LNKD and INTD is connected to LNKA. Similarly, the interrupts of the third slot of the PCI bus are connected to the links of the PCI router such that INTA is connected to LNKC, INTB is connected to LNKD, INTC is connected to LNKA and INTD is connected to LNKB. Finally, the interrupts of a fourth PCI slot would be connected such that INTA is connected to LNKD, INTB is connected to LNKA, INTC is connected to LNKB and INTD is connected to LNKC. Since interrupts are most frequently issued via INTA, the peripheral device that issued an interrupt may be more expeditiously determined by polling the peripheral device having INTA connected to the respective link of the PCI router which reported the interrupt. If the peripheral device having INTA connected to the respective link of the PCI router did not issue the interrupt, the other peripheral devices may then be polled.
In many instances, however, the PCI bus has more than four slots. In a round robin configuration, the interrupts of the fifth slot are generally connected to the links of the PCI router in the same manner as the interrupts of the first slot. Similarly, the interrupts of the sixth slot are generally connected in the same fashion as the interrupts of the second slot, and so forth. Additionally, other techniques for routing the interrupts of the various devices via the links to the PCI router have also been utilized. Each of these routing techniques generally required some time to be expended in order to identify the peripheral device that issued the interrupt and to thereafter respond to the interrupt.
In order to provide the operating system with information defining the routing or configuration of the IRQs so that interrupts can be handled more efficiently, IRQ routing tables have been constructed. Among other things, IRQ routing tables identify the IRQ input of the interrupt handler to which the different links of the PCI router are connected. By referring to the IRQ routing table in response to an interrupt request, the operating system can determine the link of the PCI router that provided the interrupt. By polling the peripheral devices having interrupts connected to the respective link of the PCI router and, in particular, the peripheral devices having INTA connected to the respective link of the PCI router, the operating system can more quickly determine the source of the interrupt.
Since interrupts are frequently configured or routed in different manners, such as by being connected in different sequences to the respective links of a PCI router, the IRQ routing table must generally be manually constructed. In this regard, the computers sold by different manufacturers may require different IRQ routing tables depending upon the configuration or routing of the interrupts. Likewise, different models of computers sold by the same manufacturer may require different IRQ routing tables.
Depending upon the computer, additional routing tables and/or other types of routing information may be created based upon the IRQ routing table for use by the operating system. In this regard, a PCI BIOS IRQ routing table may be constructed for use by the basic input/output system (BIOS). Additionally, a Microsoft IRQ routing table may be constructed for use by various Microsoft operating systems. Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) IRQ routing information and/or multiprocessor (MP) IRQ routing information may be constructed. Finally, at least a portion of the data contained by the IRQ routing table may be included within the system management BIOS (SMBIOS).
As will be apparent, the manual construction of an IRQ routing table can be relatively complex and typically requires a skilled designer having experience with interrupt routing and the manner in which different configurations or routes for interrupts are reflected in an IRQ routing table. As a result of the manual construction of the IRQ routing table, it is also possible for errors to be inadvertently introduced into the IRQ routing table as well as the other routing tables and routing information created therefrom, thereby potentially creating substantial problems in interrupt handling. As such, it would be advantageous to provide an improved technique for configuring or routing interrupts from the various peripheral devices and for generating IRQ routing tables and other types of routing information in a more efficient and accurate manner.

Method and computer program product for graphically providing interrupt request (IRQ) routing information


A probe card on which micro probe needles are arranged at high density and with high precision without need of a complicated structure or variation in needle height. A probe card 1 installed in a wafer tester includes a board 2 having a wiring pattern for transmitting a test signal to be impressed on a wafer under test, a built-up board 10 formed on the surface of the board 2, a comb-shaped silicon-made probe needle 20 arranged on the built-up board 10 and connected to the surface wiring pattern 11, and a flat portion 12 formed by plating on the surface wiring pattern 11 on the built-up board 10 and having a surface flattened by polishing. The probe needle 20 is loaded on the flat portion 12 and thus mounted on the board 2.

In general, a plurality of semiconductor device chips formed on a wafer (semiconductor substrate) are tested for electric properties of each device and the like in a state of a wafer before cut into individual chips and sealed into packages, a so-called semi-finished product state. This testing of the wafer in the semi-finished product state is performed using a wafer tester called a wafer prober provided with a probe card including probe needles (probes) which contact electrodes of the wafer to apply test signals.
FIG. 13 is a front view schematically showing a wafer tester including a conventional probe card. As shown in the figure, the conventional wafer tester includes a wafer base 104 on which a wafer 103 constituting a testing object is to be mounted, and a probe card 101 positioned above the wafer base 104.
The probe card 101 includes a board 102 constituted of a printed circuit board or the like which transmits a predetermined test signal to be applied to each chip on the wafer 103 and a plurality of probe needles 120 arranged/fixed on the board 102.
The wafer base 104 is driven/controlled in a three-dimensional direction (arrow directions shown in FIG. 13) in such a manner that predetermined electrodes of the mounted wafer 103 contact the predetermined probe needles 120 of the probe card 101.
In the conventional wafer tester constituted in this manner, when the wafer base 104 is driven/controlled, the probe needles 120 of the probe card 101 contact the predetermined chip electrodes on the wafer 103. Moreover, test signals are applied to the electrodes of the wafer 103 from the tester via the board 102 of the probe card 101, and each device chip on the wafer 103 is subjected to a predetermined electric property test.
Here, in the conventional wafer tester, as shown in FIG. 13, the probe needles 120 disposed in the probe card 101 are constituted of needles formed of metals such as tungsten and the like, and a so-called cantilevered probe needle structure has been adopted in which a large number of metal needles are bent/formed into L-shapes, arranged on the board 102 having a plane disc shape, and fixed by a resin 130.
As the cantilevered probe needle, the metal needle having a total length of about 30 to 50 mm is bent/formed in such a manner that a needle height (arrow h shown in FIG. 13) on a tip side is about 10 mm. Even when there is a fluctuation in the height of the needle contacting the electrode of the wafer 103, the fluctuation can be absorbed within a limit of elasticity of the needle, for example, several μms. Moreover, a plurality of (e.g., several hundreds of) cantilevered probe needles are all arranged on the substrate, and bonded by an adhesive or the like by a manual operation.
However, a problem has occurred that the conventional probe card including the cantilevered probe needles cannot cope with the testing of highly densified and miniaturized wafers in recent years. In recent years, miniaturization and densification of semiconductor devices have remarkably advanced, and even the electrode on each chip has a micro size and interval (e.g., the electrode has one side of about 60 μm to 100 μm, and a pitch is about 100 μm to 200 μm).
In the conventional probe card, the cantilevered probe needle itself has a diameter of about 250 μm, all the probe needles have been attached by the manual operation, and therefore it has been impossible to attach a large probe needles at micro intervals on the substrate. Therefore, in recent years, the highly densified and miniaturized wafers have not been tested with the cantilevered probe card.
Additionally, in the cantilevered probe needle, there has been a problem that high frequency characteristics are deteriorated because the total length of the needle is about 30 to 50 mm.
Therefore, to solve the problem of the conventional probe card, a so-called membrane type probe card has been proposed in which a plurality of electrode bumps are formed on a thin film including a predetermined pattern wiring formed thereon and having flexibility instead of the cantilevered probe needles. Such a membrane type probe card is disclosed by Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-128381 (page 4, FIG. 12), Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-215775 (pages 3 and 4, FIG. 2), Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-007056 (pages 4 and 5, FIG. 1), and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-083824 (pages 5 and 6, FIG. 3).
According to the membrane type probe card, fine processing of the electrode bumps formed on the thin film is possible, and therefore it has been possible to cope with the testing of the miniaturized and highly densified wafers.
However, the membrane type probe card has required a large number of complicated constituting elements such as a membrane including the electrode bumps, a holding structure which holds the membrane, and pressurizing means for energizing the membrane toward a wafer side.
Therefore, the probe card and wafer tester have been complicated and enlarged, and manufacturing costs have also increased as compared with the conventional cantilevered type.
The present inventor has realized that when silicon is etched or nickel plating or the like is used, it is possible to form a fine needle having a length of about 1 mm to 2 mm, and fine probe needles can be formed at high density and high precision without requiring the above-described membrane structure. However, thereafter it has been realized that even when the fine probe needles can be formed with high precision, and when the fine probe needles are simply mounted on the substrate, the needle heights of the probe needles are not uniform by unevenness of the substrate.
In general, for example, in a printed circuit board, the unevenness in height or flatness gently continues usually in a range of about 0.1 mm to 0.3 mm on the surface of the substrate. Therefore, when the fine probe needles having lengths of about 1 mm to 2 mm are mounted on this substrate surface, fluctuations are generated in the needle heights by the unevenness of the substrate. Additionally, the fluctuations cannot be absorbed within the elasticity limit by the probe needles having micro needle tips unlike the conventional cantilevered needle.
Therefore, as a result of further intensive researches, the present inventor has created a probe card of the present invention in which the problem of the unevenness of the substrate is solved and micro probe needles can be highly densely mounted.
That is, the present invention has been proposed to solve the above-described problem of the related arts, and an object thereof is to provide a probe card and a method of manufacturing the probe card in which probe needles to contact electrodes of a wafer are formed to be fine using silicon, nickel and the like and in which a flattened flat portion is formed on a substrate including the probe needles mounted/fixed thereon and in which fluctuations in needle heights are eliminated and micro probe needles can be arranged at high density and with high precision without requiring any complicated structure or the like.

Flat portions of a probe card flattened to have same vertical level with one another by compensating the unevenness of a substrate and each identical height needle being mounted on the corresponding flat portion through an adhesive


Shear thickening compositions can function in an energy or communications transmission cable to provide enhanced protection against externally applied forces, e.g., cutting or puncture from a shovel. As a free or bound layer, or when used via impregnation into a substrate used for an internal component or wrap, the shear thickening composition provides protection against mechanical damage that far surpasses conventional technologies. In foamable compositions for cable components, the shear thickening composition provides enhanced integrity of the polymer melt for enhanced foam performance. As a flame retardant component, the shear thickening composition provides an enhanced char formation mechanism for superior flame retardance.

Energy and communication transmission cables are susceptible to damage by many different means, including puncture by shovels, trucks and other equipment, plus bullets, arrows, and other projectiles. Cables are designed to resist such damage using thick insulating plastic layers, metal armor layers, and the like. One design is double or multiple layering of insulating and/or protective coatings about a conductive element such as those taught in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,789,589, 5,841,072 and 7,105,749. Another design comprises polymer-coated metal shielding and armoring products such as ZETABON™ metallic armor products available from The Dow Chemical Company. One variation on this design is the replacement of the metal layer with a foamed polymer layer, e.g., a foamed polypropylene layer.
Still another design is the use of a buffer tube containing a thixotropic, water-blocking gel such as that taught in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,714,707, 6,496,629 and 5,505,773. Yet another design is the use of a grease composition as a cable filling material such as that taught in U.S. Pat. No. 5,433,872. These grease compositions comprise a polyol having a molecular weight of at least 4,000 and an agent, e.g., colloidal particles, that imparts thickening to the polyol. US Patent Application Publication 2004/0063812 A1 teaches a cable filling material that is a dispersion of microspheres and a gel comprising an oily base and an organic polymeric gelling agent.
As effective as these existing damage-resistant technologies are, more effective systems are desired. Repairing and/or replacing damaged cable is costly and time-intensive; the costs and inconveniences associated with the loss of use of a damaged cable can be substantial; and the human injuries and property loss that can be incurred from damaging a cable, e.g., a high-energy power cable, can be terrible. Consequently, the ability to incorporate into a cable design a free or bound material that shows extreme resistance to externally applied forces would be a considerable advance in the cable protection art.

Cable comprising a shear thickening composition

Union Carbide Chemials & Plastics Technology LLC


A technique for customizing purchase incentives, such as discount coupons and the like, based on whether a consumer buys a promoted item or a competitive item, and on the price of the promoted item relative to the competitive item. The system identifies promoted or competitive products in a consumer's order, and selects an incentive that is appropriate for the price differential between the promoted and competitive items, and for the purchase choice already made between the promoted and competitive items. a different incentive is provided for the different pricing and choice combinations, in an effort to maximize sales for the promoted item, and the different incentives are stored in an incentive matrix accessed by product purchased and by consumer profile as determined from whether the consumer bought the more expensive item, the less expensive item, or one of two equally priced items.

This invention relates generally to point-of-sale computer systems of the type used in retail stores to record sales transactions. More particularly, the invention relates to point-of-sale systems capable of generating discount coupons and similar purchase incentives. Discount coupons have long been used in the packaged goods industry to promote the sale of specific items to consumers. Many discount coupons are distributed by mail, or as inserts (known as free standing inserts) in newspapers and magazines. This method of distribution has the major drawback that it is not "targeted" to consumers most likely to use the discount coupons. Consequently, mass distribution of discount coupons results in a very low rate of redemption of the coupons. Most consumers simply ignore them or, if they use coupons at all, discard them because of lack of interest in the specifically promoted products.
A revolutionary change in techniques of discount coupon distribution began with the system described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,723,212 issued to Thomas L. Mindrum et al., entitled "Method and Apparatus for Dispensing Discount Coupons." In this system, coupons were generated and distributed in the retail store, based on the products purchased by the consumers. If a consumer purchased a "triggering" product that had been previously selected as part of a promotion, the consumer would receive a discount coupon upon paying for purchased items at a checkout stand. The coupon handed to the consumer typically provides for a discount on a competitive or complementary product when the customer returned to the store on a subsequent visit. Thus, in the system described in the Mindrum et al. patent, discount coupons generated in the store were distributed only to consumers who had been "targeted" because of their purchase of competitive or related products. U.S. Pat. No. 4,910,672 issued to George W. Off et al., having the same title, disclosed additional features of the system described in the Mindrum et al. patent.
Although the system described in the Mindrum et al. and Off et al. patents constituted a significant improvement in techniques for the generation and distribution of discount coupons, there were nevertheless a number of aspects of coupon distribution that these two prior patents did not address. Basically, the prior system uses only one condition for generation of a coupon: whether the consumer had presented a specific triggering item or items for purchase. The redemption rate for coupons distributed with use of the Mindrum et al. system has been much higher than redemption rates for conventionally distributed coupons. Many coupons still go unredeemed, however, for a variety of reasons. The consumer may be loyal to the brand of product that triggered the coupon; or the triggering product brand may be much lower in price than the discounted one; or the consumer may prefer the triggering brand over the discounted brand for some other reason unrelated to price or loyalty. A desirable goal in such systems is to maximize the redemption rate by more precisely "targeting" the consumers that receive coupons. The present invention accomplishes this goal.

Method and apparatus for generating purchase incentives based on price differentials


An electric cable assembly includes an electric cable having a cable jacket and one or more electrical wires extending through the cable jacket, the cable jacket defining one or more retention structures arranged at an outer surface of the cable jacket; and a sleeve adapted to connect to an electrical connector and surrounding the cable jacket in an area outside the electrical connector, the sleeve including one or more engagement structures engaged with the one or more retention structures, where the engagement of the one or more retention structures with the one or more engagement structures facilitates a retention of the sleeve with the cable jacket.

Strain relief or bending protection sleeves may be arranged over a cable to prevent damage to the cable in a transition region to an electrical connector housing. Generally, these sleeves are formed by molding the sleeve over the cable. However, the sleeve may not properly bond to the cable and may slide or rotate relative to the cable, limiting the sleeve's intended function, which is undesirable. In many cases, the sleeve may initially bond to the cable, but may later become at least partially detached through use.


A method for inspecting a display panel includes capturing images of a portion of a plurality of display panels having display elements with an image acquisition device having sensor elements, each image comprising an image of approximately a first number of display elements captured with approximately a second number of sensor elements, the first number different from the second number, each image including a Moiré artifact pattern, combining the images of the portion of the plurality of display panels to form a reference image including a Moiré artifact pattern reference, capturing a sample image of a portion of a sample display panel having display elements with the image acquisition device, the sample image comprising an image of approximately the first number of display elements on the sample display captured with approximately the second number of sensor elements, the sample image including a sample Moiré artifact pattern, combining the sample image with the reference image to inhibit the sample Moiré artifact pattern from the sample image, and to form a test image, determining defects in display elements in the portion of the sample display panel by inspecting the test image, and determining whether to reject the sample display panel in response to the defects in the display elements.

The present invention relates to automated inspection systems. More particularly, the present invention relates to methods and apparatus for inspecting portions of a substrate.
Automated visual inspection of substrates is jokingly said to be the technology of the "future." That is, visual inspection technology that is something that is achievable only in the future, and not today. There are many reasons why reliable visual inspection of substrates have not been achievable today. Some of the reasons include that the high resolution sensor arrays that are often required have not been economically viable, and that acquisition of images that only highlight defects is virtually impossible.
As one example, in the field of display inspection systems, the displays that are to be inspected often have a large number of display pixels, such as 1900×1200, 1600×1200 or the like. Further, for the high resolution displays described above, if such displays are conventional RGB-type displays, each pixel includes as many as three color sub-pixels. Accordingly, whereas the display may have a stated 1600×1200 resolution, the inventors have determined that the effective inspection resolution for such displays is even higher. For example, a 1600×1200 display will actually have a horizontal resolution of 4800 sub-pixels, giving an effective resolution of at least 4800×1200. Accordingly, acquiring images of such displays for inspection purposes requires high resolution cameras.
In contrast, high resolution commercially available CCD cameras typically have resolutions such as 1900×1200, 4096×4096 (4K×4K), and the like. In light of this, the inventors have determined that the use of lower resolution cameras have advantages over the use of higher resolution cameras for inspection of such substrates. For example, high resolution cameras often have special operational requirements that are not needed for cameras having lower resolutions (e.g. 1K×1K or 2K×2K). Furthermore, lower resolution cameras are typically much cheaper than higher resolution cameras. For example it is believed that a 2K×2K sensor camera will cost less than one quarter the cost of a 4K×4K camera.
To further compound the problem, current displays, such as liquid crystal displays, typically have thin black borders surrounding each sub pixel. It is believed in the industry that the thin black border surrounding sub-pixels helps improve the contrast ratio of such displays and helps hide slight mis-alignments between adjacent display sub-pixels. These black borders are typically much smaller in width and height than the display sub-pixels, e.g. they are less than one-tenth the width of a display sub-pixel. In other embodiments, the relative sizes may be different.
FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary display pixel to be inspected. As can be seen, one display pixel 600 is approximately square and currently range from 80 microns to 100 microns per side. As illustrated, display pixel 600 includes sub-pixels 610–630, typically representing red, green and blue display elements. These sub-pixels are separated by cell-walls that appear black on a display, hence the sub-pixels appear separated by thin black borders. For example, sub-pixels 610–630 are separated by cell-wall region 640–650 in FIG. 6. In this embodiment, the ratio of widths between a sub-pixel, such as sub-pixel 610 and a cell-wall region, such as 640 are approximately 10:1. A more detailed diagram illustrating the relationships between sub-pixels and cell-walls can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,754,678, assigned to the current assignee of the present patent application.
The inventors have determined that it is not necessary to inspect the thin black border surrounding such sub-pixels, but to only inspect the sub-pixels themselves. However, the inventors have learned that those thin black borders interfere with the inspection of the sub-pixels. More specifically, if two camera pixels capture each sub-pixel, as illustrated in FIG. 6, fulfilling the Nyquist sampling principle, there will still be aliasing during the capture of the thin black borders. As a result, the thin black borders will appear on a captured frame of the display as a Moiré artifact pattern. The inventors have discovered that this Moiré artifact pattern can be characterized as a low spatial frequency undulations or a "beat frequency" appearing horizontally and a typically different beat frequency appearing vertically on the image. The Moiré artifact, not considered a "defect" on the display, may also be quasi-repetitive.
Accordingly, when capturing images of a display for automatic inspection purposes, or the like, the inventors have discovered that this Moiré artifact on the captured image interferes with the inspection of the display. That is, one is unable to capture images of the display that highlight only true defects on the display such as bright pixels, dark pixels, and the like.
In light of the above, what is desired are methods and apparatus for capturing images of displays for inspection purposes without the drawbacks discussed above.


The present disclosure relates to an insertion piece for a camshaft phaser and the camshaft phaser. The insertion piece is configured to be partially inserted and mounted into a center hole of the rotor of the camshaft phaser. The insertion piece has a stepped cylindrical shape across its entirety and includes a first cylinder portion, a second cylinder portion, and a third cylinder portion, which are connected to each other and are coaxially arranged. The first cylinder portion extends along the axial direction; the second cylinder portion is located at one axial side of the first cylinder portion and extends along the axial direction; the third cylinder portion is located at one axial side of the second cylinder portion and extends along the axial direction; and a clamping connection portion for fixing the coil spring of the camshaft phaser is formed on the third cylinder portion.

A variable valve timing system is an important part for ensuring engine performance. Such a system can adjust the opening and closing of an engine valve as required so that the engine can reach an expected power output and have other properties. The variable valve timing system includes a camshaft phaser assembled together with a camshaft.
As shown in FIG. 1a, the camshaft phaser in the prior art includes a stator (not shown), a rotor 10, an end cover 20, a spring cover 30, a coil spring 40, a fixing pin 50, and an outer cover 60.
Specifically, the stator includes a cylindrical stator body and several stator protrusions protruding towards the inner radial side from the stator body.
As shown in FIG. 1b, the rotor 10 is arranged on the inner radial side of the stator and can rotate relative to the stator. The rotor 10 includes a cylindrical rotor body 101 and several rotor blades 102 protruding towards the outer radial side of the rotor body 101. The plurality of rotor blades 102 and the plurality of stator protrusions are alternately arranged circumferentially, so that each rotor blade 102 is located between two adjacent stator protrusions. In this way, a space between the adjacent two stator protrusions is divided into two mutually independent oil chambers by the rotor blade 102 located between the two stator protrusions.
A center hole 101h for mounting the central valve and a camshaft is formed in the rotor body 101. The center hole 101h runs through the rotor body 101 axially A, and as shown in FIG. 1c, the center hole 101h has a stepped structure formed by a first hole wall portion 101h1, a second hole wall portion 101h2, a third hole wall portion 101h3, and a fourth hole wall portion 101h4. As shown in FIG. 1b and FIG. 1c, the first hole wall portion 101h1 and the second hole wall portion 101h2, which have the same inner diameter, of the center hole 101h are formed by turning and spinning processing of a green body; and the third hole wall portion 101h3 protruding towards the inner radial side relative to the first hole wall portion 101h1 and the second hole wall portion 101h2 and the fourth hole wall portion 101h4 sunken towards the outer radial side of the first hole wall portion 101h1, and the second hole wall portion 101h2 of the center hole 101h are formed by hard turning processing.
The end cover 20 and the spring cover 30 are fixed on the stator from the two axial sides through fixing components so that the end cover 20 and the spring cover 30, together with the stator and the rotor 10, form the surrounding structure of the oil chambers. The coil spring 40 is fixed on the end cover 20; moreover, one end of the coil spring 40 is fixed on the end cover 20 and the other end of the coil spring 40 is fixed and mounted on the fixing pin 50 of the rotor body 101. The outer cover 60 slides over the stator from one axial side and is configured to fit together with the central valve.
Research by the inventor found that the camshaft phaser with the above structure has the following problems:
1. Since the stepped structure of the center hole 101h of the rotor body 101 of the rotor 10 needs to be formed by turning and spinning processing of the green body and hard turning processing, the rotor 10 is expensive, and since the center hole 101h is configured to be directly assembled on the central valve and the camshaft, the rotor 10 has a large axial width;2. The fixing pin 50 is mounted (fixed) on the rotor body 101 so that the other end of the coil spring 40 is fixed on the fixing pin 50, but the fixing pin 50 protrudes toward one axial side of the rotor body 101 much more than the rotor body 101 and is provided with a head, so mounting the fixing pin 50 requires a large space, and there may be interference between the fixing pin 50 and other parts; and3. The fixing pin 50 is configured to fix the spring, resulting in a complex structure and greater expense for the rotor 10.

Insertion piece for camshaft phaser and camshaft phaser


Enzymes derived from the isolated and substantially purified microorganisms of the present invention, designated herein as strains 52 and 56wt, are capable of hydrating nitriles such as 2-hydroxy-4-(methylthio)-butanenitrile (HMB-nitrile) to their corresponding amides, and further, of hydrolyzing amides such as 2-hydroxy-4-(methylthio)-butaneamide (HMB-amide) to their corresponding carboxylic acids. Advantageously, the nitrile hydratase of these strains is not substantially inhibited by the .alpha.-hydroxybutyramide product being formed; rather, this enzyme maintains the ability to hydrate an .alpha.-hydroxybutyronitrile to its corresponding amide even at high amide concentrations, including at saturating amide conditions. As such, enzymes derived from strains 52 and 56wt are particularly suited for commercial use in preparing agrichemical intermediates such as HMB-amide. HMB-amide may, in turn, be hydrolyzed through traditional or enzymatic conversion methods to form HMB-acid or salts thereof, which are useful as methionine substitutes in feeds for domestic animals.

The present invention generally relates to the preparation of .alpha.-hydroxyamides or .alpha.-hydroxy carboxylic acids from the corresponding .alpha.-hydroxynitriles, and specifically, to the preparation of these compounds via reactions catalyzed by microbial enzymes. The invention particularly relates, in a preferred embodiment, to the enzymatic conversion of 2-hydroxy-4-(methylthio)-butanenitrile to 2-hydroxy-4-(methylthio)-butaneamide, 2-hydroxy-4-(methylthio)-butanoic acid or salts thereof.
Traditionally, .alpha.-hydroxyamides have been prepared by hydrating the corresponding nitrile under very acidic conditions, and .alpha.-hydroxy acids have been prepared by acid hydrolysis of the corresponding nitrile through an .alpha.-hydroxyamide intermediate. Salts of .alpha.-hydroxy acids, including metal salts such as calcium salts, have been prepared from the .alpha.-hydroxy acid by contacting the acid with metal oxides, hydroxides or carbonates.
More recently, biological processes for preparing .alpha.-hydroxyamides and .alpha.-hydroxyacids have been developed. The processes disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,001,081 to Commeyras et al., in Japanese Patent Applications 4-40898 and 4-40899 and in PCT Application WO 96/09403 A1 are exemplary. However, the enzymatic conversion of .alpha.-hydroxynitriles to the corresponding amides and acids is reported as being inhibited at higher concentrations of nitrile substrate. European Patent Publication No. 0666320A2 reports that the observed nitrile inhibition is due to dissociation of the .alpha.-hydroxynitrile into its corresponding aldehyde, and suggests the use of phosphite or hypophosphite ions to complex with the aldehyde and prevent inhibition of the enzyme. Despite such suggestions, the reported processes have not been successful in enzymatically converting .alpha.-hydroxynitriles to the corresponding amides or acids at significant yields and at concentrations sufficiently high to be commercially attractive.

Enzymatic conversion of .alpha.-hydroxynitriles to the corresponding .alpha .


A home appliance includes a controlled assembly, a control module, and a signal converter. The control module is electrically connected to the controlled assembly, and the control module has a port for receiving an electrical signal. The control module controls the controlled assembly according to the electrical signal received through the port. The signal converter receives a wireless control signal, and converts the wireless control signal into the electrical signal to be transmitted to the port. The signal converter is selected from a plurality of signal converters which respectively convert signals of different types. While assembling, the signal converter is connected to the port, which makes the control module and the connected signal converter constitute a control device of the home appliance. Whereby, the inventory pressure of control devices can be reduced for manufacturers.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to controlling home appliances, and more particularly to a home appliance, a control device thereof, and a method of assembling the control device.
2. Description of Related Art
Remote-controllable home appliances can be controlled from a distance away from their located positions, which enhances convenience in modern people's daily life. The control device of a conventional home appliance includes a control circuit and a wireless signal receiving circuit fixedly connected to the control circuit, wherein the control circuit controls other controlled assemblies of the home appliance according to wireless control signals, which are sent from a remote control and received by the wireless signal receiving circuit. The controlled assemblies described herein are assemblies which can operate under control. For example, controlled assemblies in an air conditioner include a compressor, a fan, and other components.
Generally, one wireless signal receiving circuit only receives one type of wireless signals. In other words, if a wireless signal receiving circuit is designed for receiving radio frequency signals, it would not be capable of receiving other types of wireless signals, such as infrared, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi.
For a manufacturer of home appliances, the current way to deal with the various types of wireless signals is to also develop various types of control devices, and each type of control devices corresponds to one specific type of wireless signals respectively. While manufacturing home appliances on demand of clients, only those capable of receiving the required type of wireless signals will be selected; on the contrary, other types of control devices will be left unused. The inventory pressure of the manufacturer may be increased as a result, for some types of control devices may not be selected for quite a long of time.

Home appliance, control device thereof, and method of assembling the control device


A detecting device includes a device body having a containing chamber formed therein, a plurality of electrode members which are provided in the containing chamber in parallel to one another, a conductive movable body which is movably arranged in a space surrounded by the plurality of electrode members, and a magnet which generates a magnetic holding force for holding the conductive movable body. When an external force is applied to the device body, the conductive movable body is moved against the magnetic holding force of the magnet and is brought into electrical contact with at least two of the plurality of electrode members, thereby causing a detection signal corresponding to the electrical contact to be output.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a detecting device, a method for manufacturing the detecting device, and an electronic apparatus using the detecting device.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventionally, a detecting device using a piezo-electric element has been known for detecting acceleration. Such devices have been incorporated in small-sized portable equipment such as a wristwatch or the like.
For example, a conventional detecting device comprises a piezo-electric element attached to a circuit supporter in a wristwatch case, and a weight mounted to the surface of the piezo-electric element. In such a device, when an acceleration is given to the weight by suddenly moving the wristwatch case from the piezo-electric element side to the weight side or from the weight side to the piezo-electric element side, and by suddenly stopping the movement, the piezo-electric element is compressed by the energy of the weight to generate a voltage in the piezo-electric element, and the generated voltage is detected as a detection signal.
Another conventional detecting device comprises a piezo-electric element arranged at a lower end position in a containing chamber which is formed in a watch case, a magnet arranged at an upper position in the containing chamber, and a movable body which is attracted by the magnet and can also move in the containing chamber. In such a device, when an acceleration is given to the movable body by suddenly moving the wristwatch case upward or downward and by suddenly stopping the movement, the movable body is moved downward against the magnetic force of the magnet to contact and compress piezo-electric element, thereby causing the piezo-electric element to generate a voltage which is detected as a detection signal.
However, according to the above described conventional detecting devices, because a structure is required for generating a voltage by applying a pressure to the piezo-electric element, only one of accelerations in the upward and downward (vertical) direction and in the right and left (horizontal) direction can be detected. In such detecting devices, moreover, a control circuit is required for reforming the waveform of voltage supplied from the piezo-electric element, and the complexity and production cost are thus increased. Further, there is a problem in that the whole device requires a large size because a weight or a movable body having a large mass is required to sufficiently detect the waveform of the voltage supplied from the piezo-electric element.
Still further, in a conventional acceleration sensor, a conductive ball is ordinarily lifted up by the magnetic force of a magnet and is held at the upper limit position spaced upward from a pair of electrode pins. When the acceleration sensor is moved downward and thereafter suddenly stopped, or the acceleration sensor is moved upward suddenly, that is, when an upward acceleration is applied to the acceleration sensor, the conductive ball is moved downward to bring into contact with a pair of electrode pins against the magnetic force of the magnet by the inertial force thereof. Thereby, the pair of electrode pins are electrically connected with each other through the conductive ball to output an acceleration detection signal.
In order to manufacture an acceleration sensor having such a structure, generally, a magnet which was previously magnetized, and a conductive ball are put in an upper containing chamber and a lower containing chamber, of a part of a housing, respectively. When the part of the housing is combined with another part of the housing, the conductive ball is often sprung out of the lower containing chamber of the part of the housing by the magnetic attraction force of the magnet. In order to overcome this problem, a magnetic material which was not magnetized, and a conductive ball are put in an upper containing chamber and a lower containing chamber, of a part of a housing, respectively, and the part of the housing is combined with another part of the housing while a pair of electrode pins are incorporated in the device, and thereafter the magnetic material is magnetized by magnetizing the whole acceleration sensor.
In such a conventional acceleration sensor, because not only the magnet but also the conductive ball and the electrode pins are magnetized, it is preferable to carry out demagnetization for the conductive ball and the electrode pins. However, although it is possible to demagnetize the electrode pins but, it is not possible to demagnetize the conductive ball because the conductive ball can freely move in the lower containing chamber of the housing. Accordingly, there is a problem in that it is impossible to detect a delicate acceleration because the detection sensitivity depends on the traveling position of the conductive ball.
Further, there is another problem in that adjustment of the detection sensitivity cannot be easily performed because the magnet is contained in the blocked upper containing chamber.

Detecting device, method for manufacturing the detecting device and electronic apparatus using the detecting device


This technical disclosure is for a structurally self-contained, RF-shielded enclosure which is rapidly deployable due to it's ultra light weight and ease of assembly. Assembled by one person in one half hour, the enclosure becomes an RF-shielded, free standing room within an existing non-secure room or environment. Lightweight metallized fabric is sewn together with rugged tent fabric and ballistics cloth. Fiberglass rods are connected to aluminum sleeves and unions to configure the room. A bulkhead assembly penetrates the side wall and provides filtered power and electronic signal interfaces. Honeycomb air guides and an electric fan facilitate air exchange within the room.

The requirement for low-cost, portable and rapidly deployable shielded enclosures for temporary RF-secure electronic operations has long existed. During and immediately after fires, civil disturbances and natural disasters, the deployment or relocation of RF-secure electronic operations in a timely, efficient manner is often a critical part of the restoration to operational normalcy.
The objective of this invention relates to the use of shielded rooms or enclosures, shielded specifically against radio frequency interference. The invention addresses the aforementioned requirements for a cost-effective, ultralight, portable and rapidly deployable shielded enclosure for temporary, RF-secure electronic operations. The temporary requirement can exist because of the aforementioned emergency situations or, for a non-emergency, short-term requirement that does not warrant the expense of a permanent, shielded facility.
Although a handful of other devices are known, no other device meets the objectives of providing up to 60 decibels of attenuation across the preferred frequency range; and packaging as an ultralight portable, rapidly deployable, enclosure.

Portable tent assembly for use with a radio frequency shielded enclosure


A high frequency waveguide and methods relating to the design and use of the waveguide are described. The waveguide can include an acoustic input to receive an audio input signal from a high frequency driver, an acoustic output to broadcast sound, and a plurality of acoustic paths extending from the input to the output. A first path of acoustic paths is divided into two paths when a width of the first path is greater than ½ wavelength of a highest frequency at the input. In an example, each of the plurality of acoustic paths carries across all frequencies from the high frequency driver. In an example, the paths each have a first port receiving audio and a second port outputting audio, and the paths enlarge from the first port to the second port.

In general multi-way loudspeaker systems are well known. Typical examples of multi-way loudspeaker systems include two-way loudspeakers and three-way loudspeakers. Generally, multi-way loudspeaker systems include multiple transducers (generally referred to as "loudspeakers," "speakers," "sound drivers," or "drivers") that operate at different frequency ranges. As an example, typical two-way loudspeakers include a low-frequency transducer and a high-frequency transducer, while typical three-way loudspeakers include a low-frequency transducer, a mid-frequency transducer (generally known as "midrange transducer" and "midrange driver"), and a high-frequency transducer.
Enclosures and horns, such as those used with loudspeakers, are designed to control the radiating direction of sound. Sound radiating from sources, in the absence of an enclosure, may spread in uncontrolled directions.
Although there may be a need to change the angle of coverage of sound radiated from the loudspeaker, the shape of a horn and the loudspeaker enclosure fixes the sound coverage angle of a loudspeaker system. A user of a loudspeaker system may want to direct sound at an angle to reach an audience. Moreover, the user may want to direct the sound away from walls or architectural boundaries that cause wall reflections. The shape and design of the horn affects the sound reproduction from the loudspeaker. The horn should be design to evenly distribute the sound on a listening plane or curve and to reduce excess sound at undesired locations.

Harman International Industries, Incorporated


Data presented in a hierarchical format is rendered in a form allowing the data to be imported into a spreadsheet document where the data can be modified and new data can be added. A data file containing the hierarchically formatted data is selected for importing. A mapping relating a plurality of elements within the hierarchical data to a plurality of respective locations in the spreadsheet document is accessed. The hierarchical data is rendered in the spreadsheet document according to the mapping. Input is received to modify the hierarchical data rendered in the spreadsheet document. The mapping is updated to include the modifications to the hierarchical data. The modifications to the hierarchical data and the updated mapping are exported for subsequent rendering in a second spreadsheet document according to the updated mapping.

Computer software applications allow users to create a variety of documents for use in work, education and leisure. For example, a spreadsheet application allows users to store, manipulate, print and display a variety of alphanumeric data. A word processing application allows users to create letters, articles, books, memoranda, and the like. Such applications have a number of well-known strengths, including rich editing, formatting and calculation.
To keep up with demands for more advanced functionality for such computer software applications, software developers have begun to use structured data formats, including markup languages such as eXtensible Markup Language (XML), to allow users to annotate a software application document to give the document a useful structure apart from the normal functionality of the software application responsible for creating the document or the visible formatting associated with the document. For example, the user may wish to create using her spreadsheet application a template document for preparation of a purchase order to be used in her company's sales department. By applying structure to the document, purchasers or other institutions or persons receiving the document may make use of the structure by processing the document to utilize data defined by the document structure.
Some software applications, such as word processing applications, allow users to annotate a document with XML elements so that the user may define certain data types and data definitions for data inserted into the document. A resume document, for example, may include an "experience" section in which the user will include present and past work experience. Using XML, the user may desire to markup the "experience" section of the document to define that certain allowable information in a prescribed order and in a prescribed number may be included in the "experience" section of the document. For example, the user may wish to markup the experience section of the document to allow four present or past experience items.
Unfortunately, prior art spreadsheet applications allow very limited use of XML data. Bulk XML data may be imported where the user points to an XML file and the spreadsheet application imports that file into the spreadsheet grid. But, the user gets no control over how the data is laid out or which data is imported because all of the data is imported. Under prior spreadsheet applications, manual coding of XML data to a spreadsheet application may be required in which a programmer writes their own custom code for handling import and/or export of XML data. This code may be in the form of an XSLT transformation file, or it may be a more traditional programming language like VBA or C++. Such custom programming is time consuming, expensive and is difficult to apply generally to spreadsheet documents.
Prior spreadsheet applications do not establish a relationship between the XML data and the spreadsheet grid. A relationship between the XML data and the grid allows the user to have a custom view of the XML data. For example, if a user only wants elements <a>, <b>, and <e> to show up in the grid, and to skip elements <c> and <d>, that preference needs to be stored somewhere. Furthermore, if the user wants element <b> to be displayed first and show up in column A, followed by elements <a> and <e> in columns B and C, that preference needs to be stored as well. If the user wants the data to begin appearing in row 6 rather than at the top of the grid sheet, that preference will need to be stored as well. Because prior spreadsheet applications allow no custom control over how the data is imported and displayed, there is nothing for the spreadsheet application to remember about the data. Accordingly, no relationship, between the spreadsheet and the XML data is established.
Accordingly there is a need in the art for methods and systems that allow users to import and/or export XML data to and from spreadsheet grids. There is further a need for methods and systems for that allow spreadsheet documents to exchange data with other XML-enabled applications whether or not the other applications understand the programming or functionality of the spreadsheet application. There is further a need for methods and systems that allow users to build custom spreadsheet application views of XML data so that they may readily view, analyze, edit, and produce XML data. There is further a need for methods and systems that allow programmers to write programs that interact directly with XML data in a spreadsheet grid using an XML context.
It is with respect to these and other considerations that the present invention has been made.

Importing and exporting markup language data in a spreadsheet application document


This disclosure describes identifying key frames from a sequence of video frames. A first set of information generated by operating on uncompressed data is accessed. A second set of information generated by compressing the data is also accessed. The first and second sets of information are used to identify key frames from the video frames.

1. Field
Embodiments of the present invention pertain to the processing of video data.
2. Background
Universal media access (UMA) is expected to be important in the next generation of multimedia (e.g., video and audio) applications and devices. A fundamental concept of UMA is universal or seamless access to multimedia content, with the content being automatically selected and/or adapted for use on a user's device following the user's interaction with the device.
Mobile phones, for example, can be used to retrieve, view and transmit multimedia content. However, while the capabilities of mobile phones continue to increase, such devices are still somewhat limited relative to more powerful platforms such as personal computers. Data transmission and retrieval rates may also be a factor. The amount of video data is usually more of a consideration than the amount of audio data.
A video summarization technique can be used to generate a still-image storyboard that summarizes a sequence of video frames. The storyboard is composed of a relatively small number of representative frames—also referred to as key frames—extracted from an underlying video sequence that is composed of a much larger number of frames. Video summarization techniques can be important for UMA because they can be used to summarize video content for easier retrieval and transmission. That is, because key frames represent a much smaller amount of data in comparison to an entire video sequence, key frames can be more readily distributed and shared between limited-capability devices such as mobile phones.
There are a variety of different video summarization techniques in use. However, each of these conventional techniques is problematic in one or more ways. In general, one problem with conventional techniques is that they are complex and can consume a significant amount of computational resources in order to process the large volume of video data. Attempts to limit complexity often mean that information that may result in a better selection of key frames is not considered.
Accordingly, a method and/or system that can improve key frame selection, without overwhelming computational resources, would be advantages. Embodiments described herein provide these and other advantages.


A genetically engineered bacteria cell having an enhanced activity of GlnD or GlnK, and a method of producing succinic acid by using the genetically engineered bacteria cell are provided.

1. Field
The present disclosure relates to genetically engineered bacteria cells having an enhanced activity of GlnD or GlnK, and methods of producing succinic acid by using the genetically engineered bacteria cells.
2. Description of the Related Art
Corynebacterium genus microorganisms as a class of gram-negative strains are widely in use for the production of amino acids such as glutamate, lysine, and threonine. Corynebacterium glutamicum is advantageous for use as an industrial strain due to simple growth conditions, a stable genome structure, and no environmental damage. Corynebacterium glutamicum is an aerobic bacterium, which stops metabolic processes except for basal metabolic process for energy generation when its oxygen supply is interrupted or under oxygen-deficient conditions thereby resulting in the production of lactic acid, acetic acid, succinic acid, and the like for energy generation.
Tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle is a metabolic pathway to generate energy and intermediate metabolites in biological species. The intermediate metabolites of the TCA cycles are used to synthesize useful chemical materials via other metabolic processes. Succinic acid is dicarboxylic acid used as a source material for biodegradable polymers, medicines, and cosmetics. Most industrially available succinic acids are synthesized from n-butane and acetylate originating from crude oil or liquefied natural gas. Only a small amount of succinic acid for use in special purposes such as for medicines or foods is produced via fermentation using microorganisms.
In general, chemical synthetic processes may require depletable fossil sources as basic materials and produce a large quantity of harmful byproducts. Therefore, there is a need for microorganisms capable of efficiently producing succinic acid, even by conventional methods, or a method of producing such microorganisms to overcome the significant drawbacks of conventional chemical synthetic processes.

Genetically engineered bacterial cell having enhanced activity of GlnD or GlnK and method of producing organic acid by using the same


A resin composition comprising a 2-(1-arylalkylidene) acetic ester and at least one resin selected from a methyl methacrylate resin, a styrene resin and a methyl methacrylate-styrene copolymer resin is provided, wherein the acetic ester is contained in the composition in an amount of from about 0.0005 part by weight to about 0.1 part by weight with respect to 100 parts by weight of the resin. The resin composition is improved in durability without deteriorating the excellent properties of the resin, such as being colorless and transparent.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a resin composition and a molded article thereof.
2. Related Art
Methyl methacrylate resin is useful as a colorless and transparent thermoplastic resin. A methyl methacrylate resin composition containing an ultraviolet absorbent has been known for improving durability of methyl methacrylate resin. For example, reference JETI, Vol. 46, No. 5 (published in 1998; pp. 116 to 121) discloses a methyl methacrylate resin composition and a styrene resin composition, each containing a salicylate-based ultraviolet absorbent, a cyanoacrylate-based ultraviolet absorbent or a benzotriazole-based ultraviolet absorbent as an ultraviolet absorbent.

Resin composition and molded article thereof


A radio communication transmitter apparatus 20 is operable to transmit multiple radio frequency bands in a telecommunication system. The apparatus comprises a plurality of digital transmitter chains 211 to 21N, wherein each digital transmitter chain is coupled to receive a digital representation 271 to 27N of a respective base band signal for processing by a respective digital transmitter chain. Each digital transmitter chain 211 to 21N comprises a digital transmitter 251 to 25N that is adapted to convert a respective digital base band signal directly into a digital representation of a radio frequency signal 231 to 23N. A digital combining unit 25 is coupled to receive the output of each digital transmitter chain 211 to 21N, and adapted to combine the digital representation of a radio frequency signal 231 to 23N received from each digital transmitter chain 211 to 21N into a digital representation of a radio frequency signal 26 comprising multiple radio frequency bands. A digital to analogue converter 27 is coupled to receive the digital representation of a radio frequency signal 26 comprising multiple radio frequency bands, and adapted to convert the digital representation of a radio frequency signal 26 into an analogue radio frequency signal 28 comprising multiple radio frequency bands.

For many years the deployment of telecommunication systems, for different standards and many frequency bands, has been realized to a large extent by placing radio base stations (RBS) in cellular networks covering large areas. An important link in a traditional radio base station architecture is between the active parts of the system (that is the digital and analog components of the system) to the passive parts (such as the filters and antennas). This high-power analog radio-frequency (RF) link is critical in the sense that it sometimes requires long cables of high quality and large dimensions, in order keep the unavoidable signal quality losses and power losses to a minimum. Such links suffer from the disadvantage of having high costs.
There has been a recent change to integrate the power amplifier and other RF blocks more closely with the physical antenna in order to avoid this critical link, and has resulted in what is termed an integrated antenna unit (IAU). The introduction of an IAU implies a change from RF feeders into a high-speed digital interface between a digital processing unit (DPU) and the IAU.
In order to implement a base station today with two or more frequency bands, several complete transmitters are combined on the analogue side after a transmission filter.
Thus, when implementing transmitters for multiple frequency bands, two or more transmitters are implemented in the analogue domain, one transmitter for each frequency band.
FIG. 1 shows a known dual band transmitter having two digital transmitters 1101, 1102 for handling first and second frequency bands, the digital transmitters feeding first and second digital pre-distortion units (DPDs) 1111, 1112. The output of each DPD 1111, 1112 is converted into an analogue signal by a respective one of first and second digital to analogue converters 1121, 1122. A separate analogue up-converter 1131, 1132 is provided for converting each analogue baseband signal into a respective analogue RF signal. Each analogue up-converter 1131, 1132 is controlled by a respective tunable local oscillator 1141, 1142. The outputs from the first and second analogue up-converters 1131, 1132 are combined in an analogue combiner 115, before being fed to a power amplifier 116 (which feeds an antenna or antenna array, not shown). It will be appreciated that the transmitter shown in FIG. 1 is bulky, since it comprises multiple DPDs 1111, 1112, multiple DACs 1121, 1122 and multiple analogue up-converters 1131, 1132.
Furthermore, since tuneable local oscillators 1141, 1142 are required per transmitter chain, these have the disadvantage in that each requires tuning control, additional space and increased power consumption.
FIG. 1 also shows a feedback path for feeding a dual-band DPD processing unit 117. The feedback path comprises an analogue splitter 118, which feeds first and second analogue down-converters 1191, 1192, which in turn feed first and second transmitter observation receivers (TORs) 1201, 1202. The outputs from the first and second TORs 1201, 1202 are used for controlling the DPDs 1111, 1112. The transmitter shown in FIG. 1 is therefore bulky because it also requires multiple analogue down-converters 1191, 1192 and multiple TORs 1201, 1202. Further, the multiple analogue down-converters 1191, 1192 in the TOR chain also require separate tuneable local oscillators.
It can be seen from the above that the conventional technology has a disadvantage in that the multi band transmitters become bulky, particularly as more and more frequency bands are introduced, and have low energy efficiency and increased manufacturing cost due to the fact that several complete RF transmitters or several transmitter components in the analogue domain are used to implement the multi band transmitters.

Radio communication transmitter apparatus and method


A plurality of communication conference sessions coupled to one another such that when a communication right is requested, a check is made to ascertain whether the communication right has already been allotted to subscribers in a different, coupled communication conference session. In such a case, the communication right is denied, and otherwise, the communication right is granted.

In the context of a telecommunication conference, for example in a telecommunication conference in the context of a push-to-talk-over-cellular communication system (PoC communication system), for a PoC user who has logged on to a plurality of POC sessions simultaneously and plays an important part in each of them (for example a construction company manager who has a respective PoC session with each construction site), it is often desirable to prevent the PoC user from missing any voice message in the plurality of PoC sessions.

Method for allocating a communication right, communication conference session server and communication conference session server arrangement


A holder for a vacuum blood collecting container in which commercially available blood collecting needles can be engaged and disengaged easily and certainly, a pair of needle mounting and supporting members are arranged to be displaced relatively to have a mutual engaging position where the blood collecting needle is retained and a separated position where the blood collecting needle is released.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a holder for a vacuum blood collecting container, having a needle mounting portion provided at its one end for supporting a blood collecting needle and a portion at the other end for receiving a vacuum blood collecting container when a blood collection is carried out.
2. Prior Art
Conventionally, various types of holders are known as such kind of vacuum blood correcting container holder. Generally, a conventional holder has one end portion which is integrally formed with a needle mounting and supporting portion. The needle mounting and supporting portion engages with a male screw disposed in the outer periphery of a hub mounted in the intermediary section of a blood collecting needle, one end of which pierces through the vein of the blood examinee and the other end is inserted into the blood collecting container. (For example, refer to Japanese Patent Publication No. 7-32766).
According to such kind of vacuum blood collecting container holder, a blood collecting needle to be used is screw engaged with the needle mounting and supporting portion provided at one end of the holder, and after blood collection the blood collecting needle is rotated to be disengaged from the holder so as to be disposed of, while the vacuum blood collecting container holder is ready to be used for subsequent blood collection. Thus, to secure prevention of infection or contagion and safety, the blood collecting needle is disposed of after use, but the holder is repeatedly used.
In such screw engaging type of vacuum blood collecting holders any specific problem does not occur even if the blood collector directly touches the blood collecting needle since the needle is used for the first time when it is mounted. However, when the needle is disengaged after blood collection, not only there arises a risk for the blood collector of touching the needle adhered with blood but also it is necessary to rotate the blood collecting needle to disengage from screwing thereby taking specific time and work for operation. On the other hand, since the blood collecting needle employed under vacuum system is mounted normally with a cap the engagement and disengagement of the blood collecting needle with and from the holder must be effected in the state where the cap is mounted. Such kind of blood collecting container holder is excellent from the viewpoint of safety when mounting, but unless re-capped after blood collection it may be impossible or hard to separate the needle, so that it needs a specific work for the engaging and disengaging operation.
By the way, what is required for such kind of blood collecting equipment is to previously prevent infection or contagion caused by accidental pricking of the blood collecting needle, which pricking may occur in blood collecting or examining work whereby human and economic loss are reduced. However, as mentioned above, in known blood collecting devices it takes time and requires specific labor to engage or disengage the blood collecting needle, and further a danger of accidental pricking of the needle to the needle operator is involved there thereby requiring an improvement.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a holder for a vacuum blood collecting container in which it is possible to easily remove, after blood collection by vacuum blood collecting tubes or containers, the blood collecting needle from the holder, it is capable of mounting and supporting the blood collecting needle steadily and safely, and the manufacturing cost is low.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a holder for a vacuum blood collecting container in which known blood collecting needles are usable as they are.

Holder for vacuum blood collecting container

3-6-1003, Nishikasai 6-chome, Edogawa-ku