An airbag module includes an airbag holder, which has a base body and a projection on a peripheral surface of the base body extending around this in full or with the exception of at least one interruption, and an airbag which has an airbag mouth whose peripheral contour is smaller than a peripheral contour enclosing the projection and the base body and which is held at the airbag holder in an end position in which the airbag mouth encloses the base body and thereby engages behind the projection at a first side of the projection.

Airbags are provided in many motor vehicles in order to protect the occupants of the motor vehicle in the event of a collision of the motor vehicle with an obstacle from striking objects in the passenger compartment or boundaries of the passenger compartment without cushioning.
For this purpose, a conventional airbag has an airbag module which includes a gas generator and an airbag having an opening called an airbag mouth. In the event of a collision, the gas of the gas generator is led through the airbag mouth into the airbag, whereby the airbag is inflated and unfolded.
In this connection, the airbag is held at an airbag holder of the airbag module, for example at a housing or at a base body of the airbag module so that it cannot release from the airbag module on the supply of the gas of the gas generator and the unfolding caused thereby. A plurality of attachment elements such as bolts or screws are used for the attaching of the airbag mouth.
This kind of attachment, however, has the disadvantage that the number of required installation steps on the attaching of the airbag to the airbag holder also increases with the number of the attachment elements and results in a high production effort.

Airbag module and a method for the attaching of an airbag to an airbag holder


A probe for use in an alternating current magnetic force microscopy (MFM) system is located on the free end of a cantilever in the MFM system. The probe has a pair of magnetic poles that form part of a magnetic yoke and a patterned electrically conductive coil wound through the yoke. The probe includes a probe tip that has a magnetic surface layer that is magnetically coupled to one of the poles and extends from it. When alternating current from the MFM system is passed through the probe coil the magnetization direction of the probe tip correspondingly alternates. The interaction of these alternating magnetic fields from the probe tip with the magnetic fields emanating from the sample whose magnetic fields are to be measured causes the cantilever to deflect between two extreme positions. The probe can be formed from a portion of a disk drive air-bearing slider with a patterned thin film inductive write head on its trailing end by growing the probe tip from the slider's air-bearing surface so as to be in contact with the gap and one of the poles of the write head. The probe can also be part of an integrated single-piece structure that includes the cantilever, probe body and probe tip which are formed using conventional thin film deposition and lithographic processes.

Magnetic force microscopy (MFM) is a development of the noncontact surface analysis type of atomic force microscopy (AFM). MFM is well established as a technique for determining the magnetic fields emanating from thin films, such as magnetic recording media. In an MFM system, a sharp magnetic tip is mounted on a cantilever force sensor which is placed over the surface of the magnetic specimen while the specimen is scanned by a conventional XYZ scanning stage. The magnetic forces that act on the tip from the sample cause a static deflection of the cantilever. These forces are monitored, typically by use of a laser detection system wherein the deflection of the cantilever causes a displacement of a reflected laser light beam. MFM using a magnetized iron tip is described by Martin et al., "High-resolution Magnetic Imaging of Domains in TbFe by Force Microscopy", Appl. Phys. Lett., Vol. 52, No. 3, Jan. 18, 1988, pp. 244-246. The use of silicon tips coated with a film of magnetic material, such as NiFe or CoPtCr, in MFM is described by Grutter et al., "Magnetic Force Microscopy with Batch-fabricated Force Sensors", J. Appl. Phys., Vol. 69, No. 8, Apr. 15, 1991, pp. 5883-5885.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,436,448, a modification of this type of conventional static MFM system is shown and described in FIG. 7 of the patent. In this modified MFM system, a coil is wrapped around the cantilever having a magnetic tip on its end. Alternating current (AC) is passed through the coil which causes the magnetization of the tip to switch directions. The magnetic force data obtained with one polarity and those obtained with the other polarity are subtracted from each other to improve the resolution of the MFM system. The disadvantages of this AC-MFM system are that the magnetic field from the coil cannot be concentrated at the tip because of its physical distance from the tip, and the stray magnetic fields from the coil interact with the magnetic fields from the sample.
What is needed is an improved AC-MFM probe and AC-MFM system wherein the magnetic field can be concentrated at the probe tip and the magnetic field can be alternated at the probe tip to improve the resolution of the MFM system without stray fields from the coil affecting the magnetic sample.

Magnetic force microscopy probe with integrated coil

International Business Machines Corporation


A vehicle includes both a transmission park mechanism and an electronic parking brake. As a failure management strategy, a controller monitors vehicle movement to verify that the park mechanism is successfully restraining the vehicle against movement. Specifically, when the driver releases the brake pedal with the transmission park mechanism commanded to restrain the vehicle, the controller waits for a predetermined amount of time. If the vehicle moves during this time, the controller commands application of the electronic parking brake. The controller may also command application of the electronic parking brake if the vehicle does not come to a stop after the transmission park mechanism is commanded to restrain the vehicle.

Drivers of passenger cars equipped with an automatic transmission typically control the operation of transmission via a control device. The transmission control device is used to select several ranges, such as Park, wherein the transmission is locked to prevent the vehicle from moving, Neutral, wherein the transmission allows the vehicle to be moved freely, such as when being towed, Reverse, wherein the transmission allows the vehicle to move backwards, and one or more Drive ranges that enable forward motion of the vehicle. Usually, the transmission control device is in the form of a lever connected mechanically, such as via a cable, to the transmission. Typically, the lever is also mechanically connected to an indicator. The mechanical connection between the control device and the transmission is not impacted by whether or not the engine is running or whether electronic components in the vehicle are powered.
In a shift-by-wire transmission arrangement, the mechanical connection between the transmission control device and the transmission is eliminated. Instead, the transmission control device is configured to transmit an electrical signal to an electronic controller. The controller electronically directs actuators to provide the transmission behavior associated with the selected range. The actuators may be motors that rotate when provided with electrical current, solenoids that regulate a hydraulic pressure in response to changes in an electrical current, or other devices that respond to electrical current or voltage. The gear shift module is not necessarily in the form of a lever because the control device is no longer moving a mechanical connection for controlling the transmission. Instead, the control device may be an electro-mechanical interface (e.g., a series of buttons, lever or knob) that is used to instruct the transmission to switch between transmission ranges.
When the Park range is selected, the transmission output shaft is held against rotation to prevent vehicle movement. The Park range may remain selected for long periods of time during which the operator typically leaves the vehicle unattended. During these periods, the engine and most electrical components are off. Therefore, the Park function of preventing vehicle movement must be maintained independent of the state of the engine or the vehicle electrical system.

Shift-by-wire vehicle and method to verify securement


An embodiment of an apparatus useful for up-righting a wind turbine pillar at an offshore installation location includes a barge having first and second towers and an open area therebetween and which extends downwardly to the offshore installation location. At least two pulling lines extend from the towers to the pillar and are useful to assist in moving the pillar into a generally up-right orientation between the towers and lowering the pillar downwardly through the open area to the offshore installation location.

The present invention involves apparatus, systems and methods for erecting wind turbine assemblies at offshore locations.
The use of offshore wind turbines is becoming an increasingly feasible and desirable form of power generation. In implementing the concept of windmills, the larger the turbine rotor, the more power generated. Thus, massive structures are being contemplated and built.
Some of the challenges associated with this technology involve the installation of huge wind turbine structures at offshore locations. Currently available seagoing vessels and techniques are not believed not to be well-suited or cost effective for handling and installing these structures. For example, current technology would require the use of a very heavy and long stick-lift vessel or multiple lifting/loading vessels. For another example, lifting a fully assembled turbine assembly with existing technology would place unacceptable levels stress on the turbine nacelle. If installed separately with existing techniques, the turbine rotor and nacelle would necessarily be installed at heights unfamiliar in the offshore industry.
It should be noted that the above-described concerns are only examples and may vary depending upon the situation. Moreover, there may be other or different concerns. Merely by mentioning the above concerns, it is not intended that each claim of this patent be limited to address or exclude each such concern. Accordingly, none of the appended claims should be limited in any way by the above discussion, or construed to address or exclude the cited concerns, except and only to the extent as may be expressly stated in a particular claim.
There remains a need for apparatus, systems and methods having one or more of the following attributes, capabilities or features: solves problems associated with installing offshore wind turbines caused by existing methods and apparatus; provides for installation of a fully or partially assembled offshore wind turbine without the need for performing a dual lift, utilizing a very heavy and long stick-lift vessel, placing undue stress on the turbine nacelle during lifting (necessitating the need for spreader bars, etc.), or any combination thereof; eliminates the need for a specialized derrick barge for lifting and installing offshore wind turbines; significantly reduces installation time of offshore wind turbines; uses a pin-assisted up-righting method rather than a conventional lift; prevents out-of-plane loading and excessive stress on components during up-righting; allows the use of a single simple barge for performing foundation installation, turbine transport, erection and final fit-out including weld out, electrical installation and installation of ancillaries, repair, maintenance and removal of wind turbines, or any combination thereof; saves significant expense associated with up-righting offshore wind turbines; provides a simple and cost effective apparatus, system and method for offshore up-righting of wind turbines; provides effective offshore wind turbine installation with the use of existing equipment and/or removable components; or any combination thereof.

Apparatus, systems and methods for erecting an offshore wind turbine assembly


A computer-aided design tool generates a layout for a passive device, such as a resistor or a capacitor, to be incorporated into an integrated circuit. The layout is based on a model describing the passive device as being formed by a variable number of interconnected instances of a device unit, such as a resistor segment or a capacitor block. User-supplied Input parameter values control the number of instances of the device unit included in the passive device layout, the relative positions of the device unit instances, and characteristics of their internal layouts. The tool also generates a display of a representation of the passive device layout and provides a graphical interface enabling the user to modify various aspects of the passive device layout by altering its displayed representation.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates in general to systems for generating layouts for integrated circuit devices and in particular to a layout system having a graphical user interface enabling a user to create and modify passive devices within an IC layout.
2. Description of Related Art
A typical integrated circuit includes a semiconductor substrate doped in a desired pattern and several layers of insulating and conductive material sequentially formed above the substrate, each layer having a particular pattern of filled and empty areas. The doping patterns in the substrate and the layer patterns define structures of IC devices such as gates, transistors and passive devices (inductors, capacitors and resistors), along with the conductive networks ("nets") that interconnect the IC devices.
An IC designer typically produces an IC design in the form of a hardware description language (HDL) netlist, a computer file describing the IC at a relatively high level of abstraction, for example using Boolean expressions to describe IC logic. The designer then uses a syntheses tool to convert the HDL level netlist into a gate level netlist describing the IC as being formed by a set of interconnected instances of cells described by a cell library. Each cell is an IC component, such as for example a transistor, a gate or a higher-level component such as a memory, arithmetic logic unit, or central processing unit. The cell library includes an entry for each cell describing the internal layout of the cell including the substrate doping pattern and the layer patterns above the substrate needed to form the cell. After creating the gate level netlist, the designer employs computer-aided placement and routing (P&R) tools to generate an IC layout indicating the position of each cell instance with the layout and the routing of the nets between the cell instance terminals. The cell library provides the data defining the internal layout of each cell instance.
An IC designer normally does not have to directly specify the IC's doping and layer patterns except in cases where the IC is to include a component not described in a cell library. In such cases the IC designer can use a graphics program to draw the pattern for each layer forming the component. Designers often create passive devices such as resistors, capacitors and inductors this way. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1 a resistor 10 can be nothing more than a rectangular section of a layer of resistive material 11 such as polysilicon with contacts 12 linking opposite ends of that rectangular section through vias 14 to nets formed on conductive layers above. The resistance of resistor 10 is a function of the length, width, thickness and resistivity of the material between its contacts 12. Although the thickness and resistivity of material 11 are fixed, an IC designer can control the resistance of the resistor by choosing its length and width. A designer can also modify the shape of a resistor as necessary to make it fit in some confined area of the layout. For example FIG. 2 shows a U-shaped resistor 16 that can have the same resistance as the straight resistor 10 of FIG. 1. An IC designer can form a capacitor from adjacent areas of two conductive layers separated by a dielectric layer, with the capacitance being a function of the shape and area of the conductive layers, and of the thickness and dielectric constant of the dielectric layer. A designer can form an inductor, for example, as a spiral of conductive material formed in one or more conductive layers of an IC.
Manually generating a layout for a passive component can be tedious and time-consuming, but automated layout systems allow a designer to write a macro procedure that can generate a passive device layout automatically. As illustrated in FIG. 3, a designer typically supplies various parameters defining characteristics of a passive device to the user-written macro procedures 20 on a graphical user interface (GUI) form 22, and the macro procedure then generates the passive device layout 24. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 4, data provided from the designer via a GUI form 26 specifies the resistor width (4.0 microns), the resistor value (200 Ohms) and the number (4) of resistor segments. When the designer presses the "Create" button 27, the macro procedure will generate an appropriately sized, 4-segment resistor 28.
Referring to FIG. 5, if the designer thereafter wishes to convert the 4-segment resistor 28 into a 2-segment resistor, the designer first selects resistor 28 in the layout so that the system will display GUI form 26 indicating its values. The designer then uses the form to alter the resistor value and number of segments, and the macro procedure then redraws the resistor as a two-segment resistor 29.
Since a passive device such as a resistor, capacitor or inductor can be of any of an infinite variety of shapes, they can be manually designed to fit into a wide variety of available spaces within an IC layout. But one difficulty with the prior art approach to automatically generate passive device layouts is that it requires the designer co write a separate macro procedure for each kind of shape. For example one, two, and four segment resistors require different macro procedures, though the procedures may allow for variation in dimensions. If the designer wants the layout tool to automatically generate a resistor having some shape for which a procedure is not available, the designer must create a new macro procedure for doing so, and that can be more time consuming that manually laying out the device. Thus it is often impractical for a designer to use automated procedures for creating passive device layouts when the space available for the passive device within an IC requires it to be of an unusual shape.
Various prior patents discuss method for automatically generating layouts for active device cells such as, for example, transistors and gates. U.S. Pat. No. 5,394,338 issued Feb. 28, 1995 to Shinohara et al describes a method of generating cell layouts for an IC based on models of the cells in which various dimensions of the cell are controlled by adjustable parameters.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,321,367 issued Nov. 20, 2001 describes a method for automatically generating a custom device layout including a step of specifying a device type and an associated set of device parameters. The device type is then matched to a selected cell in a cell library. Physical layout regions of the selected cell are then selectively modified in accordance with the device parameters. The physical layout regions may also be selectively modified in accordance with technology design rules in a design rule library. The physical layout regions of the selected cell are then drawn.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,457,163, issued Sep. 24, 2002 to Yang et al describes a method for generating an manipulating an IC layout for a multiple-gate semiconductor device, wherein the layout is comprised of a plurality of gate glue-blocks interconnected by a plurality of active-layer glue-blocks, working shapes of the gate glue-blocks are initially created according to user-defined gate glue-block parameters. Thereafter, working shapes of the active-layer glue-blocks are created in accordance with the working shapes of adjacent ones of the gate glue-blocks, in which the distances among the working shapes exceed minimum geometrical distances as defined by relevant design rules of an applied fabrication technology.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,804,809 issued Oct. 12, 2004 to West et al describes a method for creating a layout of a semiconductor device including first providing a plurality of partial-area layout cells and then generating the layout of the semiconductor device by placing the plurality of the partial-area layout cells together. The layout can be conveniently expanded to a desirable size by replicating or repeating certain repeatable cells.
What is needed is an IC layout system that can automatically generate passive devices layouts of a wide variety of shapes and other characteristics based on user input and which allows the user to easily adjust the layouts so that they fit within a variety of available spaces within an IC layout.

Unit-based layout system for passive IC devices


Provided is a method of controlling voltage levels of overall outputs in a combinational mode, in an ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus that may operate in the combinational mode. A judging unit of the ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus may judge whether at least a part of individual modes included in the combinational mode exceeds a threshold determined by safety standards, in accordance with an inputted overall output voltage level control command. When it is judged that at least the part of the individual modes exceeds the threshold determined by the safety standards, an output control unit may maintain an individual output with respect to the at least the part, among the voltage levels that may be outputted from a transducer, to be below the threshold, so that the individual output may be below the standards in accordance with the overall output control command.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus, and more particularly, to a method of effectively controlling an acoustic output of the ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus by setting an individual output in a combinational mode that may provide at least two pulser output signals in accordance with safety standards, such as a mechanical index (MI), a thermal index (TI), and the like, which may be determined by international regulatory standards, for example National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
An ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus is an apparatus for transmitting, from the surface of a body of an object, an ultrasonic wave signal toward a predetermined structure inside the body, and for obtaining an image with respect to a cross section of soft tissues or a blood flow using information of the ultrasonic wave signal reflected from the tissues of the body.
This ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus has advantages of a small size, a low cost, a real-time display, and a high stability without exposing patients and users to X-ray radiation and the like, and thus, the ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus is widely used along with other diagnostic imaging systems such as an X-ray diagnosis equipment, a computerized tomography (CT) scanner, a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) equipment, a nuclear medicine diagnosis equipment, and the like.
Generally, an acoustic output of an ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus is limited and determined by international standards, for example, a mechanical index (MI). Here, the MI corresponds to an index that may quantize effects of mechanical factors, which an ultrasonic wave may have, on a human body. As another example of the international standards, there also exists a thermal index (TI). As is commonly known, the international permissible standards for the MI and the TI may correspond to an MI of less than 1.9 and a TI of less than 6.0.
The ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus may diagnose an object more precisely by increasing a transmission voltage of a pulser and consequently an acoustic output. When the transmission voltage is increased, quality of an image may become higher. However, a problem may occur in that values of items of the safety standards such as the MI, the TI, and the like may proportionally increase.
The high values of the items may indicate that the ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus may have a greater effect on the human body, and accordingly the use of the corresponding ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus may be limited by the international standards when the values are greater than a predetermined level.
The ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus may operate in several modes, such as a brightness (B) mode, a power Doppler (pD) mode, and the like, and may also operate in combinational modes, such as a B+pD mode or a B+pD+CD mode according to a choice of a user. The CD mode may refer to a color Doppler mode.
In the combinational modes, pulses having at least two levels of voltage outputs may be outputted, and the outputted voltage may be needed to be controlled so that an individual voltage output may be within international regulatory standards.

Ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus and method of controlling output of ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus


An interlayer insulation film for multilayer interconnect of a semiconductor integrated circuit is formed by forming a first insulation film on a substrate by plasma CVD using a silicon-containing hydrocarbon gas; and continuously forming a second insulation film on the first insulation film at a thickness less than the first insulation film in situ by plasma CVD using a silicon-containing hydrocarbon gas and an oxidizing gas. The second insulation film has a hardness of 6 GPa or higher and is used as a polishing stop layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an interlayer insulation film used for multilayer interconnect of a semiconductor integrated circuit and a method of manufacturing the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to a polishing stopper film used for Cu multilayer interconnects and a method of manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Aiming at faster semiconductor integrated circuits with more sophisticated features, miniaturization of the integrated circuits has been advanced. In the past, Al had been used as a material for multilayer interconnects of semiconductor integrated circuits. As wiring has become microscopic and long-distance, however, disconnection troubles which are caused by electromigration arising from increased current density, and signal delays which are caused by electrical resistivity of Al and a dielectric constant of an insulation film, have become issues.
It is Cu that has been brought to attention as a next-generation material for multilayer interconnects. Cu is tolerant to disconnection troubles and its electrical resistivity is smaller than Al. In 1997, a technology called Dual-Damascene was developed by IBM and Motorola. In the past, after wiring was formed by etching an AI film convexly, an interlayer was filled with an insulation film. As against it, in the Dual-Damascene interconnect technology, after a flat interlayer insulation film is trench-etched according to an interconnect pattern and a Cu thin film is electroplated/deposited on the entire surface, the electroplated/deposited Cu is polished by the Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP) so that interconnects are formed with the Cu remaining only in a trench portion (for example, "Next-generation ULSI Process Technology", Realize Co./Tokyo, Feb. 29, 2000, pp.558–565).
In this Damascene interconnect technology, application of a low dielectric constant insulation film is essential. As low-k insulation films, an inorganic SOG film deposited by a spin coat process, an a-C:F film deposited by a plasma CVD method using CxFyHz as a source gas, or a SixCyOz film deposited by a plasma CVD method using silicon-containing hydrocarbon as a source gas, etc. are known.

Interlayer insulation film used for multilayer interconnect of semiconductor integrated circuit and method of manufacturing the same


A downhole tool may include a high-voltage power supply disposed within a housing to transform input power to the downhole tool from a first voltage to a second voltage greater than the first voltage. The high-voltage power supply may include an array of capacitors, which may include multiple rows of capacitors. The rows of capacitors may be parallel with a symmetric cross section as viewed from an end of the array of capacitors. The high-voltage power supply may also include diodes electrically coupled to the array of capacitors.

This disclosure relates generally to systems and methods for a compact high-voltage power supply, for example, as used in a nuclear or photonic radiation generator in downhole tools. Furthermore, although discussed herein in the context of downhole tools, the systems and methods of this disclosure may be applicable in any suitable high-voltage power supply.
This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present techniques, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as an admission of any kind.
Producing hydrocarbons from a wellbore drilled into a geological formation is a remarkably complex endeavor. In many cases, decisions involved in hydrocarbon exploration and production may be informed by measurements from downhole well-logging tools that are conveyed into the wellbore. The tools may be used to infer properties and characteristics of the geological formation surrounding the wellbore and, thus, make informed decisions. Some such tools may include a radiation generator, to irradiate the wellbore with nuclear radiation, and sensors to make inferences from the wellbore's response to the radiation.
Generally, an electrically operated radiation generator, such as an x-ray generator, a gamma ray generator, or a neutron generator, may generate radiation using electrical power. The emitted radiation that results may facilitate determining characteristics of the surrounding environment (e.g., the formation). Thus, radiation generators may be used in various contexts, such as for material analysis in a downhole tool or in a laboratory. A high-voltage power supply may provide electrical power that is converted to high energy radiation the radiation generator. Given the size limitations of downhole tools, the high-voltage power supply and radiation generator may be packaged in a relatively small housing. However, placing high-voltage components, such as high-voltage multiplier ladder components, in close proximity to each other and/or to relative ground may lead to high electric field stresses and/or electrical complications.

Compact high-voltage power supply systems and methods


A regression analysis is carried out (8) using pixel signals having a K-th spectral characteristic as the explanatory variable and pixel signals having an L-th spectral characteristic as the purpose variable in a plurality of pixel positions in an area neighboring a pixel of interest to obtain a pixel signal having the L-th spectral characteristic (9). Pixel signals obtained by low-pass filtering (7a-7c) of the output signals of an imaging device may be used as the explanatory variable and the purpose variable. The occurrence of false colors is thereby reduced when, in a group of pixel signals from pixels arrayed on a two-dimensional plane, each pixel having one of a plurality of spectral characteristics, the missing colors at each pixel position are obtained by interpolation.

In conventional imaging apparatus having imaging elements with a Bayer array of color filters of the three primary colors red, green, and blue, to increase the sense of resolution, the output signal of each pixel is replaced with a mean value based on the local distribution of output signals for each color, thereby employing an interpolation method based on an assumed linear similarity between the known color geometry and the missing color geometry, as shown, for example, in Patent Document 1 below.    Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2000-197512 (paragraphs 0048 to 0049, FIG. 7.)

Pixel signal processing apparatus and pixel signal processing method


Method and apparatus providing a wafer level fabrication of imager modules in which a permanent carrier protects imager devices on an imager wafer and is used to support a lens wafer.

Microelectronic imagers are used in digital cameras, wireless devices with picture-taking capabilities, and many other applications. Mobile phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs), for example, are incorporating microelectronic imagers for capturing and sending pictures. The growth rate of microelectronic imagers has been steadily increasing as they become smaller and produce better images with higher resolution.
Microelectronic imagers include image sensors that typically use charged coupled device (CCD) systems or complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) systems, as well as other systems. CCD image sensors have been widely used in digital cameras and other applications. CMOS image sensors are also quickly becoming very popular because they have low production costs, high yields, and small sizes.
As shown in FIG. 1, microelectronic imager modules 150 are often fabricated at a wafer level. The imager module 150 includes an imager die 108, which includes an imager array 106 and associated circuits. The imager array 106 may be a CCD or CMOS imager array, or any other type of solid state imager array. The imager module 150 also includes a lens stack 112, which includes at least one lens element 111 with at least one corresponding lens carrier 110. The lens carrier 110 maintains the lens element 111 at a proper distance from the imager array 106, such that a desired amount of light striking a convex side of the lens element 111 is directed through an aperture to the imager array 106. The lens carrier 110 may be bonded to the imager die 108 by a bonding material 104 such as epoxy. Typically, the lens element 111 comprises an optically transmissive glass or plastic material configured to focus light radiation onto imager array 106. In addition, the lens structure 112 can include multiple lenses, or may be combined with another optically transmissive element, such as a package lid. The fabrication of one imager module and associated lens support structure is discussed in co-owned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/605,131, filed on Nov. 28, 2006 and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/073,998, filed on Mar. 12, 2008, which are hereby incorporated by reference.
One consideration in the manufacture of image modules of the type illustrated in FIG. 1 is the process by which the lens carrier 110 is attached to the imager dies 108. Wafer level packaging (WLP) is a preferred method of packaging semiconductor components because it produces smaller form factors, higher output and lower cost devices. Thus, although FIG. 1 shows one imager module 150, in practice, image die 108 is part of a larger imager wafer containing many such dies, and the lens carrier 110 and lens element 111 are part of a larger lens wafer containing many such lens carriers 10 and lens elements 111. The lens carrier wafer and imager die wafer are bonded together to form many imager modules 150 that are then separated by a dicing operation. However, using wafer level processes to produce imager modules 150 is challenging.
One consideration in the fabrication of image sensor semiconductor components is how to protect against damage to the imager array 106 and associated integrated circuits within dies 108. Another consideration is how to fabricate and connect lens elements, and associated lens carrier structures to a wafer containing imager dies. It is necessary for the lens elements and the associated carrier structures to protect the integrated circuits, and to provide desired optical characteristics as well. It is also advantageous for the lens elements and the associated carrier structures to be capable of providing electrical paths for the integrated circuit with a die. It would also be advantageous to provide structures and/or associated carrier structures which would reduce the influence of electromagnetic interference (EMI) and electro static discharge (ESD) on circuit operations. Additionally, it would be advantageous to eliminate a shear or other debond process which occurs during fabrication when a temporary carrier wafer is used and needs to be separated from another wafer to which it is attached during certain processing operations.

Method and apparatus providing an imager module with a permanent carrier


The present invention provides a solar cell and a method for manufacturing the same, the solar cell including a first electrode formed on a substrate, a nanocrystal layer including a plurality of nanocrystals formed on the first electrode so as to contact the first electrode, a hole transport layer formed on the first electrode so as to cover the plurality of nanocrystals, a photoactive layer formed on the hole transport layer, and a second electrode formed on the photoactive layer.

Solar cells are photoelectric conversion elements for converting sun light into electric energy. Unlike other energy sources, solar cells are inexhaustible and environment-friendly and thus have become increasingly important over time. Typically, single crystalline or polycrystalline silicon solar cells are widely used as solar cells. However, there are problems in that silicon solar cells require a great manufacturing cost and may not be applied to flexible substrates, etc.
Recently, to solve the problems of silicon solar cells, research on organic solar cells is being actively carried out. An organic solar cell has a basic structure in which an organic photoactive layer is formed between first and second electrodes which are spaced apart from each other. Korean Patent application Laid-open Publication No. 10-2010-0106779 discloses an example of this organic solar cell. Organic solar cells can be manufactured through a method such as spin coating, inkjet printing, roll coating or a doctor blade method. Thus, organic solar cells have merits of a simple manufacturing process and low manufacturing costs, and have merits in that a wide area can be coated, a thin film can be formed at a low temperature, and almost all kinds of substrates such as a glass substrate or a plastic substrate can be used. Also, organic solar cells can be manufactured in various shapes such as a plastic molding articles, curved surfaces or spherical surfaces without being limited in shapes of substrates. Using these merits, organic solar cells are convenient to use by being attached to clothes, bags, or the like, of people, or by being attached to a portable electronics products. In addition, polymer blend thin films have high light transparency and thereby provide an outside view by being attached to glass windows of buildings or cars, and are also capable of producing electricity, and thus have a much broader application range than opaque silicon solar cells.
In organic solar cells, light incident through a transparent electrode (ITO) is absorbed into electron donors inside a bulk hetero junction photoactive layer which is formed of electron donors and electron acceptors. Here, excitons each of which is a pair of an electron and a hole are formed, and separation occurs at the interfaces of the electron donors and electron acceptors. Separated electrons and holes respectively move to a negative electrode and a positive electrode, and an exciton and hole blocking layer is formed to prevent excitons and holes from moving to the negative electrode. Also, after forming an interface layer which functions to inject electrons and to lower an energy band, the negative electrode is formed. In typical organic solar cells, most of incident light is absorbed by electron donors, but there is a limitation in that only approximately 60% of the incident light can be absorbed, and thus an increase in a light absorption rate is demanded. Thus, irrespective of various merits, organic solar cells are not suitable to be applied to an actual application due to low photoelectric conversion efficiency caused by a low absorption rate.

Solar cell and manufacturing method therefor


A dual wavelength pumping system and method have been developed to improve the efficiency of laser systems operating in the raid infrared region has been developed, in a conventional system the ions are excited from a ground state to an upper lasing state using a light pump. They then undergo a laser transition to leave the ion in a long lived post lasing excited state from which it eventually decays back to the ground state. In contrast they present system uses a first light pump to pump ions from the ground state to the post lasing state, and a second light pump to pump ions from the post lasing state to the upper lasing state. This system thus exploits the long lifetime of the post lasing state to enable it to become a virtual ground state for the second laser allowing continued cycling of ions between the upper lasing state and the post lasing state. A system using an Erbium, doped fiber generated a 3.5 μm laser output with an average power of over 250 mW and an initial slope, efficiency of 25.4% (previous system have only generates less than 10 mW of power with efficiencies of 3%).

The mid-infrared (2-16 μm) part of the electromagnetic spectrum offers significant opportunities for exciting scientific breakthroughs and technological advances because it is a key enabler of new advanced sensing technologies. However, the lack of bright sources of mid-infrared radiation has limited the exploitation of this part of the electromagnetic spectrum. The unfavourable laser dynamics of rare earth doped laser sources that operate in this part of the spectrum often make them inefficient, resulting in low output powers for practical use.
Virtually all mid-infrared laser transitions occur between energy levels that are located well above the ground state. FIG. 1A shows a schematic energy level diagram 10′ of a prior art single wavelength pumping system for generating mid-infrared laser radiation. In standard operation the ions are excited from the ground state 1 to the upper laser level 3 using a near infrared, or visible light pump source 4. An ion in the excited upper laser level 3 then undergoes a laser transition 5 emitting a laser photon and leaving the ion in a long lived post lasing excited state 2. After some delay the ion decays back to the ground state 6 releasing waste energy in the process. Once an ion returns to the ground state it can again be re-excited 8 back to the upper lasing state 3 by pump 4. The cyclic nature of this process is illustrated by dotted line 7 which links the excitation phase to the lasing transition and decay to ground state phase, and dotted line 8, which links this phase back to the excitation phase.
Whilst this single wavelength pumping approach can be used to directly excite the laser ions from the ground state 1, the long lifetime of ions in the long lived post lasing excited state 2 causes serious bottlenecks of ions building up in this state. For example, in rare earth doped fibre lasers, this long lived post lasing excited state 2 can have lifetimes of hundreds of microseconds or several milliseconds (or more). This build up or bottle neck of ions in the long lived post lasing excited state 2 results in termination of the lasing process due to failure to maintain the required population inversion between the upper state 3 and long lived post lasing excited state 2, and thus limits the available lasing power of such systems. The long lived post lasing state can seriously limit laser performance even if it is not the lower lasing state because ions that collect here are not returned promptly to the ground state to absorb the pump light leading to reduced excitation rate to the upper lasing state and poorer efficiency. Further, the direct excitation approach results in poor optical efficiency and significant waste heat energy as the ions return 6 to the ground state 1 from the long lived post lasing excited state 2.
FIG. 2A is a schematic energy level diagram 11 of an erbium doped ZBLAN fibre illustrating a pumping arrangement (P) using a 655 nm DCM dye laser to excite ions from the 4I15/2 ground state to the 4F9/2 state, or energy level (the terms state and energy level will be used interchangeably). A lasing transition (L) from the 4F9/2 level to the 4I9/2 level generates a 3.5 μm laser output. This system resulted in an 8 mW output with a slope efficiency of less than 3% at room temperature. Once the lasing transition has occurred the ions rapidly decay from the 4I9/2 levels and bottleneck in the 4I11/2 and 4I13/2 levels that have long lifetimes of ˜6.5 ms and ˜8.5 ms respectively. This prevents the ground state from being replenished which reduces pump radiation absorption and the repopulation of the upper lasing level, 4F9/2 resulting in very poor laser slope efficiency.
Several approaches have been attempted to address the significant problem of ions building up in long lived post lasing excited states of the medium, and thus improve the efficiency of laser systems operating in the mid infrared region. These have sought to deplete the population of ions in the long lived excited state by a promoting or inducing a beneficial up-conversion process in which an ion in the long lived state is promoted to a higher state such as by stimulation with a further pump or by co-doping the medium with other rare earth ions. Up-conversion has been shown to work for specific laser transitions with particular dopants but adversely affects the efficiency of other transitions because of reductions in the lifetime of upper lasing state. Co-dopants can also be used to reduce the bottlenecks in the system but do not in general improve the Stokes efficiency of the laser.
There is thus a need to develop pumping systems and methods to improve the efficiency of laser systems operating in the mid infrared region, or at least to provide users with a useful alternative to existing laser systems.

Dual wavelength pumped laser system and method


Disclosed herein is a coaxial cable interface port locking terminator including an outer terminator housing and an inner connector body housed within the outer terminator housing. The coaxial cable interface port locking terminator further includes a ratcheting device in operable communication with the outer terminator housing and the inner connector body, the ratcheting device preventing rotation of the outer terminator housing with respect to the inner connector body when the outer terminator housing is rotated in the first direction, the ratcheting device including at least one separate component from the outer terminator housing and the inner connector body. Furthermore, rotation of the outer terminator housing in a second direction does not cause rotation of the inner connector body in the second direction.

Coaxial cable systems are often organized so that there is a central cable line connected to a tap assembly. The tap assembly has an outer housing and several ports for use in distributing signals to the individual subscribers through a drop line that connects the cable signal from the tap to the subscriber's home. The tap assemblies assist in providing multiple signals to multiple subscribers in the same geographic region. However, the tap assemblies may have more ports than subscribers, thereby leaving some ports unused and open. Termination of these unused and open ports is often desirable because an open port may affect the quality of the signal being transmitted to the other subscribers. Termination also helps to eliminate spurious electrical signals from entering an open port. Furthermore, open ports may allow for the unauthorized use of the cable signals by those who do not subscribe to the cable service (i.e. cable theft). To prevent these problems, locking terminators are often utilized. These terminators require a specialized tool not available to the general public in order to both apply and remove the terminator to the port.
Accordingly, an improved coaxial cable port locking terminator, and method of use thereof, would be well received in the art.

Coaxial cable port locking terminator and method of use thereof


A self-expiring badge or label that includes an upper substrate having an upper surface and a lower surface and an adhesive activator layer on the lower surface. A protective layer having a first surface and a second surface is provided, with the first surface of the protective layer being removably attached to and overlaying the adhesive layer. A lower substrate is provided that has an upper surface and a lower surface, the upper surface being removably attached to and overlaying the second surface of the protective layer. A migrating ink pattern is on the lower surface of the lower substrate. To activate, the upper substrate and at least a portion of the lower substrate are removed from the protective layer to leave a remaining portion of the lower substrate having the migrating ink pattern thereon. The migrating ink pattern is then contacted with the exposed adhesive activator layer to activate the migrating ink pattern to migrate through the adhesive activator layer and upper substrate in a selected time interval for viewing from the upper surface of the upper support layer to indicate an expired badge or label. Preferably the migrating ink pattern is contacted with the adhesive layer by folding it onto the adhesive layer. Optionally, to activate the badge both substrates are completely removed from the protective layer and the migrating ink pattern is contacted with the adhesive layer.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a one piece self expiring security badge, label, ticket and pass. More particularly, this invention is directed to a one-piece self-expiring security badge or label that is thin and flexible wherein the badges or labels can easily pass through a laser or thermal printer, and can be easily stored in a roller form.
2. Related Art
Self-expiring security badges or labels have as their core technology a chemical color-changing process that can be easily activated at a specific time. Security badges are only one of the many applications for such technology. Generally, such products are useful because the color changing process is easily activated and after a predetermined period of time has passed and the color changing process is completed, they cannot be used again. Such products have found wide acceptance due primarily to their 'ease of use'. Such technologies are described in the prior art Haas, Holt and Pedicano patents listed herein and are incorporated herein by reference.
Generally, such color changing process is activated by overlaying and adhesively bonding two substrates to each other. Prior to activation the substrates are kept separate. Typically, the top or exposed substrate is an adhesive label and the bottom substrate has a migrating ink or dye on or within its face. When bonded together, the adhesive from the top label dissolves the dye in the migrating ink, causing it to bleed (diffuse) 'through' the top label at a controlled rate. After a predetermined period of time, the dye-colored image is displayed through the front of the top material and can be seen by those viewing the badge or label. Such badge or label is thus expired, i.e., "self expired" and cannot be used again.
Generally, such known self-expiring badges and labels are initially in two separate pieces, i.e., the top adhesive label and bottom dye or ink containing substrate, and are assembled at the time of issuance, i.e., activation. Because the two substrates are dry materials, they have very long shelf-lives, making these products very commercially practical. However, where there is a high volume of badges or labels issued by, for example, receptionists and security guards the two part construction proves to be inconvenient and labor intensive. There is a need for a simpler badge or label that requires less labor to activate.
Several preassembled constructions have been developed, see for example U.S. Pat. No. 5,107,470 to Pedicano et al. In this type constructions, the top substrate and bottom substrate are joined together with a paper liner interleaved between the adhesive on the top substrate and the bottom substrate containing the migrating ink. When the security badge is issued, the issuer separates the two parts by lifting the top substrate and pealing away the interleaving paper liner from the top substrate. This exposes the adhesive underlying the top substrate so that when the two parts are pressed together the top substrate adhesively bonds to the bottom substrate activating the color changing process, i.e., dissolving the migrating ink. This preassembled construction is simpler and more convenient to use, i.e., it is "user friendly." Such preassembled badges or labels also minimize one of the primary weaknesses of the two part constructions which is the failure of a receptionist or security guard to activate the product when it is issued. This is a common occurrence with badges or labels that come in two separate parts, generally because the receptionist or security guard is untrained or careless in distributing and activating such badges or labels.
However, such preassembled badges or labels as exemplified by Pedicano, have several technical problems. First, such preassembled security badges or labels as well as the two piece badges or labels each have a waste liner that needs to be removed and disposed of. If, for example, there are a large number of visitors to a facility, such waste liners can be a substantial nuisance and housekeeping problem, particularly if not disposed of properly. The liners typically have a silicone coating on one side, are slippery and collect static electricity, causing collection problems. Second, such preassembled badges or labels are stiff and rigid because they are constructed from multiple ply layers. For example, a two piece pre-activated badge or label has a top adhesive substrate with three layers, a face stock layer, an adhesive layer and a liner, while the preassembled construction badge or label consists of five layers: a face stock, an adhesive layer, a removable liner barrier, a bottom-substrate face stock, and a bottom-substrate liner. In order to store such badges or labels, they need to be fan folded. Fan folded badges or labels typically lays in stacks about 2-3 inches high and are folded every two or three badges or labels. This requires that the stacks of badges or labels be outside the computer printer and occupy substantial desk space. Since most security badges are issued from a small receptionist desk in the lobby where surface area is at a premium, it is important to employ security badge printers and badge supplies that have as small a footprint as possible. If the fan folded badges or labels were folded every four badges or labels, they stack of badges or labels would be 12 inches long, protruding from the rear of the thermal printer. This is inconvenient and impractical.
The applicant is aware of the following prior art (US patents):
3,520,124 to Myers4,408,557 to Bradley et al4,903,254 to Haas5,058,088 to Haas et al5,446,705 to Haas et al5,602,804 to Haas5,633,835 to Haas et al5,633,836 to Langer et al5,667,303 to Arens5,699,326 Haas et al5,715,215 to Haas et al5,719,828 to Haas et al5,822,280 to Haas5,930,206 to Haas et al5,974,003 to Pedicano et al6,270,122 to Shadle6,295,252 to Holt et al6,452,873 to Holt et al6,641,691 to Shadle et al6,741,523 to Bommarito6,752,430 to Holt et al6,916,130 to Holt et al

One piece self-expiring security badge or label


The present invention provides a bicontinuous microemulsion composition, including: (A) polyglycerin group-containing organo(poly)siloxane shown by the general formula (1):

Transparent microemulsion compositions composed of surfactant, oil, and water take on three types of form of water-continuous form, oil-continuous form, and bicontinuous form (NON-PATENT LITERATURE 1). Among them, the bicontinuous microemulsion compositions give cosmetics with improved functionality and pleasant to use, and large number of methods to obtain the composition have been reported.
They include, for example, compositions used for cleansing agents or cleaning agents of skin or hair (PATENT LITERATURES 1 to 7). In any of these compositions, however, a component of water-soluble alcohols is essential. In PATENT LITERATURE 5, hydrophilic surfactant and oleophilic surfactant are essential. In PATENT LITERATURES 7, 8, and 9, amphoteric surfactant and anionic surfactant are essential.
Although compositions in which water-soluble alcohol is unnecessary are described in PATENT LITERATURES 10 and 11, the former has an opaque appearance, and the latter is a composition with the water content of less than 5%, which has to be mixed so as to have a ratio of the composition:water of 4:6 when it is used.
They are reported to be applied as a sunblock composition other than the cleaning agent (PATENT LITERATURE 12). In bicontinuous microemulsion compositions, larger amount of surfactant is used than in the conventional oil-in-water type emulsion or water-in-oil type emulsion. Accordingly, use of silicone type surfactant is preferable in order to maintain light feeling when it is used as a cosmetic. PATENT LITERATURE 12 illustrates polyether modified silicone and polyglycerin modified silicone as an example of usable nonionic surfactant, but the specific structure is not suggested therein nor described in Examples.
The organopolysiloxane that contains a polyglycerin group (polyglycerin modified silicone) is disclosed in PATENT LITERATURES 13 to 19. However, any of them are used as surfactant to obtain water-in-oil type emulsion or oil-in-water type emulsion. These documents do not suggest the structure and composition required to obtain bicontinuous microemulsion.

Bicontinuous microemulsion composition and cosmetic

Abstract: wherein R1 represents an alkyl group or a phenyl group, R2 represents a group having a polyglycerin structure shown by the formula (2) or the formula (3), R3 represents R1 or R2, “a” is 0 to 6, “b” is 0 to 4, a+b is 0 to 10, and at least one of R3 is R2 when “b” is 0:

Abstract: wherein R4 represents an alkylene group or an aralkylene group, “c” is 0 to 10, and “d” is 2 to 6; (B) silicone oil having a viscosity of 20 mm2/s or less at 25° C., volatile hydrocarbon oil, or ester oil; and (C) water. This provide a transparent bicontinuous microemulsion composition in which anionic or cationic surfactant, and water-soluble monovalent or polyvalent alcohol are unnecessary; and a cosmetic with excellent pleasantness of use.


A multi-viewer autostereoscopic display system having a viewing field across which the system is capable of steering exit pupils, in each of which a viewer is capable of viewing an image for a selected eye. The system comprises an image forming device for generating an image by selective attenuation of radiation, an array of optical elements for projecting radiation towards the image forming device, and an array of radiation output positions for outputting radiation into the array of optical elements. Sets of radiation output positions respectively extend over a horizontal width associated with an optical element and have selectable positions such that an exit pupil is formed in a selected part of the viewing field. Each set of radiation output positions has an associated aperture for limiting the horizontal extent of the light projected from the radiation output positions. The apertures have a horizontal extent which is less than the horizontal width of the associated set of radiation output positions.

Prior art 3D displays have been described in a large variety of publications, including "New Autostereoscopic Display System", Ezra, Woodgate, Omar, Holliman, Harrold and Shapiro (1995), SPE Proceedings "Stereoscopic Displays and Virtual Reality Systems II" Vol. 2409, pp 31–40; "Retroreflective Screens and their Application to Autostereoscopic Displays" Harman, SPIE Proceedings "Stereoscopic Displays and Virtual Reality Systems IV", Vol. 3012, pp 145–153; "Stereoscopic Display Employing Head-position Tracking using Large Format Lenses", Hattori, (1993), SPIE Proceedings "Stereoscopic Displays and Applications IV" Vol. 1915, pp 2–5; "Three-Dimensional Display with Focused Light Array" Kajiki, Yoshikawa, and Honda (1996), SPIE Proceedings "Practical Holography X" Vol. 2652 pp 106–116; "Perfect 3-Dimensional Movies and Stereoscopic Movies on TV—and Projection Screens; An Appraisement", Klein and Dultz (1990), SPIE Proceedings "Stereoscopic Displays and Applications" Vol. 1256, pp 289–295; "Stereoscopic Liquid Crystal Display II (Practical Application)", Nishida, Hattori, Sakuma, Katayama, Omori and Fukyo (1994), SPIE Proceedings "Stereoscopic Displays and Virtual Reality Systems", Vol. 2177, pp 150–155; "Lenticular Stereoscopic Display System with Eye-Position Tracking and without Special-Equipment Needs", Omura, Tetsutani and Kishino (1994), SID 94 Digest, pp 187–190; "Head-Tracking Stereo Display: Experiments and Applications", Paley (1992), SPIE Proceedings "Stereoscopic Displays And Applications III", Vol. 1669, p88; "Head Tracking Stereoscopic Display", Schwartz (1985), Proceedings of IEEE International Display Research Conference, pp 141–144; "Parallax Barrier Display Systems" Sexton (1992), IEE Colloquium "Stereoscopic Television" Digest No: 1992/173, pp 5/1–5/5; U.S. Pat. No. 5,712,732; "3D-TV Projection Display System with Head Tracking", Tetsutani, Ichinose and Ishibashi (1989), Japan Display '89, pp 56–59; "A Study on a Stereoscopic Display System Employing Eye-position Tracking for Multi-viewers", Tetsutani, Omura and Kishino (1994), SPIE Proceedings "Stereoscopic Displays and Virtual Reality Systems", Vol. 2177, pp 135–142; "Autostereoscopic Display using Holographic Optical Elements", Trayner and Orr (1996), SPIE Proceedings "Stereoscopic Displays and Applications VII", Vol. 2653, pp 65–74; "Developments in Autostereoscopic Displays using Holographic Optical Elements", Trayner and Orr (1997), SPIE Proceedings; and "Observer Tracking Autostereoscopic 3D Display Systems", Woodgate, Ezra, Harrold, Holliman, Jones and Moseley (1997), SPIE Proceedings "Stereoscopic Displays and Virtual Reality Systems IV", Vol. 3012, pp 187–198.
3D displays have been used in a variety of niche applications for many years, and as the quality of the display systems has improved, so too has the range of applications. Broadcast television is probably the largest potential application, however the requirements of a television system are complex and few, if any, existing display systems can meet these requirements.
There are various desirable requirements for a display suitable for a broadcast television system. It would be desirable to provide a display that can present stereo images to several viewers who will occupy a typical 'living room' sized region. Such a system is more complex than those intended for single viewers proposed, for example, for computer monitor or arcade game applications.
The overall size of the display should preferably not be excessive, as is the case with some systems, for instance those where there is a moving pair of projectors for each viewer. A basic requirement for a domestic television display is that it will fit through a door. The size of the proposed display will be in the order of that of current back-projected televisions.
Some prior art autostereoscopic displays operate by providing regions in front of the screen where a left image only is seen across the complete width of the screen, and adjacent regions where a right image only is seen. These regions are referred to as the exit pupils. The positions of these exit pupils follow the viewers' eye positions by being controlled by the output of a head position tracker that determines where the viewers' eyes are located in front of the screen. The advantage of head tracking is it ensures nothing is displayed that is not actually seen by a viewer, thus placing the least demands on the amount of information that has to be displayed.
Referring to FIG. 1, in principle, an exit pupil could be formed with a large lens 9 located close to the LCD display, with an illumination source 8 positioned behind it. Consider an eye located at the exit pupil 10 in FIG. 1(a); in this position it will observe illumination over the complete area of the lens. When away from the pupil, the eye will see either no illumination or illumination over part of the lens only.
However, this would be an impracticably large configuration for a display. In FIG. 1(b) it can be seen that the single large lens can be replaced by an array of lenses 12 each with its own small light source 11. The sources 11 all lie in one plane. In this case, the exit pupil 13 is formed from a bundle of approximately parallel rays from array 12 as opposed to the continuously converging rays from lens 9.
Prior art systems which use an array of cylindrical lenses for producing vertical exit pupils have drawbacks when used in a 3D display. Firstly, off-axis aberrations limit the off-axis performance so that the display would not provide exit pupils over a region sufficiently wide for multiple-user applications. Secondly, it is difficult to make the boundaries between the lenses invisible.


Method for igniting a fuel/air mixture in a cyclically operating internal combustion engine comprising combustion chambers which are delimited by walls that are at ground potential, using an ignition device comprising an ignition electrode provided in each combustion chamber, in which method, via an electrical DC/AC converter, an electric oscillating circuit is excited, which is connected to the secondary side of the DC/AC converter, and in which the ignition electrode, which is guided through one of the walls delimiting the combustion chamber in a manner in which it is electrically insulated from said walls by an insulator and extends into the combustion chamber, constitutes a capacitance in cooperation with the walls of the combustion chamber that are at ground potential, and in which the excitation of the oscillating circuit is controlled so a corona discharge igniting the fuel/air mixture is created in each combustion chamber at the ignition electrode.

The invention is directed to a method having the features indicated in the preamble of claim 1. Such a method is known from WO 2010/011838 A1.
Document WO 2004/063560 A1 discloses how a fuel/air mixture can be ignited in a combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine by a corona discharge created in the combustion chamber. For this purpose an ignition electrode is guided through one of the walls, that are at ground potential, of the combustion chamber in an electrically insulated manner and extends into the combustion chamber, preferably opposite a reciprocating piston provided in the combustion chamber. In cooperation with the walls of the combustion chamber that are at ground potential and function as counterelectrode the ignition electrode constitutes a capacitance. The combustion chamber and the contents thereof act as a dielectric. Air or a fuel/air mixture or exhaust gas is located therein, depending on which stroke the piston is engaged in.
The capacitance is a component of an electric oscillating circuit which is excited using a high-frequency voltage created using a transformer having a center tap. The transformer interacts with a switching device which applies a specifiable DC voltage to the two primary windings, in alternation, of the transformer connected by the center tap. The secondary winding of the transformer supplies a series oscillating circuit comprising the capacitance formed by the ignition electrode and the walls of the combustion chamber. The frequency of the alternating voltage which excites the oscillating circuit and is delivered by the transformer is controlled such that it is as close as possible to the resonance frequency of the oscillating circuit. The result is a voltage step-up between the ignition electrode and the walls of the combustion chamber in which the ignition electrode is disposed. The resonance frequency is typically between 30 kilohertz and 3 megahertz, and the alternating voltage reaches values at the ignition electrode of 50 kV to 500 kV, for example.
A corona discharge can therefore be created in the combustion chamber. The corona discharge should not break down into an arc discharge or a spark discharge. Measures are therefore implemented to ensure that the voltage between the ignition electrode and ground remains below the voltage required for a complete breakdown. For this purpose, it is known from WO 2004/063560 A1 to measure the voltage and the current intensity at the input of the transformer and, on the basis thereof, to calculate impedance as the quotient of voltage and current intensity. The impedance calculated in this manner is compared to a fixed setpoint value for the impedance, which is selected such that the corona discharge can be maintained without the occurrence of a complete voltage breakdown.
This method has the disadvantage that the formation of the corona is not optimal and, in particular, an optimal size of the corona is not always attained. Specifically, the corona increases in size the closer the oscillating circuit is operated to the breakdown voltage. To ensure that the breakdown voltage is never reached, the setpoint value of the impedance that must not be exceeded must be so low that a voltage breakdown and, therefore, an arc of a spark, is always prevented. A point that must be considered when specifying the setpoint value of the impedance is that the current-voltage characteristic curve of the circuit driving the transformer is subject to production-related fluctuations. If structural or production-related changes are made to the circuit and the oscillating circuit that cause the current-voltage characteristic curve to change, it may be necessary to redetermine the setpoint value of the impedance using trials, to prevent the situation in which a corona of inadequate size is formed or, in the worst case, a corona is not formed at all.
On the basis of document WO 2010/011838 A1 it is known to control the transformer on the primary side thereof by specifying a setpoint impedance by first determining a so-called baseline impedance at the input of the transformer at a voltage that is so low that a corona discharge does not occur. Starting at a low voltage, the current-voltage characteristic curve at the input of the transformer initially has a linear shape, which indicates that impedance remains the same: The current intensity initially increases in proportion to voltage. The baseline impedance is characteristic for the particular igniter. If a certain voltage is exceeded, the impedance increases, which is indicated by the fact that the intensity of the current measured on the primary side of the transformer is no longer proportional to the voltage, but rather increases at an increasingly slower rate as the voltage continues to increase, until a voltage breakdown occurs between the ignition electrode and one of the walls delimiting the combustion chamber. In the method known from document WO 2010/011838 A1, the setpoint impedance is determined as the sum of the baseline impedance and an additional impedance. The additional impedance is increased in small increments by increasing the voltage until a spark discharge occurs. As soon as a spark discharge is detected, the additional impedance is reduced by an amount that is slightly greater than the preceding increment, in order to prevent further spark discharges and keep the oscillating circuit in resonance. It is therefore possible to hold the current intensity and voltage at the input of the transformer below the level at which a spark discharge can occur, and to limit them to a level at which the corona reaches a maximum size.
The impedance on the primary side of the transformer, at which a corona discharge occurs, and the impedance at which a corona discharge transitions into an unwanted arc discharge or spark discharge can change during the service life of the ignition electrode, which can be disadvantageous for the service life thereof and for the formation of the corona, and can result in non-ideal combustion.

Method for igniting a fuel/air mixture of a combustion chamber, in particular in an internal combustion engine, by creating a corona discharge


An apparatus for and process for recovering LNG from reservoir natural gas which includes circulating a portion of the natural gas thru a gas cooling loop that includes heat exchanges, an expansion zone and compression zone. The process also includes removing liquids from the gas cooling loop, distilling those liquids to recover a distilled gas. The process also includes compressing and expanding various portions of the distilled gas and passing those portions thru heat exchangers shared with the gas cooling loop to effect heating/cooling as desired. The process also includes removing a portion of the LNG cooling loop as LNG product.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to apparatus and methods for processing hydrocarbons. In another aspect, the present invention relates to apparatus and methods for processing natural gas. In still another aspect, the present invention relates to apparatus and methods for processing natural gas into liquified natural gas.
2. Description of the Related Art
The production of oil is many times accompanied by the production of natural gas. At one time, it would not be unusual to flare this natural gas. More recently, regulatory, economic, and/or public relations considerations have generally dictated that this associated natural gas be disposed of in an acceptable manner, or recovered for sale or other use, such as, for example, as a fuel in the production process, or reinjected back into the formation to assist production.
Of course, where nearby processing infrastructure exists, recovery or proper disposal of this associated gas is generally not an issue. However, in some locations, especially offshore locations, nearby processing infrastructure does not exist, the regulatory and/or economic penalties with associated gas processing, disposal or reinjection may make the oil recovery project economically unfeasible.
The liquefaction of natural gas is generally accomplished by reducing the temperature of natural gas to a liquefaction temperature of about −240° F. to about −260° F. at or near atmospheric pressure. This liquefaction temperature range is typical for many natural gas streams because the boiling point of methane at atmospheric pressure is about −259° F. In order to produce, store and transport LNG, conventional processes known in the art require substantial refrigeration to reduce and maintain natural gas at its liquefaction temperature. The most common of these refrigeration processes are: (1) the cascade process; (2) the single mixed refrigerant process; and (3) the propane pre-cooled mixed refrigerant process.
A cascade process produces LNG by employing several closed-loop cooling circuits, each utilizing a single pure refrigerant and collectively configured in order of progressively lower temperatures. The first cooling circuit commonly utilizes propane or propylene as the refrigerant, the second circuit may utilize ethane or ethylene, while the third circuit generally utilizes methane as the refrigerant.
A single mixed refrigerant process produces LNG by employing a single closed-loop cooling circuit utilizing a multicomponent refrigerant consisting of components such as nitrogen, methane, ethane, propane, butanes and pentanes. The mixed refrigerant undergoes the steps of condensation, expansion and recompression to reduce the temperature of natural gas by employing a unitary collection of heat exchangers known as a "cold box."
A propane pre-cooled mixed refrigerant process produces LNG by employing an initial series of propane-cooled heat exchangers in addition to a single closed-loop cooling circuit, which utilizes a multi-component refrigerant consisting of components such as nitrogen, methane, ethane and propane. Natural gas initially passes through one or more propane-cooled heat exchangers, proceeds to a main exchanger cooled by the multi-component refrigerant, and is thereafter expanded to produce LNG.
Unfortunately for the above processes, the construction and maintenance of such plants is expensive because of the cost of constructing, operating and maintaining one or more external, single or mixed refrigerant, closed-loop cooling circuits.
Another penalty associated with external closed-loop cooling circuits is that such circuits require the use and storage of highly explosive refrigerants that can present safety concerns. Refrigerants such as propane, ethylene and propylene are explosive, while propane and propylene, in particular, are heavier than air further complicating dispersion of these gases in the event of a leak or other equipment failure. This is of particular concern during the offshore production and transport of LNG by ocean going vessels or other floating vessels because of: (1) the large amount of refrigerants that must be stored in order to maintain the liquefaction temperature of natural gas; and (2) the close proximity of these refrigerants to the ships crew.
A number of patents address the processing of natural gas into liquified natural gas.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,360,944 to Knapp et al. produces LNG by separating a natural gas feed stream into a major stream and a minor stream, cooling the major and minor streams to produce a liquid component, and thereafter using a substantial portion a the liquid component as a refrigerant for the process. The liquid component is vaporized while undergoing heat exchange, compressed and discharged from the process. The Knapp process results in only a minor portion of the natural gas feed stream processed into LNG.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,616,652 to Engal discloses a process for producing LNG in a single stage by compressing a natural gas feed stream, cooling the compressed natural gas feed stream to produce a liquefied stream, dramatically expanding the liquefied stream to an intermediate-pressure liquid, and then flashing and separating the intermediate-pressure liquid in a single separation step to produce LNG and a low-pressure flash gas. The low-pressure flash gas is recirculated, substantially compressed and reintroduced into the intermediate pressure liquid. While the Engal process produces LNG without the use of external refrigerants, the process inefficiently utilizes its limited refrigeration capacity upon the entire process stream without conjunctive use of multiple separation steps to offset this severe cooling requirement. Furthermore, the Engal process inefficiently expands its process stream pressure to a level that results in a substantial and highly inefficient recompression of its flash gas. Consequently, the Engal process yields a small volume of LNG compared to the amount of work required for its production, thus reducing the cost viability of the process.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,755,114 issued to Foglietta, discloses a hybrid liquefaction cycle for the production of LNG. The Foglietta process passes a pressurized natural gas feed stream into heat exchange contact with a closed-loop propane or propylene refrigeration cycle prior to directing the natural gas feed stream through a turboexpander cycle to provide auxiliary refrigeration. The Foglietta process can be implemented with only one closed-loop refrigeration cycle, as opposed to cascade type mixed refrigerant systems currently used to produce atmospheric LNG. However, the Foglietta process still requires at least one closed-loop refrigeration cycle comprising propane or propylene, both of which are explosive, not easily dispersed and must be stored on the vessels that transport the Foglietta product.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,023,942 to Thomas et al. discloses a process for producing a methane-rich liquid product having a temperature above about −112° C. (−170° F.) at a pressure that is sufficient for the liquid product to be at or below its bubble point. The resulting product is a pressurized liquid natural gas ("PLNG"), which has a pressure substantially above atmospheric pressure. While the Thomas et al. process can be implemented without external refrigeration, the product is pressurized requiring the use of specially designed heavy, thick-walled containers and transports (e.g., a PLNG ship, truck or railcar). This higher pressure, heavier walled equipment adds substantial weight and expense to any commercial project. The PLNG consumer will also require additional liquefaction, transport, and storage equipment to consume the PLNG, adding further cost to the supply and demand value chain.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,564,578, issued May 20, 2003 to Fischer-Calderon, is directed to a process for producing LNG by directing a feed stream comprising natural gas to a cooling stage that (a) cools the feed stream in at least one cooling step producing a cooled feed stream, (b) expands the cooled feed stream in at least one expansion step by reducing the pressure of the cooled feed stream producing a refrigerated vapor component and a liquid component, and (c) separates at least a portion of the refrigerated vapor component from the liquid component wherein at least a portion of the cooling for the process is derived from at least a portion of the refrigerated vapor component; and repeating steps (a) through (c) one or more times until at least substantial portion of the feed stream in the first cooling stage is processed into LNG wherein the feed stream in step (a) comprises at least a portion of the liquid component produced from a previous cooling stage.
All of the patents cited in this specification, are herein incorporated by reference.
However, in spite of the above advancements, there still exists a need in the art for apparatus and methods for processing natural gas.
This and other needs in the art will become apparent to those of skill in the art upon review of this specification, including its drawings and claims.

Apparatus and methods for processing hydrocarbons to produce liquified natural gas


An imaging apparatus disclosed herein includes: a solid-state imaging device in which pixels are arranged in a matrix; a mechanical shutter; and a signal processing unit, wherein the signal processing unit: resets charge stored in all the pixels by closing the mechanical shutter and applying a voltage V2 to a photoelectric conversion unit; starts first exposure by opening the mechanical shutter and applying a voltage V1 to the photoelectric conversion unit; finishes the first exposure by applying the voltage V2 to the photoelectric conversion unit with the mechanical shutter open; reads pixel signals to obtain a first still image; resets all the pixels; starts second exposure by applying the voltage V1 to the photoelectric conversion unit with the mechanical shutter open; finishes the second exposure by applying the voltage V2 to the photoelectric conversion unit with the mechanical shutter open; reads pixel signals to obtain a second still image.

When a still image is captured using a digital camera with a solid-state imaging device such as an image sensor, a mechanical shutter is required to adjust the amount of exposure. An exposure period is a period of time from when all of the pixels in a pixel unit of the solid-state imaging device are reset to when the mechanical shutter is closed.
FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional diagram of a conventional solid-state imaging device disclosed in Patent Literature 1 (Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2009-49525). The solid-state imaging element 900 disclosed in the diagram includes a large number of pixels 902R, 902G, and 902B. Each pixel includes: a photoelectric conversion film 903 formed above a semiconductor substrate 901, absorbing light having a particular wavelength range and generating electric charge according to the absorbed light; a photoelectric conversion element 904 formed inside the semiconductor substrate 901 below the photoelectric conversion film 903. Patent Literature 1 discloses a digital camera including the solid-state imaging element 900 configured as described above. The digital camera includes: an exposure condition determining unit which determines an exposure condition for the photoelectric conversion element 904; and an application voltage adjusting unit which adjusts a voltage to be applied to the photoelectric conversion film 903, to prevent a signal from the photoelectric conversion film 903 included in each pixel from exceeding a saturation level in imaging under the exposure condition. In a state where the voltage adjusted by the application voltage adjusting unit is applied to the photoelectric conversion film 903, imaging based on the exposure condition is performed.

Imaging apparatus and method of driving the same

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.


A user data management apparatus for connection to a terminal data processor used by a user through a network, registers data that is dependent on a user ID peculiar to the user. The user data management apparatus has a first unit for generating a first data registration screen, when data of the user is to be initially registered, which differs from user ID to user ID, and a second unit for displaying, on the terminal data processor, a second data registration screen based on the first data registration screen generated by the first unit, when the data of the user is to be registered.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for and a method of managing registered data depending on user IDs particular to respective users, and more particularly to an apparatus for and a method of managing data for preventing phishing.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, plagiarizing authentication identifiers (IDs) and codes (passwords) by using deceptive Web sites has becomes prominent as criminal activity on the Internet. The fraudulent acquisition of IDs and passwords is equivalent to stealing a communication procedure, or stated otherwise is equivalent to stealing, a "key" for decrypting information that has been encrypted according to any of various processes and stored in a memory device. No matter how strong an encryption algorithm or a key may be, the protected information can easily be decoded the key is stolen.
According to all kinds of encryption processes that have already been invented at present, it is important to pay careful attention to the management and handling of the "key" as well as increasing their resistance to decoding attempts. Key exchange mechanisms that are incorporated in communication protocols are somewhat vulnerable to attacks at the stage of issuing a key or in the stage of an initial communication handshake.
Effective countermeasures against phishing attempts from fake websites have not yet been invented because phishing is a relatively new form of criminal activity and the Web system which is highly versatile and flexible cuts two ways. Techniques are available to copy image data and HTML data with ease and even to alter the address bar that is the only identification point for the user.
Irrespective of any complex security protection provided in websites managed by website administrators themselves and communication means on networks that are used, insofar as users are authenticated using IDs and passwords, it is impossible to prevent websites from being faked and personal information can easily be stolen through such deceptive websites.
Specifically, fake websites can be generated quite easily by fake website construction tools that are available in hacker networks. Phishing crimes are usually committed by using e-mails to lure users to deceptive websites. According to a typical phishing process, the phisher sends to a user an e-mail containing a message that is designed to trick the user into:
(1) updating user information by saying that the existing user information is going to be outdated; or
(2) visiting a deceptive website by pretending that there has been a business transaction involving the user, and attempts to steal the user's ID and password through the updated user information or the deceptive website.
A certificate to be preinstalled in a client computer and software including a protocol for biometrics authentication are disclosed in JP-A No. 2002-258974. There is no doubt that the disclosed technology is effective to prevent the of phishing crime.
JP-A No. 2003-132290 discloses an authentication system using image information.
JP-A No. 2005-71202 reveals an authentication system using an array of image information representing checking symbols. The disclosed authentication system is effective to prevent spoofing and website faking through personal authentication of websites.
JP-A No. 2004-213117 discloses a process of reentering a random number, that is temporarily generated depending on a predetermined graphic pattern, into a password field.
JP-A No. H10-289210 discloses an input means for allowing a user who is unaccustomed to computer operation to easily enter authentication information using image information.
Installing a certificate in a computer poses a certain limitation on the convenience of the user because the user is restricted to the computer for use as a terminal. A system which needs biometrics authentication requires that biometrics authentication apparatuses themselves be in widespread use. Incorporating biometrics authentication into systems that are under threat of phishing crimes, such as retail banking services, is subject to the common use of biometrics authentication apparatuses in the social infrastructure.
Even if a fake website pretending to be a certain original website does not accurately recreate the behavior of the original website, it is possible for a user to enter an ID and a password into the fake website once the user trusts the deceptive website or through mere negligence.
In order to prevent fraudulent transactions through phishing, it is important to provide servers with technical measures for preventing malicious individuals from easily making fake websites and also for preventing IDs and passwords from being stolen.
The authentication technology based primarily on IDs and passwords suffers from the following problems:
The first problem is that characters entered from keyboards to produce passwords belong to a code system which is commonly used in the world that is referred to as character codes such as ASCII, UNICODE, or the like. The number of characters is limited, and all alternatives to them are already known commonly to all users including criminal phishers.
The second problem is that site certificates and authentication components installed in clients for confirming the site certificates fail to address vulnerability created by easy construction of fake websites.


Compositions and methods are provided for introducing transgenic target sites for Site Specific Integration (SSI) and/or polynucleotides of interest into at least one double-strand break target site of a double-strand-break inducing agent in a genomic window of a plant genome. Also provided are methods and compositions for producing a complex trait locus in a genomic window of a plant comprising at least one transgenic target site for site specific integration integrated in at least double-strand-break target site. The double-strand-break target site can be, but is not limited to, a target site for a zinc finger endonuclease, an engineered endonuclease, a meganuclease, a TALENs and/or a Cas endonuclease. The genomic window of said plant can comprise at least one genomic locus of interest such as a trait cassette, a transgene, a mutated gene, a native gene, an edited gene or a site-specific integration (SSI) target site.

Recombinant DNA technology has made it possible to insert foreign DNA sequences into the genome of an organism, as well as altering endogenous genes of an organism, thus, altering the organism's phenotype. The most commonly used plant transformation methods are Agrobacterium infection and biolistic particle bombardment in which transgenes integrate into a plant genome in a random fashion and in an unpredictable copy number.
Site-specific integration techniques, which employ site-specific recombination systems, as well as, other types of recombination technologies, have been used to generate targeted insertions of genes of interest in a variety of organism. Other methods for inserting or modifying a DNA sequence involve homologous DNA recombination by introducing a transgenic DNA sequence flanked by sequences homologous to the genomic target. U.S. Pat. No. 5,527,695 describes transforming eukaryotic cells with DNA sequences that are targeted to a predetermined sequence of the eukaryote's DNA. Transformed cells are identified through use of a selectable marker included as a part of the introduced DNA sequences. While such systems have provided useful techniques for targeted insertion of sequences of interest, there remains a need for methods and compositions which improve these systems and allow for targeting the insertion of a sequence of interest into a desirable genomic position, for stacking additional polynucleotides of interest near the desired integration site, and for producing a fertile plant, having an altered genome comprising one or more transgenic target sited for site specific integration located in a defined region of the genome of the plant.

Generation of site-specific-integration sites for complex trait loci in corn and soybean, and methods of use


A crimping apparatus and method are provided that enable secure crimping of objects to one another even when the objects are subject to thermal or stress cycling. Specifically, an apparatus for crimping a work-piece includes a die pair with a first die that defines a first groove characterized by a first cross-sectional shape as well as a second die opposing the first die. The second die defines a second groove characterized by a second cross-sectional shape different than the first cross-sectional shape. When the dies are moved together for crimping the work-piece, the first and second grooves are aligned to define a die cavity with a compound cross-sectional shape for crimping the work-piece.

Crimping two pieces of metal or other materials to one another, by deforming one or both of them to hold the other, is used extensively in metalworking. Crimping is also used to connect an electrical connector to a conductive component such as an electrical wire. Crimping is a cold-working technique that can form a strong bond between the two crimped objects.
Certain materials, such as brittle materials or other materials with difficult cold-working properties, may be difficult to crimp to other materials. Additionally, when one of the objects is subjected to thermal or stress cycling, the bond created by crimping may weaken or fail. For example, if an electrical connector is crimped to an active material such as a shape memory material wire using a standard crimp with a uniform cross-sectional area (such as a circular crimp or a barrel crimp), the cyclical shape change of the active material occurring with thermal cycling may diminish the bond.