A connector housing includes a housing and a shield. The housing has an interior chamber extending between housing mating and back ends. The inner surface has loading and transition portions, with the loading portion located proximate to the housing mating end and the transition portion located proximate to the housing back end. The shield is shaped to fit in the interior chamber and extends between a shield mating end and a shield back end. The shield back end includes a ground contact opening. The shield includes a rim protruding from the shield back end that extends around a portion of an outer periphery of the shield back end. The rim includes a plurality of rim ends separated by a gap. The rim engages the transition portion to prevent the shield being removed through the housing mating end and the gap exposes a portion of the transition portion.

The subject matter herein relates generally to electrical connectors, and more particularly, to electrical connectors having an electromagnetic ("EM") shield.
Some known electrical connectors, include a shield disposed within a housing. A portion of the shield may protrude from one cud of the housing. For example, a rim extending entirely around a periphery of one end of the shield may partially protrude from the housing. A pair of openings in the shield that are surrounded by the rim may be provided for a signal contact and a ground contact. For example, the signal contact (nay be inserted through, one of the openings and may pass through the shield and the housing to a mating end of the connector. A second opening may receive a ground contact that is electrically connected to an electrical ground. The ground contact may then connect the shield to the electrical ground.
The shield may be secured in the housing by bending, or flaring, the rim away from the pair of openings and towards the housing. The rim is bent towards the housing and engages the housing to prevent separation of the shield from the housing. For example, the housing and shield may each have shapes with substantially cylindrical inner chambers between opposing ends. The shield may be inserted into one end of the housing with the rim protruding from an opposing end of the housing. The rim may be flared towards the housing at this opposing end to prevent the shield from being pulled through the housing.
The rim, however, also can present problems in the manufacture and tooling processes involved in manufacturing the shield. In one example, the rim may prevent flash or waste material from being removed from the shield. For example, if the shield is fabricated through a die casting process, the conductive material used to create the shield may be heated so the material is liquid or molten and then pressure injected into a mold. A pin or bit may be inserted into the liquid material in the mold to create the opening for the ground contact. As the liquid material cools and solidifies, the pin is removed froth the mold and the conductive material. As the pin is removed, the pin may pull waste material such as flash and partially solidified conductive material from the opening for the ground contact onto the shield and within the rim. This waste material may then solidify as metallic silvers. Alternatively, the waste silvers may be created by drilling or punching the opening for the ground contact after the shield has been formed. The rim prevents all of these slivers from being removed from the shield because the rim entirely encircles the end of the shield. These waste slivers may dislodge from the shield or rim and contact electronic equipment that is near the connector assembly,. For example, the waste slivers may dislodge from the shield and contact another electrical connector, a conductive trace, and the like, on the circuit board to which the connector is mounted. The slivers may cause electric shorts or cause other damage to the electronic equipment. Thus, a need exists for an electrical connector with a shield that does not retain flash or other waste generated during the manufacture of the shield.

Electrical connector with slotted shield


An electrical test device including a substrate and a plurality of test pads. The test pads are disposed on a second surface of the substrate. Each test pad has a test hole, and first and second isolation slots. The first isolation slot is disposed on the periphery of the test hole, and defines a signal region for connecting a signal terminal of a test probe. The second isolation slot is disposed on the periphery of the first isolation slot, and a ground region is defined between the first and second isolation slots. The ground region is used for connecting a ground terminal of the test probe. The test pad can match with the test probe so that the test probe can connect to the test pad for providing signal to the test probe. The electrical test device can easily measure the real electrical characteristic of the signal from the substrate.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an electrical test device, particularly to an electrical test device having isolation slot.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional electrical test board 10 comprises a substrate 11 and a plurality of test pads 12. The substrate 11 has a first surface 111 and a second surface 112. The second surface 112 is corresponding to the first surface 111, and the second surface 112 is usually the back of the electrical test board 11. Each test pad 12 has a test hole 121 and an isolation slot 123. The isolation slot 123 is disposed on the periphery of the test hole 121, and defines a signal region 122. The signal region 122 is used for connecting to a signal terminal 151 of a test probe 15. The test hole 121 electrically connects to the signal region 122; therefore, the corresponding signal can be provided to the signal terminal 151 of the test probe 15.
The region outside the isolation slot 123 of the second surface 112 is a ground region, and the ground region is used for connecting a ground terminal 152 of the test probe 15. The isolation slot 123 is used to separate the signal region 122 and the ground region (i.e. the second surface 112) so that the signal region 122 and the ground region are isolated. The conventional electrical test board 10 must match with the test probe 15, and the test probe 15 is an expensive high frequency test probe. In addition, it is inconvenient to connect corresponding points for electrical test by using the conventional electrical test board 10 and the test probe 15.
Referring to FIG. 2, another conventional electrical test board 20 comprises a substrate 21 and a plurality of test pads 22. Similarly, each test pad 22 has a test hole 221, a signal region 222 and an isolation slot 223. The conventional electrical test board 20 further comprises a transmission line 24 and an auxiliary probe 25. The transmission line 24 is used for electrically connecting the signal region 222 and the auxiliary probe 25 so that the test probe 26 can receive the corresponding signal from the signal region 222 after connecting to the auxiliary probe 25.
However, actual test point (signal region 222) of the conventional test structure must further connect to the transmission line 24 and the auxiliary probe 25 for test so that the real electrical characteristics of the signal region 222 cannot be directly tested easily.
Consequently, there is an existing need for electrical test board to solve the above-mentioned problems.

Electrical test device having isolation slot

Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Inc.


Examples include a method of live migrating a virtual device by creating a virtual device in a virtual machine, creating first and second interfaces for the virtual device, transferring data over the first interface, detecting a disconnection of the virtual device from the virtual machine, switching data transfers for the virtual device from the first interface to the second interface, detecting a reconnection of the virtual device to the virtual machine, and switching data transfers for the virtual device from the second interface to the first interface.

The introduction of the Single Root I/O Virtualization (SR-IOV) and Sharing specification, version 1.1, published Jan. 20, 2010 by the Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) Special Interest Group (PCI-SIG), was a notable advancement toward hardware-assisted high performance I/O virtualization and sharing for PCI Express devices. PCI Express (PCIe) is defined by PCI Express Base Specification, revision 4.0, version 1.0, published Oct. 5, 2017. Since then, the compute landscape has evolved beyond deploying virtual machines (VMs) for computer server consolidation to hyper-scale data centers which need to seamlessly add resources and dynamically provision containers. The new computing environment demands increased scalability and flexibility for I/O virtualization.
In big data centers, migration of VMs for purposed of distributing workloads or for maintenance purpose is a common use-case. Each server in the data center might be running hundreds of VMs. When a server needs to be brought down for maintenance, administrators would like to move the VMs running on the server to a different server so the users don't lose connectivity. In cases when a server is overloaded, administrators might also want to move certain VMs from the server to another server in order to distribute the workload on the server to other servers.
Ideally the migration of the VMs should be seamless to the users and there should not be any traffic disruption. Migration of VMs in this seamless manner is called live migration. This is compared with migration of a VM by saving the current state and restoring the state after migration. However, live migration of VMs that have an SR-IOV Virtual Function (VF) is not possible on many hypervisors because the VF is tied to a specific hardware device.
One approach for live migration of a VM running an SR-IOV VF involves creating a teamed interface in the VM with the SR-IOV VF and another interface that is an emulated interface. While the SR-IOV VF is strictly tied to a specific hardware device and has direct access to the hardware registers of the SR-IOV device, the emulated interface can run on any hardware and is a generic emulation of the I/O path provided by all networking devices. By using the emulated device as a failover device during live migration, the dependency on a specific hardware device can be removed.
This approach for creating a live migration solution using an SR-IOV VF involves creating a failover team with an emulated interface and a VF interface. In normal functioning, the VF path is active and the VM is running traffic in an efficient manner. Then during live migration, the VF is ejected and the team fails-over to the emulated interface. The migration of the hardware device happens while the traffic is running on the emulated interface and, after the migration to another server, the VF can be added again to the VM and the teamed interface will switch the data path back to the VF interface.
This approach requires explicit action by the administrator to setup an additional emulated interface in the VM. It also requires an additional action by the user in the VM to create the team interface with the emulated interface and the VF interface. This overhead discourages the use of the teaming as a solution for live migration of VMs in the data center.

Live migration of virtual devices in a scalable input/output (I/O) virtualization (S-IOV) architecture


A lead free, galvanic sensor. The sensor having a housing, a cathode, an anode, a diffusion barrier, contact wires and an electrolyte, the anode being made of a tin containing alloy. The sensor electrolyte is an aqueous solution of phosphoric acid or an aqueous solution of a cesium salt.

Galvanic oxygen sensors are widely applied in high volumes in industrial, environmental and medical measurements because of their high reliability, small size, low power consumption and good price performance relation. Starting with their development in the 1950's many instruments to measure oxygen partial pressure were designed, some of them still being used today. In modem instruments like ventilators, emission monitoring devices and automotive emission testers such sensors are still preferred for oxygen measurements.
Typically, the sensors comprise a housing, a cathode, an anode having a bigger surface than the cathode, a diffusion barrier, an electrolyte and contact wires to connect the cathode and the anode electrically. The anode generates the required electrochemical potential for the reduction of oxygen at the cathode. Such galvanic sensors are described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,767,552 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,429,796.
GB 1255353 describes a galvanic oxygen sensor with an anode material being made of lead, tin, cooper and their alloys. The electrolyte of this sensor contains sulfides. This design leads to very stable sensor signals that can be amplified electronically very well. On the other hand it is a considerable drawback of this design that the sensor can not be used in acid gas atmospheres containing e.g. carbon dioxide. In this case poisonous sulfur dioxide is can be released. Therefore the sensor can not be used for medical applications.
GB 1391168 describes a device for the measurement of oxygen. This device has two oxygen permeable membranes, one of them being porous, a silver cathode, and a tubular tin anode. This configuration allows the device to measure in condensing media or atmospheres that contain water droplets like in humidifiers for breath. The porous membrane prevents, due to its hydrophobic properties, the formation of a closed water film on the surface which could cause a signal reduction. The composition of the electrolyte is not described in the application. The principle to use a combination of two membranes, one of them being porous and thus preventing water condensation is state of the art for oxygen sensors today.
EP 1 593 962 describes a lead free galvanic oxygen sensor with an anode being made of zinc or aluminum. The inventors of this '962 patent document admit that these materials corrode and thus are only stable within a narrow pH-range of the electrolyte. Such sensors have a very limited lifetime when they are used at elevated temperatures because the corrosion is very temperature dependent. Additionally, the corrosion process generates water that has to be removed from the sensor. This can lead to a complex design of the sensor housing.
For a galvanic oxygen sensor with electrolyte and anode, the equations for the electro-chemical reactions are as follows.
Equation for the electrochemical process at the cathode with an alkaline electrolyte:O2+2H2O+4e−→4OH−  (Eq. 1a)
In an acid electrolyte the reduction of oxygen consumes protons:O2+4H++4e−→2H2O   (Eq. 1b)
Equations for possible electrochemical processes at the anode depending on the actual pH at the anode surface:Me+4OH−→MeO2+4e−+2H2O   (Eq. 2a)2Me→2Me2++4e−  (Eq. 2b)
Me stands for any metal that may exist at bivalent or tetravalent oxidation stage after the oxidation. According to equation 2a, the oxidation of the anode material leads to an oxide. According to equation 2b, the oxidation of the anode material leads to a soluble salt.
In EP 0305961, buffered weak acid electrolytes are described that consist of organic acids and their salts leading to oxygen sensors with increased lifetime.
The diffusion membrane in a sensor is a barrier for the gas so that a diffusion limiting current is generated at the cathode that can be measured. The diffusion limited current is proportional to the gas partial pressure at the diffusion barrier by the first approximation.
Instead of a membrane, a metal or plastic disc with a very small central hole can also be used. Given the appropriate dimension of the hole, the diffusion of the oxygen happens according to the Knudsen principle. This also leads to a diffusion limited current as long as all oxygen molecules reaching the cathode are being reduced. In this case, the sensor signal is proportional to the oxygen concentration at the sensor head. A device based on this principle is described in EP 0763730.
The electrical current flowing through the galvanic cell depends linearly on the oxygen partial pressure or the oxygen concentration. The electrochemically active surface of the anode should be bigger than the surface of the cathode to ensure an adequate motive force for the reaction and to avoid a concentration polarization at the surface of the anode.
In practice, lead is the state of the art anode material. It has a high hydrogen overvoltage and is thus corrosion resistant in alkaline and weak acid electrolytes over a wide temperature range. The relative high density of the lead permits small designs of the anode. In addition, it can be shaped easily due to its softness and is available in high purity at a relatively low price.
However, for some years lead has been disliked as a construction material. It is known that relatively low chronic doses are harmful to the human nervous system, the hematopoietic system and the kidneys. Thus, the limits for lead and lead containing substances in the environment have been repeatedly lowered in the past years. New legislation in various countries and states prohibits the use of lead in solders and electronic components. Also other heavy metals like cadmium and mercury are banned by the European Union's RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances), and as such they are not viable alternatives to be used in electrochemical oxygen sensors.
As such, there is an need for a lead free, galvanic oxygen sensor.


A system and method for controlling access to a protected network resource is provided. Access is controlled as follows. User credentials received with a request from a user for access to the protected network resource are checked against predetermined user information so as to authenticate the user; The request is made via a network access point located within a restricted area. The recorded location of the user is checked to determine whether the user is recorded as being within the restricted area. Access to the protected network resource is allowed if the user credentials are authenticated and the user is recorded as being within the restricted area. The user's network connection is monitored and, on detection that the user is disconnected from the network, the user is recorded as not located within the restricted area. Additional credentials are required from the user to support the user's request when the user is not recorded as being within the restricted area.

The invention is directed to network security and to a method and system for controlling access to a protected network resource.
Network security systems use a variety of "tokens" to establish the identity of a user trying to log-in or gain access to the network. Most commonly, these tokens will include a username and a secret password. However, passwords can become known to third parties through the user having inadvertently disclosed them, as a result of writing them down, from phishing or through interception. To increase security further one-time passwords generated by a small electronic device carried by the user may be used or a set of security questions with answers may be established by the user allowing the system to challenge the user before granting access. However, use of one-time passwords and security questions can become a burden on the user.
It has been suggested that security can be enhanced where access to a network is made inside a secure building or site by integrating the building access security system with the network security system. This could be particularly useful for wireless networks where a user's physical location is not defined. Many offices now support wireless access to corporate networks but the wireless field often extends beyond the physical boundary of the building providing an opportunity for unauthorised "snoopers" to access the corporate network.
According to such a system, a user log-in attempt is collated with the security check that is performed on people attempting to enter each secure site. For example, each secure site has one or more access control points, normally involving a security barrier, such as an automatic door or gate operated by a personal electronic identity card. A physical barrier may not always be required and may be replaced by a checkpoint; either automatic or, possibly, staffed by security personnel, allowing the user's identity card to be read before entering the secure site. These identity cards are electronic, in as much as they have the ability to store information related to the carrier of the card (i.e. the employee). The identity card may be of the "swipe" type (where a magnetic strip contains encoded data identifying the holder of the card). Alternatively, the identity card may be a "proximity" type wherein a semiconductor memory, or similar, contains data that is communicated to the electronics in the security barrier by a very low-range radio link.
Accordingly, for a user to log-in to the secure corporate network, they have first to pass through the building security barrier and, in the process, to identify themselves to the building access security system. The building access security system is linked to the network access system to allow this information to be shared.
A problem can arise where the building access control system does not require users to register on leaving the secure building or site (i.e. to swipe-out) or if a user manages to avoid the exit barriers, for example during a building evacuation exercise. This can weaken the effectiveness of using a record of building presence to support authentication of a user.
The present invention provides a method for controlling access to a protected network resource comprising the steps of: receiving a request and user credentials from a user via a network access point located within a restricted area for access to the protected network resource; checking the user credentials against predetermined user information so as to authenticate the user; checking whether the user is recorded as being within the restricted area; allowing the user access to the protected network resource if the user credentials are authenticated and the user is recorded as being within the restricted area; monitoring the user's network connection and on detection that the user is disconnected from the network, recording the user as not located within the restricted area.
According to a preferred embodiment, the method includes consulting an access control system for the restricted area as to whether the user is within the restricted area and recording the user's location accordingly.
According to a preferred embodiment, the method includes on detection that the user is disconnected from the network, overwriting the record of the user's location to indicate that the user is no longer within the restricted area.
According to a preferred embodiment, the method includes including establishing a database including information on the user's location and network authentication status in which checking whether the user is recorded as being within the restricted area includes checking the database.
According to a preferred embodiment, the method includes comparing the time of the recorded entry into the restricted area with the time of the request and allowing the user access to the protected network resource if the request occurs within a set time period after the recorded entry.
According to a preferred embodiment, the method includes requiring additional credentials from the user to support the user's request when the user is not recorded as being within the restricted area.
According to a preferred embodiment, the restricted area access control system records the user as having entered the restricted area following a successful challenge, in which the challenge consists of at least one of: verifying a physical security token; and verifying security information provided by the user via a terminal.
According to a preferred embodiment, the method includes detecting that the user is disconnected, receiving a new request for access and allowing the user access to the protected network resource if the user is recorded as re-entering the restricted area.
According to a preferred embodiment, the step of checking whether the user is recorded as being within the restricted area precedes checking the user credentials.
The present invention also provides an access controller for controlling access to a protected network resource: in which the access controller is arranged for connection to a network access point located within a restricted area; in which the access controller is arranged to receive a request for access to the protected network resource and user credentials from a user via the network access point and to check the user credentials against predetermined user information so as to authenticate the user; in which the access controller is arranged to check information from a restricted area access control system as to whether the user is recorded as being within the restricted area; in which the access controller is arranged to allow the user access to the protected network resource if the user credentials are authenticated and the user is recorded as being within the restricted area; in which the access controller is arranged to monitor the user's network connection and on detecting disconnection of the user from the network, the access controller is arranged to record the user as not located within the restricted area.
According to one aspect, the access controller comprises means for accessing storage for storing user status information, in which the user status information comprises: information from the restricted area access control system indicating that the user has registered their entry into the restricted area; information from an authentication system indicating that the credentials supplied by the user have been accepted; in which the access controller is arranged to update, upon detecting disconnection of the user from the network, the information from the restricted area access control system to indicate that the user has left the restricted area.
According to a further aspect, the information from the restricted area access control system indicating that the user has registered their entry into the restricted area derives from one of: the user passing an access control point to enter the restricted area; and the user communicating with the restricted area access control system via a terminal.
According to a further aspect, the access controller is arranged, upon determining that the user is not recorded as being within the restricted area, to require additional credentials from the user to support the user's request.
According to a further aspect, the access controller is arranged to record the time of the user's entry into the restricted area and the time of the request and to allow the user access to the protected network resource if the request occurs within a set time period after the entry. The present invention also provides a computer network comprising the access controller.

Controlling access to a secure resource based on user credentials and location

BRITISH TELECOMMUNICATIONS PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY


A shuffle board game system includes a shuffle board game apparatus and a method of playing a game. The board game apparatus includes a base, a symmetrical, enclosed, cross-configured shuffle board with a target pattern at the center with multiple playing pieces that can be distributed from each of the four ramps surrounding the board. The method of playing includes each of four players strategically launching their respective playing pieces from a ramp toward the target pattern or to block another player's ramp. Each player seeks to gain the most points based upon the proximity of their playing pieces to spaces within the target pattern.

Prior art shuffle board games involve an elongated playing field and a plurality of game pieces such as a puck or a chip which may be slid along the surface of the playing field. The elongated playing field has at one end a launching region for a player to launch or shoot a play piece along the length of the playing field. The elongated playing field has at the other end a goal region having one or more goals for the playing piece. The player's score is determined by the placement of playing pieces on appropriate locations in the goal region. The goal region may include a target area having differential point values or one or more individual goals. The playing field and the goal region may be barrier free or may have one or more barriers which may assist or interfere with the players efforts to launch a playing piece into an intended location in the goal area.
Such shuffle board games have been popular for generations and have been made in many different sizes. They may have large playing fields including a launch area where a player may stand to launch a playing piece towards a goal. Alternatively, the playing field may be on an arcade game table or may be on a portable apparatus for home use. Still other shuffle board game systems have utilized electronic systems and a virtual playing field.
The present invention offers a novel shuffle board game apparatus and method offering improved portability and enjoyment.


A method and apparatus for debugging programs in a distributed environment, such as a set of heterogeneous hardware processors (integrated circuits or In-Circuit Emulators), and/or software-based simulators. In one embodiment, the method comprises identifying a plurality of processes; initializing each of the processes; executing with a single thread of control among the processes; and continuously cycling among the processes to obtain status information. A computer program and apparatus for implementing the aforementioned methodology are also disclosed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of debugging programs in a distributed environment, such as a set of heterogeneous hardware processors (integrated circuits or In-Circuit Emulators), and/or software-based simulators.
2. Description of Related Technology
The process of debugging software intended for operation in embedded applications is a task that employs many different tools depending on the stage of software readiness. Programs are often organized in a hierarchical fashion, but need not include such structure. While structured programs are easier to debug because there is a reduced span of control within the software, both structured and unstructured programs commonly employ similar programming techniques including functions, subroutines, co-routines, and the like. Software-based simulators are used to provide design engineers and programmers (hereinafter "engineers") with absolute control over the execution of the software to be debugged. This process permits control at varying degrees of granularity ranging from a single line of code to larger blocks such as procedures, functions, and subroutines. Control includes among other facilities, the ability to start and stop execution, report results and change memory contents.
Multiprocessor systems complicate the debugging process significantly as compared to a unitary processor hardware environment. The most complex debugging environment is one in which the processors used in the multi-processor hardware employ different instructions sets. This condition is known to those skilled in the art as a heterogeneous multiprocessor system.
Heretofore, engineers have relied on diverse development environments, often provided by many different vendors, to debug such heterogeneous systems. These diverse development environments often provide different user interfaces, different commands, different capabilities, and sometimes employ different underlying computer operating systems which makes information transference between the systems challenging at best.
These conditions force engineers involved with debug to be less productive than would otherwise be possible were the interfaces common between all of the different processors. Further, each different system requires engineers to become conversant with its unique capabilities and disabilities, which requires more learning time and results in reduced productivity.
Additionally, the use of such heterogeneous development environments potentially introduces more error, due largely to the fact that the development environment associated with one of the heterogeneous processors utilizes one function for a given keystroke or other user input, while a different environment may utilize an all together different function for that same keystroke or input. Accordingly, the engineer must in effect maintain a "correlation table" for the various functions and associated inputs depending on which development environment is being used.
Based on the foregoing, what is needed is an improved method and apparatus for debugging devices such as heterogeneous processors. Such method and apparatus would ideally be readily adaptable to a number of different hardware/software environments, would allow for ready transfer of information associated with one processor to the development/debug environment of another, thereby facilitating side-by-side comparison of the operation of the different processors. Such improved debug method and apparatus would also be readily adapted to run on conventional microprocessor-based platforms, and accommodate inputs from both the aforementioned hardware processes and simulation processes.

Method and apparatus for debugging programs in a distributed environment


An access point associated on Wi-Fi portion of the communication network selectively groups stations according to a mobility profile. The mobility profile includes factors that characterize at least an amount of movement and current location for a station. Each station is assigned to a beamforming group of similar mobility profiles. A type of beamforming transmission is selected for each beamforming group based on mobility profiles of associated stations. The type of beamforming transmissions including at least MU-MIMO and SU-MIMO. Data is then transmitted to the stations of each beamforming group according to the selected type of beamforming transmissions. A Wi-Fi controller, having a network-wide view of conditions and being able to collect historical information about stations during connections to other access points, is able to provide data unique data to group selections.

Beamforming in a Wi-Fi network occurs during wireless data transfers between transmitters (i.e., a beamformer) and receivers (i.e., a beamformee) such as access points and stations. More specifically, rather than broadcasting a signal to a wide area to reach a target, beamforming concentrates the signal directly at the target that is faster, stronger, and has a longer range, with improved SNR (signal-to-noise ratio). Beamforming is enabled by transmitters and receivers that use MIMO (multiple-input, multiple-output) technology. Data is sent using multiple antennas to increase throughput and range with propagation over multiple paths.
Previous standards such as IEEE 802.11n (promulgated by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) support beamforming capability, but without any specific direction on how it is to be implemented. Consequently, a router or access point may not be compatible with a station having a different implementation. Newer standards such as IEEE 802.11ac and IEE 802.11ac wave 2 provide particular protocols for beamforming as to how transmitters and receivers communicate with each other and provide information about their relative positions. This will increase the number of beamforming enabled products brought to market.
With the advent of MU-MIMO (multiple user MIMO), antennae can now transmit to multiple receivers at the same time rather than being limited to a single user at a time under SU-MIMO (single user MIMO). Multi user beamforming is significantly more time-dependent than single user and therefore can require up to date channel information as the spatial arrangement of multiple receivers changes.
However, beamforming measurements are very costly and will bring down throughput if not done accurately. One beamforming feedback for a single receiver could cost 0.5 to 1% of airtime. Receivers that constantly change locations need more beamforming measurements to prevent stale data. On the other hand, receivers that do not move or change locations infrequently waste computing and network resources with unnecessary beamforming measurements.
Because stations in IEEE 802.11 protocols select access points, a resulting configuration of stations for access points can have disparate beamforming requirements. In other words, one station can be relatively stationary and only require a single measurement while another station can be very mobile and require frequent measurements, while the transmitter is forced to also frequently measure the relatively stationary station when using MU-MIMO.
What is needed is a robust technique for optimizing beamforming with stations selectively grouped according to mobility profiles. Groups leverage the advantages of MU-MIMO while avoiding the higher resource overhead by selectively using SU-MIMO.

Optimization of MU-MIMO beamforming in a Wi-Fi communication network based on mobility profiles


The present disclosure enables collections of variable heavy chain and variable light chain pairs comprising, in part, germline protein sequences that are pre-selected for functional properties relevant to developability, wherein the collections may be used to select against any antigen using, for example, phage display.

Advances in pharmaceutical development, especially in the field of therapeutic antibodies, are rapidly enabling and/or improving the treatment of many diseases. These advances, by reaching novel target spaces and providing novel mechanisms of action are increasingly improving the quality of lives of patients even with the most severe and challenging diseases. One challenge for the health care system in general and patients in particular is that the costs of new drugs, enabled by of these pharmaceutical advances, are also rapidly increasing. The high costs are a result of the investments required for the development of pharmaceuticals, especially of antibodies, which currently exceed one billion dollars per marketed product. The high risk of failure in development and very long developmental timelines make these investments inevitable. It may take over fifteen years from the time of identification of a potential therapeutic antibody until it reaches the market and can benefit patients. Each stage of development, from identification, pre-clinical, clinical to market entry is riddled with challenges and risks. Pharmaceutical companies are constantly working to reduce developmental costs by reducing timelines and risks of failure in order to get the most effective medicines into the hands of patients quickly.
The following disclosure provides a valuable advance which allows for faster identification of the optimal therapeutic antibodies for the treatment of any disease. Therapeutic antibody candidates must fulfill a number of development criteria in order to make it to the market, such as, long term stability, low aggregation propensity and high expression yields. The disclosed advance increases the probability and speed of identifying an antibody that can fulfill all of the rigorous development criteria right from the start. The resultant antibody will be less expensive to produce and will be effective and safe in the treatment of numerous diseases.
A well known method of identifying therapeutic antibodies is through the use of phage display technology. Phage display utilizes virus-like particles that are grown in bacteria to display antibodies. One benefit of this technology is that the libraries used are massive, with up to 1×1011 antibodies, which can quickly be tested for binding to any target relevant for any disease. See, for example, Knappik et al., (2000), "Fully synthetic human combinatorial antibody libraries (HuCAL) based on modular consensus frameworks and CDRs randomized with trinucleotides," J. Mol. Biol. 11; 296(1):57-86, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,300,064, both of which are incorporated by reference in their entireties. The benefit of working with such large numbers is that the output of a screening against a target may result in hundreds of antibodies that bind to the therapeutic target, all of which could be therapeutically relevant. A problem, though, is that often only a few of these antibodies are developable, meaning that they can meet all of the rigorous criteria required in order to make it to the market.
In order for a new phage display collection to shorten the identification timelines and reduce the inherent risks, the collection should comprise antibodies having the properties which are necessary for selection and clinical development and which will result in safe and effective treatment in patients. Such properties include: 1) high phage display rates, so that each and every antibody of the collection can be tested against the target of interest; 2) high expression levels in both Fab and IgG1 formats, so that the antibody or fragment can be reproduced efficiently with the needed quantity; 3) high thermal stability in both Fab and IgG1 formats, to ensure structural and functional integrity of the molecules delivered to patients; 4) high stability in serum in both Fab and IgG1 formats, so that the antibody shows increased half-life and prolonged activity; 5) high monomeric content (% monomer) as determined by size exclusion chromatography (SEC) in both Fab and IgG1 formats as this signifies a low aggregation propensity; 6) high isoelectric point (pI) in IgG1 format; 7) high thermal stability in Fab and IgG1 formats before and after exposure to acid; 8) low turbidity in Fab or IgG1 formats before and after exposure to acid; 9) stable molecular radius and % polydispersity before and after exposure to acid; 10) low risk of immunogenicity, thereby increasing safety, and/or 11) high diversity, so that one collection can be used to identify many antibodies against any therapeutic target.
A collection, which in essential ways imitates the human immune system, should be highly valuable, or even the optimal solution. The human immune system is composed of antibodies encoded by germline genes. Antibodies, in part, comprise of a variable heavy chain and variable light chains. There are approximately 50 variable heavy chain germline genes and approximately 50 variable light chain germline genes, combined providing about 2,500 combinations of different variable heavy and light chain pairs. In humans, all 2500 of these combinations are believed to be produced. It has been found, though, that certain variable heavy chains, variable light chains and/or variable heavy and light chain combinations (pairs) are present at a higher level than others. It was hypothesized that there must be some reason that some are present more than others, and if so, that the highly present germline genes may have favorable functional properties. Therefore, one way of providing a collection of antibodies having favorable functional properties is to generate a collection comprising the abundant variable heavy chain, variable light chain, and/or variable heavy chain and variable light chain pairs present in the human immune repertoire.
In addition, the germline gene sequences present in humans are thought to have very low immunogenicity, for obvious reasons, therefore these sequences can be imitated in recombinant antibodies in order to lower the risk of immunogenicity.
Approaches to evaluate the variable heavy and light chain germline gene pairings prevalent in the human immune repertoire have been undertaken. See de Wildt et al., Analysis of heavy and light chain pairings indicates that receptor editing shapes the human antibody repertoire, J Mol. Biol. 22; 285(3):895-901 (January 1999), which is incorporated by reference in its entirety. Wildt et al. took blood samples from human donors, sorted the IgG+ B cells, which had undergone somatic hypermutation, PCR amplified the cDNAs, sequenced each cDNA, and aligned each sequence to the known human variable domain germline genes. Wildt et al. observed that only a few germline genes dominated the immune repertoire and that the frequent heavy and light chain gene segments are often paired.
Attempts at maintaining the heavy and light chain variable domain pairings of individual B cells have also been undertaken. For example, libraries of variable domain "cognate pairs" have been disclosed. See Meijer et al., Isolation of human antibody repertoires with preservation of the natural heavy and light chain pairing, J Mol. Biol., 358(3):764-72 (May 5, 2006); and WO2005042774, which are both incorporated by reference in their entirety. Libraries according to the techniques described in Meijer et al. have been generated from individual B cells from an immunized host. Generally, the B cells are sorted by FACS so that CD38HI B cells, which represent somatically hypermutated cells, are selected, their cDNAs are PCR amplified, and the antibody gene products are inserted into Fab vectors for selection. Such cognate pair libraries are not without their limitations. For example, the hosts providing the B cells typically are immunized; and the B cell populations sorted have been hypermutated, therefore, the resulting libraries are biased towards a particular immunogen.
Additionally, attempts at utilizing prominent variable heavy chain or variable light chains for collection generation have been undertaken. For example, in Shi et al., "De Novo Selection of High-Affinity Antibodies from Synthetic Fab Libraries Displayed on Phage as pIX Fusion Proteins; J Mol. Biol., 397(2):385-96 (Mar. 26, 2010) and the respective patent application WO2009085462; and WO2006014498, which are incorporated by reference in their entireties. There, variable heavy chain or variable light chain germline protein sequences were incorporated into libraries based upon their frequency of use in the human immune repertoire.
Additional attempts have also been undertaken, which incorporate a specific germline pair into a collection. For example, WO1999020749, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety, describes a collection where its members comprise heavy chains having the canonical structure of a hypervariable loop encoded by the human germline heavy chain gene segment DP-47 (IGHV3-23) and/or framework regions encoded by the germline gene, and/or light chains having the canonical structure of a hypervariable loop encoded by the human germline light chain gene segment O2/O12 (IGKV1-39/1D-39) and/or framework regions encoded by the germline gene.
Additional approaches have generated libraries directly from or derived from B cells. For example, Glanville et al., Precise Determination of the Diversity of a Combinatorial Antibody Library Gives Insight into the Human Immunoglobulin Repertoire, Proc Natl Acad Sci 1; 106(48):20216-21 (December 2009), which is incorporated by reference in its entirety, which describes an antibody collection built from the diversity of 654 human donor Immunoglobulin M (IgM) repertoires. Specifically, the heavy and light chain V-gene cDNAs from 654 human donors were separately PCR amplified (separating the variable heavy and light chain pair) and the heavy and light chain domains were then randomly re-associated. WO2003052416, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety, also describes the isolation of B cells from a host exhibiting a pronounced response to a pathogen of interest, resulting from either an infection by a micro-organism or treatment with a vaccine. In WO2003052416, the cDNA encoding the CDR3 region of the variable regions was sequenced and antibody fragments comprising the dominant CDR3s were designed. WO2009100896, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety, describes the isolation of B cells from an immunized host, where the cDNAs encoding the variable heavy and light chain regions were sequenced and the abundance of the unparied variable heavy and variable light chain sequences was determined. In WO2009100896, libraries were synthesized comprising the randomly recombined variable heavy and variable light chains, wherein the antibodies were specific for one immunogen. A summary of these and additional approaches is found in Fuh et al., Synthetic antibodies as therapeutics, Expert Opin Biol Ther., 7(1):73-87 (January 2007), which is incorporated by reference in its entirety.
There is, therefore, a high need for a collection of antibodies or fragments thereof that incorporate the variable heavy and variable light chain gene pairs present in the human immune repertoire that have favorable biophysical properties relevant to development, while at the same time excluding the pairs that exist in nature, but do not have such biophysical properties. These and other needs are satisfied by the present invention.


A lithographic apparatus is calibrated by reference to a primary reference substrate. Using an apparatus which need not be the same as the one being calibrated, there is obtained an apparatus-specific fingerprint of the primary reference substrate. Using the same set-up there is then obtained an apparatus-specific fingerprint of a secondary reference substrate. The apparatus-specific fingerprint of the primary reference substrate is subtracted from the apparatus-specific fingerprint of the secondary reference substrate to obtain and store an apparatus-independent fingerprint of the secondary reference substrate. The secondary reference substrate and stored apparatus-independent fingerprint are subsequently used together in place of the primary reference substrate as a reference for the calibration of the lithographic apparatus to be calibrated. Initial set-up for a cluster of lithographic tools can be performed with less use of the costly primary reference substrate, and with less interruption to normal production. The initial set-up can be integrated with on-going monitoring and re-calibration of the apparatuses.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for calibrating a lithographic apparatus. The present invention further relates to methods of manufacturing devices using lithographic apparatus calibrated by such a method, and to data processing apparatuses and computer program products for implementing parts of such a method.
2. Background Art
A lithographic apparatus is a machine that applies a desired pattern onto a substrate, usually onto a target portion of the substrate. A lithographic apparatus can be used, for example, in the manufacture of integrated circuits (ICs). In that instance, a patterning device, which is alternatively referred to as a mask or a reticle, may be used to generate a circuit pattern to be formed on an individual layer of the IC. This pattern can be transferred onto a target portion (e.g., comprising part of, one, or several dies) on a substrate (e.g., a silicon wafer). Transfer of the pattern is typically via imaging onto a layer of radiation-sensitive material (resist) provided on the substrate. In general, a single substrate will contain a network of adjacent target portions that are successively patterned. Known lithographic apparatus include so-called steppers, in which each target portion is irradiated by exposing an entire pattern onto the target portion at one time, and so-called scanners, in which each target portion is irradiated by scanning the pattern through a radiation beam in a given direction (the "scanning"-direction) while synchronously scanning the substrate parallel or anti-parallel to this direction.
In order to monitor the lithographic process, it is necessary to measure parameters of the patterned substrate, for example the overlay error between successive layers formed in or on it and critical line width in a developed metrology target. There are various techniques for making measurements of the microscopic structures formed in lithographic processes, including the use of scanning electron microscopes and various specialized tools. A fast and non-invasive form of specialized inspection tool is a scatterometer in which a beam of radiation is directed onto a target on the surface of the substrate and properties of the scattered or reflected beam are measured. By comparing the properties of the beam before and after it has been reflected or scattered by the substrate, the properties of the substrate can be determined. This can be done, for example, by comparing the reflected beam with data stored in a library of known measurements associated with known substrate properties. Two main types of scatterometer are known. Spectroscopic scatterometers direct a broadband radiation beam onto the substrate and measure the spectrum (intensity as a function of wavelength) of the radiation scattered into a particular narrow angular range. Angularly resolved scatterometers use a monochromatic radiation beam and measure the intensity of the scattered radiation as a function of angle.
In order to better control scanner functionality, a module has been recently devised which automatically drives the system towards a pre-defined baseline each day. This scanner stability module retrieves standard measurements taken from a stability monitor wafer using a metrology tool. The monitor wafer had been previously exposed using a special reticle containing special scatterometry marks (or marks suitable for whatever other metrology tool is to be used). Using the monitor wafer and that day's measurements (and possibly the historical measurement data from the previous days), the scanner stability module determines how far the system has drifted from its baseline, and then calculates wafer-level overlay and focus correction sets. The baseline can be defined either directly by the reference layer on the monitor wafers (in this case the scanner stability module will drive the system towards minimal overlay on the monitor wafers) or indirectly by a combination of the reference layer on the wafers and the target overlay fingerprint (in this case the scanner stability module will drive the system towards defined target overlay fingerprint on the stability monitor wafers). The lithography system then converts these correction sets into specific corrections for each exposure on subsequent production wafers.
While the scanner stability module using monitor wafers attends to stability of performance of a lithography tool, and may be performed daily, there remains the separate need to perform initial calibration of the tool when it is installed, and after any major interruption in operation. This calibration is done by conventional processes using specially manufactured reference wafers. After an interruption in operation, the calibration to reference wafers is performed again, after which the scanner stability module is reset by exposing and monitoring a stability monitor wafer. Given that any interruption of production using these expensive tools is very costly, users currently have to weigh up the benefits of the stability module against the cost of this extra calibration step. Another loss in productivity arises when the monitor wafer wears out and a new monitor wafer must be made with high accuracy. Further, there is the overhead and risk attached to the need for monitor wafers to be made and maintained with specific tools, in a facility where several tools may be operating side-by-side.

Method of calibrating a lithographic apparatus, device manufacturing method and associated data processing apparatus and computer program product


The invention refers to a cosmetic product for hairs and decorative cosmetic with particular water resistance and wear (transfer) resistance. The product comprises stabile mixture of a water-emulsifiable, film-forming agent; a rheology modifier; a pigment; a volatile organic solvent; an oil soluble polymeric film-former; a silicon resin; and a filler.

The present invention relates to a cosmetic product for hair, such as eyelash hair and eyebrow hair and decorative cosmetic with particular water resistance and wear (transfer) resistance.
From U.S. Pat. No. 5,925,337 a waterproof mascara composition is known which contains 2–40% by weight of a wax, 5–15% by weight of a thickening agent, 35–50% by weight of a volatile organic solvent and 1–35% by weight of a water-soluble film-forming agent, wherein the last-named agent may e.g. also be an acrylate polymer. The composition does not contain any emulsifier.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Water resistant, wear resistant, and decorative cosmetic for hair


The invention refers to a process for preparing sterile active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) useful in the preparation of sterile product for ophthalmic use. The process comprises the gamma-ray sterilization treatment of the APIs powder in a protective atmosphere.

Sterile active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) could be manufactured by aseptic processing, that is highly costly for a drug substance considering the low value of the API compared with the final drug formulation, alternatively terminal sterilization is more convenient and cost effective; among those methods Pharmacopoeias recognize 5 procedures (eg US Pharmacopoeia chapter <1211>"sterilization and sterility assurance of compendial articles"): Steam Sterilization, Dry Heat Sterilization, Gas Sterilization (ethylene oxide), Sterilization by Ionizing Radiation (gamma ray, electron beam), Sterilization by Filtration.
No all the methodologies could be suitable for usage with pharmaceutical powders, (generally heat and humidity sensitive), like steam sterilization employing saturated steam under pressure is carried out in a chamber called an autoclave at 120° C. or dry heat sterilization where the unit is operating at not less than 250° C. The most commonly employed method of gaseous sterilization is ethylene oxide. Among the disadvantages of ethylene oxide are its highly flammable nature unless mixed with suitable inert gases, its mutagenic properties, and the possibility of toxic residues in treated materials, particularly those containing chloride ions. One of the principal limiting factors of the ethylene oxide sterilization process is the limited ability of the gas to diffuse to the innermost product areas that require sterilization. Package design and chamber loading patterns therefore must be determined to allow for necessary gas penetration.
The rapid proliferation of medical devices unable to withstand heat sterilization and the concerns about the safety of ethylene oxide have resulted in increasing applications of radiation sterilization. This method may also be applicable to active pharmaceutical ingredients and final dosage forms. The advantages of sterilization by irradiation include low chemical reactivity, low measurable residues, and the fact that there are fewer variables to control. In fact, radiation sterilization is unique in that the basis of control is essentially that of the absorbed radiation dose, which can be precisely measured. Dose-setting and dose-substantiation procedures are typically used to validate the radiation dose required to achieve a sterility assurance level. Irradiation causes only a minimal temperature rise but can affect certain grades and types of plastics and glass.
The two types of ionizing radiation in use are radioisotope decay (gamma radiation) and electron-beam radiation. In either case the radiation dose established to yield the required degree of sterility assurance should be such that, within the range of minimum and maximum doses set, the properties of the article being sterilized are acceptable.
The sterilization of fluids by filtration is a separative process and differs from the other methods of sterilization that rely on destructive mechanisms. Filtration through microbial retentive materials is frequently employed for the sterilization of heat-labile solutions by physical removal of the contained microorganisms. One of the disadvantages of this technique is that it is not applicable on low soluble products, filtration in case of suspensions is not practicable since the filtration pore are very fine (down to 0.2 microns) therefore a very clear solution is required.
Brinzolamide is a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor (specifically, carbonic anhydrase II). Carbonic anhydrase is found primarily in erythrocytes (but also in other tissues including the eye); it is formulated as an ophthalmic suspension (Azopt and Azarga® by Alcon Laboratories) used for the treatment of open-angle glaucoma and raised intraocular pressure due to excess aqueous humor production. It is a known drug substance and a monograph has been published in the USP.
European patent EP 941094 B1 (Alcon Laboratories) describes a manufacturing process for the drug product starting from the non-sterile drug substance stating that conventional sterilization methods cannot be employed in the manufacture of suspensions comprising brinzolamide since the compound recrystallizes at autoclaving temperatures forming large needle-type crystals. According to EP 941094 patent, also dry heat sterilization is not suitable since it causes melting of the material, whereas sterilization by ethylene oxide and gamma irradiation introduces unacceptable degradation products. Sterile filtration is not achievable due to the poor solubility of brinzolamide.
European patent application. EP 2394637 A1 (Zaklady Farmaceutyczne Polpharma) describes a manufacturing process for the brinzolamide ophtalmic suspension, starting from sterile drug substance, the sterilization is claimed to be performed with ethylene oxide or with gamma ray radiation. Sterilization with ethylene oxide is difficult to perform and it is hardly suitable for industrial manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients as required by pharmacopoeias and current GMP. Different concerns is related to sterilisation by radiation since there is a dedicated EU GMP guideline on the manufacture of sterile drugs (Annex-12 Use of Ionising Radiation in the Manufacture of Medicinal Products): "[ . . . ] Radiation sterilisation is used mainly for the sterilisation of heat sensitive materials and products. Many medicinal products and some packaging materials are radiation-sensitive, so this method is permissible only when the absence of deleterious effects on the product has been confirmed experimentally"; in particular usage of gamma ray irradiation is provided by Eur. Ph. chapter 5.1.1, where a precise energy is foreseen in order to have the right sterility assurance level (SAL): "[ . . . ] For this method of terminal sterilisation the reference absorbed dose is 25 kGy. Other doses may be used provided that it has satisfactorily been demonstrated that the dose chosen delivers an adequate and reproducible level of lethality when the process is operated routinely within the established tolerances. The procedures and precautions employed are such as to give an SAL of 10−6 or better".
EP 2394637 overcomes a technical prejudice concerning the sterilization of Brinzolamide (see EP 941094 B1) showing that sterilization by gamma ray radiation can be successfully applied to this product. Particularly, according to EP 2394637 sterilization by gamma irradiation is performed employing any pharmaceutically acceptable dose of gamma irradiation, preferably the dose of either 5, 10, 15 or 25 KG and more preferably the dose of 15 kGy. However EP 2394637 provides no details about the degradation of Brinzolamide active pharmaceutical ingredients, measuring only enantiomeric purity. Considering that the sterility assurance is the key for a industrial manufacturing process of the drug substance even in this case it seems that there is no evidence that this procedure could be suitable for practical purpose.
For all those considerations there is still need of an industrial procedure for the manufacture of Brinzolamide sterile pharmaceutical ingredient useful in the preparation of medicinal products.
The problem which the invention intends to solve is to make available a process for the preparation of brinzolamide sterile grade, which allows to use high energies of irradiation (25 KGy), reducing the degradation phenomena (in agreement with the provisions in force).

Production of sterile active pharmaceutical ingredients


A glass sheet forming system (20) provides continuous roll conveyed forming of heated flat glass sheets to formed shapes having a major axis of curvature and a minor axis of curvature perpendicular to each other. The forming is performed by a roll station (30) having a shape retaining quench (36) associated with a lower deformable roll bed (32) and an upper deformable roll former (34). An adjustment mechanism (78) provides adjustment of the extent of the minor curvature and an actuating mechanism (56) is operable to provide the major curvature.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to apparatus for forming glass sheets with major and minor curvatures that are generally perpendicular to each other.
2. Background Art
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,498,275, 5,556,444, and 5,697,999 of Reunamaki and U.S. Pat. No. 6,378,339 Zelesak disclose a glass sheet forming system for forming heated glass sheets during conveyance along a direction of movement of the glass sheet through the system. The forming is provided by lower and upper sets of deformable rolls that are vertically aligned with each other along the direction of conveyance and supported by associated members that are movable to move the lower and upper sets of rolls between a flat condition for receiving a heated glass sheet from an associated furnace and a curved condition for forming the glass sheet to a curved shape along a direction transverse to the direction of conveyance. Other glass sheet forming that is performed during movement of the glass along a direction of conveyance is disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 4,883,527 McMaster et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 5,009,693 Freidel et al.
The above prior art has primarily been utilized in the past to provide cylindrical curvature without any cross bending transverse to the major axis of bending. However, for some period of time, vehicle design requirements have glass sheet shapes that incorporate cross curvature with major and minor axes of curvature. Such cross curvature has been provided by press bending apparatus wherein a flat glass sheet is shaped between complementary press molds to provide both a major axis of curvature and cross bending about a minor axis of curvature. For example, vehicle side windows having a length of about 1,200 millimeters (about 39 inches) will have a major axis of forming about a longitudinal vehicle direction and will have cross bending about a vertically inclined axis. Such cross bending normally has a radius of curvature of about 30 meters and is thus relatively slight in comparison to the major curvature. More specifically, for a glass part having a length of 1,200 millimeters (about 46 inches), cross bending with a 30 meter radius of curvature provides a depth of curvature from a straight line between the opposite ends of the part to the glass of only about three to four millimeters. Nevertheless, such cross curvature provides compliance with design shapes as well as providing good optical appearance and structural requirements of the completed part.

Apparatus for glass sheet forming with cross curvature


A method of manufacturing a side glass for a vacuum fluorescent display is provided wherein a glass is cut to a predetermined length in accordance with the size of the vacuum fluorescent display. The glass is then bent to coincide two ends of the glass in accordance with the shape of the vacuum fluorescent display, and the two ends of the glass are adhered to one another. A sealing frit is applied on the upper side of the glass, and is plasticized and cured.

The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing side glass for a vacuum fluorescent display (VFD), and more particularly, to a method of manufacturing the VFD more efficiently by manufacturing the side glass of the VFD with a simple and convenient process.
The vacuum fluorescent display (VFD) is a well known flat display device which displays an image on its screen by emitting hot electrons from its cathode made of a filament, controlling the movement of the hot electrons with grids, and irradiating the hot electrons to an anode plate on which fluorescent materials are coated.
A vacuum case, in which at least one side is transparent, is mounted on the VFD's external side, and an evacuation tube is conventionally formed on the vacuum case to extract air or gas from the vacuum case. Specifically, the vacuum case includes a base glass in which a circuit board is formed, a side glass which is mounted on the base glass, and a front glass which is mounted on the side glass. Conventionally, the evacuation tube is formed on the side glass, and after extracting gas or air from the vacuum case through the evacuation tube, the end of the evacuation tube is sealed.
However, the conventional VFD with the vacuum case has several disadvantages. That is, the evacuation tube is easily destroyed by external impact and the external appearance of the VFD is not aesthetically pleasing because part of the evacuation tube is exposed to the outside of the side glass.
Recently, VFD's have been formed with evacuation holes formed on the base glass to extract the gas or air from vacuum case instead of using the evacuation tube formed on the side glass. In these systems, after extracting the gas or air from the vacuum case through the evacuation hole with an evacuation device, such as a pump, the evacuation hole is sealed with a seal cap to maintain the vacuum formed in the vacuum case.
The VFD having the evacuation hole instead of the evacuation tube will be described with reference to FIG. 6. As shown in FIG. 6, the vacuum case of the VFD includes a base glass 1 in which the evacuation hole 10a is formed, a side glass 3 which is mounted on the edges of the base glass 1, and a front glass 5 which is mounted on the side glass 3. The base, side and the front glasses 1, 3, 5 are adhered to each other with a sealing frit (S-Frit). The seal cap 7 is attached beneath the base glass 1 to seal the evacuation hole 10a after extracting the gas or air from the vacuum case. The base glass 1 is produced by several processes including a circuit masking process. The side glass 3, which is made of four pieces of glass, is conventionally produced by the following process. Namely, the method for manufacturing the side glass 3 includes the steps of (1) cutting four pieces of glass at predetermined lengths, (2) cleaning the four pieces of glass, (3) adhering the four pieces of glass together in the shape of a rectangular box (side glass) with mounting frits (M-Frit), (4) coating a sealing frit on the upper side of the side glass, and (5) plasticizing the sealing frit and examining the side glass.
However, by adhering the four pieces of glass, the manufacturing process of the VFD is more complex. Furthermore, the four pieces of glass must be scribed and produced to have exactly same lengths with the lengths of the VFD. In addition, a large amount of the mounting frit is required to adhere the four pieces of glass, which increases the cost of manufacturing the VFD.

Method of manufacturing a side glass for a vacuum fluorescent display


A method for treating hair comprising applying at least one pigment onto hair for providing the basis for colouring hair in a more reproducible and reliable manner independently from a user's initial hair colour.

Different methods for changing the colour of hair are known in the art. These methods involve the use of hair colouring compositions which allow either permanent or temporary change of hair colour.
Hair colouring compositions which are used to permanently change the colour of hair, also called oxidative hair colouring compositions, typically comprise oxidative hair dye precursors, which can diffuse into the hair through the cuticle and into the cortex where they then react with each other and a suitable oxidizing agent to form the end dye molecules. Due to their larger size, the resultant molecules are unable to readily diffuse out of the hair during subsequent washing with water and/or detergents; hence delivering a consumer-desired permanency of colour. This reaction typically takes place at approximately pH 10 to 11 in the presence of an alkalizing agent and an oxidizing agent. Typically an oxidizing composition (also called developer and/or oxidizing component) comprising the oxidizing agent and a dye composition (also called tint or dye component) comprising the alkalizing agent and if present the hair dye precursors are mixed shortly before use. The consumer repeats this process regularly in order to maintain the desired hair colour, shade and intensity of colour and to ensure continual, even coverage of the hair including coverage of new hair growth. The problem with standard oxidative hair colouring methods is that the conditions under which the reaction is taking place, i.e. the high pH value as well as the presence of an oxidizing agent may cause damage to the structure of the hair and may be irritating for the scalp of the user, especially when such a process is repeated regularly and the compositions which are usually used have an undesirable odour. An even more severe problem is that obtaining the desired target colour is fairly difficult since standard oxidative hair colouring compositions are highly reactive compositions and since it is therefore not easy to completely control and predict the reaction on hair.
As an alternative to the use of the above described oxidative hair colouring compositions, methods for temporarily changing the colour of hair have also been developed. For instance, these methods usually involve the application of hair colouring compositions comprising direct dyes. The hair colouration obtained by direct dyes is typically characterized by a weaker washfastness than when the hair is coloured with standard oxidative hair colouring compositions, i.e. the colouration is typically fading after regular washing of the hair with standard shampoo compositions. Direct dye compositions are usually less aggressive for the hair since they are non-reactive compositions. However, since direct dyes are low molecular weight molecules, they may have the tendency to also colour the scalp of the user. Moreover, achieving a predetermined target colour in a reproducible and reliable manner is fairly difficult since the final colour obtained by using direct dyes very much depends on the initial colour and condition of the user's hair. For instance, two users with different initial hair colours will obtain different hair colours after using one and the same direct dye. Moreover, even for one and the same user having an initial hair colour, the final hair colour obtained by colouration may very much depend on the initial condition of the hair during colouration. For instance, it may be of importance whether or not the hair have been washed before, when the hair have been washed, the type of shampoo used etc. As such, one and the same user applying one and the same dye on different days can hardly rely on obtaining one and the same final colour.
Apart from the use of direct dyes, other methods for temporarily changing the colour of hair have also been developed. These methods involve the application of hair colouring compositions comprising polymeric dyes. Similar to direct dyes, a hair colouration obtained by polymeric dyes is also typically characterized by a weaker washfastness than when the hair is coloured with standard oxidative hair colouring compositions. Moreover, the final colour obtained by applying polymeric dyes is also hardly predictable for similar reasons as described for direct dyes.
With the foregoing in view, there is a need for a method for achieving a predetermined target colour in a more reproducible and reliable manner independently from the user's initial hair colour and hair condition. This method should preferably involve the use of compositions which are less aggressive for the hair and for the scalp. Finally, this method should also preferably involve the use of low odour compositions.
The inventors have surprisingly found out that at least some of these needs may be met by the method for treating hair according to the present invention, wherein a composition A comprising at least one pigment is applied onto the hair to impart the hair with an intermediate colour which is different to the initial colour, and wherein upon subsequent colouration, a predetermined target colour can be achieved in a more reliable and reproducible manner.


A fuel delivery assembly for a dual lobe fuel tank. The assembly comprises a flange for disposing the assembly within the fuel tank. The flange has outer and inner surfaces. The inner surface has a collar extending therefrom. The collar has radial slots formed thereon. The assembly further comprises a bracket portion being compressible and cooperable with the collar for compression of the assembly. The bracket portion has tabs extending therefrom and is configured to be disposed in the collar. The tabs are received in the radial slots. The assembly further comprises a feed port connected to the bracket portion for fuel supply.

Vehicle fuel tanks are common and typically vary in design based on the vehicle make and model. Dual lobe fuel tanks, for example, are implemented in a vehicle wherein clearance is needed to allow the drivetrain and/or exhaust system to pass underneath the fuel tank. The clearance formed for the drivetrain and/or exhaust system defines at least two lobes within the tank. Typically, the two lobes are termed remote and active sides. Most dual lobe fuel tanks include a fuel delivery system in the remote side and a fuel pump system in the active side to pump fuel to the engine. The fuel delivery system may be in fluid communication with the fuel pump system via an internal fuel line.
Although common, vehicle dual lobe fuel tanks and dual lobe fuel tank systems are continually being improved due to the demands for improvements, e.g., permeability, weight, performance and accuracy. For example, manufacturers of dual lobe fuel tanks are challenged in providing a fuel delivery system that may be installed in various-sized dual lobe fuel tanks without compromising time, ease, and costs. Some fuel delivery units have two or more columns with a number of components that create an obstacle during installment of the unit in a fuel tank. That is, these current fuel delivery units create a challenge during installation where adjustments to the system are needed for an acceptable installment.
Thus, there is a need to provide an improved fuel delivery system that may be installed in various-sized dual lobe fuel tanks with relatively ease and within a relatively efficient time.

Fuel delivery assembly for dual lobe fuel tank


A problem of the present invention is to provide a wide band modulation PLL having good modulation accuracy at low cost. With respect to a PLL having a VCO (21), a frequency divider (22), a phase comparator (23), a charge pump (24) and a loop filter (25), the VCO (21) and a frequency dividing ratio of the frequency divider (22) are controlled to perform modulation. The VCO (21) has two control terminals for PLL and modulation, and a control signal generation part (28) generates a control voltage Vtm of the VCO (21) based on phase modulation data and an input voltage Vtl to the control terminal for PLL. At the time of adjusting a modulation factor, the control voltage Vtm to the control terminal for modulation of the VCO (21) is controlled and also the input voltage Vtl is measured and a modulation sensitivity of a frequency of the VCO (21) to Vtm is calculated and a modulation factor of the phase modulation data is adjusted based on the modulation sensitivity obtained.

Generally, a PLL (Phase Locked Loop) modulation circuit requires low cost, low power consumption, good noise characteristics, and modulation accuracy. When modulation is performed in the PLL, it is desirable to widen a frequency bandwidth of the PLL (PLL band) than a frequency bandwidth of a modulation signal (modulation band) in order to improve the modulation accuracy.
However, widening the PLL bandwidth causes degradation in the noise characteristics. Thus, a technique of two-point modulation in which a PLL bandwidth is set at a value narrower than a modulation bandwidth and modulation within a PLL band and modulation without the PLL band are performed at two different points has been devised (for example, see Patent Reference 1).
FIG. 10 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a conventional wide band modulation PLL. As shown in FIG. 10, the conventional wide band modulation PLL includes a PLL having a voltage controlled oscillator (hereinafter VCO) 1 in which an oscillation frequency changes according to a voltage of a control voltage terminal (Vt), a frequency divider 2 for dividing a frequency of an RF modulation signal outputted from the VCO 1, a phase comparator 3 for comparing phases of a reference signal and an output signal of the frequency divider 2 and outputting a signal according to a phase difference and a loop filter 4 for averaging an output signal of the phase comparator, a modulation sensitivity table 7 for outputting a modulation signal based on modulation data, a D/A converter 10 for converting an output signal of the modulation sensitivity table 7 into an analog voltage while adjusting a gain according to a gain control signal from a control part 6, a delta and sigma modulator 9 in which delta and sigma modulation of a signal obtained by adding channel selection information to the output signal from the modulation sensitivity table 7 is performed and the signal is outputted to the frequency divider 2 as a frequency dividing ratio, and an A/D converter 11 for converting a voltage value of Vt into a digital value and outputting the value to the control part 6.
FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a frequency characteristic for description of an action of a wide band modulation PLL. Here, a transfer function of the PLL is set at H(s) (where s=jω). H(s) has a low-pass characteristic as shown in FIG. 11. A low-pass filter of a transfer function H(s) is applied to a modulation signal added to a frequency dividing ratio set in the frequency divider 2. On the other hand, a high-pass filter of a transfer function 1-H(s) as shown in FIG. 11 is applied to a modulation signal added to the control voltage terminal (Vt) of the VCO 1.
Since these two modulation components are added in the control voltage terminal of the VCO 1, the modulation signal is multiplied by a characteristic shown by a broken line of FIG. 11 equivalently, that is, 1 and is given to the VCO 1. As a result of that, an RF modulation signal with a wide band ranging to the outside of a PLL band can be outputted from the VCO 1.
By the way, amplitude of a modulation signal inputted to the control voltage terminal of the VCO 1 is converted into a frequency shift of an RF modulation signal outputted from the VCO 1. The conversion gain is called a modulation sensitivity and generally, a unit of the modulation sensitivity is [Hz/V].
Amplitude of a signal outputted from the D/A converter 10 must match with the modulation sensitivity of the VCO 1. That is because when these matching is not achieved, the transfer function 1-H(s) is multiplied by the amount of deviation (where a times) and a characteristic combined with H(s) shown by a broken line is not flat with respect to the frequency as shown in FIG. 12. This becomes a factor in degrading modulation accuracy.
FIG. 13 is a diagram showing one example of a characteristic representing a change in an output signal frequency versus a control voltage of a general VCO. A modulation sensitivity is represented by a slope of a curve of this characteristic of frequency versus voltage. As shown in FIG. 13, the modulation sensitivity varies depending on an oscillation frequency of the VCO, so that it is necessary to change amplitude of a modulation signal inputted to the control voltage terminal of the VCO according to the oscillation frequency of the VCO in order to obtain the same frequency shift modulation signal at a different oscillation frequency of the VCO.
FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a characteristic of a modulation sensitivity versus an oscillation frequency of a general VCO. It is apparent from the same diagram that the modulation sensitivity changes depending on the oscillation frequency.
Here, one example of the case that it is necessary to change a control voltage resulting from the fact that the modulation sensitivity varies depending on the oscillation frequency of the VCO will be described. It is assumed that a modulation sensitivity at a frequency of 2 GHz of the VCO 1 is 100 MHz/V and the maximum frequency shift of a modulation signal is 5 MHz. In this case, it is necessary to input a signal with the maximum amplitude of 50 mV to Vt. However, it is assumed that a modulation sensitivity becomes 80 MHz/V at the time when a frequency of the VCO 1 is 2.1 GHz. In this case, it is necessary to input a signal with the maximum amplitude of 62.5 mV to Vt. That is, the need to change amplitude of an output signal of the D/A converter 10 by the frequency of the VCO 1 arises.
Incidentally, a modulation sensitivity for a modulation component included in a frequency dividing ratio set in the frequency divider 2 becomes a frequency of a reference signal and does not change with respect to the frequency of the VCO 1. For example, description will be made using the case of assuming that a frequency of the VCO 1 is 2 GHz and a frequency of a reference signal is 1 MHz and the maximum frequency shift of a modulation signal is 5 MHz as an example. In this case, a change range of the maximum frequency dividing ratio becomes 5. Therefore, in this calculation, the frequency of the VCO 1 is irrelevant.
In the case of FIG. 10, by having a characteristic of a modulation sensitivity versus a frequency as the modulation sensitivity table 7 and calculating the amount of variation of a control voltage at the time when a channel frequency changes, the modulation sensitivity is corrected and a gain of the D/A converter is adjusted.
Here, FIG. 15 is one example of a principle diagram of a VCO. The VCO 1 is constructed of an inductor L, a capacitor C, a variable capacitance diode Cv in which capacitance varies depending on a voltage value of a control voltage Vt and an active element 100, and an oscillation frequency fVCO is determined by a mathematical formula 1.
                              f          VCO                =                  1                      2                        π                                                      L                                                  (                                      C                    +                                          C                      v                                                        )                                                                                〈Mathematical  formula  1〉
When such a VCO is integrated into an LSI, values of elements such as the inductor L, the capacitor C and the variable capacitance diode Cv vary depending on manufacturing variations. Because of this, characteristics of a modulation sensitivity versus an oscillation frequency of the VCO vary in the respective LSIs.
However, in the conventional wide band modulation PLL, it is necessary to prepare modulation sensitivity tables for characteristics of modulation sensitivities every LSI resulting from variations in the values of these elements. That is, it is necessary to separately measure the tables of the modulation sensitivity versus the frequency every LSI and write and hold the tables into memory etc.
In order to prepare the modulation sensitivity tables, it is necessary to measure the modulation sensitivities versus the frequencies of all the channels used and as a result of that, frequency switching of the PLL is performed by the number of measurement points. Therefore, there were circumstances in which a lot of time is taken and manufacturing cost is increased and also the amount of memory is large and cost of the LSI is also increased.
Further, a modulation sensitivity is corrected when a channel frequency is switched, but there were also circumstances in which variations in the modulation sensitivity because of subsequent environmental variations cannot be corrected and it is difficult to well maintain modulation accuracy.
(Patent Reference 1) U.S. Pat. No. 6,211,747

Broadband modulation PLL, and modulation factor adjustment method thereof

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A herbicidal composition containing. (1) a substituted pyridine of general formulae I or II ##STR1## as defined herein, and PA1 (2) at least one herbicidal component selected from. a) an urea-type herbicide, such as chlortoluron, isoproturon, linuron or neburon, PA2 b) a triazine-type herbicide, such as atrazine, cyanazine or simazine PA2 c) a hydroxybenzonitrile herbicide, such as bromoxynil or ioxynil, PA2 d) an aryloxyalkanoic acid herbicide, such as dichlorprop, MCPA or mecoprop, PA2 e) a dinitroaniline herbicide, such as pendimethalin, PA2 f) a sulfonylurea herbicide, such as amidosulfuron, PA2 g) a pyridazine herbicide, such as pyridate, PA2 h) a fluorene carboxylic acid herbicide, such as flurenol, PA2 i) a pyridyloxyacetic acid herbicide, such as fluroxypyr, PA2 j) a fenoxyfenoxypropion acid herbicide, such as fenoxaprop, and PA2 k) an oxyacetamide herbicide,. which provides a synergistic effect against a broad spectrum of weed species, e.g., in cereal crops. The invention also provides a method for controlling weeds by applying both a compound (1) and a compound (2) to a locus.

The present invention relates to an improvement in the efficacy of herbicidal 2,6-substituted pyridines by combination with a selected second herbicidal compound. The term "2,6-substituted pyridines" is being used herein for such pyridine derivatives which may or may not contain further substituents.
The herbicidal 2,6-disubstituted pyridines to be used according to the present invention are a group of compounds, disclosed in European Patent Applications EP 0 572 093 A, EP 0 692 474 A, EP 0 693 490 and International Application WO 94/22833, which display excellent herbicidal performance, in particular against broad-leaved weeds in cereal crops. However, the 2,6-disubstituted pyridines, when used as the sole active ingredient, do not always achieve effective control of the full spectrum of weed species encountered in commercial agronomic applications, in conjunction with reliable selectivity for the crop species. Such gaps in the spectrum of control can be overcome by co-treatment with another herbicide known to be effective against the relevant weed species. The combined use of certain herbicidal pyridines and in addition other herbicides has been described in International Patent Application WO 94/07368.
Surprisingly, it has now been found, that the combined herbicidal activity of compounds from the above mentioned 2,6-disubstituted pyridines with various partners against many broad-leaved weeds and annual grasses is much greater than expected when applied pre- or post-emergence and that this activity cannot be ascribed to an additive effect, but to a remarkable degree of synergism on many broad-leaved weed species and annual grasses, for example on Setaria viridis, Alopecurus myosuroides, Poa annua, Stellaria media, Lamium purpureum, Galium aparine, Veronica hederaefolia, Papaver rhoeas or Matricaria inodora (i.e. these combinations show a much higher level of activity than predicted from that of the individual compounds) which enables also a greater selectivity for the crop species.
A mixture of herbicides shows synergistic effect if the herbicidal activity of the mixture is larger than the sum of activities of the seperately applied compounds. The expected herbicidal activity for a given mixture of two herbicides can be calculated as follows (See Colby, S. R., "Calculating synergistic and antagonistic response of herbicide combinations", Weeds 15, pp 20-22 (1967): ##EQU1## wherein X is the percentage of growth inhibition upon treatment with a herbicide 1 at a dose of p kg/ha compared with an untreated control (X=0%)
Y is the percentage of growth inhibition treatment with a herbicide 2 at a dose of q kg/ha compared with an untreated control PA0 WE is the herbicidal effect to be expected upon treatment (% of growth inhibition compared with untreated control) with a combination of herbicide 1 and 2 at a dose of p+q g/ha, respectively. PA0 (1) at least one herbicidal component selected from PA0 (2) at least one compound selected from the compounds of general formulae I and II ##STR2## wherein A.sub.1 and A.sub.2 independently represent an aryl group, at least one of A.sub.1 and A.sub.2 being substituted by one or more of the same or different substituents selected from halogen atoms, alkyl groups, alkoxy groups, haloalkyl groups and haloalkoxy groups; PA0 R.sub.1 represents a hydrogen atom, or a cyano group, or an alkyl, alkoxy, alkylthio or haloalkyl group having from 1 to 4 carbon atoms, and PA0 R.sub.2 represents a hydrogen or halogen atom, provided that at least one of R.sub.1 and R.sub.2 represents a hydrogen atom; PA0 n and m independently represent 0 or 1; PA0 A.sub.3 represents an optionally substituted 5 or 6 membered nitrogen containing heteroaromatic group; PA0 A.sub.4 represents an optionally substituted 5 or 6 membered cyclic hydrocarbon, alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, aryl or aralkyl group or independently one of the meanings for A.sub.3 ; PA0 R.sub.3 represents a halogen atom or an alkyl, haloalkyl, alkoxy, alkylthio or dialkylamino group; PA0 X represents an oxygen or sulfur atom; PA0 p represents 0, 1 or 2.
If the actual weed control (W) exceeds the expected (calculated) weed control (WE), the mixture displays a synergistic effect.