Bacillus sp. TTUR 302 which belongs to the genus Bacillus and is capable of converting bile acids having a 7.alpha.-hydroxyl group or a 7-keto group into bile acids having a 7.beta.-hydroxyl group; and a process for producing bile acids having a 7.beta.-hydroxyl group which comprises incubating this microorganism in an enriched medium containing bile acids having a 7.alpha.-hydroxyl group or a 7-keto group and collecting the formed bile acids having a 7.beta.-hydroxyl group (ursodeoxycholic acids, etc.). The process is easy to operate and safe as compared with the conventional chemical synthesis method. It is also superior to the conventional microbial methods particularly in the case of industrial production, since the microorganism of the invention is a facultative anaerobe and thus capable of effecting the conversion of the bile acids under aerobic conditions at a high substrate concentration. Moreover, the microorganism shows neither any hemolytic properties nor lecithinase productivity which might result in pathogenicity.

As a chemical production method for converting a 7.alpha.-hydroxyl group of bile acids into a 7.beta.-hydroxyl group, there is known a method in which a 7.alpha.-hydroxyl group is oxidized into a 7-keto group which is then reduced to a 7.beta.-hydroxyl group.
As a microorganism which is capable of converting a 7.alpha.-hydroxyl group of bile acids into a 7.beta.-hydroxyl group, there are known Clostridium absonum (U.S. Pat. No. 4,303,754 and Journal of Lipid Research, 22, 458-465 (1981)) and Clostridium limosum (Journal of Lipid Research, 25, 1084-1089 (1984)). In addition, as a microorganism which is capable of converting a 7-keto group of bile acids into a 7.beta.-hydroxyl group, there are known Peptostoreptococcus productus isolated as an enterobacterium (Acta Med. Univ. Kagoshima., 24 (1), 31-8 (1982)), Eubacterium aerofaciens (Acta Med. Univ. Kagoshima., 24 (1), 43-7 (1982)), and Ruminococcus sp. PO1-3 (J. Biochem. Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University, 102, 613-619 (1987)).
However, when a chemical production method is used to oxidize a 7.alpha.-hydroxyl group into a 7-keto group, some of the hydroxyl groups (for example, 3.alpha.-hydroxyl group) other than the 7.alpha.-hydroxyl group are simultaneously oxidized. Those hydroxyl groups, therefore, need to be protected in such cases. Furthermore, in the reduction reaction of a 7-keto group into a 7.beta.-hydroxyl group, the use of metal sodium is common and therefore the method has a risk of explosion. The method, therefore, has some efforts to resolve in terms of handling and safety.
In the method for producing bile acids having a 7.beta.-hydroxyl group by means of a microorganism, the organisms used such as Clostridium absonum, Clostridium limosum, Peptostoreptococcus productu, Eubacterium aerofaciens, and Ruminococcus sp. can grow only at low concentrations of bile acids and besides the conversion efficiency of the bile acid is low, too. Therefore, it was impossible to manufacture bile acids on a commercial scale. For example, the substrate concentrations at which Clostridium absonum and Clostridium limosum convert 3.alpha., 7.alpha., 12.alpha.-trihydroxy-5.beta.-cholanic acid (referred to hereinafter as "cholic acid") into 3.alpha., 7.beta., 12.alpha.-trihydroxy-5.beta.-cholanic acid (referred to hereinafter as "ursocholic acid") at a conversion efficiency of 60% or greater are 0.06% (w/v) and 0.4% (w/v), respectively, and those at which the above organisms convert 3.alpha., 7.alpha.-dihydroxy-5.beta.-cholanic acid (referred to hereinafter as "chenodeoxycholic acid") into ursodeoxycholic acid at a conversion efficiency of 60% or greater are 0.02% (w/v) and 0.04% (w/v), respectively (Journal of Lipid Research, 22, 458-465 (1981); Journal of Lipid Research, 25, 1084-1089 (1984)). In addition, these organisms are strict anaerobes and hence cannot grow in the presence of oxygen. Substitution with nitrogen, therefore, is required at the time of culturing them in order to avoid contact with the air or to expel oxygen, thus necessitating special handling and equipment.
Furthermore, since Clostridium absonum has a pathogenically of causing gas gangrene symptoms, though weak, in the infected humans (Microbiol. Immunol., 23 (7), 685-687 (1979)), care must be taken in its handling in the commercial production. The pathogenic nature is largely due to the hemolysis-causing and lecithinase-producing ability (Journal of Lipid Research, 22, 458-465 (1981), and Infection and Immunity, 9, 15-19 (1974)). Thus, Clostridium limosum which also has the above-mentioned ability (BERGEY'S MANUAL OF DETERMINATIVE BACTERIOLOGY Eighth Edition, 557-559 (1974)) has a potential risk of showing the same pathogenicity.

Bile acid-converting microorganism Bacillus sp. and a method of use


A telecommunications cable having a cable core in which each conductor is surrounded by an individual dual layer insulation of an inner layer of flame retardant polyolefin and an outer layer of another material, for example, fluorinated ethylene propylene, MFA, PVDF, ECTFE, PTFE, or foamed PFA.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention is directed to high speed data communications cables and transmission media used therein.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Telecommunication cable designs vary according to the role which the cables are meant to fulfill. In building design, it is always of paramount importance to take every precaution possible to resist the spread of flame and the generation of and spread of smoke throughout a building in case of an outbreak of fire. This clearly is a main aim as protection against loss of life and also to minimize the cost of the fire in relation to the destruction of electrical and other equipment. With this in mind, for cables designed for installation in plenum chambers of air circulation systems in buildings, care needs to be taken to ensure that the cables have maximum resistance to flame spread and also produce minimum amounts of smoke which reduces the chances of visibility becoming obscured, thereby greatly increasing the chances of people within the building finding their way to safety.
Conventional designs of data grade telecommunications cables for installation in plenum chambers have a low smoke generating jacket material, e.g. of a PVC formulation or a fluoropolymer material, surrounding a core of twisted conductor pairs, each conductor individually insulated with a fluorinated ethylene propylene insulation layer. The latter is a common choice for conductor insulation in this type of cable, due to its flame retardant, smoke retardant and good electrical properties and which is capable of satisfying recognized plenum test requirements such as the "peak smoke" and "average smoke" requirements of the UL910 Steiner test and/or CSA FT6 (plenum flame test) while enabling the cable to achieve a desired electrical performance under recognized test requirements EIA/TIA-568 and TSB-36 for high frequency signal transmission.


Systems, methods, and media are provided for improved targeting of an individual object among a plurality of objects in a multi-player online video game. The video game may include plurality of objects located at various places at a given frame. At each frame, a position of the objects is identified. If a player object (except for the player object associated with the user) is within a predetermined radius of another player object, a target position of the player object is modified relative to other player objects. Next, the target position of the player object is modified towards its original position within the frame. This process is repeated for each player object until the corresponding player object is no longer within the predetermined radius of another player object or a violation of a constraints prevents the modification from being performed.

As online multi-player gameplay moves to mobile devices and handheld touchscreen devices, size constraints of such mobile device touchscreens present various challenges. For example, multi-player online battle arena (MOBA) games or other multi-player strategy video games oftentimes involve vast virtual worlds or virtual maps in an isometric perspective view. As such the development, implementation, and functionality of graphical elements in a game's user interface (UI) are important. However, quickly and reliably choosing an intended target among a group of targets, particularly via a touchscreen, can be incredibly difficult as the level of precision required is extremely high and objects within the game space may appear clustered. Moreover, the mental model of the user may not match the actual physical arrangement of targets. Humans typically view a target in a group of targets in relative positions rather than an absolute position which leads to an overcorrection problem. For example, if a target is slightly left of another target, the user exaggerates aim to the left of the target compensate. Similarly, if a target is slightly farther away than another target, the user exaggerates aim above the target to compensate.
To address these challenges, existing solutions simply provide mitigation techniques and, in some instances, alter the core behavior of the skill to effect all possible targets in the area or prevent the skill from affecting a selected individual target. Some techniques effect the intended target alongside possible unintended targets so a lack of accuracy does not change the outcome of the game. Other techniques use targeting filters in an attempt to reduce the number of potential targets or to predict user intent by forcing the ability to effect higher priority targets. This prevents the user from being able to actually target some potential targets. Overall, the drawbacks of these mitigation techniques limit the effectiveness and perception of the UI, as well as limit the options or choices a user is able to actually perform.

Targeting of an individual object among a plurality of objects in a multi-player online video game


A system and method for scaling a composite overlay image, wherein the composite overlay image comprises a plurality of pixels and each pixel comprises at least one color channel and at least one alpha channel, and further wherein at least one pixel of the composite overlay image has an alpha value of zero and a color value that is not well defined. First, a set of pixels of the composite overlay image are identified as pixels to be dilated. The color channels of the identified pixels are then dilated to form dilated composite overlay image. Finally, the dilated composite overlay image is scaled.

Modern electronic computing devices are becoming increasingly pervasive. These devices commonly include graphic displays that offer the ability to display images of increasing detail and complexity. Often, the images displayed on the graphic displays are multicolored and multilayered and consist of a background image and one or more overlay images. These combined images have applications in a variety of fields including medical imaging applications, such as in Picture Archive and Communication Systems (PACS), and computer graphics generally.
Each pixel of an electronic image, such as that displayed on a computer monitor, may be represented as a series of values. For example, it is common for each pixel of a color electronic image to be represented by the vector (R, G, B, A), where R represents red, G represents green, B represents blue, and A represents the alpha or the opacity. R, G, and B may be referred to as color channels. Similarly, A may be referred to as an alpha channel. Each of the colors channels can take on a value between a predetermined minimum value and a predetermined maximum value. According to one standard, the minimum value is 0 and the maximum value is 255. In addition, according to that standard, each channel can take on an integer value between the minimum and maximum value inclusive, allowing for a total of 256 values. A color channel with a value of 0 generally denotes the absence of that color in the given pixel and a color channel with a value of 255 represents the pixel being fully saturated with that color. The alpha channel (represented as A) may also take on a value between 0 and 255, where 0 represents the pixel being fully transparent and 255 represents the pixel being completely opaque. For example, a pixel represented as (0, 0, 255, 255) is a pixel that is fully blue and fully opaque. However, if the alpha value is set to 100 then the pixel is represented as (0, 0, 255, 100). Such a pixel is fully blue but is translucent.
However, as used from here on in, the terms color channel and alpha channel will be associated with normalized values. Thus, for the color channels 0 will represent the absence of a particular color, while 1 will represent a fully saturated color. Similarly, for the alpha channel, 0 will represent full transparency and 1 will represent full opacity.
An image having an alpha channel may be overlaid on top of another image. Regardless of whether the underlying image has an alpha channel or not, combining the two images may require the blending of colours. Consider the case where the overlay image has an alpha channel and the underlying image does not. Thus, each pixel of the overlay image may be represented as (R, G, B, A) and each pixel of the underlying image may be represented as (R, G, B). When one image with an alpha channel is overlaid on top of another image, which does not have an alpha channel, the color that a particular pixel takes on is dependent on the colors of the pixels of the overlay and background images at that position, as well as the opacity of the overlay image at that position. Thus, for a particular pixel of a combined image, the color values may be calculated as:Cout=Coverlay*Aoverlay+Cimage*(1−Aoverlay)  (1)wherein Cout represents the normalized color channels of the resulting image, Coverlay represents the color channels of the overlay image, Cimage represents the color channels of the background image, Aoverlay represents the alpha value of the overlay image. Each of the Cout, Coverlay, and Cimage are in fact vectors containing each of the color channels of the particular pixel. For example, Cout=(Rout, Gout, Bout). The above-described process by which the color channels are combined may be referred to as alpha blending.
It is often necessary to scale and/or rotate images that contain a background image and at least one overlay image. Some prior art methods scale the overlay image and the background image separately before combining the two through the use of alpha blending. This leads to a number of undesirable qualities, such as distortion or artifacts. In particular, in the final image, overlay lines appear thinner than they should. In addition, the edges of overlays may be tinged with a dark shade, which in turn, results in a choppy shadow around the overlay features.
FIGS. 1A to 1I illustrate why the problem occurs in the prior art. As can be seen from Equation (1), the alpha channel effectively serves as a multiplier for the color channels when alpha blending is done. FIGS. 1A to 1C illustrate the prior art methods when no scaling is performed. FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating a plot 2A of color values at various pixels for a single color channel. Axis 4A represents the value of the color channel while axis 6A represents pixel positions. Thus, the only values of concern in plot 2A are those that appear above the gradations along axis 6A. FIG. 1B illustrates a plot 2B of alpha channel values for the same pixels as in FIG. 1A. FIG. 1C illustrates the color channel values that result from the first product (Coverlay*Aoverlay) in Equation (1) at the same pixel positions as in FIGS. 1A and 1B. As can be seen from a comparison of plots 2C and 2A, there is no distortion.
FIGS. 1D to 1F illustrate plots similar to FIGS. 1A to 1C except that they are for the case where the image has been scaled up prior to the application of Equation (1). As can be seen from a comparison of plots 2F and 2D, distortion occurs at the point designated as 8F relative to the point marked as 8D. This occurs because the alpha channel value at 8E serves as a multiplier for the color channel at point 8D.
FIGS. 1G to 1H illustrate similar plots to FIGS. 1A to 1C except that they are for the case where the image has been scaled down prior to the application of Equation (1). As can be seen, distortion occurs in plot 2I relative to plot 2G at the peak. Again, the distortion occurs as a result of the alpha channel value at the peak of plot 2H serving as a multiplier for the color channel at the pixel corresponding to the peak of plot 2G.
One method to overcome these problems is to combine the overlay image with the background image and then scale the combined image. However, this leads to additional problems. In particular, it is often the case that the background image changes or is modified relatively frequently, while the overlay images remain relatively constant. In such a case, this method would be overly computationally intensive and inefficient. Thus, there is a need for a system and method that overcomes the above-mentioned problems and can scale images having a background image and at least one overlay image.

System and method for scaling overlay images


The electronic musical system comprises a keyboard that has a plurality of keys to designate the pitch, a key operation detector for detecting the operating state of the keyboard, set operator that can switch to the parameter setting state, parameter value input port to input the parameter values, pressed key count detector to detect the number of pressed keys, parameter setting program for setting the parameter value according to the pressed keys detected by the key operation detector. If one key being pressed is detected, then the parameter values are set to the value of the pressed key. If, however, multiple keys being pressed are detected, then the parameter values are set to the value of the multiple pressed keys and parameter output port outputs the parameter values that were set by the parameter setting program. The electronic musical instrument allows the user to intuitively set the parameter values with a effortless operation.

1. Field of the Invention
The current disclosure relates to electronic musical instruments and in particular, to instruments with the ability to set the parameter values for a plurality of keys with an effortless operation.
2. Description of Related Art
Currently, electronic musical instruments are capable of detecting operation of the keys that are on a keyboard. Musical tones are generated and silenced according to the key operations that have been detected. These kinds of electronic musical instruments assign a key number to each key and store the parameter values that correspond to each key number. When a key has been operated, the parameter values that correspond to the key number are output to a sound generator. The sound generator forms the musical tone in conformance with these parameter values.
Other electronic musical instruments can change the timbre of the musical tones throughout the entire keyboard. Initially, the parameter values that correspond to the key numbers of six locations are stored. When a key without stored parameter values is pressed, the parameter values of the neighboring keys (on each side) with stored parameter values are used. The parameter values, for the pressed key are computed by linear interpolation and those parameter values are sent to the sound generator.
The electronic musical instrument described above provides a set of parameter values for each key, these values are set through a plurality of parameter setting modes, such as, a note mode, a range mode and an anchor rubber band mode. First, the note mode, allows a user to set the parameter values that correspond to one key. Next, the range mode, allows a user to set the parameter values that correspond to two keys. Lastly, the anchor rubber band mode, allows a user to set the parameter values that correspond to three keys. In order to set these values the user can select the parameter setting mode and subsequently, set the parameter values within the corresponding mode.
However, a user may be required to select the plurality of parameter setting modes which can be an inconvenient process. In particular, when a user needs to select a different parameter setting mode, selecting of the parameter setting mode, the designation of keys to be set the parameters and the input operation for the parameter values must be repeated and doing so can be time consuming and inconvenient.


Provided is a method for transmitting a data signal in a multiple-input multiple-output mobile communication system for transmitting and receiving the data signal by using a plurality of transmitting antennas and a plurality of receiving antennas, wherein when each data transmitted through the plurality of transmitting antennas is transmitted with respectively different control signals, the control signals are transmitted respectively through downlink control signal transport channels as many as the number of control signals. According to this, when information with respect to modulation methods and OVSF codes for each transmitting antenna in the MIMO system is different, it is possible to achieve efficient transmission and reception by using a method for transmitting the different information to a terminal. Furthermore, a backward compatibility between the MIMO system and the related art HSDPA system can be satisfied by using control channels similar to the control channels used in the related art HSDPA system, and the method can be unlimitedly applied to any case data is composed of one packet or of several packets.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for transmitting a signal from a transmitting end in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) mobile communication system which commonly uses a plurality of antennas at transmitting and receiving ends thereof.
2. Description of the Conventional Art
In this technical field, a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) mobile communication system has been known to be able to achieve remarkably improved properties compared with a single antenna system, namely, a single antenna versus single antenna or a single antenna versus plural antenna system. However, in order to achieve these improved properties, preferably, various signals which reach a plurality of receiving antennas are not correlated therebetween under substantial dispersion conditions, and when ignoring correlation between those signals even if the signals have some degree of correlation therebetween, performances of the system are degraded and capabilities thereof are decreased.
A related art multiple-input multiple-output mobile communication system (MIMO system) will be described in accordance with an embodiment as follows.
FIG. 1 illustrates a structure of a vertical bell laboratories space time (V-BLAST) system which is one of conventional arts of a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) mobile communication system.
The structure of a vertical bell laboratories space time (V-BLAST) system which is one of related arts of a MIMO system will be explained with reference to FIG. 1 as follows. The V-BLAST system belongs to the MIMO system, a technique including a plurality of transmitting/receiving antennas. Thus, the V-BLAST system uses M-numbered antennas at its transmitting end and N-numbered antennas at its receiving end. In this case, N≧M is assumed.
At the transmitting end, in order to transmit data, which is sequentially generated, with respect to data to be transmitted, a transmission data 11 pass through a vector encoder 10 (that is, the vector encoder 10 allows the data which is sequentially generated to pass through a serial-to-parallel circuit in order to transmit in parallel the data from each antenna), and accordingly different signals therebetween are transmitted from each antenna.
Here, modulation methods and the number of channelization codes of data transmitted to each antenna can be differently established, respectively. At this time, the channelization codes refer to codes having orthogonal properties as same as OVSF codes.
That is, when using a plurality of transmitting antennas 12, an additional signal processing or space-time code is not used, but each different signal with respect to data simply inputted is transmitted from different antennas. In other words, a transmitting end does not require the additional signal processing using correlation between antennas in order to improve a transmission quality.
That is, the transmitting end transmits different signals from respectively different antennas by using a plurality of antennas. The receiving end then receives the signals transmitted from the transmitted end through many antennas by using a separate algorithm, and appropriately detects the signals which have been differently transmitted through respectively different antennas at the transmitting end.
A V-BLAST receiving end signal processor 18 at the receiving end shown in FIG. 1 is for detecting signals which have been differently transmitted through M-numbered antennas, respectively, at the receiving end.
Now, on the other hand, an operation of the V-BLAST system will be described in more detail. A transmitting end of the V-BLAST system allows different signals to be transmitted from respectively different antennas with respect to data simply inputted, without using a diversity transmission technique such as an additional signal processing or a space-time code which uses correlation between antennas in each transmitting antenna.
At this time, modulation methods and the number of channelization method such as OVSF codes can be differently established for each antenna.
That is, if a downlink channel condition transmitted from a transmitting end antenna is known, data with a QAM modulation method and a high coding rate can be transmitted by using many OVSF codes with respect to antennas in a good channel condition, while in a bad channel condition, data with a QPSK modulation method and a low coding rate can be transmitted by using a few OVSF codes.
As a result, the transmitting end, as aforementioned, allows transmissions of respectively different signals from respectively different antennas by changing the modulation methods or the number of OVSF codes for each signal, and the receiving end detects signals having transmitted from each transmitting antenna through an appropriate signal processing.
Furthermore, explaining the appropriate signal processing at the receiving end, when detecting a signal transmitted from a specific transmitting antenna, a signal transmitted from another transmitting antenna is regarded as an interference signal. Afterwards, a weight vector of a receiving array antenna of the receiving end is calculated with respect to each signal transmitted from each antenna, and an influence of the previously-detected signal upon the receiving end is removed. As well as this method, a method for detecting signals transmitted from each transmitting antenna in the order of signals having a great signal-to-interference noise ratio can be used.
As above, when each transmitting antenna has different modulation method, coding rate, and the number of OVSF codes, information thereof has to be transmitted to a terminal over a downlink.
In the related art HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access) system, the information is transmitted through a HS-SCCH (HSDPA-Shared Control Channel). However, such HSDPA system does not assume a system structure having a plurality of transmitting/receiving antennas such as the MIMO system, information only for one antenna is transmitted through the HS-SCCH.
Unlike the HSDPA system, in the MIMO system, there can be established modulation methods, coding rates, the number of OVSF codes, or the like for the plurality of transmitting antennas, respectively. As a result, a control signal for each antenna is required.

Method for transmitting and receiving data signal in MIMO system


A wire bonded semiconductor die in a plastic package having minimal or no wire sweep is provided in which the semiconductor device comprises two different encapsulants. The semiconductor die and the wires including the bonds are completely enveloped by a first encapsulating compound, such as an epoxy resin molding compound like Nitto Denko EP-6045. This first encapsulant serves to protect and lock the wires in an upright position so that no wire sweep occurs during the second encapsulation in which the package body is molded. A second encapsulating molding compound forms the package body through standard transfer molding technique with no modification to existing equipment.

Fine conductive wires are used in the packaging of semiconductor devices to electrically couple a semiconductor die to a leadframe or a substrate. Normally, a connection is made between the die and the leadframe by ball-bonding the conductive wire to a bonding pad on the die, drawing the wire to a lead, and wedge-bonding onto the lead. These wires are generally on the order of 0.0254 mm to 0.0330 mm in diameter. Because of their fineness, wire sweep has been a constant problem in the plastic encapsulation of a semiconductor die. The high viscosity of the molding compound in its liquid state during the transfer molding process has the propensity to drag the wires along the flow path of the compound causing the wires to bend away from their original upright positions. Wire sweep is undesired because it poses a reliability risk to the functionality of the semiconductor device. Wires that are swept may come in contact with each other to cause shorting in the device. Wires may also be sufficiently swept so that the length of the wires touch the surface of the semiconductor die which would cause shortings between different components on the die. Therefore, it is always desirable to keep the wire sweep level to a minimum to protect the functional integrity of the semiconductor device. Ideally, the wires would remain rigidly fixed in place during the molding process, but this condition has not been possible prior to the present invention.
Plastic encapsulation of semiconductor dice has traditionally been accomplished through transfer molding. In the transfer molding process, the epoxy resin based compound is in the form of a solid pellet, which is then placed inside a pot in the mold die. The mold has been preheated to a set molding temperature. Molding is accomplished by a hot plunger coming into contact with the compound pellet. As heat is conducted through the pellet, the material plasticates and begins to flow. The viscosity of the plasticated compound is dependent on basic chemistry of the compound, the amount of filler present in the compound, and the temperature of the mold; that is, the higher the temperature, the lower the viscosity. However, molding compound only remains in a liquid state for a short period of time once it has been plasticated. Moreover, the viscosity will begin to increase again at a faster rate at higher temperatures than at lower temperatures. In effect, molding compound viscosity drops to a lower absolute value at higher temperatures, but stays there for a shorter period of time so that using higher molding temperatures results in having less time to perform the molding process. Because an epoxy resin based molding compound is a thermoset, it cannot be remelted and reshaped once the compound has gelled or hardened. Therefore, transfer molding must be completed before the compound gels. Thus, the time allowed to complete the transfer of compound into the mold die cavities is strictly limited to the time that the mold compound viscosity is such that flow is not hindered. It should be clear that the more viscous the compound is during the transfer process, the more drag it induces on objects, namely the wires, in its flow path. It is, therefore, tempting to transfer the compound as quickly as possible in molding. However, the disadvantage to using very fast transfer speeds is that the probability of inducing wire sweep increases with increasing transfer speed. The alternative is to use a lower molding temperature which delays the gel time of the compound thereby allowing a slower transfer speed to be used to help limit the amount of wire sweep. However, a slow transfer speed translates into a long molding cycle time which would affect production cycle time. Moreover, a slow transfer speed by itself is not sufficient to eliminate wire sweep. There are other important underlying factors, such as the viscosity of the particular molding compound, the length of the wires, the position of the wires relative to the flow path of the material.
Because of all of the above mentioned factors, wire sweep has always been unavoidable during molding, but controlling it is an established challenge in the production of semiconductor devices. Certain factors contribute to the overall difficulty in limiting the wire sweep. As stated previously, flowing molding compound exerts a drag force on the wires. If this force exceeds the strength of the wires or of the bonds, then the wires will bend in the direction of the force. Longer wires tend to sweep more easily than shorter wires; therefore, it is desirable to keep the wire lengths as short as possible. However, it is not always possible to keep the wire lengths short. Other constraints in the packaging technology are pushing the wires to longer lengths. It is often necessary to place a small die onto a large die pad or flag; that is, there is more than 0.64 mm clearance, a typical maximum constraint for this dimension, from an edge of the die to the corresponding edge of the flag. Having a die on a flag that exceeds the typical maximum allowable clearance often forces the connecting wires to be longer than desired. There is also a greater risk of sagging wires which would cause shorting in the device if the wires touch the metal flag. Furthermore, some packages are becoming larger in size in addition to having more pin counts. The QFP's (Quad Flat Packages) range in size from 7 mm.times.7 mm to 40 mm.times.40 mm. Larger package sizes generally correlate to longer wire lengths because some of the semiconductor dice that are placed within these high lead count packages are much smaller than the smallest flag size that can be designed into the leadframe.
Another factor that contributes to the difficulty of controlling wire sweep is the proximity of the wires to each other. The closer the wires are together, the more critical it becomes to limit the wire sweep to reduce the possibility of wires coming into contact with each other. Miniaturization of the geometry of circuit patterns on a semiconductor die is resulting in bonding pads being designed closer together. Moreover, die designers are putting more components on a single die to expand its functions. Increased functionality of each chip results in more I/O's. More output pads and smaller die circuit geometry combine to make the packaging process more difficult because the wires get longer and also placed closer together, both on the semiconductor die and on the leadframe. Increased pin counts forces the lead tips on the leadframe to be designed closer together. Some of the QFP's are already in production at 0.4 mm pitch between the leads and some are progressing toward 0.3 mm pitch and smaller.
An additional development in the packaging field that will contribute to the wire sweep problem is the emergence of fine pitched QFP (quad flat package) in molded carrier rings (MCR). The MCR poses a manufacturing problem because the molding process is more complicated than molding non-MCR packages. The MCR and the package can be filled sequentially with the MCR usually being filled first, or they can also be filled at the same time using a different gating configuration. The process window for this operation is very restrictive because the molding compound must be transferred quickly enough to fill both the MCR and the package before the compounds gels but it must also be transferred slowly enough not to cause excessive wire sweep. Because of the tight process window with this type of package, production yield can be affected since any deviation outside the established process window can cause molding rejects due to excessive wire sweep or incomplete filling of the part.
Several categories of transfer molds are currently in use for the plastic encapsulation of semiconductor dice. Mold tools can be of the conventional type, plate type, or automatic type. Conventional molds and plate molds utilize a single large pellet of molding compound to encapsulate multiple packages. A long runner system is required to accomplish this task. The mold die cavities are sequentially filled from the closest mold cavity to the pot and then continuing to fill subsequent cavities further away from the pot. Disadvantages in molding using these kinds of molds are long cycle times and insufficient process controls to limit the amount of wire sweep.
The emergence of the automatic multi-plunger molding system has mitigated the wire sweep problem. In this type of mold, the runners are kept very short, and each mold die cavity is usually fed by an individual pellet of molding compound. This scheme shortens the distance that the compound must flow which offers several advantages. Since the compound has a much shorter path of travel, most of the transfer can be completed while the compound is at its lowest viscosity state. Reduction in molding cycle time has also been achieved through the use of automatic multi-plunger molds. However, having automatic molds is not sufficient to eliminate wire sweep. For some of the older packages, such as the PDIP (Plastic Dual In-line Package) where the wires are short and the pitch between the leads is 2.54 mm, the use of automolding equipment is adequate in controlling wire sweep. However, it is still very difficult to control the wire sweep in the high pin count, fine pitch packages. Manufacturing productivity decreases because more molding related rejects are found with these newer packages because the automatic related rejects are found with these newer packages because the automatic molding systems cannot keep the wires rigidly fixed in place during the transfer of molding compound. Thus, new trends in die design and packaging pose a greater challenge to the wire sweep problem than the automold can solve.

Molded plastic package with wire protection


The present invention relates to absorbent articles particularly sanitary napkins having film topsheets. In particular a film topsheet receiving the liquids to be absorbed comprises apertures of at least 4 different sizes. This range of aperture sizes provides exceptionally good liquid intake performance for the range of liquid viscosities commonly found for liquids which are absorbed in sanitary napkins.

Sanitary articles such as sanitary napkins, baby diapers, absorbent inserts, and absorbent adult incontinence articles are well-known in the art. Typically all these articles comprise a wearer facing surface and a garment facing surface. The wearer facing surface receives from the wearer of such articles liquids, bodily discharges such as urins, vaginal discharges or menses, to be absorbed. In order for the article to store the liquid the wearer facing surface has to be liquid permeable while maintaining integrity of the outer wearer facing surface of the absorbent article. This wearer facing surface is provided by a topsheet.
Well-known topsheets in the art of absorbent articles are non-woven fabrics, woven fabrics or films. Films have to be rendered permeable by aperturing. Fabrics or non-woven fabrics are made of fibers which by their nature provide non-linear apertures in the liquid transport direction. Also the largest aperture size in fabric topsheets is limited by the requirement to maintain material strength.
Films are often made of polymeric material and typically comprise apertures which have been engineered to provide certain characteristics. These apertures can vary in shape and size but have commonly been provided in a single preferred size and shape. The walls of the apertures define the amount of extension-if any- beyond the plane of the film thickness and the direction of such extensions. The film apertures also can be provided in the shape of a funnel. Films are generally preferred over fabrics since they can provide a cleaner surface even after liquid having passed through since they do not retain liquids.
A typical topsheet made of polyethylene film has been successfully used in sanitary articles and adult incontinence products as well as inserts and baby diapers. One problem remaining is the rate of liquid capable of passing through such a topsheet under usual usage conditions due to the total amount of open area of all apertures and individual aperture size and shape in particular. Exceptionally large apertures increase the liquid passage rate but pose the potential problem of material stability for the topsheet film at least during the manufacturing of absorbent articles, which is highly undesirable. Also large apertures possibly promote a backflow of absorbed liquid, so called rewet, which is undesirable. Small individual apertures on the other hand cannot provide the liquid passage characteristics required to let liquids of high surface tension, high viscosity or solid content such as coagulated blood clots pass through; this can be a problem in an absolute sense for very small apertures or cause too low a rate of liquid flow.
It also has been found that the total amount of open area for a given aperture size and shape is approximately linearly related to the rate of liquid passage. Again, masking of the liquid which has passed through but also material strength and other appearance considerations are limiting the extend as to which the total open area in a film topsheet can be selected.
It is also known that the viscosity of liquids disposed on sanitary napkins can very drastically from exceptionally low viscosities e.g. of urine from a person having a light incontinence or stress incontinence syndrome. Low viscosities also can be present for vaginal discharges or menses which comprise small amounts of surfactant. Some bodily discharges comprise natural surfactants already but also residue from washing soaps, which many wearers of such articles use regularly, can be found.
At the other end of the spectrum viscosities of menses changes drastically over the period of a woman and have been reported in EP-A-0 205 286 to range from 5 to 50 mPas. The viscosities can change over time on the same person and can vary between persons compared at a similar stage of the monthly period.
It is therefore an objective of the present invention to provide a film topsheet for sanitary articles which can accommodate the viscosity changes without the need for different articles for different times. It has been found that this can be achieved by providing topsheets for absorbent disposable articles which have apertures of different open areas. These open areas should correspond to a range of the viscosity distribution of the liquids expected to be absorbed.
It is hence an objective of the present invention to provide absorbent articles which have a film topsheet with a distribution of aperture sizes.

Sanitary articles with multi aperture size film topsheets


A method of medical ultrasonic imaging is provided. The method includes transmitting a plurality of ultrasonic waves into a volume such that each successive wave is transmitted into the volume at a steering angle different than each preceding transmitted wave, receiving a plurality of ultrasonic echoes for each of the plurality of transmitted ultrasonic waves, each received echo is indicative of a density interface within the volume, each set of received echoes that corresponds to a single transmitted wave defines a steering frame, combining steering frames into a compound image, and identifying distal shadows in each steering frame.

The present invention relates to diagnostic ultrasound systems. In particular, the present invention relates to methods and apparatus for acquiring and processing ultrasound data to highlight artifacts in ultrasound images.
At least some known ultrasonic systems are capable of spatially compounding a number of ultrasound images of a given target that have been obtained from a plurality of steering angles. The images are combined into a single compounded image by combining the data received from each point in the compound image target which has been received from each steering angle. Real time spatial compound imaging may be performed by acquiring a series of partially overlapping component image frames from substantially independent steering angles. An array transducer may be utilized to implement electronic beam steering and/or electronic translation of the component frames. The component frames are combined into a compound image by summation, averaging, peak detection, or other combinational means. The compounded image may display relatively lower speckle and better specular reflector delineation than a non-spatially compounded ultrasound image from a single angle. Distal end shadows of attenuative objects in the field of view may also be reduced when using spatial compounding.
Further, spatial compound imaging may facilitate improving image quality by improving specular interface acquisition and reducing distal end shadows of objects in the field of view. For example, a density interface, or acoustic impedance may produce a strong echo when the ultrasound beam is exactly perpendicular to a surface of the interface, and a relatively weak echo when the beam is only a few degrees off perpendicular. Spatial compounding acquires views of the interface from a plurality of different angles, making the curved interface visible and continuous over a larger field of view and reducing the effects of distal end shadowing. However, simply removing specular interference and distal end shadows from the image may also remove valuable diagnostic information from the image.
Although spatial compounding may improve image quality by reducing and specular reflections and distal end shadows, spatial compounding may also reduce the viewing capability of bodies of interest within these areas.

Methods and systems for angular-dependent backscatter spatial compounding


A light emitting device 100 has a light emitting layer portion 9 which comprises an active layer 5 composed of an MgxZn1-xO-type oxide semiconductor, a p-type cladding layer 6 again composed of an MgxZn1-xO-type oxide semiconductor, and an n-type cladding layer 3. On the p-type cladding layer 6 of the light emitting layer portion 9, a light extraction layer 7 is configured using an oxide, where the light extraction layer 7 has a refractive index at a dominant emission wavelength of light extracted from the active layer 5 smaller than that of the cladding layers 3,6. This makes it possible to efficiently extract the light emitted from the light emitting layer portion 9 to the external of the light emitting device 100. This is it successful in providing a high-light-extraction-efficiency light emitting device having the light emitting layer portion composed of an oxide semiconductor, and a method of fabricating the same.

To what degree light emission can occur in a light emitting layer portion, which comprises an active layer and cladding layers, is an important index for performances of light emitting devices such as light emitting diode and semiconductor laser. An exemplary configuration popularly adopted is double heterostructure, in which the cladding layers and so forth, which function as confining and injecting carriers, are designed to be transparent to the light emission from the active layer (designed to have a band gap energy wider than a photon energy corresponded to the emission wavelength), and so as to sandwich the active layer. Increase in difference in the band gap energy between the active layer and cladding layers can improve internal quantum efficiency, and this consequently raises emission efficiency of the light emitting device.
On the other hand, improvement in external quantum energy (extraction efficiency of light out into the external of the light emitting device: simply referred to as light extraction efficiency, hereinafter) is also important, in addition to the improvement in the internal quantum efficiency. In consideration of the light extraction efficiency towards the external, difference in refractive index between different materials is an important issue. Assuming now that refractive index of the active layer as n1 and refractive index of the cladding layer as n2, a critical angle of total reflection θc of incident light from the active layer into the cladding layer is expressed asθc=Sin−1(n2/n1)  (i)The larger the difference in the refractive index between the different materials grows, the smaller the critical angle of total reflection on the interface between the different materials will be, therefore, in the above exemplary case, as the difference between refractive index n1 of the active layer and refractive index n2 of the cladding layer grows larger, the light emitted from the active layer will be more likely to cause total reflection on the interface with the cladding layer, and this consequently lowers the light extraction efficiency. The same will apply also to propagation of light from the cladding layer out into the external atmosphere.
The lowering in the light emission efficiency due to total reflection will be explained referring to FIGS. 7A and 7B. Assuming now that critical angle of total reflection at the interface between a crystal body and an external atmosphere (air) as θc, light having an angle of incidence smaller than θc will be extracted after transmitting through the interface out into the external (air) as shown in FIG. 7A. On the other hand, light having an angle of incidence larger than θc will totally be reflected on the interface as shown in FIG. 7B, and therefore will not be extracted outside the light emitting device.
To suppress the lowering in the light extraction efficiency due to total reflection, efforts have been made on reducing light energy to be totally reflected through fine processing of the device surface so as to increase the surface area, or on improving the light extraction efficiency through increasing light energy possibly extracted from the lateral sides by thickening layers other than the active layer, typically by thickening the cladding layers, for example. These methods are, however, disadvantageous in that they inevitably increase the number of process lines or material consumption, to thereby raise the production cost.
An object of this invention is therefore to provide a light emitting device having a desirable light extraction efficiency, and a method of fabricating the same.

Light emitting device and method of fabricating the same


The systems and methods of the present application provides a graphical user interface (GUI) for adjusting the modes and settings of a patient ventilator. Upon selecting the type of breath setting (mechanical and/or pressure supported), and the target and control parameters for each breath setting, an ideal set of pressure, flow and volume waveforms are displayed on a touch-screen GUI. The user is then able to adjust any of the waveforms using the touch-screen GUI to the desired ventilator settings for that particular patient. The user then confirms the settings and the ventilator operates according to the user-set waveforms.

Current medical ventilators used in the operating room, intensive care unit, and home markets have many different ventilation modes. For example, volume control, pressure control, etc. modes are used to deliver therapy to a patient. These modes have many different names and settings, depending on the model and manufacturer, that can be confusing to the clinician. In such ventilators, the user cannot visually see what it is they are setting, but are merely setting a number for a particular mode. Currently, a user cannot touch a waveform on the ventilator screen and draw what it is they want to be delivered to the patient. In current ventilators, the user needs to remember what the name of the mode they were using. A user cannot currently decide what type of breath (mechanical or pressure support) is to be delivered to the patient and draw it out on the screen of the ventilator. With users of ventilators and other medical devices becoming more familiar and comfortable with touchscreens, a method of setting up ventilation settings via touchscreen is needed, and would be easier and more effective than some current confusing terminologies that the user must learn for current ventilator mode settings.

Systems and methods of adjusting ventilator modes and settings visually via a touchscreen


A positive electrode including a positive electrode current collector, an intermediate layer disposed on the positive electrode current collector and including a conductive agent and inorganic particles, and a positive electrode mixture layer disposed on the intermediate layer and including a positive electrode active material and a hydrogen phosphate salt represented by the general formula MaHbPO4 (wherein a satisfies 1≤a≤2, b satisfies 1≤b≤2, and M includes at least one element selected from alkali metals and alkaline earth metals), the positive electrode satisfying 0.5≤X≤3.0, 1.0≤Y≤7.0, and 0.07≤X/Y≤3.0 wherein X is the mass ratio (mass %) of the hydrogen phosphate salt relative to the total mass of the positive electrode active material and Y is the mass ratio (mass %) of the conductive agent relative to the total mass of the intermediate layer.

Nonaqueous electrolyte secondary batteries which include a positive electrode, a negative electrode and a nonaqueous electrolyte, and are charged and discharged by the migration of lithium ions between the positive and negative electrodes have a high output and a high energy density. This type of secondary batteries has recently gained widespread use.
For example, PTL 1 discloses a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery that includes a positive electrode which has a positive electrode mixture layer, a positive electrode current collector, and an intermediate layer containing inorganic particles and disposed between the positive electrode mixture layer and the positive electrode current collector. PTL 1 suggests that the use of this positive electrode reduces the amount of heat generated in the event of an internal short-circuit in the nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery.
For example, PTL 2 discloses a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery which includes a positive electrode containing Li3PO4 and a positive electrode active material. It is suggested therein that the use of this positive electrode enhances the safety in the event of overcharging of the nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery.

Positive electrode for nonaqueous electrolyte secondary batteries, and nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery

PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.


A multi-channel communications interface is provided and communicatively coupled to a controller which captures, via the communications interface, video data of a display of a mobile device at a resolution and frame rate equal to or greater than that of the mobile device display, and may additionally capture various other outputs of the mobile device. During the capture of the video data and other outputs, one or more input actions may be provided to the mobile device by the controller via the communications interface. The input actions may be provided in an interactive or automated manner, and may correspond to interactions of users with the controller that are performed using one or more provided graphical or programmatic interfaces.

1. Field
This disclosure generally relates to automated or interactive monitoring and testing of wireless communications based mobile devices (hereinafter mobile devices), and more particularly to local and remote capturing and stimulation of mobile device output.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hardware manufactures or designers are releasing new mobile devices at a faster rate, with higher complexity, and with a wider variety of functionality across the mobile device offerings. Wireless communications service providers or carriers and data service providers (e.g., cellular communications service providers or carriers) typically provide a variety of mobile devices or services related to such mobile devices (e.g., smart phones) in a variety of locations, conditions and environments. Such variety, coupled with the increasing complexity and variety of mobile devices and the expanding input and output capabilities of such mobile devices, may lead to unforeseen or even undesirable behavior. Enabling hardware manufacturers and/or service providers (collectively, "clients") to locally or remotely monitor and interactively test mobile devices may provide those clients with opportunities to identify and reproduce such behavior, for instance aberrant behavior.
As one example, suppose that a client (e.g., mobile device manufacturer or designer or wireless communications service provider) has received multiple complaints from end users of particular mobile devices provided by the client. These complaints may be related to undesirable behavior in the form of audio interference produced by the mobile device when using a particular application on the mobile device. Such complaints may have been provided by end users of a variety of different mobile devices under a variety of circumstances, such as by end users of multiple models of the device provider's mobile devices using one or more versions of a particular operating system. The undesirable behavior may be difficult to intentionally reproduce, let alone do so in a manner that allows the client or other interested entity to determine a cause of the undesirable behavior. Capturing all output of one or more representative mobile devices, while monitoring user input to the devices or even reproducing user-reported actions to attempt to reproduce the undesirable behavior, may be useful to a number of different entities—to the mobile device manufacturer or designer; to a wireless service provider of the end user; to a provider of the application that is reportedly in use when the undesirable audio interference occurs; to end users of the mobile device; or other entity. Additionally, the ability to remotely perform such monitored interactions with the mobile device may provide improved results, by allowing those results to be obtained for multiple mobile devices in a variety of locations, conditions and environments (such as those that may resemble those in which the undesirable behavior was observed) while allowing a client interested in such results to remain in a single preferred location.
As another example, an application developer interested in releasing an application for use with a particular mobile device or multiple such mobile devices may find that testing the application on a large number of mobile devices in a thorough manner requires significant resources, such as an investment in acquiring the multiple mobile devices and a substantial amount of human labor and time to interact with the application on each of those multiple mobile devices. Furthermore, without being enabled to monitor and/or capture each of the multiple input and output capabilities of each mobile device on which the application is being tested, the developer may be unable to determine particular aspects of the mobile device and its operations with respect to the tested application. For such purposes and others, it may be useful to provide a mobile device with a predefined sequence of input actions in order to examine the resulting output of that mobile device (for example, to ensure that such output matches the behavior desired and/or expected by the application developer). In certain circumstances, providing interactive user actions to a monitored mobile device, either independently or in conjunction with one or more predefined sequences of input actions, may allow an application developer or other interested entity to gain insight into mobile device behavior that would otherwise be more difficult to obtain.
New approaches are therefore desirable that automate various activities related to the monitoring of mobile devices while allowing for simultaneous local or remote operation and the use of predefined input sequences, partially predefined input sequences and/or interactive testing.


The DVD Stream Recording standard defines application packets as the logically smallest units created from the input data stream during recording. Usually the conversion from a point on the time axis to a corresponding application packet is realized by using a mapping list available in the navigation data. However, depending on the target time and a Stream Object selected, the match found can vary significantly. The invention allows editing a recorded stream of application packets with higher precision. The stream comprises at least a first application packet having a first arrival time stamp and a subsequent second application packet having a second arrival time stamp. For editing the recorded stream a discrete time is input that is a start time or an end time and has a value between the first arrival time stamp and the second arrival time stamp. The discrete time is mapped onto the first or the second arrival time stamp, and the recorded stream is edited correspondingly.

The DVD Stream Recording standard defines Application Packets (AP_PCK) as the logically smallest and therefore undividable units created from the input data stream during recording.
A typical user interface provides a time axis to access the recorded content like video or audio. Usually the conversion from a point on the time axis to a corresponding application packet is realised by using the mapping list available in the DVD Stream Recorder navigation data. By means of this method the search for a target time is generating a matching application packet.

Method for editing a recorded stream of application packets, and corresponding stream recorder


A pharmaceutical composition for treating depression and method for preparation thereof is provided. The pharmaceutical composition includes Radix Ginseng, Radix Glycyrrhizae, and/or their aqueous or alcoholic extract. Fructus Jujubae or their aqueous or alcoholic extract can also be included in the pharmaceutical composition.

Depression is a common disease. According to statistics, about 25% females in the global population had been experiencing depression in their lives, and about 10% males had been experiencing depression (referring to Modern Psychology written by Ch'un-Hsing Chang). World Health Organization (WHO) published, "The incidence of depression in the world is about 11%. At present, about 340 million psychological depressed patients are in the world, and the number is increased. The investigation is found that the depression will be increased to be the number two common disease in the world from now on to 20 years later."
At present, anti-depression pharmaceuticals in the domestic and overseas markets consist mainly selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), such as Prozac (fluoxetine hydrochloride), Paxil (Paroxetine or paroxetine hydrochloride) and Zoloft (sertraline hydrochloride), etc. These pharmaceuticals function by increasing the component and the content of serotonin in the human body to decrease and release the symptoms of depression. This kind of pharmaceuticals all have side effects of different levels. The research is published that these pharmaceuticals have the ability to correct chemical imbalance in the human body, but more often than not, they are still unable to calm the patients. In recent years, whether the depression pharmaceuticals, such as Prozac, are harmful had became a serious social problem, whereas Paxil was even found to be harmful in 1996. Paxil has been recalled continually from the market since 2001. In June 2004, the New York State Attorney General accused GlaxoSmithKline Company of the Great British of beguilingly concealing the research report of the linkage between Paxil and "increased risk of suicidal behavior and tendencies in adolescents." In light of the current situation, the search for a new generation of pharmaceuticals with less side effects and more pronounced/potent anti-depression qualities has become the center of attention of the entire pharmaceutical world.
It is therefore attempted by the applicant to deal with the above situation encountered in the prior art.

Pharmaceutical composition for treating depression and method for preparation thereof


An intelligent tightening spindle comprises a drive output; a housing adapted to detachably mount to a moving platform of a multi-tool processing station, with the housing substantially enclosing: at least one electric drive motor having an associated servo amplifier; a gear unit operatively connecting the drive motor to the drive output; a spindle measurement transducer operative to monitor at least one of the drive motor, the gear unit, and the drive output; and a measurement data processing unit in communication with the spindle measurement transducer. An output signal port may have signals applied thereto representing measurement data that has been processed by the measurement data processing unit. The measurement transducer and/or the data processing unit may be removably coupled to the spindle via one or more electrical connectors. One or more of the tightening spindles may be used to form a multi-tool processing station.

The present invention generally relates to tightening spindles used for manufacturing, and particularly relates to the tightening spindles having at least one spindle measurement transducer, a servo amplifier, and a measurement data processing unit that is assigned to the spindle.
The use of various electrically powered tightening spindles to help automate production processes is well known in the art. For example, such tightening spindles are commonly employed on a assembly line for the production of motor vehicles and the like where they are used to tighten screws or nuts. Typically, such tightening spindles are monitored and controlled via appropriate spindle measurement transducers and an associated measurement data processing unit. Typically, the measurement data processing unit is in the form of a so-called screw module which is located somewhat remote from the corresponding tightening spindle and connected thereto by one or more cables. Normally, such a separate screw module is required for each spindle. With the large number of tightening spindles and screw modules, and their required interconnects, the construction and maintenance of machines that employ multiple tightening spindles is both complex and costly. Thus, there remains a need for alternative tightening spindle designs.

Intelligent tightening spindle with integrated measurement transducer, servo amplifier, and data processing unit


An automatic circuit design apparatus includes a setting module configured to set an upper limit electric potential of a virtual ground line in a circuit to be designed, by use of a cell library for low-threshold cells, a cell library for high-threshold cells, and information of the circuit to be designed. A layout generator is configured to generate a layout based on the information, the cell library for low-threshold cells, and the cell library for high-threshold cells.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to design technology of semiconductor integrated circuits and, more particularly, to an automatic circuit design apparatus, a method for automatically designing a circuit, a computer program product for executing an application for an automatic circuit design apparatus, for designing a circuit capable of decreasing leakage current of complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) transistors.
2. Description of the Related Art
A decrease in the threshold voltage of transistors progresses in proportion to a decrease in size of semiconductor integrated circuits and voltage value of the supply voltage. By the decrease in the threshold voltage, the leakage current of CMOS transistors increases. For power consumption limited equipment, such as mobile communication equipment, the increase of the leakage current becomes a serious problem. In order to decrease the leakage current, a technique has been proposed to configure a logic circuit by cells consisting of low-threshold-voltage transistors (hereinafter referred to as "low-threshold cells"), and to place switch cells between the low-threshold cells and a ground. Since the low-threshold cells can operate at a high speed, it is possible to reduce a path delay time.
Although the low-threshold cells can operate at a high speed, the leakage current quantity becomes large because the low-threshold cells are turned on by a small input voltage. On the other hand, cells composed of high-threshold-voltage transistors (hereinafter referred to as "high-threshold cells"), compared to the low-threshold cells, generate a small leakage current but operate at a low speed. The leakage current from the low-threshold cells is shut out because the switch cells go to an off state during a standby period. The switch cells go to an on state during a period of normal operation.
During the period of normal operation, the electric current at a ground goes to a maximum quantity when output signals of cells are changed to a low level. Accordingly, when many low-threshold cells are connected to a switch cell, a large electric current flows to the switch cell. When the large electric current flows to the switch cell, the discharge time of the electric current increases by on-resistance of the switch cell. As a result, since the output signals of the low-threshold cells connected to the switch cell does not go to a low level rapidly, the delay time of the low-threshold cells increases. Therefore, a path delay analysis taking into consideration the delay time caused by the increase of the discharge time of the low-threshold cells (hereinafter referred to as "a discharge delay") is required. The path delay analysis which considers the discharge delay requires a long time compared to normal path delay analysis. Although the discharge time can be reduced by increasing a switch cell area, the circuit scale of a designed circuit increases.

Automatic circuit design apparatus, method for automatically designing a circuit, and computer program product for executing an application for an automatic circuit design apparatus


The present invention is directed to Form II of sertraline hydrochloride and novel methods for its preparation. According to the present invention, sertraline hydrochloride Form II may be produced directly form sertraline base or sertraline mandelate. It may also be produced from sertraline hydrochloride solvate and hydrate forms, and crystallized from new solvent systems. Pharmaceutical compositions containing sertraline hydrochloride Form II and methods of treatment using such pharmaceutical compositions are also disclosed.

The present invention relates to a novel crystalline form of sertraline hydrochloride, and reproducible methods for its preparation.
Sertraline hydrochloride, (1S-cis)-4-(3,4dichlorophenyl)-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-N-methyl-1-naphthalenamine hydrochloride, having the formula
is approved, under the trademark Zoloft(copyright), by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, for the treatment of depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder and panic disorder.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,536,518 (xe2x80x9cthe ""518 patentxe2x80x9d) describes the preparation of sertraline hydrochloride with a melting point of 243-245xc2x0 C. by treating an ethyl acetate/ether solution of the free base with gaseous hydrogen chloride. The solid state properties of the sertraline hydrochloride so produced are not otherwise disclosed.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,734,083 describes the preparation of a form of sertraline hydrochloride denominated polymorph xe2x80x9cT1.xe2x80x9d
According to U.S. Pat. No. 5,248,699 (xe2x80x9cthe ""699 patentxe2x80x9d), the sertraline hydrochloride produced by the method of the ""518 patent has a crystalline form denominated xe2x80x9cForm II.xe2x80x9d The ""699 patent discloses four other polymorphs of sertraline hydrochloride designated Forms I, III, IV, and V, and characterizes them by single crystal x-ray analysis, powder x-ray diffraction, infra-red spectroscopy, and differential scanning calorimetry. The ""699 patent reports that Form II is produced by rapid crystallization of sertraline hydrochloride from an organic solvent, including isopropyl alcohol, ethyl acetate or hexane, and generally describes methods for making sertraline hydrochloride Forms I-V. According to this patent, the preferential formation of Forms I, II or IV in an acidic solution consisting of isopropyl alcohol, hexane, acetone, methyl isobutyl ketone, glacial acetic acid or, preferably, ethyl acetate, depends on the rapidity of crystallization. The only method described in this patent for making Forms II and IV is by the rapid crystallization of sertraline hydrochloride from an organic solvent such as those listed above.
The experimental procedure for the preparation of sertraline hydrochloride described in the ""518 patent, was repeated in the laboratory. According to the ""699 patent, the ""518 procedure produces sertraline hydrochloride Form II. Four experiments were performed according to the description in the ""518 patent. By following the procedures described in the ""699 patent for preparation of sertraline hydrochloride Form II, we were unable to obtain sertraline hydrochloride Form II. Thus there remains a need for reproducible methods for the preparation of sertraline hydrochloride Form II.
The present invention relates to a process for making sertraline hydrochloride Form II comprising the steps of dissolving sertraline base or sertraline mandelate in an organic solvent to form a solution; adding hydrogen chloride to the solution; heating the solution to a temperature between about room temperature and about reflux for a time sufficient to induce the formation of sertraline hydrochloride Form II; and isolating sertraline hydrochloride Form II.
The present invention also relates to a process for making sertraline hydrochloride Form II comprising the steps of dissolving sertraline hydrochloride in dimethylformamide, cyclohexanol, acetone or a mixture thereof; heating the solution for a time sufficient to effect transformation to sertraline hydrochloride Form II; and isolating sertraline hydrochloride Form II.
The present invention further relates to a process for making sertraline hydrochloride Form II comprising the steps of granulating sertraline hydrochloride Form V in ethanol or methanol; and stirring the mixture of sertraline hydrochloride Form V and ethanol or methanol for a time sufficient to induce transformation to sertraline hydrochloride Form II.
The present invention still further relates to a process for making a mixture of sertraline hydrochloride Form II and Form V comprising the steps of heating sertraline hydrochloride ethanolate Form VI at up to 1 atmosphere pressure; and isolating a mixture of sertraline hydrochloride Form II and Form V.
The present invention still further relates to a process for making sertraline hydrochloride Form II comprising the steps of suspending a water or solvent adduct of sertraline hydrochloride in a solvent selected from the group consisting of acetone, t-butyl-methyl ether, cyclohexane, n-butanol, and ethyl acetate such that a slurry is formed, for a time sufficient to effect transformation to sertraline hydrochloride Form II; and filtering the slurry to isolate sertraline hydrochloride Form II.
The present invention still further relates to sertraline hydrochloride Form II, characterized by an x-ray powder diffraction pattern comprising peaks at about 5.5, 11.0, 12.5, 13.2, 14.7, 16.4, 17.3, 18.1, 19.1, 20.5, 21.9, 22.8, 23.8, 24.5, 25.9, 27.5, and 28.0 degrees two theta; pharmaceutical compositions for the treatment of depression comprising sertraline hydrochloride Form II together with a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier, and a method for treating depression comprising the step of administering to a subject in need of such treatment a therapeutically effective amount of the such a pharmaceutical composition.

Sertraline hydrochloride Form II and methods for the preparation thereof


There is an evacuated insulation panel comprising a corestock of an open-cell alkenyl aromatic polymer foam and a deformable receptacle. The foam has an open cell content of about 70 percent or more. The foam is situated within the receptacle. The receptacle is hermetically sealed. The open-cells of the foam and the interior of the receptacle are evacuated to an absolute pressure of about 10 torr or less. The foam has indentations therein which extend in two dimensions across a surface of the foam. The receptacle substantially conforms to the shape of the foam, including the indentations within. The panel has one or more surfaces which are substantially non-wrinkled. Further disclosed is a method for making the panel.

This invention relates to an evacuated insulation panel having a corestock of an open-cell alkenyl aromatic polymer foam. The foam has indentations therein to provide a panel having aesthetically desirable, non-wrinkled surfaces.
To significantly improve the performance of insulating systems, evacuated or vacuum panel technology is currently being evaluated by industry. The removal of substantial amounts of air or gas in the panels affords the possibility of superior insulating performance.
A useful evacuated panel is one employing a panel corestock of a rigid open-cell alkenyl aromatic polymer foam. The open-cell structure of the foam allows rapid and substantially complete withdrawal of gases from within the foam and the panel containing it. The rigid foam matrix provides a corestock of substantial mechanical strength and insulating performance.
A problem with employing panel corestocks of open-cell alkenyl aromatic polymer foams is their tendency to shrink upon being evacuated and/or being exposed to elevated temperatures. The shrinking may result in a wrinkled surface appearance for the receptacle or enclosure maintaining a hermetic seal in the panel.
It would be desirable to have an evacuated insulation panel with a corestock of an open-cell alkenyl aromatic polymer foam. A surface or surfaces of the panel would exhibit an aesthetically desirable, relatively smooth and homogeneous surface substantially free of wrinkles or ridges. It would be desirable to produce panels having a substantially flat surface so that the insulating panel can be placed or situated flush or adjacent to flat, smooth surfaces such as the inside of a refrigerator wall.

Evacuated insulation panel having non-wrinkled surfaces


A system and method are provided for supporting printer-based features in an IPDS printing environment. The system and method enable the printer to assign logical page identifiers to IPDS pages and track them internally. The printer only reports status to the host computer for pages flagged as host generated pages. Printer generated pages are not included in IPDS page counts. This enables one to invoke advanced printer-based features at the printer without corrupting the counts used by the host computer for error recovery and print job management in the IPDS printing environment.

The present disclosure relates to printing systems, more specifically, to a system and method for supporting value added printer features, such as N-1 printing and imposition, in an IPDS (Intelligent Printer Data Stream) printing environment.
IPDS is an IBM printer data stream protocol designed to manage and control printer processes using a mainframe host interface or Print Service Facility (PSF). IPDS is both a page-description language and a printer-control protocol. IPDS is distinguished from other data streams for printers because it provides all-points addressability, error recovery and two-way communications between the printer and PSF or host computer (e.g., mainframe computer). Also, IPDS provides data stream compatibility across the IPDS product line independent of speed, physical attachment or rendering technology.
IPDS error recovery assists the customer by providing improved system management and printer operations. For example, the operator is notified by the printer and PSF when human intervention in the print process is required. The notification process provides a clear direction of what is needed to correct the printing process, such as font availability notification or paper supply out messages.
PSF provides the customer with transparent resource management by tracking fonts, page segments, overlays, images, and resource data objects and sending them to the printer as required.
The two-way communication at the data stream level provided by IPDS helps synchronize operating system and printer processes, exchanges query-reply information and returns detailed exception information. This function provides the customer with improved printer operations and easier problem identification and resolution.
The printers generally use a subset of the total set of IPDS commands to manage their operations. These commands within the data stream enable the system to control the media-handling capabilities of the printer (request duplexing, select paper sources, and offset printing jobs from each other) and other operations dealing with paper. The commands also provide the means for managing the downloading of fonts and stored objects, such as overlays and page segments, which are required to print an application.
In an IPDS printing environment, IPDS assumes that the printer is a simple page printer, and all advanced features are controlled from the PSF or host computer. Some modern printer controllers, such as DocuSP®, provide many advanced features at the printer. Many of these features either have no equivalent mainframe interface, or are more convenient to use from the printer console, rather than from the PSF or host computer.
However, a problem that arises when using these advanced features at the printer console is that IPDS uses a page counting algorithm in which the printer reports to the PSF or host computer how many pages it has received, stacked, and committed for printing by a print engine. Advanced features which change the number of physical pages printed can affect the page counts reported to the PSF or host computer, causing IPDS error recovery to fail, and causing other job management problems at the PSF or host computer.
The following options are typically available to prevent IPDS error recovery from failing: (1) do not offer advanced printer-based features with printing systems that support IPDS; (2) suppress the advanced printer-based features; (3) inform users not to make use of existing advanced printer-based features with IPDS; and/or (4) internally adjust page counts to support specific advanced printer-based features. For example, DocuSP® IPDS suppresses certain DocuSP® advanced printer-based features in the IPDS printing environment, while it informs users not to use other advanced printer-based features.
Based on the above background information, a need exists for enabling the use of advanced printer-based features at the printer in an IPDS printing environment.

System and method for supporting printer features in an IPDS printing environment


A gas exchange apparatus for use as a artificial lung incorporates a hollow fiber module for bundling a plurality of thin-walled hollow silicone fibers. The fibers are wound in the form of a twilled pattern so as to form an internal perfusion passage and an external perfusion passage. A housing encloses the hollow fiber module. The housing incorporates a first inlet and outlet formed on the housing for communication of gas or liquid with the internal perfusion passage, and a second inlet and outlet formed for communication of gas or liquid with the external perfusion passage.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a gas exchange apparatus employing the silicone rubber hollow fiber composed of a silicone rubber composition for use as an artificial lung by being connected to the external blood circulation circuit, an artificial "gill" as a liquid-to-gas phase gas exchanger, and further an oxygenator and disoxidizer for liquid and gas.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
As a conventional gas exchanger, there has been known a membrane-type artificial lung disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 3-60508 (1991), in which gas exchange operation is performed through a porous gas exchange membrane having a plurality of minute or fine openings formed therethrough and serving as gas flow passages, wherein a kind of fine particles are maintained in the fine openings to reduce the sectional area, and, in addition, an anti-coagulant for blood is retained in the fine particles themselves or between these particles. Such a retention function of the agent contributes to prevent leakage of components of blood, such as water or, during a long-term circulation, and also to prevent production of thrombus on the surface of gas exchange membrane, thereby the out-body circulation being enabled with a small amount of heparin supplement.
However, the gas exchange rate was not satisfactory in either of the conventional gas exchanger, since fine particles are confined in fine openings using "porous hollow fiber" for preventing sealum leakage in the first example, and "silicone membrane hollow fiber" having an increased wall thickness is used in the second embodiment. Therefore, there have been problems, when the exchange rate is increased, the dimension of the apparatus, that is, of the artificial lung increases, resulting in an increased quantity of blood, namely the priming volume, which is filled in the apparatus. In contrast, the reduced priming volume, although providing a small size, the quantity of gas exchange is accordingly decreased, and, therefore, the gas exchange rate is lowered.
As a conventional silicone rubber hollow fiber in use for gas exchangers, using a silicone rubber composition, there was a Japanese patent application No.61027/1996 proposed by the same applicant.
The hollow fiber of the invention is formed of a silicone rubber composition of a blend of silicone rubber compound and liquid silicone rubber or silicone oil, and may be produced by setting the ratio of sectional area S.sub.1 :S.sub.2 in the range of 1:0.5 to 1:0.01 when the silicone rubber composition is extruded in a form of tube and oriented under heating in a vulcanizer, wherein S.sub.1 is a sectional area of a tube extruded from a nip between a die and a nipple of an extruder and S.sub.2 is a sectional area of a tube oriented.
The outer diameter of the hollow fiber obtained is less than 300 microns and wall thickness thereof is less than 50 microns. SS are values obtained by the following equations. EQU S.sub.1 =.pi.(r.sub.1 /2).sup.2 -.pi.(r.sub.2 /2).sup.2 EQU S.sub.2 =.pi.(r.sub.3 /2).sup.2 -.pi.(r.sub.4 /2).sup.2
Where, r.sub.1 : an inner diameter of the die;
r.sub.2 : an outer diameter of nipple;
r.sub.3 : an outer diameter of hollow thread; and
r.sub.4 : an inner diameter of hollow thread.
The silicone rubber composition aforementioned is formed by adding a silica as a filler to a silicone rubber compound of dimethylsiloxane and/or dimethylvinylsiloxane as a silicone rubber compound and making use of addition curing-type silicone rubber compound having a hardness of more than 75 (JIS-A) measured by JISK-6301 and a tear strength of more than 40 Kg/cm (Type-A), an organopolysiloxane having a viscosity in the range of 100 tO 100,000 poise at 25.degree. C. containing a vinyl group as an aforesaid silicone rubber and an silicone oil having the same viscosity as that of the organopolysiloxane as above-mentioned silicone oil.
Since the conventional silicone rubber composition is, as described above, formed by mixing a silicone rubber compound with a liquid silicone rubber or silicone oil, a silica agglomerated in the silicone rubber may be dispersed uniformly. Therefore, the conventional silicone rubber becomes a state which cannot be easily cut even the silicone rubber composition is extruded in the form of tube. And also, since the conventional silicone rubber composition is, as described, formed by mixing a silicone rubber compound with a liquid silicone rubber or silicone oil, the chain of high polymer interlocking in the silicone rubber is unravelled, the orientation property of the silicone rubber can be remarkably improved. For the reasons as above, the conventional silicone rubber composition is available to produce a fine and thin-gage silicone rubber hollow fiber having an outer diameter of less than 300 microns and a wall thickness of less than 50 microns.
While the hollow fiber itself could be produced by the conventional silicone rubber composition since the orientation treatment is carried out under a decrease of plasticity by mixing an uncured silicone rubber composition, there is a case where the hollow fiber has the tensile loading (M.sub.100) (100% modulus of which is not sufficient, that is less than 5 grams is produced when the wall thickness is less than 40 microns. Therefore, there occur the troubles such as an elongation set or cut-through of the hollow fiber at a fabrication step, which gives rise to a problem that only a hollow fiber having a wall thickness of approximate 50 microns can be stably produced.

Gas exchange apparatus using improved silicone rubber hollow fiber


A method of forming a semiconductor device is provided including forming a gate structure comprising a metal-containing layer over a semiconductor layer and doping the metal-containing layer by tilted ion implantation.

1. Field of the Invention
Generally, the subject matter disclosed herein relates to integrated circuits, and, more particularly, to N-channel and P-channel transistor devices. More particularly, the subject matter disclosed herein relates to improved MOSFETs with tuned work functions of the gate.
2. Description of the Related Art
Integrated circuits formed on semiconductor wafers typically include a large number of circuit elements, which form an electric circuit. In addition to active devices such as, for example, field effect transistors and/or bipolar transistors, integrated circuits can include passive devices such as resistors, inductors and/or capacitors. In particular, during the fabrication of complex integrated circuits using CMOS technology, millions of transistors, i.e., N-channel transistors and P-channel transistors, are formed on a substrate including a crystalline semiconductor layer.
A MOS transistor, for example, irrespective of whether an N-channel transistor or a P-channel transistor is considered, comprises so-called PN junctions that are formed by an interface of highly doped drain and source regions with an inversely or weakly doped channel region disposed between the drain region and the source region. The conductivity of the channel region, i.e., the drive current capability of the conductive channel, is controlled by a gate electrode formed near the channel region and separated therefrom by a thin insulating layer.
The conductivity of the channel region, upon formation of a conductive channel due to the application of an appropriate control voltage to the gate electrode, depends on, among other things, the dopant concentration, the mobility of the majority charge carriers and, for a given extension of the channel region in the transistor width direction, the distance between the source and drain regions, which is also referred to as channel length.
Hence, in combination with the capability of rapidly creating a conductive channel below the insulating layer upon application of the control voltage to the gate electrode, the overall conductivity of the channel region substantially determines the performance of the MOS transistors.
Polysilicon has been used as the MOSFET gate material for decades. However, as CMOS devices are scaled into the sub 50 nm regime, polysilicon gate technology issues such as gate depletion and boron penetration become more problematic. Furthermore, polysilicon has been reported to be incompatible with a number of high-k gate-dielectric candidates. For extremely scaled semiconductor devices, the conventional SiO2 gate insulator material begins to exhibit excessive leakage and, therefore, cannot reliably provide a sufficient electrical isolation between the gate electrode and the underlying channel region. Therefore, alternative materials having dielectric constants greater than about 4 (referred to herein as high-k dielectrics) have been considered for use in advanced devices including advanced CMOS devices. Gate insulators made from high-k dielectrics can be made thicker than those made of SiO2 without sacrificing capacity properties and thus offer the benefit of a significant reduction of leakage currents. Candidate materials include transitional metal oxides, silicates and oxynitrides, such as hafnium oxide, hafnium silicide and hafnium oxynitride.
As an example of the art, the manufacturing of a fully depleted field effect transistor (FDFET) will be described with reference to FIG. 1. Fully depleted field effect transistors are formed using a semiconductor-on-insulator (SOI) structure, wherein the semiconductor layer provided on the insulator layer has a smaller thickness than a channel depletion width. Thus, the electric charge and, accordingly, the body potential of the field effect transistor is fixed, which may be helpful for avoiding or at least reducing the floating body effect and for improving channel controllability. FIG. 1 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of a semiconductor device 100. The semiconductor structure includes a substrate 101. On the substrate 101, an electrically insulating layer 102 is formed. A semiconductor layer 103 is formed on the electrically insulating layer 102. The substrate 101, the electrically insulating layer 102 and the semiconductor layer 103 provide a semiconductor-on-insulator structure.
An isolation structure 104, for example, a shallow trench isolation structure, separates a portion of the semiconductor layer 103 wherein an active region of a fully depleted field effect transistor 105 is formed from other portions of the semiconductor layer 103 (not shown). On the semiconductor layer 103, a gate structure 106 is provided. The gate structure 106 includes a gate insulation layer 107, which may include a high-k material having a greater dielectric constant than SiO2, for example, Hf, and a gate electrode 110 including a metal portion 108 and a polysilicon portion 109. Adjacent the gate electrode 110, a sidewall spacer 112 is provided, which is separated from the gate electrode 110 by a liner layer 111. The field effect transistor 105 further includes a source region 114 and a drain region 116 adjacent the gate structure 106. The source region 114 and the drain region 116 are differently doped than a channel region 115 below the gate electrode 110, and may include source and drain extensions extending below the sidewall spacer 112. These features may be formed using techniques for providing a semiconductor-on-insulator structure, including oxidation, bonding, cleaving and polishing of semiconductor wafers, and techniques for forming field effect transistors, such as deposition, oxidation, photolithography, etching and ion implantation.
In particular, the semiconductor device 100 shown in FIG. 1 includes a metal gate portion 108 that may include one or more metal-containing layers. The metal gate portion 108 includes a work function adjusting material, for example, TiN. It is known that the effective work function of the metal gate portion 108 can be adjusted by added impurities, for example.
However, in the art, the problem arises that the effective work function of the metal gate on high-k dielectric significantly decreases after high temperature anneal carried out for activation of the source/drain implants and re-crystallization of the semiconductor layer 103 in order to heal defects caused by the ion implantation resulting in the generation of the source and drain regions 114 and 116. In particular, fabricating metal gate—metal oxide—semiconductor transistor devices with low threshold voltages poses severe problems due to oxygen vacancies and defect sites in the high-k gate dielectrics, causing Fermi level pinning phenomena that severely affect the overall performance of the devices.
In view of the above, the present invention provides techniques for adjusting the work function of a metal gate wherein the above-described problems are efficiently mitigated.

FET device with tuned gate work function