An energy storage coil comprises a core having an electrical conductor wound thereabout in a plurality of turns. The turns define a main zone and at least one first auxiliary zone extending along the core. The main zone has a first end and a second end. The turns in the main zone overlie one another. The first auxiliary zone is arranged adjacent to the first end of the main zone. The turns in the first auxiliary zone are arranged to provide the first auxiliary zone with lower parasitic capacitance from turn to turn than the main zone.

The subject of electromagnetic compliance (EMC) has in recent years become very significant, especially in the field of electronics. Many environments now include large numbers of electronic devices, especially personal desktop computers and similar apparatuses. It is known that the power supplies that form a part of such devices switch at exceedingly high frequencies. Such switching causes EMI. Stray EMI can interfere with the correct operation of neighboring apparatuses. The effects of such interference can range from mere inconvenience to users to catastrophic or even life-threatening consequences.
As a result, many governments have passed legislation requiring manufacturers of electronic equipment to limit the amplitude of EMI created by its products and/or to filter the EMI so that it is attenuated in frequency ranges that would otherwise hamper or affect the operation of other devices. In view of these requirements, it has become commonplace to include EMI filters connected in printed circuit boards of power supplies of devices such as desktop computers. It is generally more beneficial, however, to avoid generating EMC than to filter it by additional circuitry. Typically, power supplies use a semiconductor device to switch current through an inductor. At the moment of switch off, the current flowing in the inductor is interrupted, and the voltage across the inductor changes rapidly. The limit on the rate of change of voltage is usually imposed by parasitic capacitances, typically between the wire forming one turn and that forming an adjacent turn, which turns form a resonant circuit with the inductor or part of the inductor. The net effect is to cause energy to be emitted from the circuit at one or more pseudo-resonant frequencies. This spurious energy is in addition to the wanted energy that is transferred to the load. Often the spurious energy is in a frequency band which is controlled by legislative limits.
It is known in the art to replace the regularly spaced windings of a conventional EMI filter toroid with "piled" windings, i.e. windings that overlie one another in a substantially irregular manner, over a major part of the toroid. However, this solution leads to a very large number of small resonant circuits. Thus, the undesirable self-resonances are reduced in energy, but increased in number. It is therefore necessary to apply further filtering or other suppression measures in order to reduce this energy to acceptable levels.
Such windings are commercially available, for example, for power factor correction circuits. An increasing proportion of electronic devices is equipped with power factor correction circuitry. Older devices typically use a rectifier and capacitor combination as an alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC) converter to provide a DC supply for the AC to DC converter that actually powers the device. Despite their simplicity, such AC to DC converters draw large peak currents from the AC supply when the AC voltage is at or near its peak, and little current elsewhere in the cycle. The resulting distortion of the current waveform from an ideal sinusoidal shape causes higher root mean square (RMS) currents in the supply wiring than would be expected from the electrical power drawn by an electronic device.
This effect may not be significant when considering a single device such as a personal computer. On the other hand, it is now commonplace for entire buildings, on completion, to be equipped with large numbers of identical apparatuses, such as a bulk order of identical personal computers. The power factor effects of the plurality of AC to DC converters that such an installation represents are cumulative. Consequently the opening of ego a new call or data centre may for example cause significant supply current distortion, purely as a result of a large number of AC to DC converters being connected to an alternating mains supply.
Electricity companies have for many years sought to eliminate the inefficiency of transmission that this represents. In the case of personal computers, however, it is not readily possible to use the kinds of power factor correction apparatus, such as capacitive shunts, that are suitable for ego electric motors. It follows therefore that there is a need for an improved means of reducing the supply current distortion. Typically this need is met by a switched mode power factor correction circuit that makes the shape of the current waveform substantially the same as, and in phase with, the voltage waveform. As well as its beneficial effects, the power factor correction circuit often gives rise to significant EMI.


A method of manufacturing a hermetically-sealed chamber with an electrical feedthrough includes the step of hermetically fixing an electrode to a substrate in a predetermined location on the substrate. A passage is formed through the substrate through the predetermined location such that at least a portion of the electrode is exposed to the passage. The passage is then at least partially filled with an electrically conductive material. A housing is then formed including the substrate such that the housing defines a chamber, with the electrode being disposed within the housing and the chamber being hermetically sealed. The electrode within the chamber can be placed in electrical communication with an exterior electrical component by way of the electrically conductive material in the passage.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods of manufacturing micromachinable, pico- to nanoliter-volume, hermetic packaging that incorporates reliable electrical feedthroughs, and sensors configured utilizing the same, all of which are intended to perform reliably in harsh and biological environments.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Over the past 20 years, advances in the field of microelectronics have enabled the realization of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and corresponding batch fabrication techniques. These developments have allowed the creation of sensors and actuators with micrometer-scale features. With the advent of the above-described capability, heretofore implausible applications for sensors and actuators are now significantly closer to commercial realization.
In parallel, much work has been done in the development of pressure sensors. Pressure sensors are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,855,115, issued Feb. 15, 2005; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/054,671, filed Jan. 22, 2002; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/215,377, filed Aug. 7, 2002; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/215,379, filed Aug. 7, 2002; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/943,772, filed Sep. 16, 2004; and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/157,375, filed Jun. 21, 2005, all of which are incorporated herein by reference.
In particular, absolute pressure sensors, in which the pressure external to the sensor is read with respect to an internal pressure reference, are of interest. The internal pressure reference is a volume within the sensor, sealed, which typically contains a number of moles of gas (the number can also be zero, i.e. the pressure reference can be a vacuum, which can be of interest to reduce temperature sensitivity of the pressure reference as known in the art). The external pressure is then read relative to this constant and known internal pressure reference, resulting in measurement of the external absolute pressure. For stability of the pressure reference and assuming the temperature and volume of the reference are invariant or substantially invariant, it is desirable that the number of moles of fluid inside the reference does not change. One method to approach this condition is for the reference volume to be hermetic.
The term hermetic is generally defined as meaning "being airtight or impervious to air." In reality, however, all materials are, to a greater or lesser extent, permeable, and hence specifications must define acceptable levels of hermeticity. An acceptable level of hermeticity is therefore a rate of fluid ingress or egress that changes the pressure in the internal reference volume (a.k.a. pressure chamber) by an amount preferably less than 10 percent of the external pressure being sensed, more preferably less than 5 percent, and most preferably less than 1 percent over the accumulated time over which the measurements will be taken. In many biological applications, an acceptable pressure change in the pressure chamber is on the order of 1.5 mm Hg/year.
The pressure reference is typically interfaced with a sensing means that can sense deflections of boundaries of the pressure reference when the pressure external to the reference changes. A typical example would be bounding at least one side of the pressure reference with a deflectable diaphragm or plate and measuring the deflection of the diaphragm or plate by use of, among other techniques, a piezoresistive or a capacitance measurement. If the deflection of the diaphragm or plate is sufficiently small, the volume change of the pressure reference does not substantially offset the pressure in the pressure reference.
These approaches may require an electrical feedthrough to the hermetic environment (e.g., to contact electrodes inside the hermetic pressure reference), for connection to outside electronics to buffer or transmit the signal. Alternatively, electronics may be incorporated within the reference cavity, requiring power to be conducted into the hermetic environment. To maintain stability of the pressure reference, these seals should also be hermetic, resulting in the necessity to develop a feedthrough technology for contacts through the cavity walls. As is known in the art, such feedthrough points are typically sites for failure of hermeticity. This problem is further exacerbated when miniaturizing the sensor, since the total volume of material available for hermetic sealing shrinks proportionally and the reliability of the feedthrough is also greatly reduced. In the limit of ultraminiaturized sensors, such as those producible using microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology, one of the major challenges to enabling the use of such devices in applications where they are physically connected to other devices has been the creation of reliable hermetic packaging that provides feedthroughs that enable exchange of power and information with external electronics.
Design criteria for ultraminiature packaging that overcomes the aforementioned shortcomings are as follows: The packaging must exhibit long term hermeticity (on the order of the life of the sensor, which in some cases can exceed tens of years). Feedthroughs must be provided through the hermetic package that do not introduce new or unnecessary potential modes of failure. The feedthroughs will constitute a necessary material interface, but all other interfaces can and should be eliminated. In other words, the number and area of material interfaces should be minimized to reduce the potential for breach of hermeticity. The materials selected must be compatible with the processes used to fabricate the package as well as sufficiently robust to resist deleterious corrosion and biocompatible to minimize the body's immune response. Finally, the packaging should be amenable to batch fabrication.
In the past, many methods for creating such hermetic packages have been proposed. One approach used in the past to create the pressure cavity is anodic bonding to create a silicon-to-glass seal. A borosilicate glass is required for this method. Another technique utilized in the creation of hermetic packages is eutectic bonding to create a silicon to metal hermetic seal, e.g. Au to Si. Both of these bonding methods used to create the pressure cavity introduce a large area along the perimeter of the material interface of the pressure cavity package which presents opportunity for failure, e.g. through corrosion. These methods for creating the pressure cavity do not minimize the area of the material interface as is desirable. A desirable improvement to the construction of the pressure cavity would minimize the material interface to the hermetic electrical feedthroughs, and, even further, minimize the number and area of material interfaces in those feedthroughs.
Previous attempts to create hermetic feedthroughs also fall short of the above-stated requirements. Many prior art hermetic feedthroughs are too large and not amenable to the required miniaturization for pico to nanoliter volume packaging achievable by MEMS or similar approaches. Furthermore, earlier attempts to create feedthroughs in pico to nanoliter packaging are prone to corrosion because of the materials used in construction or are sufficiently complicated that they introduce more material interfaces than are necessary. A representative feedthrough approach, known as a "buried" feedthrough, is illustrated in FIGS. 1-5. One method for creating a buried feedthrough is as follows: a metal 10 is deposited onto substrate 12 in a predefined pattern, as shown in FIG. 1. An insulating layer 14 is deposited on top of the metal layer, as shown in FIG. 2, and this insulating layer 14 is polished to planarize this surface. In FIG. 3 an etchant has been used to expose the metal layer at input and output sites 16, 18 for the feedthroughs. In FIG. 4, another substrate 20 is bonded on top of this structure, forming a hermetic cavity 22. A eutectic bonding method is illustrated, which involves the use of gold deposits 24 interposed between the insulating layer 14 and the upper substrate 20 to bond the upper substrate to the insulating layer. In FIG. 5 the upper substrate 20 is machined to expose the external feedthrough 18. An electrical component can now be connected to the external feedthrough 18, whereupon electrical communication is established through metal 10 to the internal feedthrough 16 and the interior of the hermetically sealed chamber 22
This prior art buried feedthrough suffers a number of disadvantages. First, there are numerous material interfaces: an interface 30 between the lower substrate 12 and the metal 10; an interface 32 between the metal 12 and the insulating layer 14, an interface 34 between the insulating layer 14 and the gold 24; and an interface 36 between the gold 24 and the upper substrate 20, all of which create potential paths for infusion into or effusion out of the hermetic chamber 22. The creation of this buried feedthrough also introduces increased processing steps. Further, the insulating layer material is cited as being prone to corrosion in certain environments, e.g. the human body. Corrosion issues may be further exacerbated by the application of electrical bias to metal 10 which may be required in certain applications. Thus prior art hermetic feedthroughs fall short of meeting the constraints outlined above.
Also, many prior art attempts to provide pressure sensors utilize silicon as a substrate material. If the package is implanted in vivo, silicon is not an optimal material choice. Silicon invokes an undesirable immune response over other, more inert materials such as fused silica. If silicon is used, a coating must be applied to ensure biocompatibility. Such a coating increases the package size, thereby decreasing the benefits of miniaturization, and introduces an undesirable additional processing step in the manufacture of the package.
Additionally, prior art devices commonly employ the use of borosilicate glass as part of the pressure cavity. The ions in borosilicate glass constitute an impurity in the glass. The barrier to diffusion of water decreases as the purity of glass decreases. This makes use of impure glass undesirable in such applications.
Thus a need exists for hermetic pico to nanoliter packaging with electrical feedthroughs for use in biological environments, such packaging being constructed of high-purity materials and having a reduced number and area of material interfaces.

Method of manufacturing a hermetic chamber with electrical feedthroughs


A fluid level measuring device, also referred to as a dipstick, for measuring the fluid level in a fluid reservoir or tank, such as an oil pan or transmission reservoir in an internal combustion engine. The fluid level measuring device includes a stationary tube onto which lugs can be directly attached. The dipstick assembly includes a fluid level indicator measuring blade attached to an elongated shaft that is molded into a plastic handle assembly. The plastic handle assembly includes a bayonet type locking mechanism for locking the handle to the stationary tube assembly. A compressible seal forms a pressurized seal between the stationary tube assembly and the handle.

It is known to use a fluid measuring device for indicating the fluid level in a selected fluid holding compartments of internal combustion engines, transmissions, and other machinery requiring fluids for lubrication and cooling. Typically, the fluid measuring device is a dipstick for checking the level of fluid such as engine or transmission oil, or hydraulic fluid within one of the many fluid holding compartments in the engine, transmission, or other machine. The dipstick is normally an elongated indicator that is slidably located within a conduit or pipe attached to the engine, transmission, gear box, reservoir or machine in which a fluid level indication is desired. When the dipstick is fully inserted into the conduit, one end is immersed into the fluid. When an actual reading of the fluid level is desired, the other end of the dipstick is pulled from the conduit thereby removing the entire dipstick from the conduit to allow the user to read the fluid level from the one end. The dipstick is then reinserted into the fluid compartment once the fluid level has been checked.
Traditional fluid level indicator systems typically consist of a two piece system with a holding tube and a dipstick. Examples of conventional dipstick systems are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,371,418; 5,485,681 and 5,829,153; the disclosure of each of which is hereby incorporated by reference. The holding tubes are generally fabricated from metal tubing and require various forming operations including bending, flaring, and machining, followed by the attachment of a dipstick receptacle. In addition, the dipstick is fabricated from multiple components including a handle, washer, cap, rubber stopper, shaft assembly, and a marked spring steel shaft mechanically joined to a spring steel blade. The actual assembly of these various components involves multiple assembly operations requiring costly, time-consuming, and labor intensive manufacturing steps. Therefore, a simpler design requiring fewer parts and connections as well as less forming is desirable.
Engines, transmissions, and machinery designs have become relatively smaller, more compact, and of less weight than traditional engines, transmissions, and machinery. Therefore, fluid level indicator systems must be smaller, more compact, and lighter weight. Moreover, the fluid access routes or paths through which the fluid level indicator system accesses the fluid storage compartments are becoming more complex (more twists and turns as well as longer runs), smaller, and more compact.
There is a need in this art for smaller and lighter weight fluid level indicator systems with improved flexibility. There is also a need for a fluid level indicator system allowing access to the fluid compartment while assuring a secure, and in some cases a sealed closure of the access when fluid level determinations are not being made and/or additional fluid is not being added. When employed a sealed closure would prevent unnecessary loss of the fluids during operation as well as supply level pressurization. Moreover, a positive indication that the dipstick is securely in place is desirable.


A process for forming a color selection mask for a CRT, in a press containing a punch and a counter-punch, after a temperature build-up stage in a shaping chamber, through the circulation of pressurized hot gas injected by inlets placed on the walls of the counter-punch, includes the step of distributing the hot gas through a distribution device to uniformly heat the mask's surface.

A CRT designed to reproduce color images generally includes a gun for generating three separate electron beams which converge towards the internal surface of the screen. Cathodoluminescent materials are deposited as phosphor stripes or dots on this surface and emit red, green or blue light when the respective electron beams impinge thereon. A perforated metal mask, spaced a very short distance from the internal surface of the screen, facilitates the selection of the colors so that the electron beams emitted by the gun only reach the corresponding phosphor elements, excluding all the others. The color selection mask requires a very precise shape and its distance from the internal surface of the screen guarantees the purity of the colors of the image formed on the screen. Only a small fraction of the electrons emitted by the gun (between 20 and 30%) are transmitted through the mask to reach the screen. The remainder impinge upon the imperforate portion of the mask and impart their energy to the mask, which heats up to a temperature of around 70.degree.-80.degree. C. This heating causes expansion of the mask material and modifies the position of the impact points of the electron beams on the phosphor screen elements, resulting in a loss of color purity as electron beams excite several phosphor elements of different emissive colors. Masks produced from sheets of low carbon steel are highly sensitive to this thermal expansion phenomenon. It is difficult with such masks to produce images of high luminosity or brightness without any loss of color purity.
European patent number 124354 proposes the use of an alloy with a low thermal expansion coefficient (e.g. iron/nickel), as material for the production of perforated masks. Nevertheless, this type of alloy possesses a strong tension or stiffness and the yield strength, at ambient temperature, makes it difficult to press-form the mask as the metal sheet (approximately 200 .mu.m thick) tends to return to its original shape if the yield limit is not exceeded. The solution envisaged by patent EP 124354 consists in pressing the mask from an iron/nickel alloy sheet at a temperature at which the value of the elasticity coefficient is lowest and, for example, close to that of mild steel, this temperature being about 150.degree.-200.degree. C. for a 35 wt % nickel 65 wt % iron alloy.
The mask forming temperature is generally obtained via a press whose punch and counter-punch, designed to give final shape to the mask, are heated to a temperature higher than that of the mask. The mask is then heated by convection, conduction and radiation in the chamber containing the punch and counter-punch. When the mask has reached the required temperature, it is then pressed by the punch. This prior shaping process has a number of drawbacks:
before being shaped, the mask material has its periphery in contact between the punch and counter-punch, and its center with the punch: in this configuration the transmission of heat is non-uniform.
heating by conduction and radiation requires bringing the press parts, which are to provide this heating, up to a temperature greater than the required temperature of the mask material, which entails a high consumption of energy and mechanical problems because it is difficult to maintain the moving parts of a press at high temperature.
the time required to bring the mask material up to the pressing temperature greatly increases the length of the shaping stage of the operation as compared to that of a mask made of mild steel and requires more mask-shaping, or pressing stations, to obtain a correct rate of production.
Alternatively, the temperature of the mask can be built up in a furnace outside the press; however, this involves problems of handling and loss of energy due to the low thermal capacity of the thin perforated sheet used for the mask. As described in EP 124354, the mask material can also be heated by immersion in an oil bath which involves problems both of handling and maintenance of the press's environment.

Forming process for a sheet of perforated metal and process implementation device


A universal remote control radio frequency transmitter for use with garage door operators, gate operators and other barrier movement operators is programmable through the use of external switches. The same switches are used after programming for causing the transmitter to transmit an RF signal at about the selected frequency and with a code corresponding to the programmed code. A plurality of RF frequencies are generated by a single RF circuit and a single loop antenna. The selected frequency is determined by digital controller logic and PIN diode shorting in and out selected reactive elements in the RF circuit.

This invention relates to a universal transmitter which can operate a garage door operator, a gate operator and other movable barrier operators, and more particularly to a universal transmitter which can select among a plurality of different channels and, using a single antenna loop and a single radio frequency (RF) circuit, transmit on the selected channel.
Most manufacturer-supplied transmitters designed for garage door or gate applications are single function, single frequency devices with a preset carrier frequency and use either a switch-selectable code or a preset factory code. Switch-selectable codes are set by the user setting a plurality of switches on the transmitter and the receiver units. Factory-set codes are input into the receiver by causing a microcontroller or other processor such as a microprocessor, gate array or the like, within the receiver to perform a learn function. The receiver enters the learn mode, then the user activates the transmitter, which transmits a signal representing the factory programmed code stored in it. The most recent transmitters employ rolling code or other code encryption.
Each manufacturer has developed its own separate modulation format and selected its own carrier frequency. Recently, some O.E.M.""s and aftermarket manufacturers have developed transmitters which permit the generation of multiple formats and frequencies within a single transmitter.
The aftermarket for garage door, gate and other movable barrier operator remote transmitters is brisk. As manufacturers improve their products by offering greater functionality, the cost of providing replacement parts for older model units increases. Generally, receivers have a longer working life than remote transmitters. A goal among aftermarket providers is to furnish a single, universal transmitter which can be programmed to be used in a multitude of systems from different manufacturers.
The difficulty of designing a universal transmitter which can operate at multiple frequencies for multiple code types, while keeping manufacturing costs down is the aftermarket supplier""s greatest challenge.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,101 to Eisfeld et al. discloses a system having a plurality of complete transmitter circuits for generating a plurality of difference RF carrier frequencies to operate a plurality of different receivers. The transmitter includes two sets of mechanical switches or DIP switches by which the user sets the transmitter code and the carrier frequency. A separate oscillator and an antenna is provided for each user-selected RF carrier frequency.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,661,804 to Dykema et al. discloses a learning transmitter which can operate a plurality of different receivers which employ a rolling or encrypted code. No user input is required to learn the code and frequency, other than activating the transmitter to be copied. A single RF circuit and dynamically tunable antenna is provided for transmitting the learned code. The single RF circuit employs a phase locked loop frequency synthesizer and separate control logic for outputting the learned frequency and code.
While both of these system are capable of operating a plurality of receivers, each is complex and expensive. There is a need for an inexpensive, simple, universal transmitter capable of operating a multitude of different receivers at different frequencies. There is a need for a universal transmitter which uses a single transmitter circuit, using simple components, for transmitting a plurality of different carrier frequencies.
A radio frequency transmitter according to the invention provides a unique combination of inexpensive and simple circuits. It is compatible with a large number of garage door, gate and barrier operators manufactured by different manufacturers. The radio frequency transmitter can be programmed to activate a plurality of movable barrier operator receivers, each receiver receiving a particular carrier frequency modulated according to a particular modulation scheme.
The RF transmitter includes a single transmitter circuit for transmitting a signal at a plurality of different carrier frequencies according to a plurality of different modulation codes. The single transmitter circuit includes a transmit oscillator, a tuning circuit comprising a plurality of discrete reactive components, a radiating element having a variable length, and a control circuit coupled to the tuning circuit, the transmit oscillator and the variable radiating element. The user inputs a desired carrier frequency and a desired modulation code through a plurality of switches. These values are stored in a programmable controller. A particular carrier frequency and code can be assigned to each switch. In a preferred embodiment, the transmitter includes three user switches for operating up to three different barrier operators.
A programmable controller is coupled to the transmitter circuit for operating the transmitter circuit to cause the transmitter circuit to be modulated with signals generated by the programmable controller from the stored user-selected carrier frequency and the stored user-selected modulation code. Specifically, the programmable controller provides the logic to select the particular reactive elements in the tuning circuit, transmit oscillator and to vary the electrical length of the radiating element. The variable length radiating element is operable for radio frequency transmission of the signals generated by the programmable controller.
Preferably the programmable controller provides logic control to PIN diode switches for shorting in or out selected reactive elements and for varying the electrical length of the loop antenna element. Specifically, the PIN diodes are used to short out various capacitors in the tuning circuit and the transmit oscillator circuit. When not selected, preferably the PIN diodes are reverse-biased. While in the off state, the PIN diodes have a high impedance and low capacitance. This minimizes stray parasitic transmissions.
A single transmitter circuit is used for all RF frequencies. Two or more of the external switches are used for programming in the manufacturer""s carrier frequency and to set the transmitter""s code. Preferably the variable length radiating element is a loop formed as a trace on a printed circuit board.
In a single RF circuit switching to obtain multiple carrier frequencies is relatively straightforward. It may be difficult, however, to eliminate harmonics that are prohibited by FCC standards. Elimination of harmonics is achieved through positioning of the reactive elements of the transmit oscillator circuit, the tuning elements and the radiating element located on the printed circuit board. PIN diodes are used to short across capacitors instead of switching in and out of the circuit. This has the advantage of eliminating interaction between the components.
Lead lengths between the components in the transmit oscillator and tuning circuits are made as short as possible to minimize changes from board to board during manufacturing. Capacitive elements are positioned on opposite sides of the printed circuit board to cut down on parasitic harmonic radiation. Selected elements in the transmit oscillate circuit, as well as the loop antenna, form part of the radiating element.


A method and device for managing retransmit operations. The device, includes a FIFO memory unit, a read pointer, a retry pointer and a write pointer. The device is characterized by including a gray code state machine connected to an emulated read pointer logic; whereas the gray code state machine is adapted to provide a gray code word representative of a state of a read logic that comprises the read pointer; whereas the emulated read pointer logic is adapted to process at least one gray code word and to provide an emulated read pointer that tracks a FIFO memory unit entry that stores data that was not accepted; whereas the emulated read pointer logic is connected to a write control logic adapted to control writing operations to the FIFO memory unit in response to the emulated read pointer logic; and whereas the read logic receives a read clock that differs from a write clock provided to the emulated read pointer logic and to the write control logic.

Telecommunication integrated circuits are typically required to exchange information with one or more data sources and data targets. A telecommunication integrated circuit may have a processor that can process data and then send it to the one or more data targets.
In many cases the data is sent to a FIFO memory unit (also referred to as FIFO) that can partially compensate for timing differences between FIFO read operations performed by a slow retrieving data target and FIFO write operations performed by a fast component. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,712,992 of and 5,365,485, both being incorporated herein by reference, provide examples of prior art FIFO management methods and devices.
The FIFO has to be managed in order to prevent overwriting of valid information. The complexity of a FIFO management circuit increases when there are timing differences between the FIFO read and write operations and especially when the data target can request to retransmit data from the FIFO.
There is a need to provide efficient devices and methods for managing retransmit operations.

Device and method for managing a retransmit operation


A method is provided for scaling a source image to produce a destination image. According to the method, a local context metric is calculated from a local portion of the source image. A convolution kernel is generated from a plurality of available convolution kernels based on the calculated local context metric, and the generated convolution kernel is used to generate at least one pixel in the destination image. Also provided is an image scaling device that receives pixels of a source image and outputs pixels of a scaled destination image. The image scaling device includes a context sensor, a kernel generator, and a scaler. The context sensor calculates a local context metric based on local source image pixels, and the kernel generator generates a current convolution kernel from a plurality of available convolution kernels based on the local context metric calculated by the context sensor. The scaler receives the coefficients of the current convolution kernel from the kernel generator, and uses the coefficients to generate at least one pixel of the destination image from pixels of the source image. Additionally, a display device that includes such an image scaling engine is provided.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to digital signal processing, and more specifically to a method and device for scaling an image from one resolution to another.
2. Description of Related Art
Image scaling resizes a source image having one resolution to produce a destination image having another resolution. In general, the source image is scaled by using a discrete geometric transform to map the pixels of the destination image to pixels of the source image. The destination image is traversed and a transformation function is used to calculate which pixels in the source image are to be used to generate each destination pixel. Because destination pixels are not typically aligned with the source pixels, an interpolation function is used to generate a value for a destination pixel by weighting the surrounding source pixels. Several common interpolation functions can be used based on the specific application. While the more sophisticated interpolation algorithms generate higher quality images, their complexity requires more processing time or hardware to generate the destination image.
Nearest neighbor interpolation is a simple algorithm in which fractional destination pixel locations are simply rounded so as to assign the closest source pixel to the destination image. While this algorithm is fast, the destination image quality can be poor and appear jagged. Bilinear interpolation produces higher quality images by weighting the values of the four pixels nearest a fractional destination pixel location. Each weight is inversely proportional to the distance of the corresponding source pixel from the fractional destination pixel location. Bilinear interpolation produces a smoother destination image, but requires more processing time because three linear interpolations must be computed for each of the destination pixels.
While the nearest neighbor algorithm uses one source pixel and the bilinear algorithm uses four source pixels to generate each destination pixel, higher order interpolation functions produce high quality images by using greater numbers of source pixels and more complex interpolation functions. The interpolation function is centered at a specific point of the source image and used to weight the nearby pixels. For example, the cubic convolution algorithm uses the sixteen nearest source pixels and the following one-dimensional cubic function, which is shown in FIG. 1(a), to calculate the value of each destination pixel.
      f              (      x      )        =      {                                                                      (                                  a                  +                  2                                )                                                                                              x                                                  3                                      -                                          (                                  a                  +                  3                                )                                                                                              x                                                  2                                      +            1                                                0            ≤                                        x                                      <            1                                                                          a                                                                                x                                                  3                                      -                          5                            a                                                                                x                                                  2                                      +                          8                            a                                                            x                                                      -                          4                            a                                                            1            ≤                                        x                                      <            2                                                0                                      2            ≤                                        x                                                        where a is typically between −0.5 and −2.0. The destination pixel values must be clipped whenever the result is less than zero or greater than the maximum pixel value.
The cubic convolution function produces a sharpened image due to the presence of negative side lobe values. On the other hand, the B-spline algorithm produces a smoothed image using the sixteen nearest source pixels and the following one-dimensional B-spline function, which is shown in FIG. 1(b).
      f              (      x      )        =      {                                                                      (                                  1                  /                  2                                )                                                                                              x                                                  3                                      -                                                          x                                            2                        -                          (                              2                /                3                            )                                                            0            ≤                                        x                                      <            1                                                                                -                                  (                                      1                    /                    6                                    )                                                                                                  x                                                  3                                      +                                                          x                                            2                        -                          2                                                            x                                                      +                          (                              4                /                3                            )                                                            1            ≤                                        x                                      <            2                                                0                                      2            ≤                                        x                                                        Clipping is not required when using the B-spline function because it is only positive and the sum of the sample points is always 1. A more detailed explanation of conventional scaling using linear transformation algorithms can be found in R. Crane, "A Simplified Approach to Image Processing," Prentice Hall, New Jersey (1997), which is herein incorporated by reference.
As explained above, conventional image scaling algorithms are based on the application of a linear kernel function that weights the contribution of source pixels to each destination pixel. The weights are chosen based on the location of the theoretical destination sampling point relative to the actual source pixels so as to combine the source pixels in a manner that best represents the source content at the resolution of the destination image. In the classic signal processing sense, the continuous analog input is decimated by the conversion to a digital image and an interpolation filter function is used to re-sample the signal. Mathematically, the operation is a two-dimensional linear convolution. More specifically, a two-dimensional scaling filter calculates a dot product of the source pixel values with a weighting vector that is computed using a predetermined filtering function.
Currently, the scaler engines used for image scaling in video graphics applications employ conventional linear transform algorithms (such as those described above) and are primarily differentiated by the size of the convolution kernel. The interpolation algorithm to be used in a specific engine is determined based on the competing considerations of output image quality and hardware costs. The hardware that is needed to practically implement an interpolation algorithm depends on factors such as the filter weight resolution and the number of filter taps, which are dependent on the convolution kernel used for the interpolation function.
For example, the simple filtering kernel used to implement the nearest neighbor algorithm is restricted to have only a single nonzero weight. Because no multiplication or addition is required, a simple structure can be used to perform convolution with this filter function. However, to achieve better image quality, non-binary weights must be used. This necessitates the use of multipliers to perform the convolution. Furthermore, video graphics scalar engines typically operate on raster scanned information in which horizontal lines of pixels are serially processed. If the interpolation algorithm requires information from a pixel in a line other than the current line, the video information must be delayed by a line buffer memory (e.g., RAM). Image quality generally improves with more filter taps.
While hardware costs can limit the choice to certain interpolation algorithms, the specific algorithm that is used by a scalar engine is preferably chosen based on the content presented by the application. For example, one algorithm may be optimal for one type of content such as live video, while another algorithm of similar complexity is optimal for another type of content such as computer graphics. Although the interpolation algorithm can be chosen based on the image content, conventional scalar engines use a single convolution kernel for scaling the entire image. Therefore, if different types of content are present in the image, the overall quality of the scaled image is suboptimal.

Context sensitive scaling device and method


A computer-implemented method of providing users with contextually relevant data associates metadata tags with data items extracted from a variety of data sources that summarize the data items in searchable form using a common format. Contextual data is collected from the users indicative of their current situation. This data is then correlated with the metadata tags to identify data items of potential interest to the users taking into account their current situation. The identified data items are pushed to the relevant receiving devices in real time over a communications network to provide the identified users with information relevant to their current situation.

In emergency services, access to the right information at the right time is critical. In most cases, relevant information is scattered through old and new systems, some electronic and others based on paper. Emergency services workers can find themselves in many different situations that require totally different information, and many different situations can arise during just one shift. A lot of these situations carry a life or death implication. Police services are one area of emergency services that can act as an example of what exists today.
Police officers increasingly have to search through complex and extensive information and knowledge sources. To find information, police officers have to know where the data sources are located and how to access them. A large amount of manual and cognitive effort is required to query all the relevant data sources, each with a different search interface, or to read the paper-based reports and glean the correct and relevant information from them.
Database technologies have been widely used to manage crime and police reports to provide faster and easier access for law enforcement personnel. One such example is the COPLINK Connect system. COPLINK aims to enable law enforcement agencies to search for information more effectively by providing a user-friendly interface that integrates data from various sources such as incident records, mug shots, and gang information. COPLINK uses co-occurrence analysis to identify the relationships among different entities (e.g., persons, vehicles, locations, and organizations) in criminal justice databases.
Other information technologies also have been used in law enforcement. For example, the Connect system introduced by the New York Police Department uses computer statistics and crime mapping techniques to identify the types of crimes happening in different districts. Data mining techniques have also been applied to identifying interesting patterns in criminal data. For example, a self-organizing map is used to cluster similar sexual offense cases into groups in order to identify serial offenders.
There are many monitoring and notification systems for Web information sources. One example is the NorthernLight Web search engine (www.northernlight.com), which alerts users when new Web pages are added to the database. Some client-side search tools, such as Copernic Agent (www.copernic.com) and WebSeeker (www.bluesquirrel.com), also provide the functionality for scheduling automatic searches. Eirade (www.etrade.com) allows users to choose which stocks they want to monitor and the users are alerted when the stock price reaches the level they specified. In the financial application arena, more advanced monitoring (e.g., monitoring based on the results of complex financial analysis) has also been proposed. In these systems, users can often opt to be alerted in different ways, such as Web messages, emails, pagers, voice messages, or short messages for mobile devices. In the area of providing monitoring and alerting support for law enforcement applications, the FALCON system developed at Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) in Charlotte, N.C. offers the functionality of monitoring all incoming police records as well as sending alert messages to police offers by email and pager. FALCON does not offer collaborative filtering capabilities or advanced collaboration functions.
Collaborative filtering is a kind of collaboration in which people help one another perform filtering by recording their reactions to documents they read. Examples of collaborative filtering and recommender systems include Amazon.com, GroupLens, Fab, Ringo, Do-I-Care, and Collaborative Spider. When a user performs a search, these systems will recommend a set of documents or items that may be of interest based on this user's profile and other users' interests and past actions.
New technologies providing even more information are showing up all the time. An example is a device that shoots a small GPS-equipped dart that attaches itself to a suspect's vehicle during a high-speed pursuit. Another is an ear-mounted video camera that captures an officers' view of traffic stops and other incidents. Police departments are using cameras on patrol cars to scan and track the license plates of each vehicle they pass, which lets them recoup overdue parking violations fines.
Law enforcement technology may be evolving, but it hasn't changed the core responsibilities of police officers' jobs; police officers still must talk to people and gather information. Judgment and instinct from officers is the most important when recording what is actionable. When an officer is given information, they are responsible to act on it or not, which can lead to misconduct.
Two types of intelligence are used:                Tactical intelligence is used in the development of a criminal case that usually is a continuing criminal enterprise, a major multijurisdictional crime, or other form of complex criminal investigation, such as terrorism. It seeks to gather and manage diverse information to facilitate a successful prosecution of the intelligence target. It is also used for specific decision making or problem solving to deal with an immediate situation or crisis.        Strategic intelligence examines crime patterns and crime trends for management use in decision making, resource development, resource allocation, and policy planning. While similar to crime analysis, strategic intelligence typically focuses on specific crime types, such as criminal enterprises, drug traffickers, terrorists, or other forms of complex criminality. It also provides detailed information on a specified type of crime or criminality.
The different forms of intelligence can guide investigations, provide insights for resource allocation, suggest when priorities should be expanded or changed, suggest when new training and procedures may be needed to address changing threats and permit insight when there is a change in the threat level.
Intelligence-led policing (ILP) is a policing model that has emerged in recent years which is built around risk assessment and risk management. Although there is no universally accepted understanding of what intelligence-led policing entails, the leading definition is that ILP is a strategic, future-oriented and targeted approach to crime control, focusing upon the identification, analysis and 'management' of persisting and developing 'problems' or 'risks.' In simpler terms, it is a model of policing in which intelligence serves as a guide to operations, rather than the reverse.
Unlike industries where information overload can be resolved with hardware and storage policies, the emergency service field must account for a daily bombardment of information that might or might not be relevant the moment it is received. Zipping up this information and shipping it off to some forgotten archive is not an option, especially when considering that case activity is constantly in flux. It takes full time personnel and large/expensive meetings devoted to creating actionable information with no good way to disseminate it.
Intelligence data often resides across multiple locations, making retrieval and analysis even more cumbersome. At the end of the day, analysts require speed, efficiency and 100-percent accuracy when it comes to the software tools they use to carry out their intelligence work. The information should be kept permanently and be stored in doubles or triples.
There are four key needs in emergency services:                Operational Awareness: Supporting a comprehensive, relevant view into activities        Information Integration and Analysis: managing data effectively and reducing information overload        Strategic and Tactical Planning: creating more opportunities for proactive policing through analytic tools        Field Mobility: providing a platform for data and information exchange into and out of the field
It is also important that these follow standard operating procedures.
Increasing numbers of emergency service workers are using sophisticated hardware, including smart phones and smart devices that plug into computers (for example fingerprint analyzers) and radios. Because of the range in age of workers, the equipment has to be easy to use and learn. With unlimited mobile data on tap, all manner of information can be pushed to workers who might previously have had to spend time returning to the station to receive it. It also serves as a quick storage medium for things like photos of suspects, or new methods of performing a procedure.
The use of mobile technology is associated with an increasing amount of information at the users disposal. The twin themes of a growing volume of information and increasing exposure to it is called information overload. Information overload results from the inability of living systems to process excessive amounts of information. Combined with the fact that technology can generate information much faster than people can process it, this means that people often find themselves unable to cope with an increasing amount of information. Information overload may originate from information actively requested or searched for and information received whether or not the recipient wants/needs it or not.
In emergency service organizations, a great deal of information flows to and from internal departments and external organizations, and the regulatory framework requires substantial audit trails and documentation. The structure is one of command and control, with hierarchical relationships involving reporting up and down the ranks. These factors (and others) result in a large volume of information for managers to deal with.
Organizational information includes systems and services that are designed to acquire, share and disseminate information of all kinds, including information that circulates through formal and informal means, both internally and externally. The information environment and organizational context needs to be understood in order to understand the complex ways in which information flows in, out and around the organization, and how this contributes towards information overload, and to judge the effectiveness of the information, style, etc.
Emergency service organizations operate in a complex and changing environment, with information flowing to and from external organizations, as well as through a number of internal hierarchies and departments. The highly structured organization tends to generate highly structured and often large amounts of information. Time pressure, frequent deadlines, complex tasks, high uncertainty, unpredictable events and important decision consequences also contribute towards information load.
As the culture of an organization moves towards a more open information environment, with information being shared more freely and widely, this results in a greater volume of information being made available to the individual, and decision making power being pushed out. Superiors can try to summarize information on their behalf. This serves to moderate information overload by reducing the time spent on information seeking or filtering. To avoid information overload, individuals employ process or coping strategies, which may be either conscious or unconscious and can potentially become dysfunctional. Filtering, omission and error are among the coping strategies.
Effective real-time business intelligence requires that data latency, analysis latency, and action latency be reduced as much as possible. The analysis of large amounts of historical data prior to taking action inherently involves considerable latency.
Among the problems experienced by emergency workers are the following:                Too much information        Lack ability to present information relevant to each workers needs to their current context        Information and knowledge management        Integration of multiple systems, each having different functionalities and ontology's and data fragmented with lack of interoperability between systems, internal groups and departments        Expecting workers to query different distributed data sources, including both internal databases as well as external ones managed by other agencies, often using different hardware platforms, database systems, network protocols, data schemes, ontology's and user interfaces        Rapid and continuing advancement of information technologies        Data is sent in different ways: radio, email, dispatch, etc.        Data is input into the different systems by different people in different ways        The dynamic nature of data sources; for example in police services, many cases involve long periods of investigation, and the data can be updated frequently        Personnel with different job functions and working at different locations can easily acquire a vast amount of knowledge about a particular topic; the ability to share knowledge in a collaborative environment by linking together people who are working on the same or similar cases        No automatic information monitoring or information sharing among users        Having situational awareness, and once a worker has it for their area, there is no way to pass it on        Not leveraging full power of Next Gen Mobility devices        Daily briefings are largely a manual process and are very static, there is no tracking of what is shared and no standard notation between presenters        Collaboration & Communication take place over traditional channels—often inefficient        New technologies emerging that have new interfaces and provide even more information that needs to be integrated and filtered        In general, information stored or gathered is easy to report or track, but when, who, and how they accessed is not.        Old information needs to be purged.

Method and apparatus for pushing situationally relevant data


A system and method are disclosed for displaying video on a computing device for navigation and other purposes. A map database developer collects video data. The video data is collected by traveling along roads in a geographic area and storing the video data along with data indicating the positions at which the video data had been captured. This captured video data is then used in navigation systems and other devices that provide navigation, routing, video games, or other features. An application forms a video that shows a turn at an intersection from a first road onto a second road. The application adds video that depicts travel away from the intersection along the second road to video that depicts travel into the intersection along the first road to form a composite video that shows a turn at the intersection from the first road onto the second road. The composite video is then presented to a user on a display.

The present invention relates to displaying video image information on a computing device used for navigation, computer games and other purposes.
Various kinds of systems and applications are available that provide individuals with useful information for traveling. For example, navigation systems installed in vehicles provide useful information to vehicle drivers and passengers, including information for finding desired destinations, as well as guidance for following routes to desired destinations. Similar features are available on portable (e.g., handheld) devices, such as personal navigation systems, personal digital assistants with navigation functions and mobile phones. Useful navigation, routing, and map information is also available from various web sites.
Meaningful routing or navigation guidance includes helping a user ascertain his/her location and orientation relative to his/her surroundings. U.S. Pat. No. 5,161,886 discloses a method for showing a perspective, or 3D, view of a vehicle's position on a map generated from two dimensional data. This type of view can be useful for helping a user determine his/her position relative to the road network and guiding the user to a desired destination.
Although the method disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,161,886 is helpful, there exists room for improvement.
For example, it would be helpful to show a user an actual video depicting a maneuver from the vantage point of the user, i.e., the driver of a vehicle. The maneuver may be a turn from one road onto another, a merge onto an entrance ramp, a merge onto an exit ramp, or even a U-turn. However, collecting video data depicting all the possible maneuvers that a driver could take would be a time-consuming and expensive undertaking. It would also be expensive and time-consuming to keep such a collection of video up-to-date. Furthermore, it would be expensive to store the video data depicting all possible maneuvers that a driver could possibly make in a geographic area.
Accordingly, there is a need to provide additional features on navigation systems and other computing systems to help guide a user. Further, there is a need to provide ways to help a user know his/her position or orientation relative to his/her surroundings in a maneuver. There is a further need to provide information to a user to help locate or orient a user in his/her surroundings in a maneuver in a manner that efficiently uses computing resources.

System and method for stitching of video for routes


A method establishes a conference through a Multipoint Control Unit, MCU. The method includes pre-assigning and storing in the MCU one or more conference numbers respectively associated with a user or a multimedia terminal. The method also includes initiating a first call from a first multimedia terminal by dialing a first conference number among the one or more conference numbers, routing the first call to the MCU based on a prefix number of the first conference number, and, at a receipt of the first call in the MCU, allocating primary MCU resources and establishing the conference including the first multimedia terminal. The method further includes initiating a second call from a second multimedia terminal by dialing the first conference number, routing the second call to the MCU, and, at a receipt of the second call in the MCU, allocating secondary resources and including the second multimedia terminal in the conference.

There are a number of technological systems available for arranging meeting between participants located in different areas. These systems may include audio visual multipoint conferences or videoconferencing, web conferencing and audio conferencing.
The most realistic substitute of real meetings is high-end videoconferencing systems. Conventional videoconferencing systems comprise a number of end-points communicating real-time video, audio and/or data streams over and between various networks such as WAN, LAN and circuit switched networks. The end-points include one or more monitor(s), camera(s), microphone(s) and/or data capture device(s) and a codec. Said codec encodes and decodes outgoing and incoming streams, respectively.
Traditional Audio Visual Multipoint conferences have a central Multipoint Control Unit (MCU) with three or more endpoints connected. These MCU's perform switching functions to allow the audiovisual terminals to intercommunicate in a conference. The central function of an MCU is to link multiple video teleconferencing sites (EP-endpoints) together by receiving frames of digital signals from audiovisual terminals (EP), processing the received signals, and retransmitting the processed signals to appropriate audiovisual terminals (EP) as frames of digital signals. The digital signals may include audio, video, data and control information. Video signals from two or more audiovisual terminals (EP) can be spatially mixed to form a composite video signal for viewing by teleconference participants. One example of mixing and transcoding is converting four QCIF video streams into one CIF video stream.
When the different video streams have been mixed together into one single video stream the composed video stream is transmitted to the different parties of the video conference, where each transmitted video stream preferably follows a set scheme indicating who will receive what video stream. In general, the different users prefer to receive different video streams. This result in that the multi point control unit needs to perform a large amount, of video mixing, which in turn results in a large demand for processing power.
In order to form such a composed video stream, the conventional solution is to decode the separate incoming video streams from the respective parties, mix the video streams in accordance with the set schemes for the different users and then encode the composite images and transmit it to the respective users from the MCU. Thus, MCU's are provided with a set of encoders and decoders. One decoder is required for each incoming coded bit stream, whereas encoders usually can be shared among several outgoing bit streams. Hence, the required encoder resources in an MCU are usually less than the required decoder resources.
This requires a certain amount of processing power and inputs/outputs assigned to each conference, making the MCU unavailable for new conferences when ongoing conferences already occupies the resources in the MCU.
To provide multipart conferences without MCU, some video endpoints do have integrated MCU features. These are typically meeting room applications, and more expensive conferencing systems. There are also a set of conferencing bridges that enables video multi point conferencing. Both these solutions (Meeting Rooms, Conferencing Bridges) do require conference setup actions, prior to every meeting. This is typically to book a room, schedule the meeting in an administration interface, distribute information, notifying the conference number etc), which typically is done through a user interface of a Management System. This may make the process of hosting a multipoint conferencing event a time consuming task, and the threshold for using this technology to high.
In an environment where personal endpoints are widespread, the usual configuration is small video systems, incapable of hosting a multipoint conference. This does not mean that the need for multipoint visual conferencing is absent. According to prior art, is it not possible to utilize the personal single call video endpoints for multipoint video conferencing, without doing extra management and time consuming preparations.

Endpoint initiation of multipart conferences


A process for manipulating the porosity of silica using a series of organic template groups covalently incorporated into the silicate matrix. The templates in the bridged polysilsesquioxanes are selectively removed from the material by oxidation with oxygen plasma or other means, leaving engineered voids or pores. The size of these pores is dependent upon the length or size of the template or spacer. The size of the templates is measured in terms of Si-Si distances which range from about 0.67 nm to 1.08 nm. Changes introduced by the loss of the templates result in a narrow range of micropores (i.e. <2 nm). Both aryl and alkyl template groups are used as spacers. Novel microporous silica materials useful as molecular seives, dessicants, and catalyst supports are produced.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to molecular-engineered porous silica materials having micropores in a narrow size range. In addition, this invention relates to a process for the production of molecular-engineered porous silica materials having micropores in a narrow size range produced through the selective introduction of hydrocarbon templates into the silica structure and their subsequent removal from the solid material structure.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Porous silica has a variety of uses including desiccating water from closed packages, providing the solid phase for chromatographic separations, and acting as a support for catalysts used in numerous industrial processes. Silica is, by definition, an amorphous, glass-like material whose characteristics, including porosity, are primarily dependent upon the reaction and/or processing conditions used in its preparation. Porosity in silica gels is particularly important for the applications described above in which large surface areas are important for the processes being carried out. Large silica surface areas (meter-squared per gram of material) can translate into greater quantities of water or contaminant being adsorbed by silica desiccants, higher resolution separations of chemical mixtures through chromatography, and more efficient supported catalysts. However, the pore sizes in silica gels prepared by conventional techniques may range in size from macropores (>500 nm mean pore diameter) to micropores (<2.0 nm). Such broad and ill-defined porosity in silica prevents its application as a molecular sieve. Amorphous silica with the capability to perform molecular sizing in a similar fashion to zeolitic molecular sieves would be of enormous practical use considering the ease with which silica can be prepared in large monolithic shapes or in thin films.
Whereas porosity in zeolites arises from the crystalline arrangement of the network material, porosity in silica materials arises from interconnecting voids dispersed throughout the material. While traditionally the size of these voids can be manipulated by varying the reaction and processing conditions, the objective of the hydrocarbon template approach described here is to introduce porosity into the material based on the length of the hydrocarbon template or spacer.
It is known to prepare microporous aryl-bridged polysilsequioxanes by sol-gel processing of monomers such as bis-1,4-(triethoxysilyl)benzene and bis-4,4'-(triethoxysilyl)biphenyl, and their bis(trichlorosilyl) analogs. The materials produced by hydrolysis and condensation of these monomers result in rigid-rod organic spacers interspaced at regular intervals in the silicate-like framework. The xerogels produced upon subsequent processing of the gels have extremely high surface areas with porosities confined to the micropore range. The preparation of such aryl-bridged polysilsesquioxanes is previously described by the inventors in "Aryl-Bridged Polysilsequioxanes-New Microporous Materials," Chemistry of Materials, vol. 1, p. 572,(1989) and by Shea et. al. in "Aryl-Bridged Polysilsesquioxanes-New Microporous Materials, Better Ceramics Through Chemistry," Mater. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc., vol. 180, p. 975,(1990).
The present invention overcomes deficiencies of prior art silicas by providing molecular engineered porous silica materials having narrowly defined micro-porosity, allowing their use as molecular sieves, large surface area silica desiccants, efficient supported catalysts, and for high resolution separation of chemical mixtures through chromatography. This is accomplished by the manipulation of the porosity of silica using one or more of a series of organic template groups covalently incorporated into the silicate matrix. The templates in the bridged polysilsesquioxanes are selectively removed from the resultant material, leaving engineered voids or pores. The size of these pores is dependent upon the length or size of the template or spacer. The size of the templates is measured in terms of Si-Si distances ranging from about 0.67 nm to about 1.08 nm. Changes introduced by the loss of these templates are in the micropore range of >2 nm.
Although the previous work of the inventors as discussed above provided for microporous aryl-bridged polysilsesquioxanes, they have the disadvantage of having inconsistently sized micropores, resulting in ill-defined porosities. It has been found that the step of removal of the aryl templates from the material by means of oxidation such as through the use of oxygen plasma or ozone results in stable, well-defined porosity material capable of predictable performance for the uses described above.
It has further been found that alkyl-bridged polysilsequioxanes, although nonporous in the intermediate stage, become porous upon the carrying out of the inventive step of removal of the hydrocarbon templates. The removal of the alkyl templates is carried out in the same manner as the aryl templates described above, e.g., through oxidation using oxygen plasma or ozone. The use of alkyl-bridged polysilsesquioxanes using hexyl or nonyl alkyl groups may be advantageous over the aryl-bridged polysilsesquioxanes in that the precursors are more easily prepared. Further, it has been found to be advantageous to prepare non-porous material with the ability to treat it according to the invention at a later time or in the environment which it is to be used to render it porous. It has also been found that aryl-bridged polysilsesquioxanes can be made exhibiting limited or non-porosity until treatment according to the invention and, thus, exhibit the same advantage as alkyl-bridged polysilsesquioxanes.

Molecular engineering of porous silica using aryl templates

The United States of America as represented by the Department of Energy


The present invention relates to a polar group-containing olefin copolymer (A′) which is produced through polymerization using a transition metal catalyst, which has a weight-average molecular weight falling within a specific range and which contains a polar group-containing monomer within a specific range; a multinary polar olefin copolymer (A″) indispensably containing a polar monomer component that has a norbornene skeleton and a carboxyl group or an acid anhydride group and having three or more types of monomer units; and a resin composition (C) containing a specific amount of a polar group-containing olefin copolymer (A) and a specific amount of an olefin resin (B).

In general, olefin polymers such as polyethylene and polypropylene have high mechanical strength, are excellent in chemical resistance and corrosion resistance, inexpensive and excellent in moldability, and have environmental suitability, and are therefore valued as industrial materials, and for example, through injection molding, extrusion molding, blow molding or the like, such polymers are molded into films, laminates, containers, blow-molded bottles or the like and are used in wide-range applications.
Further, as laminated with a substrate of a gas-barrier material such as EVOH or aluminium foil, the polymers may be further given other properties such as gas barrier property in addition to the above-mentioned characteristics, and can therefore provide high-function wrapping materials and containers.
However, olefin polymers are generally nonpolar, and therefore in using them for laminate materials, they have some drawbacks in that their adhesive strength to different types of materials having high polarity such as other synthetic resins metals, wood and the like is extremely low or the polymers could not adhere to those materials.
Given the situation, there is widely employed a method of grafting the polymers with a polar group-containing monomer using an organic peroxide, for improving the adhesiveness of the polymers to other high-polar materials (for example, see PTL 1).
However, according to the method, there may occur intermolecular crosslinking of the olefin polymer molecules and molecular chain cutting of the olefin polymers along with the grafting reaction thereof, and therefore the method is problematic in that the graft-modified derivatives could not maintain the excellent physical properties of polyolefins.
For example, introduction of any unnecessary long-chain branches through intermolecular crosslinking may increase the melt viscosity and broaden the molecular weight distribution, therefore having some negative influences on the adhesiveness and the moldability of the polymers. In addition, molecular chain break may increase low-molecular-weight fragments of polyolefin, therefore bringing about some problems of burr formation and fuming during molding.
The adhesiveness to other high-polar materials may be increased by increasing the polar group content during olefin copolymerization; however, it is not easy to graft a polyolefin with a large amount of a polar group-containing monomer through graft modification. As a method of increasing the content of the polar group-containing monomer, for example, there may be taken into consideration a method of increasing the amount of the polar group-containing monomer and the amount of the organic peroxide to be subjected to graft modification. The method, when employed, would bring about further intermolecular crosslinking and molecular chain break of olefin polymers, therefore detracting from the physical properties of polyolefins. In addition, the amount of the unreacted polar group-containing monomer and the amount of the decomposed product of the organic peroxide that may remain in the resin would increase, therefore bringing about other troubles that the resin degradation would be promoted and some offensive odor may come into existence. Consequently, the attempt to increase the content of the polar group-containing monomer in the resin is naturally limited.
As a method of solving the problem that occurs in graft modification, there has been illustrated a method for producing a modified derivative having a high grafting efficiency, in which a linear LDPE is used as the graft modification material to thereby prevent the graft-modified derivative from being contaminated and to reduce the intermolecular crosslinking that may occur during graft modification (see PTL 2).
However, the effect of preventing intermolecular crosslinking and improving the graft efficiency is limitative, and in addition, it is impossible to prevent the formation of residues of the unreacted polar group-containing monomer and the decomposed product of organic peroxide that are fundamental harmful results in graft modification, or that is, the method could not as yet be a sufficient improved method.
On the other hand, as a method of incorporating a polar group-containing monomer into an olefin polymer with neither intermolecular crosslinking and gelation of olefin polymer molecules nor molecular chain break thereof, there has also been disclosed a method of obtaining a polar group-containing olefin copolymer, in which a high-pressure radical polymerization process is used and ethylene and a polar group-containing vinyl monomer are copolymerized (for example, see PTL 3 and PTL 4).
An example of the molecular structure of an olefin copolymer into which a polar group has been introduced according to a high-pressure radical polymerization process is shown in FIG. 1A. The method can solve the problem with graft modification and can increase the content of the polar group-containing monomer in the olefin copolymer as compared with that in graft modification. However, since the polymerization process is a high-pressure radical process, the obtained polar group-containing olefin copolymer has a molecular structure that randomly comprises long-chain branches and short-chain branches. Consequently, as compared with olefin copolymers to be produced through polymerization with a metal catalyst, only a polar group-containing olefin copolymer having a low elastic modulus and low mechanical properties can be obtained, and the range of application to the use that requires high strength is limitative.
On the other hand, in a polymerization method using a metallocene catalyst that has heretofore ordinarily used in the art, it has been said that the catalyst polymerization activity of ethylene and polar group-containing monomer lowers and therefore the two are difficult to copolymerize; however, recently, there has been proposed a method of producing a polar group-containing olefin copolymer through polymerization in the presence of a late transition metal complex catalyst that is referred to as a so-called postmetallocene (see PTL 5 to 8).
According to these methods, it is possible to make the polymers have a high elastic modulus and have a high mechanical strength and to increase the polar group content in the polymers, as compared with the olefin copolymer to be obtained according to a high-pressure radical polymerization process (in this connection, images of the molecular structure of the olefin copolymer produced through polymerization using a transition metal catalyst are shown in FIG. 1B and FIG. 1C). However, the keynote of the methods described in these references essentially resides in copolymers of an acrylate group-containing monomer such as methyl acrylate or ethyl acrylate or a specific polar group-containing monomer such as vinyl acetate with ethylene or an α-olefin; and the adhesiveness of those polar group-containing polyolefins having such a functional group to other high-polar materials is not sufficient. Heretofore, as polar comonomers, there has been reported acrylates (PTL 16 to 18, 5 to 7), acrylonitriles (NPL 1), vinyl ethers (NPL 2), etc. Also there has been reported copolymerization using a norbornene skeleton-having polar comonomer (NPL 3). However, as a result of evaluations made by the present inventors, their performance is insufficient (in particular, for adhesiveness, see Examples of the present application shown hereinunder). In addition, there has also been reported a production method for a multinary copolymer using a norbornene polar comonomer (PTL 19); however, the method is limited to production of an acrylate copolymer having a low olefin content by the use of a radical polymerization catalyst.
Concrete adhesion performance to different types of high-polar materials is not referred to in any references; and use of a specific polar group-containing olefin copolymer for adhesion performance is not disclosed anywhere. Further, nothing is referred to anywhere, relating to adhesion performance of a resin composition comprising a polar group-containing olefin copolymer and any other olefin resin.
Furthermore, a carboxyl group or derivatives thereof are known as a polar group which, when introduced into an olefin copolymer, can express excellent adhesiveness to different types of high-polar materials. There has been proposed a polar group-containing olefin copolymer produced through copolymerization of (2,7-octadien-1-yl)succinic anhydride and ethylene and an α-olefin in the presence of a specific metallocene catalyst and a sufficient amount of an organic aluminium, as an olefin copolymer that is a polar group-containing olefin copolymer containing a carboxyl group or a derivative thereof and that is produced through polymerization not according to a high-pressure radical polymerization process (see PTL 9).
However, according to that invention, the polar group-containing olefin copolymerization requires a large amount of organic aluminium, and therefore the product cost is inevitably high. In addition, such a large amount of an organic aluminium exists in the copolymer as an impurity therein, and removing it results in further cost increases. Further, the advantageous effect of that invention is mainly for producing a polar group-containing olefin copolymer at high polymerization activity, and nothing is referred to in the reference relating to concrete adhesion performance to different types of high-polar materials. Moreover, in the patent reference, nothing is referred to at all relating to the resin properties necessary for the polar group-containing olefin copolymer to have sufficient adhesiveness to different types of high-polar materials, and use of the olefin copolymer targeted to high adhesion performance is not disclosed therein. Furthermore, nothing is referred to at all therein, relating to the adhesion performance of a resin composition comprising a polar group-containing olefin copolymer and any other olefin resin.
As other polar group-containing olefin copolymer, there has been proposed a functional group-having olefin copolymer that comprises a specific structure-having polar group-containing monomer and a structural unit derived from ethylene, an α-olefin and a non-conjugated diene (see PTL 10).
However, the production method for the polar group-containing olefin copolymer proposed by that patent reference requires previous masking of the polar group through reaction the polar group-containing cyclic olefin to be used for polymerization with an organic metal compound, and further requires demasking treatment after the copolymerization step, and therefore, the constitutive steps of the production method are complicated and the production cost thereof is therefore inevitably high. Further, the organic metal compound used for the masking may remain in the copolymer, therefore having some negative influence on various resin properties, and removing the residue would result in further increase in the production cost. Moreover, in the reference, nothing is referred to at all, relating to the adhesion performance of the resin composition comprising the polar group-containing olefin copolymer and any other olefin resin.
As a production method for a different polar group-containing olefin copolymer, there have been disclosed methods of introducing a polar group into the molecular chain by modifying the double bond part of an olefin copolymer having a double bond in one end or both ends of the polymer chain or inside the molecular chain thereof (see PTL 11 to 15). In case where a polar group-containing olefin copolymer is produced according to these methods, it is necessary to take a step of previously preparing an olefin polymer having a double bond in the molecular chain through polymerization followed by reacting the double bond part in the olefin copolymer with a polar group-containing compound; and as compared with the case of obtaining a polar group-containing olefin copolymer through direct copolymerization of a polar group-containing vinyl monomer and ethylene or an α-olefin, the production process is complicated and the product cost therefore increases. Further, in the case of obtaining the polar group-containing olefin copolymer through modification of an olefin copolymer having a double bond at one end or at both ends, it is impossible to separately control the molecular weight of the polymer chain and the polar group content, from the principle of the method, and as a result, the use of the obtained polar group-containing olefin copolymer is to be limitative. Moreover, nothing is referred to at all in the reference, relating to the adhesion performance of the resin composition comprising the polar group-containing olefin copolymer and any other olefin resin.

Polar group-containing olefin copolymer, multinary polar olefin copolymer, olefin resin composition, and adhesive material, laminate, and other application products using same


A method of automatic calculation of several integer divisions by a same integer divider, of several successive integer dividends, separated from one another by a constant iteration step, smaller than or equal to the divider, including selecting, from a table of increments, according to an iteration index, a 0 or a 1 to be added to the operation result of the preceding iteration, the number of 0s in the table of increments being equal to the divider minus 1.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of calculations on numbers performed by computer means. The present invention more specifically relates to the performing of an operation of integer division type.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
An example of application of the present invention is the processing of digital images and, more specifically, calculations performed on image blocks in fractal coding. In such an application, the image is divided into overlapping blocks and different calculations are applied to the values (levels of grey or color levels) of the different digitally-coded pixels. A specific operation which is frequently performed in digital image processing and which requires significant calculation resources is division. Such a division is used, for example, to perform mean value or variance calculations on pixel blocks.
The present invention more specifically applies to the performing of division in iterative operations, that is, division for which at least part of the result of a preceding division is used again for the current division. Such is the case, for the example of application to image processing, for which the fact of having overlapping blocks leads to operations involving operation results concerning a preceding block.


An armor that is used, for example, in multi-cell missile launchers is disclosed. In some embodiments, the armor includes three layers. The inner-most layer undergoes explosive welding when exposed to a pressure wave from an explosion. An intermediate layer in-elastically deforms when exposed to the explosion. The third and outer-most layer includes a plurality of elongated, pressurized tubes that contain fire retardant, among other chemicals. Silicone gel is interposed between the tubes.

FIG. 1 depicts conventional multi-cell missile launcher 100. The launcher comprises launcher body 102, which contains a plurality of compartments or cells 104. Each cell is capable of launching missile 106. Multi-cell missile launcher 100 is often used on ships and military vehicles.
Since it is an offensive weapon, launcher 100 is likely to be targeted by enemy combatants. Due to its heat signature, launcher 100 is often one of the more detectable features on the deck of a ship. If one of the missiles in launcher 100 is hit by an incoming ordinance, it is likely that the missile will explode. Explosion of one of the missiles within launcher 100, whether due to a strategic hit or simply a malfunction, can trigger sympathetic detonation of other missiles within launcher 100. While a ship, especially a larger one, will be able to withstand a strike from a single missile, sympathetic detonation of multiple missiles within launcher 100 can cause a catastrophic event; namely, destruction of the ship.
To decrease the likelihood of sympathetic detonations, cells 104 in launcher 100 will usually be armored with conventional armor (not depicted in FIG. 1). The protection afforded by conventional armor is proportional to its thickness. Unfortunately, the weight of the armor is also proportional to its thickness, which constrains the amount of armor that can be used. The bottom line is that the armor that is present in cells 104 offers little protection against sympathetic detonation.


A video distribution system according to this disclosure is a video distribution system that distributes a video including an animation of a character object generated based on a movement of a distribution user and comprises one or a plurality of computer processors. The one or plurality of computer processors provide (i) a distribution portion, (ii) a display device, (iii) a determination portion. If the determination portion determines that a first object is being displayed within a predetermined distance from a second object, the object display device changes the first object and the second object to a third object and displays the third object.

Conventionally, a video distribution system is known which generates an animation of a character object based on a movement of an actor and distributes a video including the animation of the character object (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
In this type of video distribution system, it is proposed, by an operation of a viewing user, to display an arbitrary object on the video. The object displayed on the video by the viewing user is, for example, a gift object or the like.

Video distribution system, information processing method, and computer program


An apparatus and method for managing of common storage in a storage system is disclosed. In one embodiment, a storage system receives a request to set a space reservation for a volume associated with a logical aggregation of physical storage. In response, the storage system sets the space reservation to indicate that the logical aggregation of physical storage is to provide a specified amount of space to the volume. In one embodiment, space within the logical aggregation of physical storage is automatically reclaimed to set a delayed space reservation if the amount of unused space within the logical aggregation of physical storage is insufficient to set the space reservation. In one embodiment, the volume is either a space-reclaimable volume or a non-space-reclaimable volume. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

A storage server is a special-purpose processing system used to store and retrieve data on behalf of one or more client processing systems ("clients"). A storage server can be used for many different purposes, such as, to provide multiple users with access to shared data or to backup mission critical data.
A file server is an example of a storage server. A file server operates on behalf of one or more clients to store and manage shared files in a set of mass storage devices, such as magnetic or optical storage based disks or tapes. The mass storage devices may be organized into one or more volumes of Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks (RAID). Another example of a storage server is a device which provides clients with block-level access to stored data, rather than file-level access, or a device which provides clients with both file-level access and block-level access.
In conventional file servers, there is a fixed relationship between a volume and the disks that are associated with the volume. This fixed relationship means that each volume has full control over the disks that are associated with the volume. For example, only the volume associated with the disk can read and/or write to the disk. Unused space within the disks associated with the volume cannot be used by another volume. Thus, even if a volume is only using a fraction of the space on its associated disks, the unused space is reserved for the exclusive use of the volume.
Another feature of the fixed relationship between a volume and its associated disks, in conventional file servers, is that the size of the volume is equal to the capacity of the associated disks. This means that the size of the underlying physical storage dictates the size of the volume. If a user wants to increase the size of the conventional volume, she must add disks to the physical storage (e.g., add a RAID group). Similarly, if the user wants to decrease the size of the conventional volume, she must remove disks from the physical storage.

Managing common storage by allowing delayed allocation of storage after reclaiming reclaimable space in a logical volume