An apparatus comprising a first casing string comprising one or more profiled seats furrowed into the first casing string's inner casing wall, a second casing string comprising an upper casing joint, a lower casing joint, and a tension-set external mechanical casing (EMC) packer positioned between the upper casing joint and the lower casing joint, wherein the tension-set EMC packer comprises a mandrel that is attached to the upper casing joint and to the lower casing joint, wherein the second casing string is disposed within the first casing string such that a casing casing annulus (CCA) is formed between the first casing string's inside diameter (ID) and the second casing string's outside diameter (OD), and wherein the recessed seats are positioned below the tension-set EMC packer prior to any engagement of the tension-set EMC packer with the first casing string.

Drilling procedures for hydrocarbon-producing wells often include lining the wellbore with one or more casings to provide structural integrity to the wellbore and/or to isolate various portions of the subterranean formation, e.g. groundwater reservoirs, pay zones, etc. Generally, wellbore casings are composed of a plurality of casing pipe segments (casing joints) that are attached to form a cylindrical casing string. The individual casing joints may be uniformly dimensioned such that each casing joint comprises a substantially identical length, outside diameter (OD), inside diameter (ID), and wall thickness, as well as other homogeneous characteristics, e.g. material strength (grade), weight, and end finish (e.g. threading, coupling, etc.). As such, a casing's length may be variable (e.g. depending on the number of casing joints), while the casing's diameter may be fixed (e.g. defined by the casing joints' uniform diameter which may range from about 2.5 to about 40 inches). Casing strings are typically assembled and installed in a piecemeal fashion by repeatedly coupling (e.g. threadably attaching) one casing joint to another casing joint and lowering the casing string into the wellbore, until the casing string has descended to a desired depth. Upon reaching the desired depth, the casing string may be fixed into place by conventional cementing techniques.
Many hydrocarbon-producing wells use a plurality of casings to isolate different formations at varying depths in the wellbore. For instance, a cased wellbore may comprise a surface casing for isolating a freshwater formation, an intermediate casing for isolating a potentially hazardous formation (e.g. a theft zone), and a production casing for isolating a producing formation (e.g. a pay zone). The wellbore's production casing may comprise a relatively small diameter pipe that is disposed within the intermediate casing and extends from the surface of the wellbore to a point at or below the targeted pay zone (e.g. to about the bottom of the wellbore). The wellbore's intermediate casing may comprise a somewhat larger diameter pipe that is disposed within the surface casing and extends from the surface of the wellbore to a point just below the hazardous formation (e.g. below the thief zone but above the pay zone). The wellbore's surface casing may comprise a relatively large diameter pipe that extends from the wellbore's surface to a point just below the freshwater formation. In some applications, the production casing may be dimensioned to accommodate production tubing and/or associated production equipment, while the intermediate casing may be dimensioned to accommodate the production casing, and the surface casing to accommodate the intermediate casing. In other applications, a wellbore's intermediate casing may have formerly been used as a "production casing" during the production of earlier pay zones, e.g. that have since been depleted. Hence, today's intermediate casing may have been yesterday's production casing. To avoid ambiguity, an interior casing may be referred to herein as a "child casing" and an exterior casing may be referred to herein as a "parent casing" (e.g. such that a child casing string is run within a parent casing string).
Once the child casing has been lowered to the desired depth within the parent casing, the child casing may be secured and/or fixed to the parent casing to stabilize the wellbore and prevent shifting of the child casing during subsequent drilling and/or production activities. Additionally, and to effectuate zonal isolation, the void and/or annulus formed between the child casing's outer wall and the parent casing's inner wall may be sealed to prevent "communication" between adjoining formations (i.e. to achieve zonal isolation). This void may be referred to herein as the casing casing annulus (CCA), and may serve a variety of functions during wellbore operations (e.g. providing an annular flow area to dispel cuttings and other debris).
An external casing packer (ECP) may be used alone or in conjunction with conventional cementing operations to seal the CCA and/or to fix the child casing string to the parent casing string. ECPs are typically composed of a mandrel encircled by a sealing element, but may also include various other components or features, e.g. packer shoes/collars, engagement assemblies, etc. The ECP's mandrel may be a specialty casing joint that is dimensioned similarly to the other casing joints within the child casing, and may be coupled directly into the child casing string such that the ECP comprises a link within the child casing string. The ECP may be strategically positioned within the child casing string such that the ECP can be set at the desired depth (e.g. when the ECP is said to be "on depth") as the lower end of the child casing approaches the bottom of the wellbore. Setting the ECP may cause the ECP's sealing element to expand outwardly against the parent casing's inner wall, thereby sealingly fixing the child casing to the parent casing.
When used in conjunction with conventional cementing operations, setting of the ECP may be one step in the cementing operation, and may serve to stabilize the child casing during and/or after the cementing operation (e.g. during curing periods). The ECP may also provide a secondary sealing function in the event of a leak in the primary cement sheath formed in the CCA. Specifically, splintering and/or fracturing of the cement sheath surrounding the child casing may occur due to shifting/movement of the casings during and/or after cementing operations. For instance, variations in temperature and/or pressure may cause the casings to expand and/or contract, thereby compromising the cement-casing bond and causing a microannulus to form between the casing and the cement sheath. In extreme cases, the microannulus may substantially encircle the child casing's OD, thereby allowing potential communication between isolation zones (e.g. absent a secondary annular seal). Hence, the ECP's annular seal may be critical to zonal isolation in some applications.
Conventional ECPs may come in two varieties, namely; (1) external inflatable casing packers (EICPs) that employ inflatable sealing elements and (2) external mechanical casing (EMC) packers that employ compressible sealing elements. Conventional EICPs may actuate their sealing element by pumping hydraulic fluid into an inflatable bladder that encircles the EICP'S mandrel. Notably, the hydraulic fluid is typically pumped down the child casing's ID and through holes (e.g. perforations) in the EICP's mandrel wall. The EICP's porous mandrel wall may be difficult to reliably seal after the bladder has been fully inflated, with even properly sealed holes being weaker than the surrounding solid steel casing wall. Hence, holes in the EICP's mandrel wall may constitute weak spots in the child casing, and may be susceptible to leaks for the life of the well. Conventional EMC packers actuate their sealing element by exerting a vertical mechanical force (a setting force) on the sealing element, thereby longitudinally compressing the sealing element such that it laterally swells into the CCA. The setting force may be exerted on the EMC packer's sealing element by applying a longitudinally-compressive (down-hole) force to the child casing string after the EMC packer has engaged the parent casing. Hence, compressible sealing elements may be actuated via kinetic energy transferred vertically through the child casing string, rather than hydraulic energy transferred through perforations in the mandrel wall (e.g. such is the case with EICPs).
Before being "set", conventional EMC packers must first engage an "internal upset" or landing in the parent casing (e.g. at or around the desired depth) that provides the necessary resistance to counteract the setting force and effectuate a compression of the EMC packer's sealing element. The "internal upset" may comprise a raised shoulder or some other restrictive protrusion that decreases the parent casing's ID and results in a diametrical constriction of the parent casing at or near the desired depth. Specifically, this diametrical constriction may capture a portion or component of the EMC packer (such as a lower packer shoe/collar), thereby "engaging" the EMC packer. Once captured, the lower packer shoe/collar may remain stationary in relation to the parent casing such that further displacement of the child casing causes the packer shoe to shear off (or otherwise become detached from the mandrel) and float along the mandrel's outer-wall. As the child casing is displaced further down-hole, the sealing element may be trapped between the floating lower packer shoe/collar and an upper packer shoe that remains fixed to the mandrel. Accordingly, the sealing element may become longitudinally-compressed as the distance between the upper and lower packer shoe decreases (e.g. in proportion to the child casing's displacement), causing the sealing element to swell outwardly into the CCA. Upon contacting the parent casing's inner wall, the sealing element may sealingly fix the child casing to the parent casing (at least presumably) for the life of the well.
Implementation of conventional EMC packers may have two functionally limiting characteristics, namely; (1) engaging of an "internal upset" in the parent casing and (2) being set "in compression". Firstly, the "internal upset" along the parent casing's interior casing wall acts to diametrically constrict the parent casing's ID at or near the "on depth" point, thereby adversely affecting the parent casing's flow characteristics (e.g. casing and/or annular flow rates during earlier production periods and/or drilling operations). Additionally, the "internal upset" may necessitate the use of specialty wellbore equipment (e.g. modified drill-bits, centralizers, under-reamers, etc.) that are capable of extending past the constricted portion of the parent casing, which may add additional expense and/or complexity to subsequent down-hole operations. Another consequence of the "internal upset" engagement design is that the EMC packer itself may (by definition) be incapable of extending past the constricted portion of the parent casing, and hence may have only one possible pre-defined "on depth point" (e.g. conventional EMC packers can only be set at one depth). As a result, applications employing conventional EMC packers may lack flexibility and may be unable to adapt to changing wellbore conditions that prevent the child casing from being run to the bottom of the wellbore. For instance, uncased portions of the wellbore may swell, shift, and/or become partially filled with debris (e.g. cuttings, etc) before the child casing is run. In such cases, the child casing may be prevented from extending to the absolute bottom of the drilled wellbore, and instead may only run substantially down the wellbore (e.g. 20, 40, or 60 meters from the wellbore bottom). Because the EMC packer is positioned within the child casing string relatively early on (e.g. long before the child casings practical/achievable setting depth is known), well architects may base their strategic positioning of the EMC packer on projected wellbore conditions. Hence, aggressively positioned EMC packers (e.g. assuming good wellbore conditions) may not reach the parent casing's "internal upset", while conservatively positioned EMC packers (e.g. assuming poor wellbore conditions) may reach the "internal upset" prematurely, thereby leaving a substantial portion of the wellbore "uncased".
Secondly, conventional EMC packers are generally set "in compression" by applying a compressive (down-hole) force to the child casing after engagement of the EMC packer. Casings set "in compression" may have significantly lower collapse ratings than casings that are set "in tension" by applying an up-hole force. A casing's collapse rating may correspond to the minimum external pressure (i.e. the differential pressure acting from the outside to the inside of the casing) required to catastrophically deform the casing, and thus may be indicative of a characteristic of the casing's durability. Specifically, a casing's collapse pressure may be proportional to the casing's material strength, which may vary along the casing's length according to an axial stress exerted on the casing at different wellbore depths (e.g. due to a buoyancy differential). Usually, a casing's critical collapse pressure is determined at the bottommost casing joint (i.e. towards the bottom of the wellbore, where hydrostatic pressure is generally greatest), and hence reducing axial stress applied on the lower portion of the casing string may increase the casing's practical robustness. Setting the casing "in compression" generally increases axial stress at the bottom of the casing string, while setting the casing "in tension" generally relieves axial stress at the bottom of the casing string. Hence, casings that are set "in compression" may be less durable and/or more prone to collapse than casings that are set "in tension". Additionally, compression-set EMC packers may require that the child casing have a minimum "string weight", and hence may be ill-suited for some applications. Specifically, a tensional (up-hole) force is normally applied to the casing string to counteract the casing's "string-weight" (i.e. the gravitational force acting on the child casing), and hence the exertion of a compression (down-hole) force (e.g. to set the EMC packer) generally comprises "letting off" of the tension (e.g. rather than actually pushing down on the casing) such that the casing's own "string weight" is allowed to carry it down-hole. In other-words, the available compressive (down-hole) force may be limited by the casing's "string weight", and thus relatively light casing strings may lack sufficient "string weight" to set some compression-set EMC packers. Thus, conventional (i.e. compression-set) EMC packers may not be suitable for applications in which the child casing's "string weight" is insufficient to compress their sealing elements.
Due to these and other limitations, a tension-set EMC packer whose engagement does not rely on an internal upset is needed.

Annular isolation with tension-set external mechanical casing (EMC) packer


A method of and system for removing blockage from pipes in vacuum waste systems in which fouled pipes in the existing vacuum waste system are configured into a closed loop. A cleaning solution is added to the loop. The cleaning solution is recirculated through the loop by pumping it to the ends of the fouled pipes and drawing it through the fouled pipes using the existing system vacuum equipment. The vacuum waste system may remain operational during cleaning.

Vacuum waste systems are used aboard ships, aircraft, trains, in prisons and in high use public facilities not adequately served by traditional waste systems. Vacuum systems reduce the physical amount of waste generated and conserve the limited storage and on-board treatment capacity in these environments.
Vacuum systems have several advantages over traditional sewer systems. One advantage is that typical vacuum systems use less water per flush (approximately one pint versus one-and-one-half to three gallons in traditional systems). Another advantage is that the vacuum system pipes are not restricted to a linear, horizontal configuration since it is vacuum (typically 12-16 inches Hg at 25 feet/second) rather than gravity that is used to convey waste to a holding tank. This feature permits vacuum pipes to include bends, turns, and vertical sections. In turn, this allows the network of pipes to conform to the layout of the vehicle, rather than the vehicle having to conform to the layout of the waste system.
A major disadvantage of typical vacuum systems, however, is that the bends, turns, and vertical sections of the pipes accumulate scale faster than linear or horizontal pipe sections. This presents a confounding maintenance problem after even moderate periods of use. As waste is pulled through the pipe, it causes a sheeting action of water/suspended solids to form along the pipe walls due to surface tension. Even though the solenoid valves at each toilet/urinal are only open for one to two seconds, the resulting air flow is significant enough to evaporate most of the liquid clinging to the pipe walls or bends. The result is formation of an evaporative scale composed of mineral content, primarily in the form of calcium and magnesium carbonate, from the source water and any dissolved mineral content of the waste. Additionally, a portion of the macerated biological solids that were suspended in the wastewater also accumulates on the evaporative scale, thus binding the scale together and on the pipe walls. Vacuum leaks at joints, plugs, or diaphragm valves result in accelerated scale accumulation due to increased and often continuous air flow through the pipe.
Traditional means of cleaning vacuum waste pipe systems, such as hydroblasting with high pressure water or mechanical cleaning with "snakes" or augers, are difficult and are not completely satisfactory.
While hydroblasting can remove loose debris, its disadvantages are that it only works with straight pipe runs, the waste water has to be removed at an outlet other than the access point, it is a lengthy and messy process, and substantial amounts of hard scale still remain on the pipe walls. Mechanical cleaning removes only the very loose debris in the center of the pipe without removing any of the very hard scale that significantly reduces the carrying capacity of the pipes. An additional disadvantage of both hydroblasting and mechanical cleaning means is that both require almost complete dismantling of the system to create access for cleaning and extended periods of down time for the system.


A plurality of pads are formed on a circuit board body at a pitch of 0.5 mm or less. The pads are formed such that a projecting height H of a pad from the board body surface and a width W of the pad satisfy a relation 2H<W, that a pad array is formed in which a width of each of the pads located at two ends of the pad array is larger than that of a pad located therebetween, and that the pad width W and a pad-to-pad distance D satisfy a relation W>D. A solder layer, obtained by a substitution reaction between a powder of a metal having the highest ionization tendency among metals constituting the solder layer or a powder of an alloy thereof and a salt formed by bonding the other metal or metals in the solder layer to an organic acid, is formed on each pad.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a solder-coated printed circuit board having a solder layer of a thickness necessary for soldering electronic parts leads on a pad and a method of manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, to mount a surface mounting part on a printed circuit board, a solder paste is coated on a pad by means of printing, an electronic parts lead is placed on the solder paste, and the printed circuit board is heated to melt the solder paste, thereby soldering the surface mounting parts. Recently, however, as the array pitch of the parts leads is decreased, the array pitch of the pads is also decreased. When the array pitch of the pads is decreased to 0.5 mm or less, to print the solder paste becomes difficult, resulting in a frequent soldering defect such as a bridge.
As a method of mounting a fine pattern part, for example, a TAB on a printed circuit board, a so-called gang bonding method is known in which a solder layer is formed on a pad by electroplating or electroless plating, a parts lead is placed on the solder layer, and a heating jig or the like is urged against the parts lead, thereby performing soldering. This method, however, has a problem in formation of the solder layer. That is, to form a solder layer by electroplating, a current-carrying liner must be connected to each pad. It is cumbersome to connect and disconnect the current-carrying liner. To form a solder layer with a relatively large thickness, time-consuming plating must be performed. On the other hand, it is difficult to form a thick solder layer by electroless plating, and a solder layer of a thickness necessary for soldering a parts pad cannot be formed at a practical level by electroless plating.
As a method of forming a solder layer on a pad of a printed circuit board, a method is known which utilizes a substitution between, of solder alloy components, an organic acid salt (for example, a lead salt of an organic acid) of a metal having a smaller ionization tendency and a metal powder (for example, a tin powder) having a higher ionization tendency than that of the metal included above the organic acid salt (Published Unexamined Japanese Patent Application No. 1-157796). When a paste-like solder precipitating composition containing a lead salt of an organic acid and a tin powder as major components is solid-coated on a pad region on a printed circuit board and heated, a solder alloy is selectively precipitated on the pad by the substitution between the lead salt of the organic acid and the tin powder. This method utilizes the above phenomenon. According to this method, a solder layer can be formed without causing a bridge within a short period of time even if the array pitch of the pads is 0.5 mm or less.
However, since this method is to precipitate the solder on the pad by a substitution between the lead salt of the organic acid and the tin powder, the shape of the precipitated solder layer is largely influenced by the shape and dimension of the pad. For this reason, even when a solder layer having a thickness necessary for soldering a parts lead is to be formed on the pad, a large amount of the solder sometimes attaches to a side surface of the pad depending on the shape and dimension of the pad, thus making it difficult to increase the thickness of the solder layer.
In the case of a printed circuit board to be mounted with surface mounting parts of, for example, the SOP (Small Outline Package) type, the QFP (Quad Flat Package) type, and the PLCC (Plastic Leaded Chip Carrier) type which has a multiple of leads, a pad array having a multiple of pads corresponding to the parts leads is formed. When a solder layer of a thickness necessary for soldering the parts leads is to be formed on a pad array having a multiple of pads arranged at a fine pitch of 0.5 mm or less, the solder layers of the pads located at two ends of the pad array become thicker than the solder layer of the pads located at the intermediate position, thus making it difficult to form the solder layers of a uniform thickness on all the pads.
This is due to the following reason. That is, when the paste-like solder precipitating composition is solid-coated on the pad array to precipitate the solder on each pad, a step coverage is caused on the pads by the paste-like solder precipitating composition coated at a portion other than the pads. The step coverage amount is larger on pads at the two ends of the pad array than that on intermediate pads since the pad at each of the two ends of the pad array has an adjacent pad only at its one side. As a result, the thickness of the solder layer on pads at the two ends of the pad array is increased. In this manner, if the thickness of the solder layer varies in the same pad array, parts lead floating occurs during parts mounting. Then, to preliminarily fix a part on the printed circuit board becomes difficult, and an open defect in which a lead of part is not electrically contacted with a pad tends to occur.
In addition, in this method, since the paste-like solder composition is coated on the entire portion of the pad array, an economical efficiency is needed.
When a part is to be mounted on a solder-coated printed circuit board in which solder layers are pre-formed on its pads, a flux must be coated on each solder layer in order to impart good wettability of the solder to the solder surface for parts mounting. Since the flux contains an ionic substance, if the flux remains after parts soldering, the electrical insulating characteristic is degraded. For this reason, the flux must be cleaned off after parts soldering. Recently, however, use of a cleaning agent such as Freon (Tradename of DuPont de Nemours, E. I., Co.) is restricted because of environmental pollution, and an alternative to required demanded.

Solder-coated printed circuit board and method of manufacturing the same


This application discloses a system for eliminating a busy line condition and completing a call over a virtual private line when the stations at each of the lines attempt to initiate a call simultaneously. The system is implemented in three phases. In a first phase, the busy line condition is detected by either the communication switching system which sets up the virtual private line or by two signal converters, each connected to a station set at each end of the line. In a second phase, the switching system or the converters send terminating supervisory signals towards each station to terminate the attempted initial calls while the stations are still off-hook. In a third phase, a predetermined signal converter or a selected switch in the communication switching system initiates a new call by emitting an originating supervisory signal while the stations are still off-hook.

Virtual private line communication is a service offered by some communication carriers that provides features and functionality similar to the well-known service of dedicated Private Line Automatic Ring-down (PLAR) between two end points. The virtual private line service (also known as "virtual hot line") was designed to replace, cost effectively, the expensive PLAR service that establishes a permanent point-to-point physical connection between two communication devices. Accordingly, the major features of PLAR, such as very short call setup time and secure communication between a calling and a called party, are also offered in the virtual private line service. Unlike PLAR, a virtual private line uses, as part of a communication switching system, a common software defined network to connect via trunks both ends of a circuit for the purpose of allowing an automatic connection to be established for the duration of a call, upon origination from either end. Subscribers of the virtual private line service, such as security traders in the financial industry, governmental security agencies and the armed forces attach a very high degree of importance to the "almost instantaneous connection" requirement of the service. To that end, most carriers have implemented a design wherein the mere lifting of a station's handset by the calling party automatically and virtually instantaneously results in a ringing tone at the called party's telephone set.
Equally important to virtual hot line subscribers is the requirement of guaranteed access to the party at the other end of the line. More specifically, subscribers of this service want the phone at one end of the line to always ring without any possibility of a busy tone upon lifting of the handset by a caller at the other end of the line. Dedicated private lines, by virtue of the permanent physical connection between the two communicating devices, can guarantee their subscribers access to parties at either end of the line. Aiming to meet this requirement for virtual private lines, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,982,421 issued on Oct. 27, 1989 to Kirsch et al. the inventors of that patent disclose a system for virtual private lines that uses non-dialable routing numbers devised by a software defined network to establish a connection between the two ends of the line. The use of the non-dialable routing number technique allows each end of the virtual private line connected to an access/egress switch to reach and to be reached only by the other end of the circuit because other potential calling parties have no way of activating the non-dialable routing number. Thus, the Kirsch et al. system partially meets the guaranteed access requirement of virtual private line subscribers by preventing inadvertent and unwanted calls from external parties who are not connected to the virtual private line from blocking access to the circuit. However, neither the Kirsch et al. system nor any other system in the prior art can prevent the software defined network from emitting busy signals in the instance of a "simultaneous" trunk seizure condition that occurs when both stations of the virtual private line try to establish a connection simultaneously (i.e. within the range of call setup time). This deficiency, which is called "glare", takes special significance when one considers that higher-than-usual incidences of busy signals can be reasonably expected for virtual private line service, since both parties would tend to initiate calls using the hot line within the same time window upon occurrence of special events requiring immediate communication between the parties.

System for elminating glare in virtual private line circuits


A device to render a user interface, detect a user accessing a location of the a user interface, share a portion of the user interface for a second device to render a second user interface, and transmit information of the accessed location for the second device to render a visual indicator at a location of the second user interface based on the information of the accessed location.

If one or more users are at different locations and would like to view the same visual content, a user can establish a remote connection with the other users. The other users can then view the visual content and can gain access to the user's device. This can create security concerns for the user as the content and data of the user's device becomes visible and accessible to the other users. Additionally, the user's device can be exposed and harmed by malware which may be present on the other user's devices.


A new and distinct variety of strawberry (Fragaria.times.ananassa Duchesne) offers strawberry growers of the Northeast climatic zone a cultivar that is high yielding and resistant to red stele, producing large fruit of good quality in the midseason. The strawberry is named `Cavendish` and was tested as K83-4.

`Cavendish` strawberry (Fragaria.times.ananassa Duchesne) offers strawberry growers of the Northeast climatic zone (Himelrick and Galletta, (ed) "Small Fruit Crop Management" Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliff, N.J., 1990, pp. 14-82) a cultivar that is high yielding and resistant to red stele, producing large fruit of good quality in the midseason. Breeding for resistance to red stele root rot (caused by Phytophthora fragariae Hickman) began at Kentville in 1969, after Gourley and Craig (Can. Plant Dis. Surv. 48:93-94, 1968) demonstrated the field resistance of `Guardsman`. Significant progress was not made until `Earliglow` was included in the crossing program in 1977, and the sand bench screening method (Scott et al., HortSci - 11:257-258, 1976) was adopted in 1978. The `Earliglow` derivatives `Annapolis` and `Cornwallis`, released in 1984, provided immediate relief for those growers with soils infested in P. fragariae. These two early-midseason cultivars have achieved only moderate yields when compared to the midseason cultivars `Kent` and `Cavendish`.
`Cavendish` is named after the most popular tourist location of Price Edward Island.


A voltage generating apparatus including a voltage generator and a current splitter is provided. The voltage generator has an output node, and generates a first output voltage from the output node. The first output voltage rises when the temperature rises and the current flowing from the output end of the voltage generator is fixed. And the first output voltage drops when the temperature is fixed and the current flowing from the output node of the voltage generator rises. The current splitter is used for increasing the current flowing through the current splitter when the temperature rises. Therefore, the rise of the first output voltage of the voltage generator will be restrained, and the temperature compensation can be achieved.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a voltage generating apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
With the popularization of electronic products, the electronic products are promoted all over the world. It is the most basic requirement that the same kind of electronic products should be able to work in completely different environments. For example, the same type of mobile phone may be sold to high-latitude countries with cold weather, or sold to countries on the hot equator. Further, due to the mobility of the user, the same mobile phone must work in different environments. To meet the above practical demands, it is a critical issue for designers to provide a circuit adaptable to changes of the environment.
In all the electronic systems, some analog circuits are indispensable. These analog circuits generally require an accurate reference power supply to remain stable. Thus, many so-called band gap voltage generating apparatus are put forward. The most important achievement of the voltage generating apparatus is the self-compensation capability of the output voltage confronted with a changing temperature. FIG. 1 shows a conventional voltage generating apparatus with temperature compensation capability. In this conventional voltage generating apparatus, two bipolar junction transistors (BJTs) Q1, Q2 are adopted, in which the current on a collector of each BJT rises when the temperature is increasing (i.e., a positive temperature coefficient (PTC)), so as to compensate the drop of the span-voltage between an emitter and a base of each BJT due to the increase of the temperature (i.e., a negative temperature coefficient (NTC)), thereby maintaining an output voltage VREF.
However, besides to output an accurate and stable voltage, the power consumption of the circuit should also be considered. In the conventional apparatus shown in FIG. 1, due to a restrained input voltage, an operational amplifier U1 needs a high system voltage to work normally, and thus the voltage generating apparatus has to consume a large amount of power. Therefore, to resolve this, the architecture of another conventional voltage generating apparatus is proposed, as shown in FIG. 2. In the conventional voltage generating apparatus of FIG. 2, a resistor string is employed to divide the input voltage of the operational amplifier U1 in FIG. 1, and then the voltage is input into the operational amplifier U1 accompanied with a new input circuit of the operational amplifier U1 (the input circuit is only constituted by metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs)), so as to lower the working voltage of the operational amplifier U1, thereby decrease the power consumption. Moreover, as a new output stage circuit is added, such a conventional voltage generating apparatus may output an output voltage VREF lower than 1 V.
FIGS. 3 and 4 show the architecture of another conventional voltage generating apparatus. Different from the above conventional voltage generating apparatus, the voltage generating apparatus in FIGS. 3 and 4 are constituted by complementary metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (CMOSFETs). This conventional circuit architecture has the advantages that the adopted CMOSFETs are cheaper, and it is easy to output an output voltage VREF lower than 1 V compared with the above circuit with BJTs architecture using the CMOSFETs.

Industrial Technology Research Institute


A programming system for a programmable controller is improved by providing for automatic retrieval of the execution programs corresponding to application instructions which do not form a part of the basic program instruction set. Application instructions embedded within a sequence program are recognized and their common operation names are displayed on the operator's display. The corresponding execution instructions are retrieved and subsequently combined with the sequence program while the operator monitors the retrieval operation on the display. After the execution instructions have all been copied over into the memory for the sequence program, the application instructions may optionally be rewritten as standard subroutine instructions including the head address of the given set of execution instructions, to avoid the need for a symbol table to interpret between application instruction names and the corresponding head address for the execution instructions.

The present invention relates to a programming method and a programming unit for a programmable controller, which is used to write sequence programs using both basic program instructions and application instructions which are not provided as basic program instructions.
FIG. 6 shows the general configuration of a programmable controller (hereinafter referred to as a "PC") and a programming unit of the type used in the prior art. In FIG. 6, the controller unit 1 includes the main sections of the PC, i.e. a central processing unit (hereinafter referred to as the "CPU") 2, an interface 3 to a programming unit 11 which will be discussed later, a memory 4 for storing the system program, a work area memory 5 used in executing the aforementioned system program, a memory 6 for storing user programs, and an interface 7 for inputs/outputs. An I/O unit 8 inputs external information and outputs the operation results of the CPU 2, a coupling module 9 connects the I/O interface 7 and the I/O unit 8, and a cable 10 connects the interface 3 and the programming unit 11. The unit 11 used with the above PC comprises an interface 12, a CPU 13, a system program memory 14, a work area memory 15, an auxiliary storage 16 including an (unillustrated) floppy disk and floppy disk drive, which serves as an auxiliary memory area for storing application instruction execution programs corresponding to the above mentioned application instructions, a keyboard 17, and a display device 18.
FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing the main functions of the programming unit 11 of the prior art. The function blocks may be appropriately termed either as "tasks" or as module. The latter terminology will be employed herein. The functional modules (tasks) are performed/exhibited when the system program stored in the system program memory 14 is run by the CPU 13. In FIG. 7, the numeral 20 indicates a main program describing module for describing a sequence program. At 22 is a main program display module for causing the sequence program described by the main program describing module 20 to be displayed on a screen of the display device 18 in FIG. 6. At 26 is an application instruction execution program reading module for reading the application instruction execution programs corresponding to the application instructions used in the above sequence program for the auxiliary storage 16. Finally, 28 indicates a program combining module for combining the read-out application instruction execution programs with the sequence program.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of sequence program writing in the prior art. According to this flowchart, an operator starts up the programming unit 11 shown in FIG. 6 at step 200. At Step 201 the operator writes a sequence program from the keyboard 17. The program is displayed on the display device screen at the same time. Namely, the main program describing module 20 in FIG. 7 creates a sequence program 30a as represented by the ladder diagram shown in FIG. 9 in accordance with data, basic instructions and application instructions entered from the keyboard 17 in FIG. 6 and stores it in a main memory area 14a of the system program memory 14 and also displays it in ladder form on the display device 18 through the main program displaying module 22. The application instructions are each indicated in the above sequence program 30a, as shown in, for example, the program segment of FIG. 9, by subprogram operation codes, for example "SUB" or "SUBP" ("P" indicates a one time command) and the head absolute address, e.g. H75, H100, H120, of the memory area which will store the application instruction execution programs corresponding to the application instructions, in order to call subroutines. At step 202, the operator selects and reads out the application instruction execution programs which execute the application instructions he wishes to use in the sequence program 30, e.g. sine "SIN", cosine "COS", tangent "TAN", etc. The desired programs are read out one by one from among those stored in the auxiliary storage module 16 through the application instruction execution program reading module 26. This is essentially a manual task on the part of the operator. That is, the operator must access the auxiliary storage where the instruction execution programs are stored, typically on a disk, and, using the disk directory, must specify the desired program. The actual program is then read out. It will ultimately be stored in the memory starting at the designated address (i.e. H75, etc.). The operation designators "SIN", "COS" and "TAN" appear on the display device screen as shown in FIG. 10 as the instruction execution programs are designated. At step 203, the operator judges whether all the application instruction execution programs required for the given sequence program 30 have been read or not. If the answer is no, he returns to step 202. If all the programs have been read out, the operator combines the above application instruction execution programs with the sequence program 30 stored in the main memory area 14a of the system program memory 14 using the program combining task 28, at step 204, thus completing construction of sequence program. The completed sequence program is then transferred from the programming unit 11 to the user program memory 6 in the controller unit 1 via the cable 10 in FIG. 6 and is used as a PC sequence program.
Because the programming unit 11 of the prior art is configured as described above, programming is extremely troublesome, i.e. it is necessary for the user to manually specify, one by one, the application instruction execution programs corresponding to the application instructions, since the application instructions are not available as basic program instructions, in reading the above application instruction execution programs from the auxiliary storage 16. It is also necessary for the operator to prompt the unit to combine the read-out application instruction execution programs with the sequence program, to complete the sequence program. It is easy for the operator to make a mistake in specifying the head address where the execution program will be found, i.e. to subsequently put the execution program in a memory location other than that designated. Further, since the operator may not have at hand information on the size of the execution program he wishes to use, he may space subsequent execution programs too far apart and use the memory inefficiently.
An object of the present invention is to solve these problems by way of a programming method and a programming unit which will allow application instructions used in a sequence program to be detected automatically, and corresponding application instruction execution programs to be automatically read from an auxiliary storage and combined with the sequence program.

Programming method and programming unit for programmable controller in which only common names for application instructions need be designated by the programmer


An electronic fence transmitter for self-adjusting the receiving distance is comprised of a fence wire buried in a yard, a voltage detector that is connected in series to the fence wire and a comparator for comparing the detected voltage of the voltage detector with a reference voltage. A voltage applied to the fence wire is automatically adjusted according to a signal inputted from the comparator and increasing gradually until a value of the detected voltage is larger than the value of the reference voltage. Accordingly, a distance for receiving the signal from the fence wire is set as constant without regard to an installation length or area of fence wire.

1. Field of the Invention
The current invention was developed in relation to the concept of an electronic fence transmitter with an adjustable transmitting or receiving distance which incorporates a fence wire, installed along a boundary of confinement. This confinement area is used to restrict a pet's activity, limiting it to being within the selected boundaries. A voltage is applied to the fence wire and is automatically changed accordingly with respects to the length of the fence wire. The emitted radio signals from the fence wire to the receiver can also be maintained at a constant level over the entire distance covered by the boundary.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the past, this method has been used to confine a pet within a controllable boundary. A fence wire is installed surrounding the area in which a pet's activity can be confined and a signal is emitted from the fence wire. The receiver is attached to the pet that generates a shock when the pet approaches within a certain range of the fence wire.
An example of such a method in which a wire is installed for sending a signal is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,967,094. FIG. 1 illustrates the pet confinement system using a wire in accordance with the prior art.
A front yard or garden of a house 'H' has a confined area 2, in which a pet may move about freely. A loop of wire represented by a dashed line 3, is buried in the yard along the boundary of this confined area.
The loop of wire 3 is electrically connected to a transmitter 4a, is placed inside the garage 'G' of the house. This transmitter 4a generates RF boundary signals that are radiated through the buried loop of wire 3. As a pet approaches the wire within a predetermined range, a receiver 5a, attached to the pet 1, detects the boundary signal radiated from the wire 3.
When the receiver 5a receives the boundary signal radiated from the wire 3, a shock is applied to the pet 1 in order to prevent the pet from escaping from the confined area.
Furthermore, the transmitter 4a has a protective circuitry at the wire 3 that enables it to be protected from a surge of energy or shock, such as from lightening.
The transmitter, using the conventional fence wire installation method, adjusts the intensity of radio signals emitted from the fence wire. The receiver can receive a signal within a boundary width from the fence wire (ex. 5 meters inwards and 5 meters outwards from the fence wire). If the length of the fence wire is too long, the intensity of the radio signal is decreased due to a resistance in the fence wire. Therefore, the boundary should not be made too large or too small in order to accommodate the pet's activity, while having adequate strength and coverage of the emitting RF signals.
In other words, since the intensity of the signal that is applied to the fence wire from the transmitter has a continuously constant level, the intensity of the signal could be weakened by a resistance in the fence wire that is proportional to the length of the fence wire.
A resistance applied to the wire can be equivalent to a resistor R0, where this value is proportional to a length of the fence wire. For example, when a length of the fence wire using #18 AWG (America Wire Gauge) is 6,000 ft, the equivalent resistance is approximately 41.7Ω. When 4,000 ft of the same wire is used, the resistance becomes 27.8Ω, and finally when 2,000 ft is used, the resistance is approximately 13.9Ω.
Therefore, as the length of the fence wire increases, the area of the pet's activity can increase. However, the increase in the length increases the resistance in the fence wire and thus decreasing the intensity of the emitted radio signal to the intended receiver. The variation in receiving distance occurs at the boundary limits causing poor operation. This poses a problem that a pet's activity can't be controlled within this limited boundary.
FIG. 2 is a graph that depicts the distances for receiving a radio signal along the installed length of fence wire while the transmitter is applying a radio signal to the #18 AWG fence wire according to the prior art.
Herein, the dotted lines indicate the receiving distance from the inside of the fence wire and the solid lines represent the receiving distance from the outside of the fence wire. The bold, dotted and solid lines represent the receiving distances at each direction when a maximum voltage is applied to the fence wire while the fine dotted and solid lines are the receiving distances at each direction when a minimum voltage is applied to the fence wire.
As the conventional transmitter cannot automatically control the voltage applied to a fence wire, a voltage of 12V is applied to the fence wire up to 2,000 ft of an installation length. A voltage of 24V is applied to the fence wire above 2,000 ft of the installation length. The graph illustrates a result that measures a sensing distance for a radio signal emitted from a fence wire by the conventional receiver.
When an installation length of the fence wire is 4,000 ft, a pet approaches the fence wire within approximately 6 meters from an inward direction or an outward direction from the wire so that the receiver can receive a radio signal emitted from the fence wire. When this length of fence wire is 5,000 ft, the approaching distance is about 5 meters in each direction from the fence wire. When the installation length is 6,000 ft, the active distance range is about 4.3 meters in an inward direction or about 4 meters in an outward direction.
Illustrated in FIG. 3 above, is the conventional transmitter to solve this problem that the distance (or boundary width) for receiving a radio signal must vary according to an installation length of fence wire. Provided on the panel of the transmitter are an area selection switch 6, a wire connector 7, and a variable resistor 8. The variable resistor 8 can adjust the applied voltage according to the length of the fence wire. The area selection switch 6 can select a wide point or a narrow point according to an area of a restricted domain. The wire connector 7 can be connected with either thick or thin wire according to a length of the fence wire. The variable resistor 8 can adjust the applied voltage according to a length of the fence wire.
In the conventional transmitter, the area selection switch 6 can be controlled depending on a wide or a narrow area according to the area of the restricted domain so as to adjust the voltage applied to the fence wire. But, only two levels of the voltage can be selected (ex. high or low voltage), and it cannot overcome problems that the receiving boundary width has to be changed according to the length of the fence wire as shown in FIG. 2.
Also, both thick and thin wires are prepared, and the proper sized wire is connected to the wire connector 7 depending on the installation length of the fence wire. However, it also cannot overcome problems that the receiving boundary width has to be changed according to the length of the fence wire as shown in FIG. 2.
Furthermore, adjusting the variable resistor 8 can change the voltage applied to the fence wire. After adjusting the variable voltage, a user has to check along the fence wire with a hand-on receiver to confirm its operation. If the check is improper, the adjustment should be re-established, which can lead to problems.
As well, a user must learn a device control method for the transmitter to change an installation distance of the fence wire and a voltage to be applied to the fence wire, which poses a burden on a user.

Electronic fence transmitter for self-adjusting the receiving distance


The sampling phase detector whose output signal (fd) has a very broad-band and a very even frequency response characteristic includes a step-recovery-diode (SRD) to which a series circuit including at least two diodes (D1,D2) is connected in parallel by means of coupling capacitors (Ck1,Ck2). An input signal is fed to the diodes (D1,D2) by means of an R/C-network (R1,R2,C3,C4) and an output signal (fd) is taken off, which corresponds to the phase shift between an input signal (fo) and a reference signal (fr). The reference signal (fr) is fed to the step-recovery-diode (SRD) via a balancing transformer (Tr). Decoupling resistors (Rs1,Rs2) are included in the connecting lines from the balancing transformer (Tr) to the step-recovery-diode (SRD), which damp interfering resonances or reflections of the balancing transformer.

The present invention relates to a sampling phase detector and, more particularly, to a sampling phase detector comprising a step-recovery-diode, to which a series circuit including at least two diodes is connected in parallel by means of coupling capacitors, in which a balancing transformer is provided which supplies the step-recovery diode with a reference signal, and a decoupling network through which an input signal can be fed to the at least two diodes so that an output signal can be picked off the diodes which is characteristic of a phase shift between the input signal and the reference signal.
This type of sampling phase detector is described in the Product Catalog of Alpha Industries Inc., 1994, pp. 4 to 22. The essential parts of this sampling phase detector, which include the step-recovery- diode and a diode pair connected with it by coupling capacitors, are mounted together on a substrate in film circuit technology. All other circuit components which operate for supplying an input signal, a reference signal and to conduct the output signal, are connected with the diodes found on the substrate by means of conductors. The output signal of this known circuit has a relatively strong frequency dependence and the circuit is not very broad banded.


An apparatus includes a substrate which includes an electronic component mounted on the substrate, the electronic component for processing a pair of signals, the substrate including a first wire for transmitting one of the signals, the first wire being formed on a first layer of the substrate, and a second wire for transmitting another one of the signals, the second wire being formed on a second layer of the substrate in a first region under the electronic component and being formed on a third layer in a second region of an other part of the first region.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a substrate, and more particularly to a substrate including wiring for transmitting a differential signal.
2. Description of Related Art
Numbers of LSIs are being used as electronic components constituting essential portions of electronic appliances such as computers and portable telephones. LSIs are used in electronic appliances by being mounted on a substrate.
In recent years, a transmission speed of signals transmitted between numbers of LSIs has been accelerated. Therefore, a differential signal is required for the accelerated transmission speed of signals between LSIs. For such a differential signal, a single-layer balance-wiring (also referred to as a "lateral balance-wiring") and a tandem balance-wiring are known.
In the single-layer balance-wiring, a positive polarity signal and a negative polarity signal of the differential signal are formed on the same layer of the substrate. In the tandem balance-wiring, the positive polarity signal and the negative polarity signal of the differential signal are formed on a different layer of the substrate, and an internal layer of the substrate is inserted between the positive polarity signal and the negative polarity signal.
FIG. 5 is a sectional view schematically showing a configuration of a multilayer substrate 21 of a related art (a first example of the related art) including single-layer balance-wiring 14. FIG. 6 is a plan view schematically showing the configuration of the multilayer substrate 21.
Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, a cover layer 102, a GND (ground) layer 103, a wiring layer 104 and a GND layer 106 are successively formed with an interlayer insulating film (referred to as an "interlayer film" below). A pair of signals of the LSI 101 reach to the same layer of the substrate 21 through a through hole 117. The pair of signals are transmitted from a pair of solder balls 118 of the LSI 101. The pair of signals are connected to a wiring 107a and a wiring 108a through the through hole 117.
As shown in FIG. 5, the wiring 107a and the wiring 108a are formed on the same layer (i.e., a wiring layer 104) of the substrate 21. The pair of signals are connected to a wiring 107b and a wiring 108b via the wiring 107a and the wiring 108a, respectively. The wiring 107a and the wiring 108a are formed under the LSI 101. The wiring 107b and the wiring 108b are formed as an outside part with respect to the LSI 101. An impedance of the differential signal is specified by a spacing between the pair of signals (wirings) and a width of the wiring. Reference symbols 109, 110, and 112 respectively denote interlayer thicknesses.
On the other hand, FIG. 7 is a sectional view schematically showing the configuration of a multilayer substrate 22 of the related art (a second example of the related art) including a tandem balance-wiring 15 and a tandem balance-wiring 16. FIG. 8 is a plan view schematically showing the configuration of the multilayer substrate 22.
Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, a configuration of the interlayer of the substrate 22 is the same as the configuration shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. The pair of signals of the LSI 101 reach to the different layer of the substrate 22 through a through hole 117. The pair of signals are transmitted from the pair of solder balls 118 of the LSI 101. The pair of signals are connected to the wiring 107a and the wiring 108a through the through hole 117.
As shown in FIG. 7, the wiring 107a and the wiring 108a are formed on different layers (i.e., the wiring layer 104 and a wiring layer 105) of the substrate 22, respectively. The pair of signals are connected to a wiring 107b and a wiring 108b via the wiring 107a and the wiring 108a, respectively. The wiring 107a and the wiring 108a are formed under the LSI 101. The wiring 107b and the wiring 108b are formed as outside parts with respect to the LSI 101. The impedance of the differential signal is specified by an interlayer thickness 111 between the wiring 107b and the wiring 108b, and the width of wirings. Reference symbol 111 denotes an interlayer thickness.
The single-layer balance-wiring 14 and the tandem balance-wiring 15 and 16 will be described below. As shown in FIG. 9, with the single-layer balance-wiring 14, a pair of signal lines can be formed on the single-layer wiring layer 104 in a lateral direction (a horizontal direction) in the multilayer wiring board 21.
However, in the single-layer balance-wiring 14, the size of the substrate in the lateral direction is increased by the single-layer balance-wiring 14 when the number of pairs of the single-layer balance-wiring 14 is increased.
On the other hand, the tandem balance-wiring 15 and 16 include a higher wiring containability than the single-layer balance-wiring 14 because the pair of signal lines are formed in the vertical direction (thickness direction) of the multilayer substrate 22. Further, the tandem balance-wiring 15 and 16 also include stronger resistance to crosstalk noise from a pair of signals adjacent to the tandem balance-wiring 15 and 16 than the single-layer balance-wiring 14.
The related arts are disclosed in the below mentioned documents.
[Patent document 1] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-053507
[Patent document 2] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-057467
[Patent document 3] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 04-255287

Substrate including wiring for transmitting signal, apparatus and system including the substrate


A method for initializing an imaging device includes executing a startup procedure to enter an image capture mode without loading any string tables for a user interface, detecting a need to display text in the user interface, and loading a string table enabling the text to be displayed when the need is detected.

Electronic imaging devices such as digital cameras are used in a wide range of applications and are steadily becoming less expensive and simpler to use. Electronic images have many advantages over film-based images that are causing the use of electronic imaging devices to rapidly increase. Electronic images may be stored indefinitely without the image degradation suffered by film-based images. Electronic imaging devices generate images that can be viewed immediately and used in a variety of ways such as printing, posting to a web page on the World Wide Web, transmitting to others by electronic mail (email) or other means, etc. They can also rapidly capture large numbers of images that can be previewed and stored or deleted as desired. As the capacity of removable solid-state memories has increased and price has gone down, typical electronic imaging devices can now capture and store hundreds of electronic images.
Electronic imaging devices typically include a processor of some type to execute programs to provide a user interface, control the functions of the device, perform image processing, etc. However, as with conventional general purpose computers, it can take an undesirable amount of time to initialize or boot the electronic imaging device. When the electronic imaging device is turned on, initialization programs are executed to test the systems in the electronic imaging device, load the user interface, configure the electronic imaging device in a default mode, etc. The delay when an electronic imaging device is initializing can be particularly troublesome because a user has often turned on the electronic imaging device in an attempt to capture an image before the scene changes. If the initialization time is too long, the user may miss the opportunity to capture the desired image.

Optimized string table loading during imaging device initialization

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


A battery module according to one aspect of the present invention includes: a plurality of rechargeable batteries; a housing configured to house the plurality of rechargeable batteries and having a first fastening portion; a cover configured to couple to the housing and having a second fastening portion configured to couple to the first fastening portion by a tight fitting; and an elastic member configured to fit between the first and second fastening portions.

1. Field
The described technology relates to a battery module. More particularly, the described technology relates generally to a battery module having an improved housing structure.
2. Description of Related Art
A rechargeable battery differs from a primary battery in that it can be repeatedly charged and discharged, while the latter makes the irreversible conversion of chemical to electrical energy. The low-capacity rechargeable battery is used as the power supply for small electronic devices, such as cellular phones, notebook computers and camcorders, while the high-capacity rechargeable battery is used as the power supply for driving motors in hybrid vehicles and the like.
Recently, a high power rechargeable battery that includes a non-aqueous electrolyte having a high energy density has been developed, and is constituted by a large capacity rechargeable battery in which a plurality of rechargeable batteries are coupled in series in order to use it to drive devices requiring a large amount of power, for example, motors such as for electric vehicles.
In addition, a large capacity rechargeable battery generally includes a plurality of rechargeable batteries that are coupled in series, and the rechargeable battery may be formed to have cylindrical shapes or angular prismatic shapes. The rechargeable batteries are installed in a housing and thus the housing is sealed to prevent or block external foreign matter from entering thereinto. However, it is impossible to completely seal the housing because a cover is detachably formed for maintenance of the housing.
An external short circuit may be caused when the external foreign matter such as water enters the housing, and instantaneous current flow may cause the rechargeable batteries to explode or catch fire.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the described technology and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.


A light-amount correction dynamic range expanding device that can increase the number of exposure gray levels without increasing the memory capacity of the storage section for light-amount correction. Input data is formed of (n+k) bits to increase exposure gray-scale level. A first look-up table stores the output densities to the number of exposure gray levels for photosensitive substances classified by photosensitivity. Of (n+k) bits output from the first table, a first selector selectively outputs only effective n bits to a second table 2 to use m bits needed for a photosensitive substance. The second look-up table stores brightness information to correct variations in brightness between luminous dots of a print head, with a memory capacity of n bits. A FIFO memory temporarily stores the brightness information. A selector 2 again converts the output from the FIFO memory into a (n+k)-bit form and ten it to a gray-scale control means. The gray-scale control means controls the gray scale of the print head with the (n+k) bit data, so that the brightness variation is corrected with n-bit data and with necessary and sufficient accuracy.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a light-amount correction dynamic range expanding device. The light-amount correction dynamic range expanding device expands the exposure dynamic range by correcting the light amount of a printer head and is applied to optical color printers each which uses a fluorescent display tube as the light source of a print head to form an image on the photosensitive film.
2. Description of the Related Art
Optical printers such as color video printers utilize fluorescent display tubes each having plural luminous dots as a light source for a print head to form an image on a photosensitive medium coated with a photosensitive agent (e.g. photographic paper or photosensitive film).
Because of variations in brightness between luminous dots of the print head, the printer has a light-amount correction circuit to correct the brightness variation.
FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a conventional light-amount correction circuit. The light-amount dynamic range of the optical printer which uses plural kinds of photosensitive substances with different sensitivities is expanded by increasing the number of exposure gray levels, that is, the bit width of input data and data for exposure process is increased.
For example, data of (n+k) bits in width (e.g. 11 bits when increment k is 3 bits) is used as image data by expanding input data of n bits in width (e.g. 8 bits).
The number of exposure gray levels corresponding to a photosensitive substance in use can be obtained to the input data by referring to the look-up table LUT1 which stores the characteristic curve corresponding to sensitivity correction, that is, density distribution of the photosensitive substance.
Thereafter, in order to correct the light-amount, that is, brightness variations between the luminous dots, the output density characteristic corresponding to an exposure gray level is obtained by referring to the look-up table LUT2 and then is temporarily stored into the temporary memory 31 such as FIFO. Then, the output density characteristic is output to the print head via the gray-scale control circuit (driver circuit) 32 of the print head.
However, even if the I/O data lines at each stage are configured in an (n+k) bit width (e.g. 11 bits in width), the light-amount measuring device merely provides its measurement precision of about 1% and cannot achieve more than 8-bit resolution (1/256=0.4%). The look-up table LUT2 stores correction data to correct variations in brightness of each of dots of the print head. Even when the look-up table LUT2 is prepared based on data measured by the light-amount measuring device in the print head fabrication and the photosensitive medium is exposed with 8-bit resolution (256 levels of gray), the brightness of each luminous dot originally contains an error of about 2.5 levels of gray.
Hence, the precision of the light-amount measuring device cannot be improved even by increasing the number n of the I/O data lines to 8 bits or more in width. The bit increment k increases only the memory capacity of the look-up tables LUT2 and FIFO, without contributing to an increase in quality of the output image.
Moreover, an expensive memory device such as SRAM is used as the look-up table LUT2 which requires a high-speed accessing. Increasing unnecessarily the memory capacity of the look-up table LUT2 results in boosting the fabrication costs and in wasting the memory capacity.

Device for expanding light-amount correction dynamic range


A video signal processor which includes a reference signal generating circuit provided with at least an oscillation circuit for generating a reference signal corresponding to a burst signal and a Y/C separation circuit for separating a video signal into a luminance signal and a chrominance signal with an output of the reference signal generating circuit as a clock signal, and uses a microcomputer for controlling the entire operation of the video signal processor. In the video signal processor, an output of the reference signal generating circuit is also supplied to the microcomputer as a clock signal.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a video signal processor having an oscillation circuit for generating a reference signal or the like using a crystal unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
A video cassette recorder uses a microcomputer for controlling the operation of the main unit and the rotation speed of a capstan motor and the like. The microcomputer is adapted to also keep the time of day at the power outage time when the commercial power supply is stopped.
FIG. 1 shows the related art for performing the above operation, wherein a microcomputer 291 is provided with two oscillation circuits 295 and 296. A 32.768-kHz crystal unit 292 is connected to the oscillation circuit 295 and a 12-MHz crystal unit 293 is connected to the oscillation circuit 296.
In the operation standby state, only the oscillation circuit 295 is operated and an output thereof is led to a central processing unit (CPU) 297. Thus, the microcomputer 291 performs the time-keeping operation with less power consumption, and also performs the control operation required in the standby state.
On the other hand, when the operation state is entered, an output of the oscillation circuit 296 is led to the CPU 297. Thus, the microcomputer 291 performs the high-speed operation in accordance with a high-frequency clock signal for controlling the rotation speed of the capstan motor and the like, or other operations.
As described above, the crystal unit 292 for generating a clock signal in the standby state and the crystal unit 293 for generating a clock signal in the operation state are connected to the microcomputer 291. That is, the microcomputer 291 requires two crystal units 292 and 293. However, since the crystal units 292 and 293 are expensive devices, use of the two crystal units 292 and 293 results in a rise in cost of the video cassette recorder.
To enhance accuracy and stability of the receiving frequencies, a video signal receiver such as a video cassette recorder, a television set, and the like, uses a phase locked loop (PLL) circuit to generate a local oscillation signal of a predetermined frequency for determining the receiving frequency. In such a configuration, a reference signal for making a phase comparison with an output of a local oscillation circuit is indispensable. Thus, in a conventional receiver, the PLL circuit is provided with an exclusive crystal unit for generating the reference signal.
However, the crystal unit is an expensive device as described above and in case of using a PLL circuit for determining the receiving frequency, the number of crystal units to be used is increased, resulting in a rise in cost of the system.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a conventional video cassette recorder with a television set. That is, a tuner unit 391 takes out a video signal from a received signal and sends the taken-out video signal to a recording/reproducing unit 396. At the operation time except reproduction, a video signal processing unit 393 generates primary-color chrominance signals of R, G, and B from the video signal received through the recording/reproducing unit 396 from the tuner unit 391. A cathode-ray tube (CRT) unit 394 amplifies the primary-color chrominance signals generated by video signal processing unit 393 to a predetermined level and drives a CRT by the amplified primary-color chrominance signals. At the recording time, the recording/reproducing unit 396 applies predetermined processing to the video signal for generating a signal to be recorded, and feeds the generated signal into a rotary head 397. At the reproducing time, the recording/reproducing unit 396 applies predetermined processing to a reproduced signal output from the rotary head 397 for reproducing the video signal, and outputs the reproduced video signal to the video signal processing unit 393. As a result, an image is displayed on the CRT unit 394 by the reproduced video signal.
In the operation described above, the video signal processing unit 393 requires a signal (reference subcarrier) phase-synchronized with a burst signal in the video signal. Thus, the video signal processing unit 393 uses a crystal unit 395 to generate a reference subcarrier. The recording/reproducing unit 396 requires a reference subcarrier at the recording time and a reference signal used as reference of a burst signal at the reproducing time. Thus, the recording/reproducing unit 396 uses a crystal unit 398 to generate a reference subcarrier at the recording time and a reference signal at the reproducing time. The crystal units 395 and 398 are connected to the video signal processing unit 393 and the recording/reproducing unit 396 respectively. However, since the crystal units are expensive devices as described above, use of two crystal units results in a rise in the total cost of the parts to be used, raising a large bottleneck for reducing the manufacturing cost.

Video signal receiver in which a reference signal is shared by a PLL circuit which sets the output frequency of a local RF-IF oscillator and by the chrominance signal generator


Compositions and methods for therapy of cystic fibrosis, asthma, and other conditions characterized by defective chloride transport are provided. The compositions comprise one or more compounds such as flavones and/or isoflavones, ascorbate and/or derivatives thereof capable of stimulating chloride transport in epithelial tissues. Therapeutic methods involve the administration (e.g., orally or via inhalation) of such compositions to a patient afflicted with cystic fibrosis, asthma, and/or another condition responsive to stimulation of chloride transport.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the treatment of diseases characterized by defective chloride transport, including cystic fibrosis, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and other inflammatory disorders of the airways, intestinal constipation, pancreatitis, and dry eye syndrome. The invention is more particularly related to compositions comprising one or more compounds such as flavones and/or isoflavones, and/or vitamin C and related compounds, which may be used to activate chloride transport (i.e., absorption and/or secretion) in epithelial tissues of the airways, the intestine, the pancreas and other exocrine glands.
2. Description of the Related Art
Cystic fibrosis is a lethal genetic disease afflicting approximately 30,000 individuals in the United States. Approximately 1 in 2500 Caucasians is born with the disease, making it the most common lethal, recessively inherited disease in that population.
Cystic fibrosis affects the secretory epithelia of a variety of tissues, altering the transport of water, salt and other solutes into and out of the blood stream. In particular, the ability of epithelial cells in the airways, liver, pancreas, small intestine, reproductive tract and other tissues to transport chloride ions, and accompanying sodium and water, is severely reduced in cystic fibrosis patients, resulting in respiratory, pancreatic and intestinal ailments. The principle clinical manifestation of cystic fibrosis is the resulting respiratory disease, characterized by airway obstruction due to the presence of thick mucus that is difficult to clear from airway surfaces. This thickened airway liquid contributes to recurrent bacterial infections and progressively impairs respiration, eventually resulting in death.
In cystic fibrosis, defective chloride transport is generally due to a mutation in a chloride channel known as the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR; see Riordan et al., Science 245:1066-73, 1989). CFTR is a linear chloride channel found in the plasma membrane of certain epithelial cells, where it regulates the flow of chloride ions in response to phosphorylation by a cyclic AMP-dependent kinase. Many mutations of CFTR have been reported, the most common of which is a deletion of phenylalanine at position 508 (ΔF508-CFTR), which is present in approximately 70% of patients with cystic fibrosis. A glycine to aspartate substitution at position 551 (G551D-CFTR) occurs in approximately 1% of cystic fibrosis patients.
Current treatments for cystic fibrosis generally focus on controlling infection through antibiotic therapy and promoting mucus clearance by use of postural drainage and chest percussion. However, even with such treatments, frequent hospitalization is often required as the disease progresses. New therapies designed to increase chloride ion conductance in airway epithelial cells have been proposed, but their long term beneficial effects have not been established and such therapies are not presently available to patients.
Hypersecretion of sticky mucus by the airways is a hallmark of inflammatory airway diseases, such as asthma, chronic bronchitis and COPD (chronic obstructive airway disease). Asthma is currently a worldwide problem, with increasing prevalence in both children and adults. Total prevalence is estimated to be 7.2% of the world's population (6% in adults, 10% in children). However, there can be wide variation between the prevalence of asthma in different countries and even within different areas of a country. About 20 million Americans report having asthma with more than 70% of people with asthma also suffering from allergies. Sixty percent of people with asthma suffer specifically from allergic asthma. In 1999, it was estimated that 24.7 million Americans have been diagnosed with asthma in their lifetime. Over six million children under 18 report having asthma.
Chronic bronchitis and COPD are commonly found in long-term smokers where excessive mucus secretions and poor mucociliary clearance cause recurring airway inflammation and destruction of the airway epithelium. Current treatment effects are limited and the prognosis of airway disease in long-term smokers is poor.
Accordingly, improvements are needed in the treatment of diseases characterized by defective chloride transport, such as cystic fibrosis, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and other inflammatory disorders of the airways, intestinal constipation, pancreatitis, and dry eye syndrome. The present invention fulfills this need and further provides other related advantages.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Compositions and methods for therapy for diseases characterized by defective chloride transport

Children's Hospital & Research Center at Oakland


An apparatus and method for plasma finishing of fibrous materials including paper and knitted, woven and non-woven fibrous substrates such that desired characteristics are imparted are described. The method includes depositing a monomer comprising at least one fluorocarbon monomer with chemical additives, as required, at atmospheric pressure onto the paper or knitted, woven or non-woven substrate; exposing the monomer on a single surface of the fibrous material to an inert gas, atmospheric-pressure plasma, thereby causing polymerization of the monomer species; and repeating this sequence using multiple sequential deposition and plasma discharge steps to create a layered surface having durability against abrasion for both water-based laundry methods and dry-cleaning methods, and normal wear, without affecting the feel, drape, appearance or breathability of the substrate material. The present method uses a high-power, continuously operating plasma that is 104 times more powerful than the prior art plasma sources utilized in the textile industry, and produces a durable finish with between 0.5 and 2 s of plasma exposure. This is sufficiently rapid to meet commercial fabric processing throughput, and repeated cleaning of the electrodes is not required.

The use of various finishing processes is well-known in the manufacture of textile and nonwoven materials for imparting stain repellence, antistatic properties, ultraviolet fade resistance, fabric softening, and anti-microbial behavior, as examples. Finishing processes are most commonly applied by passing the fabric or nonwoven material through a chemical bath, in which the fabric picks-up, or absorbs, some of the chemical bath, followed by a thermal curing operation. Typically, finishing processes are applied to woven or knitted fabric, or non-woven substrates after they have been bleached and strengthened (such as through a mercerization process) and dyed. U.S. Pat. No. 6,525,127 describes the use of various fluorochemicals in a dip tank for finishing treatments for fabrics. In addition to dipping the fabric into a bath, conventional alternative methods involve the use of sprays, foams, roll-on addition of liquid chemicals, or atomizers. Silicones, siloxanes, fatty acids, and esters may also be added to the dip tank for fabric softening applications, as well as a means to impart stain repellency. To assist in the solubility of compositions which are not normally soluble in water, surfactants and emulsifiers are often added to obtain a consistent and uniform suspension of chemicals in the finishing bath.
Wet processes have several disadvantages. For example, (1) drying and curing may take several minutes, and may expose the material to high temperatures; (2) large ovens and frames are required for preventing shrinkage of the wet fabric; (3) additives necessary for solubilizing the desired compositions may penetrate the substrate or generate a thin film thereon, and may either decompose, leaving break-down products, or remain on the fabric as impurities during drying and curing; (4) some of these additives may assist in the removal of the finishing compositions when the fabric is dry cleaned, because of the non-polar nature of the dry cleaning process; (5) the chemical composition of the finishing bath may change over time because of different rates of absorption of the chemical species, with the result that finishing bath chemicals must be periodically replaced, thereby generating both cost and environmental impact; and (6) openings which naturally occur in woven or knitted yarns and provide comfort and breathability may clog as a result of the accumulation of macoscopic amounts of chemicals, as well as increasing the cost of finishing.
Many fabrics, such as leather, silk, rayon and wool, are best cleaned using non-water-based dry-cleaning processes. Other fibers, such as polypropylene and nylon used in nonwovens and textiles, are damaged by the heat required to dry and cure the active chemicals applied by a conventional wet finishing process. Polyester becomes "stiffer" due exposure to high-temperatures during curing.
Dry process methods used to achieve similar finishing properties while avoiding these difficulties include vacuum-based plasmas and atmospheric pressure plasmas, and have been used to apply finishing materials to flexible substrates, such as textiles and nonwoven materials. Plasma polymerization is an inherently low-temperature process, effectively eliminating the drying and curing steps required for wet finishing. This enables treatment of heat-sensitive fabric, saves energy, and reduces the cost and complexity of process equipment, because no tenter frames or ovens are required. Vacuum-based plasmas are generally easier to generate than atmospheric-pressure plasmas because the loss rate and generation rate of electrons are more readily controlled, and may operate with many applied feed gases. Atmospheric pressure plasmas are prone to arcing once a certain power density is exceeded inside the plasma volume, because of the greater density of electrons that result from the higher feed gas density.
Plasmas produce short-lived, active, chemical radicals, such as CFx from fluorochemical feed gases for textile finishing processes. Once generated in the gas phase by impact with energetic electrons with a fluorochemical feed gas, CFx radicals may attach to the surface of a fabric or other substrate, resulting in a low surface energy treatment that is hydrophobic to water and repellent to oils. This approach is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,674,667 for "Process For Increasing Water Repellency Of Cotton Cloth" which issued to Jean P. Manion and Daniel J. Davies on Jul. 4, 1972.
The use of vacuum-based plasma for batch treatment of rolls of fabric or rolls of yarn is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,479,369 for "Apparatus For Treating A Textile Product With The Use Of Low-Temperature Plasma" which issued to Yoshikazu Sando et al. on Oct. 30, 1984, and in U.S. Pat. No. 4,550,578 for "Apparatus For Low-Temperature Plasma Treatment Of A Textile Product" which issued to Yoshikazu Sando et al. on Nov. 5, 1985.
Alkylated fluorochemical oligomers have been successfully used in wet finishing processes, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,818,253 for "Method Of Producing Textile Substrates Having Improved Durable Water Repellency And Soil Release" which issued to William C. Kimbrell on Nov. 16, 2004, and U.S. Pat. No. 7,049,379 "Alkylated Fluorochemical Oligomers And Use Thereof In The Treatment Of Fibrous Substrates" which issued to Chetan P. Jariwal et al. on May 23, 2006, and show much improved durability of the finishing process against degradation after multiple laundry cycles.
Fluorochemical acrylates can also be polymerized using plasmas, and have been applied using both vacuum-based and atmospheric pressure plasmas. Such compositions are generally durable against multiple laundering processes. However, the long-chain fluorochemicals most effective for water and oil repellency are rapidly fragmented into CFx and COxHy moieties by impact from energetic plasma electrons, and the benefit from having an attached binding acrylate group may be lost. The fragmentation problem has been addressed by pulsing the plasmas; that is, by rapidly switching the electrical power applied to plasma on and off. The "on" period results in fragmentation of the feedgas followed by recombination, polymerization and cross-linking of the fluorochemical species, while during the "off" period, gas-phase collisional-recombination of the radical fragments reformulates a complex, fluorochemical polymer—hopefully having both the long-chain fluorinated group, used to repel water and oil, and the organic linking group suitable for binding to the textile—which may diffuse to the substrate without further fragmentation. By independently controlling the plasma "on" time and the plasma "off" time, the fragmentation rate and the gas-phase recombination rate may be controlled.
"Surface Coatings" by Jas Pal Singh Badyal et al., International Publication Number WO 98/58117, teaches a process whereby a stationary surface is exposed to a pulsed, vacuum-based plasma during passage of a perfluoralkyl acrylate feed gas, is coated by a film having both water and oil-repellent properties on the surface. A similar method was used in U.S. Patent Publication 2004/0152381, in which a pulsed plasma discharge was employed under vacuum conditions, with a fabric sample that was either static or slowly moving (0.4-0.6 m/min). The fluorocarbon feedstock is introduced in vapor form into a vacuum chamber, either using the equilibrium vapor pressure of the feedstock, or by directing a liquid feed into a heated tube, which converts the liquid into vapor. Fluorocarbon feedstocks include perfluorooctyl acrylate, which was also used in the WO 98/58117 patent, and perfluorododecene. Prior to treatment the fabric was dried to a chosen moisture level. U.S. Patent Publication 2004/0152381 also states that atmospheric pressure plasma excitation could be used, but does not teach how to perform the process at this pressure.
The electrodes for generating the plasma in U.S. Patent Publication 2004/0152381 are disposed in the vacuum chamber into which the fluorocarbon vapor is introduced, the plasma operating at the vapor pressure of the fluorocarbon gas. Similar results to those of the WO 98/58117 Publication were observed.
U.S. Patent Publication 2004/0152381 teaches that it is preferable to generate film coatings on the individual fibers having thicknesses between 2.5 nm and 20 nm in order to produce a fabric finish that has water and oil repellency with "excellent" durability against multiple agitation-laundry and dry-cleaning cycles, while also maintaining sufficient fabric air permeability for comfort. No laundry durability data is provided in the 2004/0152381 Publication.
Most plasmas do not penetrate sufficiently deeply into a film, so it is difficult to produce a film that is thicker than 20 nm. Layering methods where thin films are incrementally added are too slow for use in textile manufacturing.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,041,304 for "Surface Treatment Method" which issued to Yukihiro Kusano et al. teaches the use of an atmospheric pressure dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) in which the electrodes are covered with an insulator, or dielectric material, and a feedgas including a mixture of an inert gas (He) and a gas-phase, fluorinated compound, to deposit a water repellant film on a fabric.
In AATCC Review, 6, pages 21-26, April 2006) by Maria C. Thiry it is stated that: "the problem with conventional plasma processes is that surface molecular sophistication is severely limited by the aggressive nature of the plasma . . . . Essentially the plasma destroys any complex or long-chain molecule injected into the plasma as a precursor of the process." Thus, it is presently believed that high-power plasmas generate greater electron densities in the plasma and higher electron energy distributions which favors the fragmentation of the feedgas, and results in more product scrambling. International Publication No. WO 98/58117 and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0152381 teach the use of low average powers. As an example, U.S. Publication No. 2004/0152381 teaches time-averaged power densities in the range between 1.1×10−4 W/cm2 and 2.27×10−4 W/cm2. Such low power densities are used to obtain plasmas with a low density of electrons and ions, because the electrons have sufficient energy to decompose the complex, fluorochemical monomers. The '304 patent does not disclose plasma power levels, but DBDs typically operate at low power densities.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method for finishing fibrous woven and nonwoven materials while maintaining open spaces between neighboring yarns for woven materials.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for finishing fibrous woven and nonwoven materials wherein the finished materials are durable against water-based laundry processes, dry-cleaning, and surface abrasion.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for finishing fibrous woven and nonwoven materials effective for heat sensitive fabrics.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for finishing fibrous woven and nonwoven materials without the use of emulsifiers and surfactants.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a method for finishing fibrous knitted, woven and non-woven materials without requiring a thermal curing process.
Additional objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Treatment of fibrous materials using atmospheric pressure plasma polymerization