Disclosed is a phosphazene compound and a photosensitive resin composition. The phosphazene compound is obtained by reacting a phenoxyphosphazene compound (A-1) having a phenolic hydroxyl group and/or a cross-linked phenoxyphosphazene compound (A-2) obtained by cross-linking the phenoxyphosphazene compound (A-1) with an epoxy compound (B) having an unsaturated double bond and/or an isocyanate compound (C), wherein the phosphazene compound has an unsaturated double bond in its molecule. The photosensitive resin composition includes at least: a soluble polyimide resin (G-1) having a carboxyl group and/or a hydroxyl group and is soluble in an organic solvent, as the polyimide resins (G); and a phenoxyphosphazene compound (H-1) having a phenolic hydroxyl group and/or a cross-linked phenoxyphosphazene compound (H-2), which is obtained by cross-linking the phenoxyphosphazene compound (H-1) and has at least one phenolic hydroxyl group, as the phosphazene compound (H), and the photosensitive resin composition further includes a (meth)acrylic compound (L).

Recently, with rapid improvement in performances and functions and rapid decrease in sizes and weights of electronic devices, electronic parts used in these electronic devices are required to have smaller sizes, lighter weights, and smaller thickness. Thus, on a print wiring board which is to be provided with electronic parts, it is required to install a semiconductor or the like in a high density manner, to make wires finer, and it is required to make the print wiring board multi-layered in order to reduce sizes and weights of the electronic parts and improve functions and performances of the electronic parts. In order to support finer wirings, it is necessary to use an insulative material having high electric insulation property for protecting the wirings. Further, as the print wiring substrate on which the electric parts are provided, a flexible print wiring board (referred to also as FPC as required) has recently attracted more attentions than an ordinary rigid print wiring board, and has come to be further demanded. Further, a resin is used as a material for various products such as an electric product, an automobile, and the like, due to its characteristics such as easiness to fabricate, mechanical property, electric property, appearance, and the like.
Incidentally, in producing the print wiring board, a photosensitive material is used in various manners. That is, the photosensitive material is used in (i) formation of circuit patterned on the print wiring board (pattern circuit), (ii) formation of a protection layer for protecting a surface and the pattern circuit of the print wiring board, (iii) formation of an insulation layer between layers in case where the print wiring board has a plurality of layers, (iv) and the like. As the photosensitive material used in these purposes, a liquid photosensitive material and a film photosensitive material are used. Among them, the film photosensitive material has such advantage that its film thickness is evener and its workability is more excellent than the liquid photosensitive material. Thus, various film photosensitive materials are used according to usages such as a pattern circuit resist film used to form a pattern circuit, a photosensitive cover lay film used to form the protection layer, a photosensitive dry film resist used to form the interlayer insulation layer, and the like.
For example, a polymer film referred to as a cover lay film is combined with a surface of the FPC so as to protect a conductive surface. As a process for combining the cover lay film with the conductor surface, it is general to perform the following process: The cover lay film, processed so as to have a predetermined shape, whose one side has an adhesive, is made to overlap the FPC and is properly positioned, and then the cover lay film is thermally pressed against the FPC with a pressing device or the like. However, as the foregoing adhesive, an epoxy adhesive or an acrylic adhesive is mainly used, but such adhesive is inferior in soldering heat resistance, bonding strength at high temperature, and flexibility. Thus, in case of combining the cover lay film with the conductor surface with an adhesive, it is impossible to sufficiently make use of a performance of the polyimide film.
Further, in case of combining the cover lay film with the FPC with the conventional epoxy adhesives or acrylic adhesives, it is necessary to form a hole or a window on an uncombined cover lay film so as to correspond to a junction of a terminal or a part of the circuit. However, the cover lay film is thin, so that it is difficult to form a hole and the like. Furthermore, the hole and the like of the cover lay film are almost manually positioned so as to correspond to junctions of terminals or portions of the FPC. This is not preferable in terms of workability and positional accuracy, and the manufacturing cost increases.
In order to improve the workability and the positional accuracy, conventionally, (i) a method for forming a protection layer by applying a photosensitive composition to the conductor surface and (ii) a photosensitive cover lay film (the photosensitive dry film resist is used as a cover lay film) have been developed, thereby improving the workability and the positional accuracy.
However, acrylic resins are used in the photosensitive cover lay film, so that its heat resistance property and durability of the film are not sufficient, and the film has no flame retardancy. That is, as the photosensitive cover lay film and the photosensitive dry film resist (hereinafter, both of them are generically referred to as a photosensitive dry film resist), merely acrylic or epoxy photosensitive dry film resists are focused at present, but there is such a problem that the film having been cured is inferior in heat resistance, chemical resistance, anti-bending property, and flame retardancy. In this way, the resin is more likely to burn than a metallic material or an inorganic material, so that improvement of the flame retardancy remains unrealized.
A general method for realizing the flame retardancy is a method in which a compound having a halogen is mixed. An example thereof is a photosensitive dry film resist produced by curing a photosensitive resin composition containing a bromic flame retardant (for example, Patent Document 1). However, the photosensitive dry film resist recited in Patent Document 1 contains the bromic flame retardant, so that the flame retardant having a halogen may have a bad influence on the environment. Further, the flame retardant having a halogen gives a great load to the environment, so that study on non-halogenous (halogen-free) materials is carried out all over the world. Thus, the halogen-free flame retardant is being studied instead of the bromic flame retardant (for example, Patent Documents 2, 3, and 4). As the halogen-free flame retardant, nitrogenous, phosphorus, and inorganic compounds, phosphate ester hydrate, red phosphorus hydrate, metal oxide hydrate, and the like, are known. However, phosphate ester and red phosphorus are hydrolyzed which may results in occurrence of phosphoric acid, and they are likely to drop electric reliability. The metal oxide scatters and absorbs light, so that it is difficult to use the metal oxide as the photosensitive resin.
Further, recently, a flame retardant using a resin to which a silicone compound has been added has been being studied (for example, Patent Document 5). Further, as a flame retardant, phosphazene compounds are being studied, and it is known that the phosphazene compounds exhibit high flame retardant effect (for example, Patent Document 7). Patent Document 7 discloses a flame retardant resin composition obtained by blending a phosphazene compounds with a polycarbonate resin and the like. The phosphazene compounds have an excellent effect in improving the flame retardancy, and has such an advantage that the phosphazene compounds give less load to the environment since this is a halogen-free flame retardant.
Further, conventionally, polyimide resin materials which can be bonded at low temperature and in short time and are superior in heat resistance have been proposed (for example, Patent Document 8). Further, as polyimide adhesive materials favorably used in production of the FPC, a material having photosensitivity has been proposed (for example, Patent Document 9). Also a laminate having not only flexibility but also heat resistance has been disclosed (for example, Patent Document 10). Incidentally, a resin material used in the wiring board is required to have flame retardancy as described above, and various kinds of resin materials whose flame retardancy has been improved are proposed (for example, Patent Document 11). Among them, it is more preferable to use a resin material having a phosphorus compound in order to avoid use of a material, giving some load to the environment, as much as possible.
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 335619/2001 (Tokukai 2001-335619)(Publication date: Dec. 4, 2001)
[Patent Document 2]
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 235001/2002 (Tokukai 2002-235001)(Publication date: Aug. 23, 2002)
[Patent Document 3]
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 19930/2001 (Tokukai 2001-19930)(Publication date: Jan. 23, 2001)
[Patent Document 4]
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 49090/2001 (Tokukai 2001-49090)(Publication date: Feb. 20, 2001)
[Patent Document 5]
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 40219/2001 (Tokukai 2001-40219)(Publication date: Feb. 13, 2001)
[Patent Document 6]
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 40149/2001 (Tokukai 2001-40149)(Publication date: Feb. 13, 2001)
[Patent Document 7]
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 181268/1999 (Tokukaihei 11-181268)(Publication date: Jul. 6, 1999)
[Patent Document 8]
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 242820/1995 (Tokukaihei 7-242820)(Publication date: Sep. 19, 1995)
[Patent Document 9]
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 27667/1994 (Tokukaihei 6-27667)(Publication date: Feb. 4, 1994)
[Patent Document 10]
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 733/1998 (Tokukaihei 10-733)(Publication date: Jan. 6, 1998)
[Patent Document 11]
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 335703/2001 (Tokukai 2001-335703)(Publication date: Dec. 4, 2001)
However, in case of using the nitrogenous compound, the phosphorus compound, or the inorganic compound as the halogen-free flame retardant, the nitrogenous compound generally has some influence on a curing property of the resin, and the phosphorus compound drops humidity resistance or has a similar influence, so that it is difficult to practically use each of these compounds. Thus, there are less choices of flame retardant materials which can be used in the photosensitive dry film resist required to have an electric insulation property and anti-hydrolysis property.
Further, also in case of using as the flame retardant the resin to which the silicone compound has been added, few kinds of resins can exhibit the flame retardant effect. Further, the flame retardant to which the silicone compound has been independently added rarely exhibits a great flame retardant effect, and even the flame retardant whose effect can be confirmed to some extent requires addition of a large quantity of silicone compounds in order to satisfy a strict flame retardant standard. As a result, a bad influence is exerted onto other necessary properties of the resin, so that this results in disadvantage in cost. Thus, use of such flame retardant is not practical.
Further, even in case of using the phosphazene compound as the flame retardant, when a resin obtained by mixing a conventional phosphazene compound is used in a cover lay film or the like, the phosphazene compound is deposited (bled or juiced) on a surface of the resin, so that properties of the resin drop. For example, conventionally used propoxylated phosphazene is in a liquid state, so that a bonding property of the photosensitive dry film resist cured after being treated at high temperature significantly drops.
Further, the resin is used for resin parts used in electric and electronic parts. In terms of environmental problems, solder containing no lead (lead-free solder) is practically used in a print wiring board on which the resin parts are installed. In case of using the lead-free solder, reflow temperature rises (250° C. to 260° C.), so that the resin parts are required to have sufficient heat resistance. However, in case of using the resin obtained by mixing the conventional phosphazene compound as the flame retardant, the phosphazene compound evaporates and disappears at such high temperature. Thus, a flame retardant which more persistently remains in the resin is required.
Further, a photo-curing resin which is cured by irradiation of an energy line such as an ultraviolet ray is practically used in various fields represented by a coating material field and an electric/electronic material field instead of a conventional thermosetting resin. As a compound which gives flame retardancy to the resin, an acrylic compound having a halogen and a compound having a double bond, e.g., a phosphate ester compound which is likely to be hydrolyzed, are known. However, each of these compounds has such a problem that this exerts a great load to the environment and such a problem that its hydrolysis property is low.
The present invention was made in view of the foregoing problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide (i) a phosphazene compound which allows water system development, formation of a favorable pattern shape, and realization of not only properties such as heat resistance, hydrolysis property, easiness to process (inclusive of solvent solubility), and bonding property, but also photosensitivity, flame retardancy, and sufficient mechanical strength, the phosphazene compound being favorably used to produce a wiring substrate for sufficiently supporting reduction of a size and a weight of each electronic part of an electronic device, and (ii) a photosensitive resin composition using the phosphazene compound, and (iii) typical usage thereof.

Phosphazene compound, photosensitive resin composition and use thereof


A device for filtering sewer gases includes a main body member and lower and upper filter medium chambers. The lower chamber contain carbon as the filter medium and the upper chamber contains copper steel wool and a silver coil as a filter medium. An adapter member is fixed to the main body member for connection to a house sewer vent.

Typically residences are provided with tubular vent pipes that extend vertically through the roof to an outlet on their upper end. Methane and other objectionable gases escape from the upper open sewer vents into the atmosphere, where they cause environmental problems.
While a number of filtering devices have been proposed, none has satisfactorily addressed the problem of removing methane and other obnoxious gases from the outlet of household sewer vents. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,192,539 and 3,938,201 disclose ventilation systems for removing foul air and objectionable odors from a toilet through a roof top vent. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,025,325 and 4,165,544 also disclose ventilation devices for ventilating odorous air from a bathroom. The ventilation device of U.S. Pat. No. 4,025,325 also includes an air filter. U.S. Pat. No. 4,342,258 discloses a ventilator which is mountable at the top of a conduit, such as a conduit for exhausting combustion gases. U.S. Pat. No. 2,784,801 teaches a combined air cleaner and vent mountable on the roof of a truck for preventing dust and bacteria from gaining entrance into the interior of the truck. U.S. Pat. No. 2,545,755 discloses apparatus for deodorizing the atmosphere, which is used in conjunction with a flush pipe, whereby the surrounding atmosphere is deodorized in response to the flushing action of water within the pipe.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,475,885 teaches a retainer adapted to fit over a sewer line vent. Air purifying medium is located in an annular space around the vent pipe such that the escaping gases must travel initially downward alongside the pipe into the purifying medium and then upwardly through the purifying medium and finally through outlet openings in the retainer to the atmosphere.


A protective cover assembly is provided. The protective cover assembly includes a flexible cover and an alarm assembly. The flexible cover includes an outer layer of flexible material, an inner layer of flexible material, and at least one layer of tear resistant material positioned between the outer and inner layers. The alarm assembly includes a pair of conductor plates positioned between the outer layer of flexible material and the inner layer of flexible material, a power source, and an alarm system electrically connected to the power source and at least one of the first and second conductor plates such that upon an electrical conducting implement piercing the first conductor plate and contacting the second conductor plate an electrical connection is established between the first conductor plate and the second conductor plate thereby causing the alarm system to emit an alerting signal.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to protective covers, and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to a penetration and tear resistant protective cover assembly with an alarm system incorporated therein.
2. Brief Description of Related Art
Convertible cars, pick up truck beds, motorcycles, boats, all terrain vehicles, wet bikes, lawn tractors and other vehicles of all sorts are easy prey to vandals and thieves. Soft covers designed for such vehicles can be quickly and easily cut with a knife or other sharp object thereby allowing unauthorized entry into the vehicle. Perimeter alarm systems have been utilized in an attempt to protect such vehicles, but even perimeter alarm systems do not offer sufficient deterrence to discourage vandals and thieves. In addition, perimeter alarm systems tend to be erratic in dependability and performance, are often set off by wind gusts, accidental bumping or heavy vibrations, and are susceptible to being rendered inoperable by disconnection of the power supply or by power supply malfunction.
To this end, a need exists for a protective cover assembly that is tear resistant to prevent unauthorized entry through a soft cover and capable of signaling an attempt of an unauthorized entry. It is to such a protective cover assembly that the present invention is directed.


The invention relates to a dielectric resonator (3) comprising two cylindrical discs made of a dielectric material. In the invention, the discs (3A,3B) are positioned with their planar surfaces against each other, so that they are radially displaceable with respect to each other for varying the shape of the resonator (3) and for adjusting the resonance frequency (3).

Among high-frequency and microwave resonator structures, so-called dielectric resonators have recently become increasingly interesting as they offer e.g. the following advantages over conventional resonator structures: smaller circuit sizes, higher integration level, higher efficiency and lower cost of manufacture. Any element having a simple geometric shape made of a material having low dielectric losses and a high relative dielectric constant can be used as a high Q dielectric resonator. For reasons of the manufacturing technique, the dielectric resonator is usually cylindrical, such as a cylindrical disc.
The structure and operation of dielectric resonators are described e.g. in the following articles:
[1] Ceramic Resonators for Highly Stable Oscillators, Gundolf Kuchler, Siemens Components XXIV (1989) No. 5, p. 180-183. PA1 [2] Microwave Dielectric Resonators, S. Jerry Fiedziuszko, Microwave Journal, September 1986, p. 189-191. PA1 [3] Cylindrical Dielectric Resonators and their Applications in TEM Line Microwave Circuits, Marian W. Pospieszalski, IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques, VOL. MTT-27, No. 3, March 1979, p. 233-238.
The resonance frequency of the dielectric resonator is primarily determined by the dimensions of the resonator element. Another factor affecting the resonance frequency is the surroundings of the resonator. The electric or magnetic field of the resonator and, thus, the resonance frequency can be intentionally affected by introducing a metal surface or any other conductive surface in the vicinity of the resonator. To adjust the resonance frequency of the dielectric resonator, a common practice is to adjust the distance between the conductive metal surface and the planar surface of the resonator. The adjusting mechanism may be e.g. an adjustment screw attached to the housing surrounding the resonator.
In this kind of adjusting method, however, it is typical that the resonance frequency varies nonlinearly as a function of the adjusting distance. Due to the non-linearity and the steepness of the adjustment, it is difficult and requires high precision to accurately adjust the resonance frequency, especially in the upper end of the adjusting range. In addition, the unloaded Q-factor varies as a function of the distance between the conductive surface and the resonator.
A constant Q-factor and a more linear frequency adjustment can be obtained within a wider range by replacing the conductive adjustment surface or plate with a dielectric adjustment plate wherein the distance from the planar surface of the resonator is adjusted. FIG. 7 in the above-mentioned article [2] shows a so-called double resonator structure as a modification of this solution. In the double resonator structure, two cylindrical dielectric resonator discs are positioned co-axially close to each other so that the distance between their planar surfaces can be adjusted by displacing the discs in the direction of their common axis. Also, in this case, the adjustment curve is still steep. In addition the double resonator structure is larger and more complicated than a conventional structure utilizing an adjustment plate.

Dielectric resonator having a displaceable disc


A method for printing drawing data on the basis of work process steps described in a job ticket, includes: receiving a job ticket and drawing data; judging whether work process steps should be changed on the basis of a process status in the image processing apparatus; a second judgment step of judging whether there is an external device different from the image processing apparatus and capable of executing at least one of the work process steps; and creating a job ticket for causing the external device to execute the work process steps if determined to exist. The method solves the problem that an image processing apparatus cannot change work process steps during the print job process, and a significant delay may occur in a process schedule. Work process steps that should be processed by the image processing apparatus are changed according to a process status in the image processing apparatus.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, for example, to a finisher device for performing a book binding process such as wrapping binding processes, an image processing apparatus capable of executing image processing configured by a plurality of process steps, and an image processing method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Up to now, in a commercialized printing industry, order entries for creating print products (such as magazines, newspapers, catalogues, advertisements, and gravures) from a third party (a customer, or a client) are received in order to create the printed products desired by the client, and the printed products are delivered to the client with a fee received from the client in return. Currently, the commercialized printing industry still uses large-scale printing apparatus such as offset reproduction print machines as the primary reproduction method. In the printing industry, this operation has been carried out by various process steps including original reception, design and layout, comprehensive layout (presentation made by printer outputs), revision (layout correction and color correction), proof print, layout paper creation, printing, post-treatment process, and delivery.
Meanwhile, in recent years, along with the achievement of a high speed and a high image quality of an electrophotographic printing apparatus or an inkjet printing apparatus, a market has developed which is called "print on demand" (hereinafter, expressed as POD) for providing quick delivery of printed products. The POD does not use any large-scale apparatus or system. The POD is designed for a job with a relatively small number of lots as compared with a job processed by a printing apparatus.
In the POD market, instead of using the above-mentioned large-scale printing machine or system, for example, a digital image process device such as a digital copying machine or a digital multifunction machine is utilized to a maximum extent in order to realize digital print with use of electronic data to produce the merchandise. In such a POD market, as compared to the past printing industry, digitalization is advanced and computerized management and control prevail.
A known technology of using a finisher device connected to other image processing apparatus generally refers to a dispersed paper-discharging process technology using a plurality of finisher devices. The dispersed paper-discharging process technology is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-29482, titled "Image output management apparatus, image forming apparatus, paper discharging process apparatus, image processing system, image processing method, recording medium, and program". With this technology, a user selects a device for performing the dispersed paper-discharging process among finisher devices connected to each other on a network and the print job is then executed.
However, according to the above-described related-art technology, the finisher device is selected as a dispersion target by the user in advance and the execution of the dispersed paper-discharging process needs to be instructed. So any change cannot be made after the print job process has started. For this reason, once the print job is started, the time consumed for the job process is longer than expected. Even when the print operation is behind schedule, unless the job execution itself is terminated, the change in job operational instructions cannot be made to increase the operational process speed through job dispersion and job alternation of the finishing process or the like, which leads to a problem. In addition, another problem occurs in the following situation. The image processing apparatus in use is scheduled to perform the next print job, but even when the time at which the next print job is performed passes, no measures can be adopted until the print job currently being processed is finished.
Furthermore, when an error occurs such as shortage of staples of a stapler and the process stops, there is also a problem in that the process is suspended until the error is eliminated.
The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and the invention provides a method of causing one or plural external devices connected to a network to accept job dispersion or job alternation of the operational burden even when the process is being performed, to improve the work efficiency of the entire system and also causing the external device having accepted the job dispersion or job alternation to execute the process based on the content of the original setting.
Also, the present invention can provide a construction to obtain a performance, a use condition, and a work schedule of the external device connected via the network to the image processing apparatus. With this construction, even after the print process is started, it is possible to automatically judge whether or not the work efficiency should be improved by way of the job alternation to cause other device to execute the process on the basis of the above-mentioned information and whether or not the improvement of the work efficiency can be actually achieved. The present invention can further improve the work efficiency by causing the external device connected to the network to perform the process allocated through the job dispersion or job alternation on the basis of the judgment of the image processing apparatus.
In addition, the present invention provides a construction where an output destination of the print job is changed to another paper discharge section from a predetermined paper discharge section (for example, a paper discharge section for the book binding process) depending on the process condition while the image processing apparatus is executing the print job in which the book binding print process is specified. With this configuration, after the print job being processed is printed out, a postprint process can be started by using a postprint process device different from the image processing apparatus, thereby further improving the work efficiency.
Furthermore, the present invention provides a construction where even after the job dispersion or job alternation process is started from the image processing apparatus to an arbitrary external device connected to the network at an arbitrary time, the system shows a user a message that the job alternation or dispersion process is performed, a name of the external device for performing the job alternation or dispersion process or a flow to the process allocated through the job dispersion or job alternation, or a flow to perform the job alternation or dispersion process. With this construction, the user is less likely to make an operational error during the work.
Moreover, the present invention provides a construction where even when the finisher device installed in the image processing apparatus has any error or failure, the work efficiency of the entire system can be improved without stopping the print job as an error by causing one or plural nearline finisher devices connected to the network to alternately perform the work.

Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and image processing program supporting embedded finishing manager


A hydraulic engine mount includes opposed mounting members secured to an elastomeric body and a base, respectively, with an orifice plate assembly interposed the body and the base to define a pumping chamber and a reservoir for hydraulic fluid to flow therebetween through an orifice track formed by the orifice plate assembly. An elastomeric decoupler disk is secured in a recess formed between two orifice plates of the orifice plate assembly and defines a gas spring or cushion space which may be filled or vented by a removable plug in one of the orifice plates. Improved dynamic rate and damping at low amplitude inputs to the mount are provided by the gas cushion biased decoupler as compared with a decoupler type mount without the gas cushion bias. The mount provides an advantage over conventional decoupled hydraulic mounts in that very strict dimensional tolerances are relaxed and performance characteristics, as well as ease of manufacturing, are improved.

The present invention pertains generally to a hydraulic mount for vibration damping and, particularly, a vehicle engine hydraulic mount assembly including an air or gas spring supported decoupler which provides gradual transition from low dynamic stiffness to high dynamic stiffness.
Hydraulic vibration damping mounts are well known of the type that generate damping in a predetermined frequency range of vibrations by pumping a hydraulic fluid through an orifice track of predetermined dimensions. The dimensions of the orifice track are typically such that the hydraulic fluid resonates at certain frequencies of input vibration which can result in an increased level of dynamic stiffness of the mount. Hydraulic mounts may also be provided with devices known as decouplers which are disposed in a space formed within the mount orifice plate, for example, and allowed limited free travel within the space to short circuit the fluid from flowing through the orifice track, thus generating a low magnitude of dynamic stiffness necessary to provide isolation of certain vibrations. When the input vibration to the mount exceeds the allowable limit of the free motion of the decoupler, the hydraulic fluid flows through the orifice track thereby generating the mount damping characteristics.
In many hydraulic mount applications, the rate of change of dynamic stiffness of the mount near the tuned frequency should be gradual. However, hydraulic mounts without decouplers do not offer this performance feature, and conventional hydraulic mounts with decouplers must be fabricated with very tight dimensional tolerances of the decoupler and the orifice plate to obtain the desired dynamic stiffness characteristics. For mass produced hydraulic mounts, in particular, the tight dimensional tolerances typically result in a very high scrap rate and difficult manufacturing processes. It is to overcome the problems associated with prior art hydraulic mounts and to provide a mount with the desired dynamic stiffness characteristics near the frequency at which the hydraulic fluid goes into resonance that the present invention has been developed.
The present invention provides an improved hydraulic mount, particularly adapted as a hydraulic engine mount having improved dynamic stiffness characteristics.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a hydraulic mount is provided which includes a decoupler supported or biased by a so-called air or gas spring. In particular, the decoupler is trapped between two orifice plates of an orifice plate assembly for the mount so that one side of the decoupler is in direct communication with a hydraulic pumping chamber of the mount and a layer of air or suitable inert gas is trapped between the other side of the decoupler and a wall surface of the orifice plate. The decoupler is preferably made from a flexible material, such as natural rubber. For low amplitude vibrations input to the mount, the gas spring arrangement provides resistance to motion of the decoupler and consequently the hydraulic fluid is pumped through the orifice track of the mount to generate damping and high dynamic stiffness. Near the frequency at which the hydraulic fluid goes into resonance, the dynamic stiffness of the mount with the gas spring supported decoupler changes gradually as compared with a corresponding mount with no decoupler.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a hydraulic mount is provided which includes an arrangement of a decoupler and a gas spring associated with the decoupler which is operable to change the decoupler performance characteristics from that of a conventional decoupled hydraulic mount and to avoid the tight dimensional tolerances required of conventional decoupled hydraulic mounts without sacrificing the mount performance characteristics.
In accordance with still a further aspect of the present invention, a hydraulic mount is provided with a decoupler which is provided with a gas spring or cushion which provides a dynamic rate increase under small displacement vibration inputs to the mount and thus behaves not unlike a non-decoupled mount. However, due to the allowable travel of the decoupler, the response is more linear and the perceived vibrations less harsh in many vehicle applications.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, a mechanically simple but improved hydraulic mount is provided which includes performance characteristics typically associated with hydraulic mounts with external control features. However, the mount of the present invention is a passive device which allows much larger dimensional tolerances of the mount parts without compromising performance.
Those skilled in the art will further appreciate the above-mentioned advantages and superior features of the present invention together with other important aspects thereof upon reading the detailed description which follows in conjunction with the drawing.

Hydraulic mount with gas spring supported decoupler


A control apparatus for an induction motor and an electric car propelling motor includes an inverter for supplying a driving current to the induction motor on the basis of a predetermined control signal, a rotational speed sensor for detecting a rotational speed of the induction motor, a V/f control circuit responsive to an input speed command signal for producing a control signal for the inverter, a vector control circuit for producing an inverter control signal on the basis of the speed command signal and the rotational speed signal of the rotational speed sensor, an abnormality detecting circuit for detecting abnormality of the rotational speed sensor. A change-over circuit having inputs supplied with outputs of the V/f control circuit and the vector control circuit, respectively, selects the inverter control signal from the V/f control circuit in response to detection of abnormality of the rotational speed sensor while selecting the inverter control signal supplied from the vector control circuit so long as no abnormality is detected in the rotational speed sensor.

The present invention relates generally to a control apparatus for an induction motor. More specifically, the invention is concerned with an induction motor control apparatus suited profitably for controlling an onboard induction motor installed on an electric motor vehicle or car as a prime mover.
In order to ensure high operation performance and high speed for an electric car, not only independent driving of individual wheels is required but also a driving system inclusive of an electric motor and a control apparatus therefor must necessarily be implemented with a high reliability.
Under the circumstances, there arises in these years an increasing trend of using an inverter-driven induction motor for propelling the electric car in combination with a vector control system for the induction motor with a view to allowing the car to run at a high speed while affording highly accurate controllability.
As the prior art apparatuses of this type, there may be mentioned those disclosed in JP-A-56-66101, JP-A-57-177203, JP-A-63-87192 and JP-A-2-197284.
As to the driving system for the electric car, availability of such system is demanded which is capable of stopping or parking the electric car with safety in any situation and capable of restarting the car once stopped due to a fault, since occurrence of faults is practically inevitable.
In conjunction with this, in order to realize the vector control mentioned above, use of a rotational speed sensor (which may also be termed an angular speed sensor) is indispensably required. As a consequence, occurrence of a fault in the rotational speed sensor renders the vector control impotent, which in turn results in abnormal torque generation of the induction motor, incurring a dangerous state for the running or operation of the electric car.
Besides, in conjunction with the inverter for supplying electric power to the induction motor, it is also noted that the useful life of components constituting the inverter is also intrinsically limited, giving rise to occurrence of faults unavoidably. Of course, upon occurrence of a fault in the inverter, the control system will become impotent, to thereby make the driving system uncontrollable, incurring a dangerous situation as well.
However, in the prior art control/driving systems for electric cars such as those disclosed in the above-mentioned references, no adequate consideration is paid to the possibility of occurrence of dangerous states of the electric car due to abnormality of the rotational speed sensor and that of the inverter, and thus there are a variety of problems remaining unsolved, as enumerated below.
(1) For the purpose of controlling the speed and torque with high accuracy, the vector control is carried out by utilizing feedback of the output signal of the rotational speed sensor. Thus, the use of the rotational speed sensor is indispensably required for the vector control. Accordingly, upon occurrence of a fault in the rotational speed sensor, torque of the induction motor becomes excessively large or small or torque of minus polarity may be generated, which eventually leads to such unwanted situation where the stable current/power control is no more effective, making dangerous the operation of the electric car, presenting a serious problem.
(2) When a fault such as overcurrent, ineffectiveness of one of three output phases or the like takes place in the inverter which serves for supplying electric power to the induction motor, there may occur undesirable phenomena such as insufficiency of driving efforts or stoppage of the electric car and the like, which also leads to impotence of control/driving capabilities, incurring a dangerous running state of the electric car.
(3) Because the control system is susceptible to adverse influences of spurious signals such as external disturbance (noise), operation of the inverter is often stopped unnecessarily, giving rise to a problem that the control/driving system is lacking in reliability.
(4) In the case of a driving system for driving a plurality of individual wheels independent of one another for the purpose of realizing a highly accurate control of the car speed and the motor torque, occurrence of a fault in one of the driving systems brings about significant load unbalance relative to the other driving system or systems. Supposing, for example, that the driving power of a fault-suffering driving system becomes zero, generation of overall torque must be born by the other driving system(s). In another case where the driving power produced by one of the driving systems increases excessively, the torque produced by the other driving system will decrease. In any case, significant load unbalance prevails between or among a plurality of the driving systems, involving a problem that operation of the electric car inclusive of manipulation thereof by a steering handle becomes very dangerous.


A stopper apparatus for a spinning reel includes a ratchet wheel mounted for unitary rotation on a sleeve shaft loosely fitted on a spool shaft, and a ratchet pawl engageable with the ratchet wheel. The ratchet wheel and pawl is switchable by a switching lever between an operative position to prevent a rotary frame from rotating in a line unwinding direction, while allowing the rotary frame to rotate in a line winding direction, and an inoperative position to allow the rotary frame to rotate in the line unwinding direction as well as the line winding direction. A resistor is connected to the switching lever to act on the rotary frame. When the switching lever is operated to switch the ratchet wheel and pawl to the operative position, the resistor is also switched to a position to apply a resistance to the rotary frame before the pawl fully engages the ratchet wheel.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a stopper apparatus for a spinning reel, and more particularly to a stopper apparatus for a spinning reel having a stopper mechanism for preventing a rotary frame from rotating in a line unwinding direction, and allowing the rotary frame to rotate in a line winding direction, and a switching mechanism for switching the stopper mechanism between an operative position to prevent the rotary frame from rotating in the line unwinding direction, and allow the rotary frame to rotate in the line winding direction, and an inoperative position to allow the rotary frame to rotate in either direction.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, this type of stopper apparatus for a spinning reel has a stopper mechanism with only a minimum function satisfying the requirement to stop the rotary frame. Such a stopper mechanism, for example, includes a ratchet wheel forming part of a transmission line for driving the rotary frame, and a ratchet pawl for acting on the ratchet wheel. The ratchet pawl is engageable with a tooth of the ratchet wheel, thereby to apply a stopping force directly to the ratchet wheel.
Since the stopping force of the ratchet pawl directly acts on the ratchet wheel, the rotary frame is stopped with a shock. This could result in breaking of a fishing line, or escape of a fish having struck a bait. Further, since the ratchet pawl and ratchet wheel are subjected to strong shocks, a sufficient strength is required to withstand such shocks. To this end, the ratchet pawl and ratchet wheel must be either large in structure or formed of a strong material. This results in high manufacturing cost.


A mobile terminal includes: a first body including an operation part; a second body including a display; and a connector which rotatably connects the first body and the second body. The connector is connected to the first body, and rotates with respect to the first body about a first rotating shaft. The connector is connected to a lateral end of the second body, and rotates with respect to the second body about a second rotating shaft orthogonal to the first rotating shaft. A first fitting portion is formed on a connected surface of the connector to be connected with the second body. A second fitting portion which is fitted to the first fitting portion, is formed on the second body. When the second body relatively rotates about the second rotating shaft to overlap the connector on the connected surface, the first fitting portion fits to the second fitting portion.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a mobile terminal in which a first body and a second body are foldably connected together by a connector.
2. Background Art
In mobile terminals, such as a cellular phone, conventionally, foldable ones in which two bodies are rotatably connected together via a connector have come into wide use. For example, a mobile terminal in which a lower body (first body) is held by a user's hand when the mobile terminal is used, and is provided with an operation part which has a number of input keys and function keys on its surface, and an upper body (second body) is provided with a display (LCD) is known.
On the other hand, according to Patent Document 1, a mobile terminal which includes a first rotating shaft and a second rotating shaft which is connected on other places than a central portion of the first rotating shaft, and connected with an upper body in a direction intersecting the first rotating shaft is disclosed.
According to this mobile terminal, by rotating the upper body and a lower body about the first rotating shaft from the state where the upper body and the lower body are closed, it becomes possible to perform so-called longitudinal opening operation. Moreover, by rotating the upper body and the lower body about the second rotating shaft from the state where the upper body and the lower body are closed, it becomes possible to perform so-called lateral opening operation.
Here, the second rotating shaft supports only upper ends of the lower body and the upper body. That is, the lower body and the upper body are cantilever-supported by the second rotating shaft. For this reason, when the mobile terminal is laterally opened, it is considered that a relatively large load is applied to the second rotating shaft.
In the mobile terminal of Patent Document 1, a mobile terminal in which when being laterally opened, a convex portion provided in a longitudinal middle portion of the lower body engages with a cushioning member provided in a longitudinal middle portion of the upper body is suggested.
According to this configuration, when the mobile terminal is laterally opened, the laterally opened state will be stabilized by regulating the rotation of the second rotating shaft.
Further, according to Patent Document 2, a mobile terminal has a lower body (first body), a connector (second body), and an upper body (third body), and has a first hinge which openably connects the connector to the lower body, and a second hinge which openably connects the upper body to the connector in a direction orthogonal to the opening and closing direction of the connector by the first hinge. Also, the mobile terminal has an opening-and-closing regulating means which permits the operation of the first hinge and regulates the operation of the second hinge in a state where the connector and the upper body are closed.
According to this mobile terminal, by rotating the upper body and the lower body about the first hinge provided in the connector from the state where the upper body and the lower body are closed, it becomes possible to perform so-called longitudinal opening operation. Moreover, by rotating the upper body and the lower body about the second hinge provided in the connector from the state where the upper body and the lower body are closed, it becomes possible to perform so-called lateral opening operation.
[Patent Document 1] JP-A-2006-22899
[Patent Document 2] JP-A-2005-216158
In the mobile terminal described in Patent Document 1, the second rotating shaft is connected to one end of the upper body in its width direction. Therefore, if an external force is applied to the upper body in a longitudinally opened state, the upper body may be easily rotated about the second rotating shaft, which is unstable. Further, an external force may be concentrated on the second rotating shaft.
Further, when an external force is applied to the upper body even in a closed state, an external force may be concentrated on the second rotating shaft.
In the mobile terminal described in Patent Documents 2, when the upper body and the lower body are longitudinally opened, the upper body is once closed and integrated with the connector, and is opened about the first hinge. For this reason, the opening-and-closing regulating means prevents the upper body from being separated from the connector such that the upper body is opened about the second hinge.
However, the aforementioned opening-and-closing regulating means regulates opening and closing of the upper body only with a shaft body which reciprocates by a solenoid provided in the connector, and does not regulate even the position of the upper body. Therefore, if an external force acts on the upper body in a longitudinally opened state, there is a problem in that the second hinge may resist the external force, and consequently, instability and shaking may be caused. For example, in a body where a user talks over a telephone in a longitudinally opened state, a user's ear is pressed against a receiver, whereby an external force is often applied such that the opening angle in a longitudinal opening direction (direction in which the upper body rotates about the first hinge) becomes large. Moreover, since the second hinge is connected to one end of the upper body in its width direction, more instability is caused. Further, an external force may be concentrated on the second hinge.


A communication server enabling the provision of services offered by a second private communication network to terminals connected to a first communication network. The terminals are capable of simultaneously exchanging signaling data on a first transmission channel and voice data on a second transmission channel, in accordance with a selected protocol. The server is capable of transmitting configuration data to a terminal connected to the first network over the first channel and in accordance with a selected criterion. The configuration data is designed to enable a connection with the server to be set up on the first channel by the terminal, during a voice link on the second channel, so as to provide the terminal, during the voice link, with services offered by the second network.

Many private communication networks, for example private automatic branch exchanges (PABX), offer services to the communication terminals connected to them. These services include in particular call forwarding, access to directories or databases, storage of messages, conference calls and voice or written notepads. These services are accessible to terminals when they are connected directly to their own private network, of course. However, if terminals are for away from the private network, they are able to access certain of their services only if said private network is connected to a public network via a communication server such as a gateway, and subject to particular arrangements.
One particular arrangement is assigning to certain keys of the terminal's keypad functions corresponding to particular services. Pressing one of these keys sends to the gateway a preprogrammed dual tone multifrequency (DTMF) data sequence on a public network transmission channel dedicated to the exchange of voice data. Consequently, if a user wishes to access a service when he has already set up a voice connection to another terminal, he must first of all temporarily break off his connection, then set up a connection with the server for the latter to make said service available to him, and finally re-establish the original connection to the other terminal. Moreover, during a voice connection with another user, this rules out dynamically offering the user services adapted to certain events that may arise during a call, for example a higher priority incoming call, a text message that needs to be displayed during a call, or a request to enter a conference call. Moreover, only the services associated with the preprogrammed functions may be made available to terminal users. This arrangement is therefore "static", making it ill-suited to the requirements of real time processing.
A second arrangement, described in patent application EP 1 107 523, consists first of all in setting up, on a public network transmission channel dedicated to signaling, a connection between a terminal wishing to access services of its own private network and a gateway connected to that private network, and then sending a Word Markup Language (WML) page offering its user a certain number of services to the calling terminal via the gateway. When the user has made his choice, his terminal sends to the gateway a WML command and, following specific data exchange protocol format conversion processing, the terminal is able to access the chosen service. Because the user has to make his choice from a predefined list of services, it is not possible, during a voice connection with another user, to offer the user dynamically services adapted to certain events that may arise during a call. This arrangement is therefore also "static", making it ill-suited to the requirements of real time processing.

Method for dynamically providing a terminal connected to a public communication network, with services offered by a private telecommunication network


In a link state protocol such as an interior gateway protocol (IGP), link state advertisements or link state packets (LSA/LSPs) are sent only to network nodes that have expressed interest in them, rather than always flooding them.

The approaches described in this section could be pursued, but are not necessarily approaches that have been previously conceived or pursued. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated herein, the approaches described in this section are not prior art to the claims in this application and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
In computer networks such as the Internet, packets of data are sent from a source to a destination via a network of links (communication paths such as telephone or optical lines) and nodes (often routers directing the packet along one or more of a plurality of links connected to it) according to one of various routing protocols. One such type of protocol is a link state routing protocol. A link state routing protocol requires each router to maintain the entire map of the network. When a network link changes state from active to inactive ("goes up" or "comes down") or the converse, a notification, often termed a link state advertisement (LSA) in Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) or link state packet (LSP) in Intermediate System-to-Intermediate System (IS-IS), is flooded throughout the network. All the routers that receive the message record the change and recompute their routes accordingly. Interior gateway protocols (IGPs) such as OSPF and IS-IS are examples of link state protocols.
In some link state routing protocols, Router Capabilities LSAs/LSPs are designed to carry application-specific information not related to IGP routes or topology. These LSAs/LSPs are flooded to all the nodes. However, some of the nodes in the system do not need the information contained in the Router Capabilities (RC) LSA/LSP. Sending the RC LSAs/LSPs to every node unnecessarily loads both the network and any node that does not need the information.
Such "unnecessary" messages include periodic RC LSA/LSP Refreshes which occur, for example, every thirty minutes for OSPF and every fifteen minutes for ISIS. A problem with flooding periodic LSA/LSP Refreshes is that the RC LSA/LSP Refreshes may not contain any new information and therefore, are unnecessarily burdening both the network and receiving nodes.
Even when new information is contained in an RC LSA/LSP the message is flooded to nodes that are not interested in the information. For example, when a tunnel endpoint floods the RC LSAs/LSPs carrying the tunnel endpoint information, the RC LSA/LSP is sent to all the nodes in the network, even though only those nodes that participate in the tunnel or are in the topology path of another tunnel endpoint may need to receive, or be interested in, the information.
Based on the foregoing, there is clearly a need for an approach to reduce the number of unnecessary messages sent by nodes.

Selectively sending link state messages in a network link state protocol based on interest of network nodes


A suspension system for the cab of a lorry comprises a rotational damper preferably of a magneto-rheological type.

The present invention relates to suspension systems for cabs of lorries, of the type comprising at least one arm mounted oscillating on the chassis of the lorry and connected to the structure of the cab, and elastic means and shock-absorbing means set operatively between the oscillating arm and the chassis of the lorry.


A biometrics authentication system uses biometrics information to authenticate individuals. A processing unit acquires biometrics information for the same living body a plurality of times from a detection unit, judges the mutual degree of similarity between biometrics characteristic data sets extracted from the above biometrics information acquired a plurality of times, and registers a plurality of biometrics characteristic data sets with a high degree of similarity in a storage unit. As a result, verification can be performed which accommodates changes in the state of the living body, without lowering verification accuracy.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a registration method for a biometrics authentication system, a biometrics authentication system, and a program for same, which uses biometrics features which are a portion of the human body to authenticate individuals, and in particular relates to a registration method for a biometrics authentication system, a biometrics authentication system, and a program for same to authenticate individuals by verification detected biometrics information against registered biometrics information.
2. Description of the Related Art
There exist numerous features of the human body enabling identification of individuals, among them fingerprints, palm prints, palm types, iris patterns, retina features, blood vessel patterns, facial features, voiceprints, manners of walking, the concha of the ear, DNA, and similar. Advances in biometrics technology in recent years have been accompanied by various proposals of devices for identification of such biometrics features which are a portion of the human body, to authenticate individuals.
Since the simultaneous multiple terror attacks of September 2001, biometric authentication (fingerprint and facial authentication) has been adopted in ports and other immigration points in the U.S., and there has been worldwide interest in biometric authentication methods as means of confirming the identity of individuals with high security. In financial institutions also, biometric authentication is being studied as new means for authenticating individuals, as countermeasures to illicit withdrawal of funds made possible by theft of bankbooks and cash cards and by forgery of seals and cards, and to preclude civil suits brought against financial institutions by the victims of such crimes.
In registration of such biometrics information, methods of registration of fingerprint data have been proposed which entail detection of fingerprint data a plurality of times, extraction of common characteristic data from the plurality of sets of fingerprint data, and registration of the common characteristic data (see for example Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 01-263775 and Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 11-232459). By means of these methods, effects on registered data of changes in fingerprint shapes due to detection noise and differences in finger pressure can be prevented.
In conventional methods for registration of biometrics information, in light of the fact that exactly the same biometrics characteristic data may not be obtained each time biometrics information is detected and registered, the biometrics characteristic data is detected a plurality of times, only the common data is extracted from the plurality of sets of characteristic data, and a single biometrics characteristic data set is registered, so as to exclude noise due to the detection device and the effect of the state at the time of detection.
However, in conventional methods in which common data is extracted and registered, differences in the noise of the biometrics detection device and in the detection state at the time of biometrics detection can be excluded; but registration of common data means that there is not complete coincidence with the individual biometrics characteristic data sets actually obtained, and there is the possibility that the amount of characteristic data is different from the characteristic detection data amount. Hence when verifying registered data against verification data at the time of authentication, accurate verification may not be possible.
Further, because measurements are made of a living entity, changes due to physical condition must be taken into account, and when common data is registered, if there is a change in physical condition compared with that at the time of registration, during authentication it may be difficult to authenticate the individual even though the individual is in fact the same person, so that various problems may arise. For example, in fingerprint authentication, verification rates will differ when the fingers are damp and when the fingers are dry.

Registration method for biometrics authentication system, biometrics authentication system, and program for same


In one configuration, a handheld compound tester to process and detect presence of a compound in a tablet is disclosed. The handheld compound tester may include a sampling chamber configured to receive a tablet and a lid couplable with the sampling chamber. The coupling of the lid with the sampling chamber may cause cutting of the tablet. A liquid may be added inside the sampling chamber to create a mixture with segments of the tablet. The mixture may be then received by a housing adjoining the sampling chamber. A test strip disposed within the housing, upon contacting the mixture, may be configured to indicate a presence of the compound in the mixture.

Drugs meant to be taken orally, for example, tablets may require testing before consumption, for various reasons. For example, when the tablet is being offered by an unknown person (e.g. during a social gathering, a concert, etc.), it may be important to check if the tablet is safe and does not include a prohibited or an unsafe ingredient. However, while there may be an urgent need to consume the tablet, there may not be adequate means to conduct the testing. This is because the testing may require the tablet to be crushed, mixing the tablet in a solvent, and lastly contacting the solvent containing the tablet with a test strip which may indicate the presence of a prohibited or unsafe ingredient in the tablet.
However, it may be a challenge to perform all the above steps, especially when the testing is to be performed at a short notice and at a remote location where arranging the testing apparatus and test components (i.e. tablet crusher, solvent, test strip) is not possible.
In short, a portable and an all-inclusive testing solution for testing safety of a drug is desired that can be easily usable for obtaining test results.

Handheld compound tester to process a tablet and a method thereof


Because of diffraction effects caused by slits or apertures in optical measurement systems, the radiation energy which is directed towards a particular region on a sample will be spread over a larger area than desirable. By employing an apodizing filter in the radiation path in such system, diffraction tails of the system will be reduced. The apodizing filter preferably has a pattern of alternating high transmittance areas and substantially opaque areas where the locally averaged transmittance function is an apodizing function. In the preferred embodiment, the locally averaged transmittance function varies smoothly and monotonically from the periphery to the center of the filter.

This application relates in general to optical measurement systems and, in particular, an apodizing filter system for reducing spot size in optical measurements and for other applications.
Ellipsometers, spectrophotometers and similar optical instruments direct a beam of polarized or unpolarized radiation consisting of one or more wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation from the microwave, infrared, visible or ultraviolet regions of the spectrum at a sample which is to be measured. The reflected radiation, the transmitted radiation or both are collected and from the collected signal inferences are made about the material, or other, properties of the sample.
When the properties of the sample vary from place to place, it is usually necessary to illuminate (or alternatively, sense the signal from) only a small region of the sample to avoid the measurements of the region of interest being confused by the signal detected from the surrounding material of differing composition. An example of this is the measurement of the thickness of a thin film on a surface of a semiconductor wafer. For the measurement to be made on a wafer containing integrated circuits (a product wafer) rather than on a special test wafer, it is necessary to measure in the small area containing the film to be measured. In a modern integrated circuit, a feature that is to be measured may have dimensions which are only a few microns to a few tens of microns in size.
Focusing the illumination or detection system onto such a small area of a sample can be done using standard microscope technology when incident radiation consists only of visible light wavelength and is directed at normal or near normal incidence to the sample. It is well understood how to design a lens system for visible wavelengths to minimize chromatic and other aberrations to focus down to a spot of the order of a few microns. However, many optical instruments use angles of incidence very different from normal to enhance sensitivity. In particular, ellipsometers are typically aligned at an angle of incidence close to the Brewster's angle for the material of interest (about 75 degrees for silicon). In such cases, the high angle of incidence spreads the diffraction and aberration effects over a larger area. To a first approximation, the spot is spread over a distance 1/cos (incident angle) times the distance in the normal incidence case. Even when the incident light strikes the sample at near normal incidence, some applications require spot sizes that are about one micron or less in size. In these cases, as well as in the non-normal incidence case, aperture diffraction contributes significantly to the spot size and has to be minimized.
One common technique to reduce or alter the diffraction pattern of a small spot image is the pinhole spatial filter. In this technique, the light source is focused onto an aperture that is just slightly larger than the diffraction limited resolution of the focusing lens system. The light cone is allowed to expand to fill a second lens system that then forms the small spot image. The optical sub-system just described is commonly known as a pinhole spatial filter (see, for example, Optics, M. Klein and T. Furtak, chapter 7.3, J. Wiley & Sons, 1986).
The limitations of a pinhole spatial filter include the following:
(i) The light source must be focused onto the aperture to a spot that is small compared to the resolution of the first focusing lens system given the numerical aperture that is desired. In practice, this usually limits use of a pinhole spatial filter to laser light sources; PA1 (ii) The pinhole aperture must be aligned to the image with extremely tight tolerances, and the alignment must be maintained over the life of the optical apparatus. This could be a problem in commercial instruments that must survive shipping and temperature fluctuations; and PA1 (iii) The first lens system must have good imaging qualities. Chromatic aberration precludes the use of a refractive lens when a broad band of wavelengths, especially UV to near IR, is used. A reflective lens system will tend to partially polarize the beam which is not desirable for an ellipsometer illuminator.
These limitations make it difficult to use a pinhole spatial filter in most broad-band optical systems, especially those that measure polarization.

Apodizing filter system useful for reducing spot size in optical measurements and other applications


A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal device having a first substrate and a second substrate facing each other with a liquid crystal layer interposed therebetween, and a sealing member formed in a peripheral portion of at least one of the substrates. The method includes forming the sealing member, disposing the liquid crystal layer inside the sealing member, and bonding the first substrate to the second substrate. In forming the sealing member, a ring-shaped portion that seals the liquid crystal layer inside the sealing member, a first sealing layer and a second sealing layer that face each other to be separated from each other are formed. In the bonding of the first substrate to the second substrate, a junction portion is formed in which the first and second sealing layers are pressed and joined outside the sealing member so as to form the ring-shaped portion.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal device, to a liquid crystal device, and an electronic apparatus.
2. Related Art
In an electronic apparatus, such as a cellular phone or the like, an electro-optical device, such as a liquid crystal device or the like, is used as a color image display unit. The liquid crystal device has a pair of substrates with a liquid crystal layer interposed therebetween. In order to form the liquid crystal device, first, a sealant (sealing material) is coated in a peripheral portion of a surface of one substrate. At that time, a liquid crystal injection hole is formed at a part of the sealant. Next, spacers are sprayed inside the sealant, and then the other substrate is bonded to the one substrate via the sealant. Accordingly, a liquid crystal cell is formed in a region defined by the pair of substrates and the sealant. Next, the liquid crystal cell is subjected to a vacuum for de-aerating and is then brought back to an atmospheric pressure while the liquid crystal injection hole is dipped into a liquid crystal vessel. In doing so, the liquid crystal cell is filled with liquid crystal by means of a pressure difference between the inside and outside of the liquid crystal cell and surface tension. When liquid crystal is filled in such a manner, however, the liquid crystal injection process takes an extremely long time. In particular, when a large substrate whose diagonal is more than one meter is used, it takes more than one day to entirely fill the substrate with liquid crystal.
Therefore, a dropping assembly method has been suggested in which liquid crystal is dropped onto one substrate in which a frame-shaped sealant is provided with no liquid crystal injection hole, and the other substrate is then bonded to the one substrate. According to this method, first, a sealant formed of thermosetting resin or the like is coated in a peripheral portion of a surface of one substrate. Next, a predetermined amount of liquid crystal is dropped onto the one substrate by a liquid droplet ejection device. Finally, the other substrate is bonded to the sealant under a vacuum atmosphere, the vacuum atmosphere is released to an air pressure atmosphere, and then the sealant is subjected to ultraviolet irradiation or heat treatment, thereby forming the liquid crystal device. For this reason, unlike the related art liquid crystal injection method, the sealant is formed in a ring shape with no injection hole.
According to this method, after both substrates have been bonded, the vacuum atmosphere is released to atmospheric pressure. Accordingly, a predetermined cell gap to which a uniform pressure is applied from both substrates can be obtained. Further, the cell gap can be determined according to the amount of liquid crystal dropped. For example, if the dropping amount is excessively small, the cell gap is thin, and thus air bubbles tend to occur. Further, if the dropping amount is excessively large, the cell gap is thick, and unevenness of the cell gap tends to occur. Therefore, by setting the desired optimum dropping amount of liquid crystal, a uniform cell gap can be obtained. Further, according to this method, unlike the related art liquid crystal injection method, the amount of liquid crystal used can be reduced, and the injection/sealing process can be omitted, such that tact time can be reduced.
In addition, as a method of forming the sealant, a method has been suggested in which a dispenser is used. See, for example, JP-A-2002-98979, JP-A-2003-222883, and JP-A-2003-241204, which are referred to as Patent Documents 1, 2, and 3, respectively. This method is a method in which, while relatively moving the dispenser and the substrate, the sealant is ejected onto the substrate in a predetermined pattern. Here, at a part of a peripheral portion of the sealant, the previously ejected sealant and the subsequently ejected sealant overlap each other, such that the sealant ejected on the substrate is formed in a ring shape. Accordingly, when the substrates are bonded after liquid crystal is dropped, the liquid crystal can be suppressed from leaking outside the ring-shaped pattern of the sealant.
The inventors have founded that, in the liquid crystal devices described in the above-described Patent Documents, it is difficult to stably form the sealant, a dummy space needs to be provided with respect to an adjacent panel, and the dispenser needs to be controlled at the beginning and end of drawing in order to form one pattern by one drawing operation. In addition, the inventors have founded that, in the method of forming the sealant by use of the dispenser, in general, a defective cell gap tends to occur.
As for an ejection method of a sealant by use of a dispenser, the inventors have found the following.
In such an ejection method, as shown in FIGS. 48A and 48B, the size of a drawing start portion 500 or a drawing end portion 510 needs to be formed to have the same size as those of other parts. This is because, when the size is excessively large, the cell gap is thickened, such that display unevenness occurs, and, when the cell gap is minute, liquid crystal may leak from that portion, such that reliability is degraded. When the sealant is drawn by a dispenser, in general, as shown in FIGS. 48A and 48B, at the drawing start portion 500 and the drawing end portion 510, the seal tends to be thickened or minuteness tends to occur. In addition, there are many cases in which, in order to make the size of a junction portion 520 uniform, the drawing start portion 500 and the drawing end portion 510 overlap each other, as shown in FIG. 48C. In this case, it has been confirmed that the length of the overlap portion is about 4 mm, and the width W2 of that portion is made larger than a predetermined target width W1 by about 0.1 to 0.2 mm (ΔW=W2−W1=0.1 to 0.2 mm) due to the variation in viscosity of the sealant or the like.
Further, in a TFD (Thin Film Diode) driving-type liquid crystal device or a liquid crystal device in which STN (Super Twisted Nematic) liquid crystal operates in a passive driving method, as shown in FIGS. 49 and 50, relay wiring lines 601 formed on a surface of a circuit board having driver ICs 600 and 610 and a common electrode (hereinafter, referred to as COM electrode) 602 formed on a counter substrate need to be electrically connected to each other via a conductive pad 603. In this case, conductive particles, in which the surface of a spacer is subjected to a plating treatment, are dispersed in the sealant, and the sealant is disposed on the conductive pad 603. As a result, the relay wiring lines 601 and the COM electrode 602 are electrically connected to each other via the conductive particles, and then an output potential of the driver IC 600 is applied to a wiring line of the counter substrate.
On the other hand, segment electrodes (hereinafter, referred to as SEG electrode) 604 relayed from the driver IC 610 up to a display area 620 or the relay wiring lines 601 relayed from the driver IC 600 up to the conductive pad 603 need to cross the sealant. In this case, as for the relay wiring lines 601 and the SEG electrodes 604, in order to prevent the individual electrodes from being electrically shorted, a sealant, which does not contain the conductive particles, is configured to cross the relay wiring lines 601 and the SEG electrodes 604.
By the way, as described above, when the sealant containing the conductive particles and the non-conductive sealant are used, from one end (A of FIG. 50) of the conductive pad 603 up to an end portion (B of FIG. 50) of the relay wiring line 601 crossing the sealant, both sealants need to be connected to each other. In the TFD liquid crystal device or the STN liquid crystal device, there are many cases in which the distance L between the end A of the conductive pad 603 and the end portion of the relay wiring line 601 crossing the sealant is set to be equal to or less than 2 mm. For this reason, if the distance L is simply made shorter than the length of the overlap portion shown in FIG. 48C, that is, 4 mm, it has been confirmed that, as shown in FIG. 48D, the length of the overlap portion of the junction portion 520 becomes 1 mm, the width W3 is made thicker than the predetermined target width W1 by about 0.5 to 0.6 mm (ΔW=W3−W1=0.5 to 0.6 mm), and thus a defective cell gap easily occurs.
Further, in Patent Document 1, the width of the overlap portion of beginning and termination for forming a seal line is set to be 0.4 to 0.6 times as small as the seal line width. In this method, however, the control of the dispenser is very complex, it takes a long time for drawing, the seal shape tends to be varied due to a variation in the amount of a residual sealant in the dispenser or a variation in viscosity between different lots of the sealant, and management is very difficult.
Further, in Patent Document 2, drawing starts from any portion outside the closed loop-shaped sealing member, and ends at a place outside the closed loop-shaped sealing member which is different from the portion where drawing starts. In this method, however, there is a problem in that a dummy space needs to be provided with respect to an adjacent panel. In addition, in any of the methods of Patent Documents 1 to 3, one member is formed by one drawing operation. Accordingly, there is a problem in that it takes time for the control of the dispenser at the beginning and end of drawing, and the tact extends.
Therefore, the inventors have accomplished the aspects of the invention on the basis of the above description.
An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal device which can realize a uniform cell gap, a liquid crystal device, and an electronic apparatus.

Method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device having rectangular close-shape seal members


A voltage-down converter for providing an output voltage lower than a power supply voltage of the converter is proposed. The converter includes voltage regulation means for obtaining an intermediate voltage corresponding to the output voltage from the power supply voltage by controlling a variable-conductivity element with a control signal resulting from a comparison between the intermediate voltage and a reference voltage, and an output stage for obtaining the output voltage from the power supply voltage by controlling a further variable-conductivity element with the control signal, wherein the further variable-conductivity element has a modular structure with at least one set of multiple basic modules, the converter further including means for enabling and/or disabling the modules of each set in succession according to a comparison between the output voltage and the intermediate voltage.

Nowadays, many semiconductor memory devices are designed for working with low power supply voltages (for example, down to 1.85 V). Considering in particular a non-volatile semiconductor memory device (such as an E2PROM of the flash type), the use of a relatively low power supply voltage permits exploiting technologies based on very thin gate oxide layers, e.g. lower than 50 Å. Accordingly, it is possible to implement semiconductor memory devices that are more compact and exhibit lower power consumption.
However, in a number of applications the memory devices (albeit suitable to work at very low power supply voltages) are required to operate at higher power supply voltages (for example, 3 V or more); for example, this can happen when a memory device of a new generation has to be exploited in a system, e.g. a printed circuit board, of a previous generation (working at a higher power supply voltage).
In order to avoid the necessity to fully redesign all the existing electronic systems in which the memory devices can be used (so as to reduce their power supply voltage), countermeasures are taken by the memory device manufacturers so as to make their products directly exploitable in electronic systems working at a higher power supply voltage (so as to avoid damaging the tiny structures of the memory devices).
A typical solution is that of using dc-dc voltage-down converters for lowering the external power supply voltage to a suitable value. Preferably, the voltage-down converters are embedded in the same chip of semiconductor material wherein the memory device is integrated. Voltage-down converters known in the art consist of a voltage regulator coupled to an internal power supply line, which distributes the down-converted voltage through the chip (so as to provide it to different circuits of the memory device).
An implementation of these known voltage-down converters is based on a driver (for example, implemented with a MOS transistor), which is feedback controlled in a closed-loop configuration. This structure allows maintaining the down-converted voltage to the desired value with high accuracy (thanks to a continuous comparison between the down-converted voltage and a reference voltage).
A problem of such a solution is its stability, which can be impaired by the capacitive loads coupled to the internal power supply line; indeed, these loads can change dynamically according to the operations performed on the memory device (as a result of the enabling/disabling of different circuits thereof).
Another solution known in the art decouples the feedback circuit branch of the voltage regulator from the internal power supply line; this result is achieved by adding a distinct output stage including an additional driver (controlled by the same signal used to control the driver in the feed-back circuit branch). In this case, the operation of the feedback circuit branch is not affected by the loads coupled to the internal power supply line.
However, this open-loop solution does not permit maintaining the down-converted voltage to the desired value when the loads change dynamically (during operation of the memory device).
In any case, any transient phenomena caused by a change of the loads can have relatively long duration (at least of some tens of nanoseconds (ns)). This constraint can be incompatible with the operation of modern memory devices (which typically require current pulses with a length in the order of 50 ns).
An additional problem arises when a ripple of the down-converted voltage must be maintained within a very low range. For example, a typical situation is when this voltage is used to supply a core circuitry of the memory device (which requires a very high accuracy of its power supply voltage).

Voltage down-converter with reduced ripple


A method and a device for operating an internal combustion engine including at least one cylinder are described, the at least one cylinder including at least one intake valve and at least one exhaust valve and a diagnosis of at least one erroneous intake valve or at least one erroneous exhaust valve is made possible without using a position acknowledgment. A gas exchange of the at least one cylinder is diagnosed thereby. For detection of at least one intake valve or exhaust valve for the existence of an erroneous valve position, at least one intake valve or exhaust valve of the at least one cylinder different from at least one intake valve or exhaust valve to be detected is brought into a predefined position, which is selected in such a way that the gas exchange of the at least one cylinder in the case of an erroneous valve position of the at least one intake valve or exhaust valve to be detected differs significantly from the gas exchange of the at least one cylinder for the case of an error-free valve position of the at least one intake valve or exhaust valve to be detected, a value characteristic for the gas exchange of the at least one cylinder being ascertained, this value being expected at the moment for an error-free state of the set valve positions of the at least one intake valve and the at least one exhaust valve of the at least one cylinder, the actual value characteristic for the gas exchange of the at least one cylinder being ascertained and an error in the position of the at least one intake valve or exhaust valve to be detected is recognized as a function of the deviation in the actual value from the expected value.

A method and a device for operating an internal combustion engine having multiple cylinders is discussed in German patent application, which has application number 10 2005 047 446 and which was not published previously, in which the cylinders each include an intake valve and an exhaust valve and a characteristic quantity for a suction performance of a cylinder of the internal combustion engine is ascertained. If the value for the suction performance obtained for the characteristic quantity is compared with a setpoint value, the function of the suction of the cylinder may be diagnosed as a function of the result of the comparison. It is readily possible in this way with the help of the characteristic quantity for the suction performance of the cylinder to check on whether or not the suction of the cylinder is defective. Suction performance is influenced among other things as a function of the phase angle and the lift of the valve lift diagram of the intake valve(s) of the particular cylinder and the imperviousness of the combustion chamber of the particular cylinder, in particular with regard to the intake and exhaust valves and the piston rings.

Method and device for operating an internal combustion engine having at least one cylinder


A charging process method, relating to communication network, is disclosed according to embodiments of the present invention. The method includes receiving a charging request containing a type of a second method when the method for a user equipment to access a packet data network gateway has been changed from a first method to the second method; performing, based on the charging request, charging control over the used service units in a charging mode corresponding to the first method for the user equipment to access the packet data network gateway and reserving service units for the charging session for the second method based on a charging mode corresponding to the second method for the user equipment to access the packet data network gateway. A network system, a packet data network gateway and a charging system are provided according to embodiments of the present invention accordingly. Embodiments of the present invention can be applicable to a charging process in a situation when the method for a user equipment to access the packet data network gateway changes.

Currently, with a further development of the communication network technology, operators are able to provide users with various services. For the service provided by the operators, user equipments (UE) may employ different access methods. Therefore, the operator may adopt different charging modes based on characteristics of different access methods. The charging modes generally include flow-based charging, time-based charging or event-based charging, etc. For instance, in a System Architecture Evolution (SAE) core network, if the UE adopts Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Wireless access Network (E-UTRAN) as an access method, the operator may adopt a flow-based charging mode. If the UE connects via a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), the operator may charge the user with a time-based charging mode.
A conventional charging framework for the SAE architecture may adopt E-UTRAN access method and WLAN access method.
For E-UTRAN access method, collection points for on-line charging are deployed at a Packet Data Network Gateway (PDN GW). The collection points gather from the PDN GW associated charging information about the bearer layer and report the charging information to an Online Charging System (OCS) for charging control, such as fee deduction.
For WLAN access method, the collection points for on-line charging may be deployed at an evolved Packet Data Gateway (ePDG), PDN GW or AAA server (3GPP AAA Server). These collection points gather charging information about the bearer layer associated with the WLAN and report the charging information to the OCS for charging control, such as fee deduction.
During researches and practices regarding the conventional art, it is discovered that according to conventional art, charging in the case of different access techniques is separately controlled in different charging architectures. When the user uses the service, if the access method changes, a current charging session has to be interrupted and switched to another charging architecture for charging control. Therefore, charging continuity in the case of a handover of the access method cannot be achieved.

Charging method and network system thereof, packet data network gateway and charging system thereof