A method includes removing material from a die and thereby changing a location of a cutting edge of the die in a punch entry direction and changing a cutting edge cross-section of the die; and assigning a punch and/or a workpiece thickness to the die based, at least in part, on the change in the cutting edge cross-section of the die.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,401,056 B1 describes the recording of information about punching tools during the lifetime of a tool. A record is made of regrinding operations performed on dies and of a changing size of a height of the die that is associated with regrinding. The recorded tool data are intended, in particular, to enable the tool user to determine when a punching tool needs to be repaired or replaced.
The dies normally used in practice are dies having a die orifice whose wall extends at a so-called "relief angle" with respect to the wall of the punch entering the die orifice. The relief angle is intended to ensure that the material which is punched out can reliably leave the die and that the punch can return to its home position without hindrance following penetration of the workpiece to be processed and following associated entry into the die orifice of the die. To obtain the highest possible process reliability during punching, the relief angle on dies would have to be as large as possible.
Regrinding of dies is typically carried out because of wear to the cutting edge of the die and involves removal of material from the die in the entry direction of the punch. Owing to the relief angle, the removal of material is accompanied by enlargement of the cross-section of the die orifice at the level of the cutting edge of the die ("die cutting edge cross-section"). At the same time, the die cutting edge cross-section is a determining factor for assignment of the die to a punch cooperating therewith ("punch assignment") and/or for the thickness of the workpiece that can be processed by means of the die and the punch assigned thereto ("workpiece thickness assignment"). For example, in the case of a punching tool set comprising a punch of circular cross-section and a die with a die orifice of circular cross-section, ideally a cutting gap of a width dependent on the thickness of the material to be processed remains between the cutting edge of the die and the punch. If, for example, a circular cut-out of 5 mm diameter is to be made in a metal sheet of 2 mm thickness, there is provided for that purpose a punching tool set comprising a round punch with a diameter of 5 mm and a die with a circular die orifice, the cutting edge of which die has a diameter of 5.2 mm.
For individual processing tasks, for example for a specific thickness of metal sheet and for a specific punching diameter, users of punching tools keep a stock of punching tool sets specifically designed for the particular processing task. Regrinding of the die of such a punching tool set, for example because of wear to the cutting edge of the die, is envisaged only on a scale such that the enlargement of the die cutting edge cross-section, which is associated with regrinding of the die, does not result in an unduly wide cutting gap being produced between the cutting edge of the die and the assigned punch.
Owing to the relief angle of the die, however, the die cutting edge cross-section is typically widened, even as a result of a slight regrinding of the die, to a value that should not be exceeded for a given punch if high-quality processing results are to be achieved. In the case of an unduly wide cutting gap, only processing results of an inferior quality would be achievable using the punching tool set. Once the size of the die cutting edge cross-section reaches its limit value, further regrinding is usually abandoned and the die is instead removed from stock and scrapped.


A refrigerator includes an outer cabinet and an inner liner separated by insulation. The liner includes a plurality of walls defining a compartment to receive items to be refrigerated. An electric light is positioned adjacent to a first of the liner walls. A second of the liner walls disposed perpendicular to the first wall has three spaced apart slots positioned closer to the first wall than the light to the first wall. A shield is positioned between the light and the first wall and includes three tabs received in the slots in the second wall. The middle tab has a pair of lateral ears with rest positions angled with respect to the long axis of the corresponding slot. The ears flex as the tab is inserted through the slot and then return to their rest position to overlie the second liner wall. The other tabs also are angled with respect to their slots to firmly engage the second wall when installed. The shield also has oppositely projecting feet extending perpendicular to the shield and positioned adjacent the second wall so that the shield is positively positioned between the light and the first wall.

Modern day refrigerators typically are manufactured using molded plastic liners to form the compartments for storing the items to be refrigerated. Such constructions have numerous advantages. For example the liner can be essentially joint and seam free, enhancing its cleanability. Also such materials are easy to work with and involve relatively little waste. However, one disadvantage is that the liner may be subject to discoloration and damage under the influence of localized heating as from the lamp normally included in such refrigerators to help the user find items in the compartment. It will be understood that it is desirable to place such lamps or lights as close to at least one liner wall as possible in order to minimize the lamp's interference with storage of items in the compartment. Many refrigerators include shields to protect the adjacent wall from the heat of the lamp. Typical shields are relatively complex in shape and require accessories and tools, like screws and screw drivers, to mount them in the refrigerator compartment.

Self mounting refrigerator light heat shield


Counterbalance device (1), in particular for a medical X-ray device, with a drum (2) which is at least partly encapsulated in a housing (12) and is mounted so that it can rotate in the housing on a stationary shaft (11). The drum has an integrated first spring element (7) which applies a bias to the drum, and a first cable (5) which supports a weight (40). The cable is guided in a groove (3) on the drum and can be wound or unwound around the drum. An independent second spring element (8) is connected within the drum in parallel to the first spring element. A second cable is guided in an additional groove (4) on the drum and is connected to the weight. As a result, there is a separate safety device for each spring element and each cable, to prevent the uncontrolled descent of the weight in the event that the spring element and/or the coil breaks or fails.

The invention relates to new and useful improvements in a counterbalance device. More particularly, the invention relates to a counterbalance device for a medical X-ray unit, with a drum which is at least partly encapsulated in a housing. The drum is mounted so that it can rotate in the housing on a stationary shaft and is provided with an integrated first spring element which applies a bias to the drum. The drum is further provided with a cable which supports a weight, which is guided in a groove on the drum, and which can be wound around or unwound from the drum.
Similar counterbalance devices are used in the medical equipment industry, for example, to counterbalance the dead weight of an X-ray emitter located on a telescoping column guided in the ceiling, so that the height of the X-ray unit can be easily and simply adjusted manually or by mechanical means. Such a device is described in DE 43 11 802 A1 and in DE 44 20 192 A1, for example. As a result of the bias applied by a spring element, a force which opposes the weight of the X-ray emitter is applied to a cable, and results in a counterbalancing of the weight of the unit. It thereby becomes possible to move the weight easily by applying only a small amount of force. Such a counterbalance unit must comply with a number of requirements, particularly in terms of safety. The unit should guarantee that, in the event of any failure or malfunction of the device, the weight does not descend in an uncontrolled and undecelerated manner, which could not only damage the portion of the device being supported or the unit which contains this device, but naturally could also injure a patient who might be lying underneath the weight. Such a failure or malfunction could occur due to the spring element as well as the cable. The prior art, however, does not describe a counterbalance device which fully and satisfactorily meets all safety requirements.

Counterbalance device, in particular for a medical x-ray unit, having plural safety devices


On an optical disk medium, a spare area is allocated separately from a recording area. If the recording area includes a defective sector, alternate recording for the defective sector is performed in the spare area. An optical disk drive comprises: a medium information acquisition part which acquires, from the optical disk medium, medium information specific to the medium; and an area size determination part which determines the spare-area size suitable for the medium on the basis of the acquired medium information. The medium information is information about, for example, a media manufacturer, and a media type number. Further, there is provided a table which stores the relationship between the medium information and the optimum size of the spare area.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical disk drive capable of allocating, if a recording area on an optical disk medium includes a defective sector, a spare area for alternate-recording of the defective sector to another area on the medium, and it relates to a method for allocating a spare area on an optical disk medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
If rewritable optical disk media or write-once read-many optical disk media, including CD-R/RW, DVD±R/RW, and DVD-RAM, are each repeatedly used, a defect may occur in part of the optical disk medium. This is a defect caused by damage or a flaw of a medium, adhesion of fingerprints or a stain, aging of a recording film, or the like. Even if data is written to this defective part, the data cannot be successfully read out. It is difficult to prevent such a defect from occurring over the whole disk surface. For this reason, a defect management method is generally adopted. In this method, instead of writing data to a defective sector in which a defect has occurred, alternate recording for the defective sector is performed in a spare area that is allocated on the same optical disk.
At the time of initializing a format of an optical disk, an area having a fixed size (capacity) is usually allocated as the spare area. Because the spare area uses part of a user-data recording area, there is a limit of the size of the spare area that can be allocated. On the other hand, if the spare area is extended, an area to which a user can write data is decreased.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,469,978 discloses the technology for allocating a spare area whose size is variable. In the technology, application allows the size of a spare area to be changed so that the spare area can be properly allocated in response to frequency of accesses by users and the severity of data to be written.

Optical disk drive and method for allocating spare area on optical disk medium


The present invention provides static analysis of speech grammars prior to the speech grammars being deployed in a speech system.

Many modern speech recognition systems use a restrictive language specification, such as a context free grammar (CFG). These grammars are powerful enough to describe most of the structure in spoken language, but also restrictive enough to allow efficient recognition and to constrain the search space.
Such grammars are an integral part of the speech system in that they are closely tied to the underlying technology in the speech system. Therefore, the grammars are a critical factor in determining the quality of service that is delivered by the speech system.
The worldwide web consortium (W3C) has defined an industry standard XML format for speech grammars. Some examples include:

Static analysis to identify defects in grammars


The invention concerns multilayered structures useful for forming capacitors, which may be embedded within printed circuit boards or other microelectronic devices. The multilayered structure comprises a pair of parallel electrically conductive layers separated by a pair of dielectric layers and a central polymerizable layer. Each of the dielectric layers and the central layer may include a filler. Capacitors formed from the multilayered structures of the invention exhibit excellent short circuit resistance as well as excellent void resistance.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to structures suitable for forming capacitors. More particularly, this invention pertains to capacitors embedded within printed circuit boards or other microelectronic devices. The capacitor comprises a pair of parallel electrically conductive foils separated by a pair of coatings of a thermosetting polymer and a central polymerizable layer, each of which preferably contain a filler material. The capacitor exhibits excellent capacitance density and short circuit resistance.
2. Description of the Related Art
A capacitor is a device used for introducing capacitance into a circuit, and functions primarily to store electrical energy, block the flow of direct current, or permit the flow of alternating current. They generally comprise a dielectric material sandwiched between two electrically conductive metal layers, such as copper foils. Such dielectric materials may be coupled to the electrically conductive metal layers via an adhesive layer, by lamination, by coating or by other forms of deposition, e.g. vapor deposition. U.S. Pat. No. 5,155,655 describes one method for forming a capacitor wherein a single sheet of a dielectric material is laminated together with two conductive foils. To optimize the performance of a capacitor, it is important that the dielectric material employed has good material properties exhibiting qualities such as superior adhesion, high dielectric strength and good flexibility.
Capacitors are common elements on printed circuit boards and other microelectronic devices. The capacitor is electrically connected either as a discrete element on the circuit board or may be embedded within the circuit board. Of these options, it has been preferred to form printed circuit boards having embedded capacitors to maximize the surface area of the circuit board for other purposes. The capacitance of a capacitor depends primarily on the shape and size of the capacitor layers and the dielectric constant of the insulating material. There are various known types of dielectric materials known in the art. For example, the dielectric material may be a gas, such as air, a vacuum, a liquid, a solid or a combination thereof. Each material has its own particular properties.
In forming capacitors for use in printed circuit boards, a dielectric material such as a glass reinforced polymer matrix has been used. However, the performance of capacitors of this type has been limited by factors such as the limited minimum thickness of the dielectric material, which detracts from the flexibility of the capacitor and attainable capacitance, the effect of bond enhancers on the metal foils, low dielectric constant and poor dielectric strength. It is desirable to form a capacitor for a circuit board having a high dielectric constant and extremely thin layer or layers of dielectric material, thus increasing the capacitance and flexibility of the capacitor. However, a common problem frequently associated with such extremely thin dielectric layers is the formation of microscopic voids or other structural defects in the layer. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,161,086 provides a capacitor laminate having a single thin sheet of a dielectric material between two sheets of conductive foil. Dielectric layers of this type are highly vulnerable to the formation of voids and are time consuming to detect and remedy.
The present invention provides a capacitor that solves the problems of the prior art. The present invention provides capacitors that comprise a pair of parallel electrically conductive foils separated by a pair of coatings of a thermosetting polymer material, each preferably comprising an epoxy, and a central polymerizable layer. Each of the thermosetting layers and the central polymerizable layer preferably contains a filler material. In forming the capacitors of the invention, a liquid epoxy material is coated onto a surface of each of the conductive foils, followed by coating a central polymerizable layer in liquid form onto at least one of the epoxy coatings. The two coated conductive foils are then laminated together and the central layer is polymerized in-situ. The result is a multilayered structure having excellent properties such as high capacitance density, exceptional integrity and short circuit resistance. By incorporating a filler into at least one of these dielectric layers, the capacitance density of the capacitor may be controlled. Also, thin dielectric layers allow for greater heat conductivity and greater flexibility of the capacitor. The epoxy coatings and the central polymerizable layer further exhibit high resistance to thermal stress and low moisture absorption. Together, these factors offer a significant improvement in performance and cost over prior art capacitors and printed circuit boards.

Thin laminate as embedded capacitance material in printed circuit boards


A V-rod assembly having a V-shaped member with a vertex for attachment to an axle and with first and second extending arms that attach to first and second arm brackets respectively, first and second gussets each with a first plurality of holes for attachment to the first and second arm brackets respectively, and corresponding to a first plurality of holes on a first plate and a second plate respectively, and each arm bracket with a plurality of holes for attachment to a cross member, the first and second plates having a second plurality of holes for attachment to the cross member, wherein the first plurality of holes on the first and second gussets comprise longitudinally extending slots that accommodate relative longitudinal movement of the first plurality of holes on the first and second plates with respect to the second plurality of holes on first and second plates respectively.

The present application generally relates to innovations and improvements in vehicle suspensions. More particularly, the present application relates to a vehicle frame having a V-rod attachment mounted between the drive axle and the vehicle frame.
Vehicle suspensions have used V-rod attachments that include a V-shaped member with a vertex that is typically pivotally mounted to a vehicle axle. The V-shaped member includes two extending arms that are respectively pivotally mounted to oppositely disposed vehicle frame rails. The V-rod attachment is used to stabilize the vehicle axle laterally, as well as in fore and aft directions, while allowing vertical movement of the axle with respect to the vehicle frame rails. The V-rod attachment provides for proper alignment of the axle with respect to the vehicle frame rails, and also prevents the axle from rotating about its axis. The V-rod attachment prevents fore and aft movement during braking and acceleration of the vehicle as well.
A typical V-rod design has the vertex of the V-shaped member pivotally attached to the vehicle axle, and the end of each extending arm is pivotally attached to the frame rail of the vehicle, or to a vehicle cross member that extends transversely between, and is connected to, the vehicle frame rails. Alternatively, the end of each extending arm of the V-shaped member is attached to a bracket that is mounted to the frame rail or cross arm. Typical designs are designed for mounting each end of the extending arms of the V-shaped member to the same location on the cross member and/or frame rail.
However, there are variations in vehicle frame widths, particularly in North America. As a result, a separately sized V-shaped member may be required for each variation in vehicle frame width that may be encountered to allow for proper attachment of the V-shaped member to each of the separate vehicle frame widths that are encountered. Thus, current V-rod attachment assemblies are frame-width dependent. Therefore, there is a need to provide a V-rod attachment assembly that may utilize the same size V-shaped member on vehicle frames having varying widths. In other words, it would be desirable to provide a V-rod attachment assembly that is not frame-width dependent such that the same V-rod attachment assembly may be used on vehicle frames having different widths.
Furthermore, the pinion angle of an axle may be adjusted by changing the effective length of the extending arms of the V-shaped member. Thus, in some circumstances, to accommodate various axle pinion angle requirements, V-shaped members having extending arms of different lengths may be required to provide for the differing axle pinion angle requirements that are required. Alternatively, different brackets attached to the frame rail or cross member or different frame drillings may be required to provide for different axle pinion angles. Even in instances where the lengths of the extending arms of the V-shaped members do not need to be changed, current V-rod attachment designs may use shims positioned between the end of the extending arms and the attachment point of the extending arms to the frame rail or cross member (or bracket fixed thereto) to alter the effective length of the extending arms of the V-shaped member. The use of shims to adjust the axle pinion angle may be difficult to install and also increase the weight of the system. Using shims to provide fine adjustment to the axle pinion angle may therefore increase the amount of labor required for vehicle set up and thus the overall cost of the vehicle, as well as increase the number of components used resulting in an increase in complexity and overall cost.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a V-rod attachment assembly where the pinion angle of the axle could be set without requiring a V-shaped member having extending arms of different increased or decreased length, or requiring a different arm bracket or vehicle frame drillings. In addition, it would also be desirable to provide a V-rod attachment assembly where the axle pinion angle could be adjusted without requiring the use of shims to adjust the axle pinion angle.
Moreover, current V-rod attachment designs use a corner bracket that is mounted to the frame rail to which the end of the each of the extending arms of the V-shaped member is attached. The attachment of the corner bracket directly to the frame rail makes it difficult to pass wires and hoses along the frame rail, as they cannot pass between the corner bracket and the frame rail. Additionally, in the case where the corner bracket is attached to the cross member of the vehicle, such designs may result in overloading of the cross member. Consequently, the corner brackets may be heavy due to the stiffness profile of the components in the load path and the location of the load path in the system.
Therefore, it would be useful to provide a V-rod attachment system that could provide for the ability to pass wires and/or hose along the frame rail, without having the passage blocked with a frame bracket to frame rail connection, and to provide a V-rod attachment that did not overload the cross member or require the use of heavy corner brackets.

V-rod attachment assembly for vehicle suspension


A system and method of automatically assembling voice information and image information into reports or data bases is disclosed. The system uses a microphone connected to a computer for converting spoken words into text and then parses the text to distinguish commands for execution from text information for the report. Commands for image acquisition cause digital images to be inserted within the report or within a database file. Images are associated with text information or with specific locations within the text information. In dependence upon the commands and the associations, a report is automatically generated from pre-recorded information.

There is an increasing need in many industries for rapid and efficient creation of reports by individuals who travel to a site remote from their normal place of work, record information relating to observations and fabricate a report that contains both text and images and is a written document or an electronic file. Information is gathered at the remote site by taking pictures and/or filming, and writing on a piece of paper or dictating to a tape recorder so the information need not be memorised. Industries which require report generation in this manner include construction and building inspection, utility inspectors, field scientists (geologists, biologists, oceanographers) and insurance agents. The motivation for this method of report generation is that the timeliness of the data contained in a report is significant and its collection, collation and dissemination in a report format is critical to its usefulness. It would also be advantageous to increase productivity of inspectors by limiting time spent assembling and entering reports.
The process for generating a report is particularly burdensome when a large number of reports need to be generated on a regular basis or when a large amount of data is collected over an extensive period of time and then collated into a single large report. Furthermore, efficient and timely management of large amounts of information, typically in either a report format or a database, is critical to the financial success of some businesses.
Currently, report preparation requires several labour-intensive and time-consuming steps that involve integration of text or voice narrative and images into a unified report format. The report format may comprise text, recorded voice, still images, or video images. The report is generated in one of several formats in the form of a printed document, a video, a slide show, or a multi-media presentation.
In the past, reports were generated following a method such as those outlined below. The first step in report generation is acquisition of information. Information acquired for use in report generation comprises images (either still or video) and associated prose describing the images and other observations, stored as writing on paper or stored on audio or video tape.
Images are acquired in several ways. A photographic camera records a scene on photographic film, a video camera records audio and visual information on a mass storage device such as magnetic tape, and a digital camera records an image on a digital storage device such as a random access memory. These image capture means are well known to those of skill in the art.
Integration of the images into a report is presently achieved using several different methods each having multiple steps. A very time-inefficient method, which is not necessarily computer-based and which is most applicable when using photographs, is to first develop exposed film into photographs and then manually paste the photographs into appropriate places in a report. This approach is slow, includes many steps that cannot be automated (for example, the film must be removed from the camera and processed, the developed pictures must be manually pasted into the report), and prevents easy retrieval of images by the operator from a computer based archival database short of manually skimming the images--adding yet another step. The increased value added in each step makes the procedure less efficient, less timely, and more expensive--more so when a failure occurs during one of the later steps.
A second method of integrating images into a report comprises the following steps. Exposed film is developed into photographs and the photographs into a digital electronic format with a device such as an optical scanner for input to a computer. Black and white scanners and colour scanners that interface with a computer for the purpose of digitising images are well known. Alternatively, an analogue output of a solid-state or video camera is converted with an analogue-to-digital converter or frame grabber into a digital format of an image for provision to a computer. The use of video image input to computers is well known. One such device, the Connectix.RTM. QuickCam.RTM. is a consumer product that interfaces with a parallel port on an IBM.RTM. PC compatible computer. Digital cameras are also known. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,402,170 to Parulski et al. an example of a hand-manipulated electronic camera coupled with a personal computer is disclosed.
These images are then converted for use with a word-processing application or other report generating software. Alternatively, a user records images onto video tape while observing the images; the user later transfers the images from the video recording to a computer. An operator specifies locations within a report at which the images are to be inserted and pastes the digital images into the report document following the report generating software's instructions.
As with integration of images into a report, integration of textual information into a report is performed using several methods.
According to the prior art, transcription from either hand-written notes or from dictation stored on audio tape is a common technique by which text is provided to a computer. These methods preclude using both hands for performing tasks while making notes. Both methods require that a typist transcribe the information with the inevitable introduction of errors into the transcription. Also, a significant time-delay between a creation of a narrative at an observation site and a time at which a report is finalised occurs.
More recently, speech recognition systems more accurately referred to as speech to text systems have become popular. Currently available systems support vocabularies in excess of 20,000 words and are reliable enough for day to day use. Speech to text hardware and/or software is well known and includes systems such as the IBM Voice Type Dictation System.RTM. (IBM.RTM., New York, N.Y.). Using a speech to text system for entering notes frees up both hands, but does not address the issue of report compilation time or effort as a process of report generation remains a multi-step process.
Once in an electronic format the text and images are integrated together in a report format with software known in the prior art. Examples of such software includes Microsoft Word.RTM., Microsoft Powerpoint.RTM., Interleaf.RTM. and FrameMaker.RTM..
It would be advantageous to reduce a number of steps required to generate a report. It would also be advantageous to generate a report in a single pass.
It would also be advantageous to generate the report while the inspector is in the field without having to return to the office to generate his/her report.
Object of the Invention
In order to overcome these and other limitations of the prior art it is an object of the present invention to provide a system for automatically compiling a report in dependence upon recorded information and commands.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a system for automatically compiling a report in dependence upon recorded information comprising dictation or text and images.
Summary of the Invention
In accordance with the invention there is provided a method of automatically generating a report performed by an electronic system in dependence upon captured information comprising the steps of: providing prose to an information gathering system; storing the prose in retrievable locations for retrieval; capturing sound and/or image data using a capture means to provide a representation of the sound and/or image; storing the representation of the sound and/or image; while providing prose, associating an identifier with a stored representation and a retrievable location; processing the prose to provide information in a predetermined format; inserting, within the processed information, the representation identified by the identifier at a predetermined location in dependence upon the associated retrievable location; and providing the formatted processed information with the inserted representation to an output means.
In accordance with the invention there is provided a method of automatically generating a report performed by an electronic system in dependence upon captured information comprising the steps of: providing recorded information comprising audio recording information and image recording information to a processor; using a speech to text means, processing the audio recording information to extract commands and to extract information; using a processor, formatting the processed information in dependence upon extracted commands; and, providing the formatted processed information to an output means.
In accordance with the invention there is provided a method of automatically generating a report performed by an electronic system in dependence upon captured information comprising the steps of: providing spoken prose to a speech to text means; converting the spoken prose to electronic text prose and storing the electronic text for retrieval, the electronic text prose stored in retrievable locations; providing spoken commands to a speech to text means; converting the spoken commands to electronic commands; in response to an electronic command, capturing sound and/or image data using a capture means and providing a representation of the sound and/or image to a processor; storing the representation of the sound and/or image in non-volatile storage; in response to an electronic command, associating a representation and a retrievable location within the electronic text prose and an identifier; storing the identifier in non-volatile storage means; using a processor, processing the electronic text prose and providing information in a predetermined format; inserting, within the information in a predetermined format, the representation identified by the stored identifier at a predetermined location in dependence upon the associated retrievable location; and storing the formatted processed information with the inserted representation in non-volatile memory.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention there is provided a system for automatically constructing reports comprising: means for providing prose to an information gathering system; means for storing the prose in retrievable locations for retrieval; capture means for capturing sound and/or image data and for providing a representation of the sound and/or image; means for storing the representation of the sound and/or image; means for associating an identifier with a stored representation and a retrievable location while providing prose; processor means for processing the prose to provide information in a predetermined format and for inserting, within the processed information, the representation identified by the identifier at a predetermined location in dependence upon the associated retrievable location; and means for providing the formatted processed information with the inserted representation to an output means.
An advantage of the present invention is that electronic reports are compiled with a single data gathering step and a fully automated report compilation step.
Another advantage of the present invention, is that data gathering and compilation are organised and directed by a same individual at the time the data is gathered.
Another advantage of the present invention is that it alleviates a need for a data gatherer to return to a office to perform report compilation and dissemination.
Another advantage of the present invention is that it supports electronic data transmission, thereby reducing cycle time from data gathering to report generation and provision to an output means.
Yet another advantage of the present invention is that a portable system for report generation and data gathering that is worn by a user frees the user's hands while the user gathers visual and narrative information for a report.
Yet another advantage of the present invention is the use of a method according to the invention for data archiving and indexing.

Report generation system and method for capturing prose, audio, and video by voice command and automatically linking sound and image to formatted text locations


An article packaging kit, system and method which system includes a flat, corrugated, cardboard sheet material having a central horizontal fold line and two vertical fold lines to define a base and two end portions. The system includes a flexible plastic sleeve or tube which loosely fits about a portion of the base of the sheet material in the flat condition. The sheet material moves between a horizontal line folded position when an article to be packaged is inserted within the sleeve and a flat, article hugging, immobilizing position when the end portions are folded upwardly causing the base portion to become flat. The system includes optionally inserting the immobilized article on the folded sheet material into a packaging or shipping container.

There are a wide variety of packaging kit systems and methods for the immobilization and packaging of articles, particularly fragile, odd-shaped articles. The various methods include, but are not limited to, the employment of a corrugated picture frame with a plastic film laminated to it and with two frames closed over the articles to be packaged, and suspending the article between the two frames with the laminated film. Other techniques include foam in place polyurethane, wherein the liquid urethane components are dispensed and foamed up to form a cocoon of urethane formed snugly about the article, which article is protected from the expandable foam by the employment of a separate film. Another technique includes a loose, filled, foldable, foam-type material, such as, but not limited to, expanded polystyrene shapes which are poured above an article to be protected in an outer container, with various interlocking shapes of expandable polystyrene commonly available. A further technique for protecting articles to be packaged include the use of fabricated foam techniques wherein foam is die cut, saw cut, or hot-wired cut to form end caps or trays to contain the article. Such foams would include the polyethylene, polystyrene, or polyurethane foams which are adapted to be in cuts or grooves in particular shapes to protect the article. Also available for the protection of articles are foam or bubble wraps which have flexible foam sheets with a plurality of air-formed bubbles, or foam sheets which are wrapped about an article to be secured by die cut, corrugated cardboard is often used, where the corrugated cardboard is die cut and then folded in a particular shape to form a cap or tray to contain the article to be immobilized and shipped, and further, molded pulp trays or caps are employed which are molded from pulp or from the use of recycled paper.
While all of these packaging kit systems or methods have various advantages, it is desired to provide for a new, easy, effective, recyclable and improved packaging kit, system and method for the immobilization, particularly of fragile odd-shaped articles, and for placing the immobilized article within an outer container, and which kit, system and method overcomes some of the disadvantages of the prior art and further offers new and additional advantages.

Article packaging kit, system and method


The present invention relates to a signal processing method for a radar system. The transmitted signal here includes a polyphase code that is optimized to the desired range/Doppler range and that is repeated periodically over time.

The present invention relates to a method for processing signals in a radar system in which coded signals are transmitted, then received and thereafter evaluated.
In radar systems, semiconductor transmitters and/or active array antennas are employed to an ever increasing degree. These components reduce the high peak power of short transmitted pulses from that which usually occurs in tube instruments. With a lower peak power, a high-duty-cycle operation or a CW operation with intrapulse modulation and the use of a pulse compression method are necessary to ensure the possibility of measuring distances. In such methods, periodic codes are employed to code the transmitted signals, and the associated received signals are evaluated with the aid of cross correlation functions.
It has now been found that, particularly in the evaluation of one or several moving, actually existing targets, seemingly existing targets are created in a disadvantageous manner. The latter are annoying and are produced because of the code and/or correlation function employed.

Signal processing method for a radar system


A method for selectively fetching a piece of reference information that is stored in a storage location with a highest priority that is determined beforehand if plural pieces of reference information that have an identical name exist, wherein plural pieces of reference information are classified and stored in a plurality of different storage locations, is provided according to the present invention, which comprises, generating an index table that indicates a relationship between each name of plural pieces of reference information and a storage location with a highest priority among a plurality of different storage locations for plural pieces of reference information that have a same name, searching for a storage location of a piece of reference information that should be fetched in the index table, and fetching the piece of reference information in a found storage location according to the searching. Apparatus for selectively fetching a piece of reference information is also provided according to the present invention, which comprises a generating portion for generating an index table that indicates a relationship between each name of plural pieces of reference information and a storage location with a highest priority among a plurality of different storage locations for plural pieces of reference information that have a same name, a searching portion for searching for a storage location of a piece of reference information that should be fetched in the index table, and a fetching portion for fetching the piece of reference information at a found storage location according to the search.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods and apparatuses for fetching reference information. More specifically, the present invention relates to methods and apparatuses for fetching, at high speeds, reference information that is classified and stored in a plurality of storage locations according to predetermined priorities.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In a logic simulator, which is one of the design tools for LSI, a plurality of pieces of cell information is stored in a file format in disk storage, each of which describes a logic model of each cell that is a basic element for various circuits, and a simulation is executed while fetching required pieces among the cell information from the disk storage. Each file, which is a unit for reference information and represents each cell, is classified and stored in one of plural data storage locations (directories) in the disk storage. Since a cell information group, which comprises plural pieces of cell information, is usually stored in one directory, plural pieces of cell information that have an identical file name do not exist in more than two directories. However, for example, when a cell information group that is developed for a specific user is managed in a separate directory, or when a part of cell information is changed with regard to internal property data and is then copied to another directory with a same name, plural files of the same name will overlap and exist in two or more different directories.
FIG. 11 shows such an example as described above. There are three directories AA, BB, and CC in disk storage, and plural pieces of cell information, such as AND3, NOT, etc., are stored separately in a file format in these directories AA, BB, and CC. Hereinafter, AND3, OR2, etc., are fetched as cell names. The cell information whose name is OR2, OR3, AND3, or NOT overlaps and exists in plural directories. In this case, for the cell information that simultaneously exists in plural directories with the same cell name, it is necessary beforehand to determine a priority order for each directory that has the same cell information to be fetched in order to prevent duplicate fetching of identical cell information.
For example, in the above-mentioned example, the priority order for the directories is determined as AA>BB>CC, and each cell information should be fetched according to the following access conditions.
Although OR2 exists in AA and BB, OR2 of AA should be accessed. PA0 Although OR3 exists in BB and CC, OR3 of BB should be accessed. PA0 Although AND3 exists in AA and CC, AND3 of AA should be accessed. PA0 Although NOT exists in AA, BB, and CC, NOT of AA should be accessed. PA0 Since OR4 exists only in AA, it should be accessed. PA0 Since AND2 exists only in BB, it should be accessed. PA0 Since AND4 exists only in CC, it should be accessed.
According to conventional methods, a priority table as shown in FIG. 12 should be prepared beforehand in order to realize such access. As shown in FIG. 13, whenever there is an access request (S41), each directory is searched one by one, based on this table (S42-S44), and when the cell information of a target cell name is found, the retrieval of the cell information is terminated (S45-S48).
However, according to such a method, because it is necessary to search, in order, for two or more information storage locations (directories), when there are many cases to refer to and many storage locations, there will be a problem in that the process takes considerable time.
This invention was made in view of such a problem, and it is an object of the present invention to provide methods and apparatuses for fetching information that is classified and stored, which can shorten the time required when a series of fetching operations is carried out.

Method and apparatus for fetching classified and stored information


An application proxy is disclosed for shielding the complexities of invoking a service from a higher level mechanism, such as a process engine. The application proxy comprises a proxy engine and one or more sets of protocol logic. Each set of protocol logic implements a particular protocol that may be used to invoke services on service applications. The protocols implemented by the sets of protocol logic may be standard protocols (e.g. SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol), ebXML, etc.) implemented by many service applications to enable service invocations. In operation, the application proxy receives a message to perform an activity which calls for the invocation of a service. In response to the message, the application proxy obtains the service definition associated with the service. Based upon the service definition, the proxy engine executes an appropriate set of protocol logic. Using the information in the service definition, the protocol logic generates a service invocation in accordance with the protocol that the protocol logic implements. Once generated, the service invocation is sent to the appropriate service application for processing. In this manner, the application proxy properly invokes the service.

Process automation systems are used in many companies to manage the various business processes that are implemented within those companies. A process automation system may be used, for example, to manage an order fulfillment process to ensure that each and every incoming order is properly handled in accordance with a process set forth by the management of the company. Similarly, a process automation system may be used to manage an expense approval process to ensure that, before an expense is incurred, all of the proper approvals have been obtained.
In a typical process automation system, each process that the system manages is defined by a user (e.g. a manager), and comprises one or more activities. An activity represents an action or operation that is to be performed within the process. An activity may require action on the part of a user (e.g. an approval from a manager), or it may be an automated function (e.g. an automated credit check). Each activity is linked to one or more other activities by relationship information. Relationship information may specify an order in which activities are to be performed (e.g. ship an order after the customer has been billed). Relationship information may also specify decision logic for determining whether to perform an activity (e.g. bill a customer for an order only if the credit check returns a positive result; otherwise, refuse the order). Basically, the relationship information defines a flow for the process. Once the activities and relationship information for a process are fully defined, a process engine can use the process definition to automatically implement and manage the process.
As noted above, some of the activities in a process can be automated functions. These automated functions may be functionality provided by components within the automation system, or they may be services provided by service applications external to the system (e.g. service applications residing on servers outside of the company). When the process engine encounters an activity involving an automated function, the process engine causes that automated function to be invoked. In the case of a service provided by an external service application, this invocation can be somewhat complex. This is because different service applications may expect services to be invoked in different ways. For example, one application may expect a particular set of semantics and message formats to be used when invoking a service, while another application may expect a different set of semantics and message formats. That being the case, in order to properly invoke a service, the process engine needs to know specifically how the service application for that service expects the service to be invoked. For a large number of service applications, each with different requirements, this can require a large amount of additional logic to be implemented by the process engine.
To shield the process engine from the complexity of service invocations, some automation systems implement application proxies. With application proxies, a process engine does not invoke the services on the service applications directly. Instead, the process engine causes the application proxy associated with a service to be invoked. It is then up to the application proxy to invoke the service on the service application in the manner expected by the service application. In this way, the application proxy shields the process engine from the complexities of the service application, which in turn, allows the process engine logic to remain generic.
In one implementation, the functionality of an application proxy is achieved through the application of XSL (eXtensible Stylesheet Language) transformation rules. More specifically, when the process engine encounters an activity which calls for the invocation of a service provided by a service application, the process engine sends out an XML (eXtensible Markup Language) state message. This message is received by an application proxy associated with the service, and is processed by the proxy to generate a command list. To generate the command list, the proxy accesses a set of customized XSL rules for the service that is being invoked, and processes the XML state message with the XSL rules to transform the state message into the command list. Assuming the proper XSL rules are applied to the state message, the command list will comprise all of the proper steps and all of the proper semantics and formats for invoking the service. Once the command list is derived, the proxy executes each of the commands on the command list to invoke the service. The service is thus invoked without requiring the process engine to directly interact with the service application.
This approach is effective for shielding the process engine from the complexities of the service invocation process. However, it has a shortcoming in that it requires customized XSL transformation rules to be written for each different service invocation. Because of this requirement, whenever a new service is added, a new set of XSL rules needs to be developed. Whenever an existing service is changed, an existing set of XSL rules need to be amended. This need to constantly update the XSL rules can lead to increased maintenance cost for the process automation system. Also, writing XSL rules is a difficult task. Even for a person familiar with XSL, developing a set of rules that transforms a state message into a proper command list is no simple matter. As a result, a typical end user cannot configure an application proxy to work with a new service. Because of the difficulty and the high cost of developing and maintaining XSL rules, the current approach to implementing application proxies is less than optimal.

Mechanism for facilitating invocation of a service


An automatic meter reading system utilizes repeater technology to access hard to read meters within a fixed network structure. The components of the radio system that are needed for two-way communications are employed without adding significant cost to the meter. Using this approach, each meter in the network has the ability to repeat messages as required.

The reading of electrical energy has historically been accomplished with human meter readers that came on-site to the customers' premises and manually documented the readings. The information extracted from the meters was simple pulse initiator information of basic quantities. (A pulse initiator (PI) is an optical device that picks up the rotations of a disc on an electromechanical meter. The disc rotations, which are proportional to energy use, are converted by the PI into pulses that can be read by computing devices.) Over time, manual meter reading has been enhanced with walk-by or drive-by reading systems that utilize radio communications between the meters and a meter reading device. The information that these walkby and driveby systems collected increased, but still the functions provided by the communication systems were limited. More recently, over the last few years, there has been a concerted effort to accomplish meter reading by installing fixed networks that would allow data to flow from the meter to a host computer system without human intervention.
In general, fixed communication networks can operate using wire line or radio technology. Distribution line carrier systems are wire based and utilize the utility's lines for communications. These systems typically use a single frequency channel and allow the impedance and transfer characteristics of the transformers in the substation to prevent injection equipment in one station from interfering with receivers in another station. This built-in isolation in the network makes time division multiplexing less critical than for radio based metering systems. Further background information regarding AMR (also called network meter reading, or NMR) can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,056,107, Feb. 15, 1990, "Radio Communication Network For Remote Data Generating Stations." Further information regarding the use of a meter having repeating capability in a CEBus network may be found in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/828,539, filed Mar. 31, 1997, "Communications Module Based Repeater".
Radio frequency (RF) technology has recently tended to be the solution of choice due to its higher data rates and independence of the distribution network. RF frequencies approaching a gigahertz can be unlicensed or licensed, but unlicensed systems are significantly restricted in power output. This power restriction coupled with typical RF problems of attenuation, fading, noise and reflections makes some sites in a fixed network very inaccessible to a central node, and thus it can be difficult to achieve two-way performance adequate for the desired functions. These problems are sometimes resolved by manually reading the hard to access sites or by adding a vehicle system to the fixed network system (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,495,239, Feb. 27, 1996, "Method and Apparatus for Communicating with a Plurality of Electrical Metering Devices and a System Control Center with a Mobile Node").

RF repeater for automatic meter reading system


A fixed abrasive three-dimensional plate includes micron size diamond beads or a mixture of abrasive particles and metal oxide beads, ranging in size from a few microns to a few tens of microns, incorporated into a matrix of one or more inorganic binders and fillers. The composition is formed into a rigid plate blank, and the abrasive plate is mounted on a substrate forming a lapping/polishing plate. The abrasive plate is capable of delivering high material removal rates coupled with reduced surface roughness when lapping/polishing advanced materials, including sapphire, titanium carbide reinforced alumina, silicon carbide, gallium nitride, aluminum nitride, zinc selenide, and other compound semiconductor materials, as well as, glass, ceramic, metallic, and composite workpieces. The diamond beads incorporated in the fixed abrasive three-dimensional plate include diamond particles ranging in size from a few nanometers to a few tens of microns, bonded with one or more inorganic binders and additives.

Previously, lapping (rough and fine) and polishing of advanced materials, ceramic, metallic, and composite workpieces was done using a lapping plate in which diamond particles were embedded, in combination with or without loose diamond abrasive slurry.
Industry practice of polishing AlTiC, SiC, GaN, AlN, ZnSe, as well as other similar materials, is by chemical-mechanical planarization (CMP) of the work piece on a pad or rigid plate. In the hard disk drive industry, the steps include rough lap and fine lap/polishing. The rough lap step uses the so-called free/fixed abrasive lapping method. The work piece is brought into contact with a turning plate and a conditioning ring for planarization, while dripping diamond slurry on the plate. The diamond grains embed into the metal turning plate (typically made from zinc, tin or tin-alloy) to form a 2-body system while others roll between the plate and the workpiece in a 3-body system. The use of free and fixed abrasive diamond delivers a higher material removal rate, but high surface roughness. The surface roughness is improved by adding another step of fixed abrasive lapping, where the work piece is brought into contact with a turning plate pre-embedded with diamond grains and lapped with a lubricant vehicle. The lubricant vehicle does not contain aggressive abrasives. The fixed abrasive lapping gives a lower lap rate and better surface finish. While the use of the free and fixed abrasive combination results in improvements in surface finish of the magnetic heads, there are still some disadvantages of handling free diamond slurries with respect to charging efficiency and uniformity. Only about 10% of the diamond in the dripped slurry is embedded into the plate with the rest dripping into the waste collection. Embedded diamond particles are pushed further into the plate as the lapping continues and a few of the diamonds may dislodge and scratch the workpiece. Each round of charged diamond has a limited life before recharging is necessary and very few of the diamond particles are actually charged into the plate.
Alternatively, lapping and polishing may be performed using a diamond abrasive film, consisting of a flexible backing (i.e. PET, Mylar, etc.) coated with a layer of abrasive diamond and binder (i.e. nylon, polyester, epoxy resin, UV curable resin, etc.) which is mounted on a rigid substrate to act as a lapping plate. In U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,458,018; 6,634,929; and 6,722,952 diamond beads were incorporated into abrasive coatings suitable for abrading glass or ceramic work pieces. The abrasive article comprises a structured 3-dimensional coating on a flexible substrate. The structured fixed abrasive coating may be good for rough lapping but not for fine lapping where surface finish is important. The discrete 3-dimensional coating has sharp edges, which contribute to scratching of the work piece. Abrasive pads do not hold good flatness during extended lapping and are known to cause edge rounding of wafers. These abrasive films will need to be replaced frequently due to short run life.
In U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,628,383; 8,888,878; and 8,038,751 diamond beads and aggregates made from abrasive particles and nanoparticle binders were used to form coated abrasive products. The coated abrasive articles produced were tailored for grinding wheels and general-purpose grinding where surface finish is not important. The abrasive aggregates were coated onto a flexible backing to form fixed abrasive pads, which have good stock removal and poor surface finish. When such pads are used to lap wafers, it is hard to maintain good flatness over a long time, and edge rounding will remain a problem.

Fixed abrasive three-dimensional lapping and polishing plate and methods of making and using the same


A semiconductor chip set with double-sided off-chip bonding structure in the disclosure comprises at least one first off-chip bonding structure formed above a first surface of the semiconductor chip set, and at least one second off-chip bonding structure formed above a second surface of the semiconductor chip set, wherein the first surface is opposite to the second surface and each of the first off-chip bonding structure and the second off-chip bonding structure is used for connecting to an electrical connecting point external to the semiconductor chip set through bonding wire, through-silicon via (TSV) or micro bump.

Because of the rapid development of semiconductor manufacturing processes, circuit density in a semiconductor chip is increased, and circuitry contained in and functions provided by the semiconductor chips of a unit silicon area are therefore increased. With respect to a memory chip in terms of this trend, the data storage capacity per unit area of the memory is increased. However, a critical point of this rapid development trend has been reached and the density increment of components per unit area of the semiconductor chip during a unit time period is slowed down. In order to keep a high growth trend, many chip-stacking techniques are being developed and provided. However, the availability of the off-chip bonding points of the chips of a stacked semiconductor chip set is an issue. Moreover, the requirement of a low inductance value and a low capacitance value for the power and signal terminals respectively of each of the stacked semiconductor chips cannot be met at the same time with only the through-silicon via (TSV) of which the capacitance is usually high, or with only the bonding wires of which the inductance is usually high.

Semiconductor chip set with double-sided off-chip bonding structure


A feedforward-type linear power amplifier directly compares amplitude and phase of a signal applied to one input end of a first signal canceler with amplitude and phase of a signal applied to another input end of the first signal canceler, and according to the comparison results, controls a first variable attenuator and a first variable phase shifter disposed in a pre-stage of the first signal canceler so that the first signal canceler extracts only the intermodulation distortion signals generated while a main power amplifier amplifies the RF input signal. Then, the linear power amplifier directly compares amplitude and phase of the intermodulation distortion signal on a main path with amplitude and phase of the intermodulation distortion signal on a sub path, and according thereto, controls a third variable attenuator and a third variable phase shifter to cancel the intermodulation distortion signals contained in the RF output signal of the main power amplifier.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a linear power amplifier, and in particular, to a feedforward-type linear power amplifier and a method for canceling intermodulation distortion signals contained in an amplified RF signal.
2. Description of the Related Art
An RF (Radio Frequency) amplifier used for a communication system includes elements having nonlinear characteristics at high power levels. An output signal amplified by the RF amplifier may include intermodulation distortion signals in the process of amplification due to the nonlinear characteristics of the RF amplifier. Such intermodulation distortion signals cause interference and distortion at an operating frequency range of the RF amplifier.
There are several known methods for controlling a linear power amplifier (LPA) which suppresses such distortion signals: a first known method is a predistortion method for generating an inverse distortion signal to apply it to an input end of the amplifier; a second known method is a negative feedback method for negatively feeding back the distortion signals together with the its output signal to an input end to suppress the distortion signals; and a third known method is a feedforward method for extracting the distortion signals and inverting phase of the distortion signals to cancel the distortion signals. The feedforward-type linear power amplifier is widely used in a base station of a satellite or mobile communication system. Though the feedforward-type linear power amplifier has an improved efficiency in suppressing the distortion signals compared to the other types of the linear power amplifiers, it requires a large capacity and is complex in structure, thereby causing increased power loss.
FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a general feedforward-type linear power amplifier, in which the amplifier extracts only intermodulation distortion signals from the output thereof and combines the intermodulation distortion signals with the output signals in opposite phase, thereby improving a C/I (Carrier to Intermodulation) ratio.
Referring to FIG. 1, a power divider 111 divides the RF input signal, and outputs the divided RF signals through a main path and a sub path. The power divider 111 may include a directional coupler. A main power amplifier 112 amplifies the divided RF signal received from the power divider 111 via the main path. A second delay line 121 receives the RF signal output from the main power amplifier 112 to delay the RF signal for an error amplification time.
A first delay line 114 delays the divided RF signal on the sub path, while the main power amplifier 112 amplifies the divided RF signal on the main path. A first variable attenuator 115 attenuates a magnitude of the RF signal on the sub path received through the first delay line 114. A first variable phase shifter 116 receives an output of the first variable attenuator 115, to control phase of the attenuated RF signal.
A power divider 113 is connected to an output end of the main power amplifier 112 to divide the output of the main power amplifier 112. The power divider 113 may include a directional coupler. A signal canceler 117 cancels the non-amplified RF signal on the sub path from the amplified RF signal output of the main power amplifier 112, so as to detect only the intermodulation signals generated during amplification of the RF signal.
A second variable attenuator 118 receives the intermodulation signals detected by the first signal canceler 117 to control a magnitude of the intermodulation signals. A second variable phase shifter 119 receives the intermodulation signals from the second variable attenuator 118 to control phase of the intermodulation signals. An error amplifier 120 amplifies the intermodulation signals from the second variable phase shifter 119. A power combiner 122 combines an output of the error amplifier 120 with an output of the second delay line 121. The power combiner 122 may include a directional coupler.
FIGS. 2A through 2E illustrate characteristics of signals generated at each part of the linear power amplifier of FIG. 1 in a case where two tones are applied thereto. Specifically, FIG. 2A shows the RF input signal, FIG. 2B the RF signal amplified by the main power amplifier 112, FIG. 2C the intermodulation signal extracted by canceling the RF input signal of FIG. 2A from the amplified RF signal of FIG. 2B, FIG. 2D the amplitude-controlled signals having an opposite phase to that of the intermodulation signals of FIG. 2C, and FIG. 2E a final output signal with the intermodulation signal being suppressed by combining the RF signal of FIG. 2B with the extracted intermodulation signal of FIG. 2D.
Referring to FIGS. 1 through 2E, operation of the feedforward-type linear power amplifier will be described hereinbelow. The RF input signal is divided by the power divider 111 and applied to a node NA of the main path and a node NA' of the sub path. Here, the divided RF signals have the same magnitude and phase, as shown in FIG. 2A. The input signal on the main path is amplified by the main power amplifier 112. The output signal of the main power amplifier 112 includes the intermodulation distortion signals with the amplified RF signals, as shown in FIG. 2B. The signal canceler 117 cancels the RF input signal of FIG. 2A from the signal of FIG. 2B, to detect the intermodulation signals as shown in FIG. 2C.
The variable attenuator 118 attenuates the intermodulation distortion signals from the signal canceler 117 so as to make the output signal levels coincide with the intermodulation distortion signals amplified by the main power amplifier 112. The variable phase shifter 119 inverts the intermodulation signals by 180.degree.. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 2D, the intermodulation signals generated from the variable phase shifter 119 have an opposite phase to the intermodulation signals contained in the output of the main power amplifier 112. The error amplifier 120 amplifies the intermodulation signals of FIG. 2D, and the second delay line 121 delays the amplified signal of FIG. 2B on the main path, so that the delayed signal and the output of the error amplifier 120 reach the power combiner 122 concurrently. The power combiner 122 combines the intermodulation signals contained in the amplified signal of FIG. 2B from the second delay line 121 with the inverted intermodulation signals of FIG. 2D to cancel the intermodulation signals, thereby generating the final output signal as shown in FIG. 2E.
An output level of the RF amplifier for use in a base station of a mobile communication system or a personal communication system (PCS) varies, as a subscriber uses the system. With the variation of the output level, the input signal level applied to the RF amplifier is also varied, which results in a change of the characteristics of the intermodulation distortion signals generated from the RF amplifier. Accordingly, the variable attenuators 115 and 118, and the variable phase shifters 116 and 119 connected to the input and output ends of the signal canceler 117 should be continuously readjusted to optimize the linear characteristics. Furthermore, though the input level of the RF amplifier is maintained at a constant level, the output characteristic is changed according to the operational condition of the RF amplifier. Therefore, the variable attenuators 115 and 118 and the variable phase shifters 116 and 119 should be continuously readjusted to optimize the linear characteristics.
A conventional method for controlling the variable attenuators 115 and 118 and the variable phase shifters 115 and 119 is to apply a pilot tone to a pre-stage of the power divider 111 and input/output ends of the RF amplifier to detect the pilot tone at the output ends of the signal canceler 117 and the power combiner 122. However, in the case of using such a pilot tone, the RF amplifier has a decreased output power and needs various supplemental devices. Thus, the RF amplifier becomes complex in structure, and cannot control the attenuation and phase of the signal in real time.
Furthermore, in the case of using a digital signal processor, it is possible to extract, search and analyze the input signal and intermodulation distortion signals at the input end of the power divider 111, the output ends of the signal canceler 117 and the power combiner 122, and according to the analysis, control the variable attenuators 115 and 118 and the variable phase shifters 116 and 119. However, in this case, since the RF amplifier also needs various additional devices, the system becomes complex in structure and cannot control the variable attenuators 115 and 118 and the variable phase shifters 116 and 119 in real time.

Linear power amplifier and method for canceling intermodulation distortion signals


Systems, apparatuses, and methods are described for zeroization of a computing device based on biometric information and vitality information. A computing device may store information associated with a user. The computing device may request biometric information and vitality information from one or more sensing devices. The computing device may determine, based on the requested biometric information and the requested vitality information, whether to zeroize the computing device.

A user device may be configured to allow a user to manually trigger zeroization of the user device when the user device is at risk of being compromised. The zeroization of the user device may cause the deletion of information stored on the user device, and may prevent the information from being accessed by unintended entities. If the user of the user device does not have a chance to manually trigger the zeroization of the user device, the information stored on the user device may be subject to access by unintended entities.

Science Applications International Corporation


A driving device for a parking brake system includes a casing shift member, a brake cable and a driving member. The casing shift member includes a cable casing. The brake cable is mounted through the cable casing. The driving member has a driving unit connected to and driving the casing shift member to perform a longitudinal motion. Thus the cable casing applies a force on the brake cable so as to perform a brake work. Because the brake cable is tightened with the force provided by the cable casing, the brake cable is only bent slightly. Thus the curvature of the brake cable is small. That prevents the brake cable from being damaged and prolongs a life span of the brake cable. Moreover, a mechanical efficiency of the driving device is improved because the brake cable is tightened with the force provided by the cable casing.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a parking brake system, and more particularly to a driving device for a parking brake system that is durable and efficient.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional mechanical parking brake system (i.e. hand brake) comprises a lever in a car. When a driver pulls the lever for parking a car, brake mechanisms of the car are actuated to prevent the car from moving. However, due to the lever of the conventional mechanical parking brake system occupies a space in the car it does not conform to an electronic trend of a modern automobile industry.
A conventional electronic parking brake system uses electronic controllers to control the driving device of the parking brake system, so users can use a button or the like to replace a lever for controlling the parking brake system. Conventional driving devices of an electronic parking brake system can be classed with a single cable type and a dual cable type according to the numbers of the brake cables. Like the US Publication No. US20060231352 disclosed a "Electronic Drive of a Parking Brake" and U.S. Pat. No. 6,533,082 patent disclosed a "Electric Parking Brake". Both are classed with the dual cable type. Nevertheless, the dual cable type driving device primarily has disadvantages as follows:
1. It has multiple connecting interfaces that increase manufacturing costs and assembling difficulty.
2. It must have a balancer inside.
A conventional driving device of the single cable type like US Publication No. US2007131494 disclosed a "Parking brake comprising a cable traction device". The patent mainly comprises two deflection rollers. The deflection rollers are arranged in such a manner that a connection line between rotational axis of the deflection rollers can be rotated with respect to a main driving axis line. Therefore, a brake cable can be tightened with an essentially equal force in opposite directions.
However, the conventional driving device of the single cable type has some problems needed to overcome, comprising that the brake cable is tightened regularly when the brake cable is substantially bent with two reversal deflections. Therefore, the brake cable is damaged easily and a life span of the brake cable is shortened. Additionally, because the brake cable is substantially bent, a mechanical efficiency is lowered.
To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention provides a driving device for a parking brake system to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems.

Driving device for a parking brake system


There is disclosed a resin composition from which a molded article excellent in scratch resistance and mechanical properties, low in gloss and low in shrinkage anisotropy can be obtained. Specifically, disclosed is a resin composition comprising 40% by weight to 90% by weight of a propylene polymeric material (A) containing 50% by weight or more of structural units derived from propylene, 9% by weight to 30% by weight of wollastonite (B), and 1% by weight to 30% by weight of an elastomer (C) where the combined amount of (A), (B) and (C) is taken as 100% by weight, wherein the wollastonite (B) satisfies specific requirements.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a resin composition containing prescribed ingredients.
2. Background Art
Molded articles made of propylene resin compositions are used as parts of automobiles or household electric appliances because they are excellent in mechanical properties such as impact resistance and scratch resistance.
For example, in JP-A No. 2011-256247, there is disclosed improvement in scratch resistance of a molded article made of a propylene resin composition comprising a propylene polymer, an ethylene-α-olefin random copolymer having a specific melt flow rate, a non-fibrous inorganic filler and a fibrous inorganic filler.
JP-A No. 2002-3692 discloses improvement of the scratch resistance of a molded article made of a propylene resin composition comprising a specific propylene-based block copolymer, a specific polyethylene, and a fatty acid amide.
JP-A No. 2008-19347 discloses improvement of the low-temperature impact resistance and the glossiness of a molded article made of a propylene resin composition comprising a specific propylene resin and two ethylene-α-olefin copolymer rubbers having specific densities and melt flow rates.
However, any molded articles made of the propylene resin compositions disclosed in these patent documents had room for improvement with respect to scratch resistance, mechanical properties, low gloss, and shrinkage anisotropy, which causes warping deformation.


Crosslinked silicone foams are provided that can be substantially free of chemical blowing agents or byproducts thereof. These foams can be prepared from polymerizable silicone compositions that include an MQ-water cluster including a silicate MQ resin and a quantity of water dispersed in the silicate MQ resin and a silicone fluid, wherein the MQ-water cluster and silicone fluid collectively provide a inverted emulsion having a continuous and a discontinuous phase, the continuous phase including the silicone fluid and the discontinuous phase including the MQ-water cluster. The foams can be made by dispersing water into a silicate MQ resin to provide an MQ-water cluster; dispersing the stabilized MQ-water cluster into a silicone fluid to obtain an inverted silicone emulsion having the MQ-water cluster as a discontinuous phase and the silicone fluid as a continuous phase; foaming the silicone emulsion by evolving the water in the MQ-water cluster to provide a cellular structure; and polymerizing the silicone emulsion.

Silicones are synthetic polymers based on chains or networks of alternating silicon and oxygen atoms. Also called polymerized siloxanes or polysiloxanes, silicones have the general chemical formula [R2SiO]n, where R is an organic group such as methyl, ethyl, or phenyl. Chemically, these materials have an inorganic silicon-oxygen backbone ( . . . —Si—O—Si—O—Si—O— . . . ) with organic side groups attached to the silicon atoms. Silicones are generally known for their uses as electrical insulators, waterproofing agents, rubbers and resins.
Foams may have either an open-celled or closed-celled microstructure. Open-cell foams have voids that generally intersect one another, forming paths that percolate through the material. These foams tend to be soft and compressible compared to closed cell foams. Open-cell foams are also generally lower density than closed cell foams and are somewhat less expensive, since less material is needed per unit volume. Closed cell foams, on the other hand, use isolated voids that do not communicate with each other. As such, these foams tend to be stronger and resist compression. Moreover, gases and fluids cannot penetrate through closed cell foams, making closed cell foams useful in certain insulation applications where absorption of water would not be desirable.
Various methods can be used to prepare foamed polymers. Some involve use of a physical or chemical blowing agent. Physical blowing agents are generally volatile liquids that can be used to create voids in a matrix, thereby producing a cellular (or foamed) material. Common physical blowing agents include chlorofluorocarbons, hydrochlorofluorocarbons, hydrocarbons and liquid carbon dioxide. Chemical blowing agents expand the foam using one or more chemical reactions that produce a gas. An exemplary chemical blowing agent is powdered titanium hydride, which can be used to make metallic foams by decomposing into titanium and hydrogen gas at elevated temperatures. Other foaming methods have also been reduced to practice, including mechanical frothing, extraction of soluble fillers, and use of hollow sphere and/or porous particles.
Silicone materials in general have low thermal conductivity, low chemical reactivity, low toxicity, good oxidation stability and good thermal stability (i.e. their properties do not significantly change over a wide temperature range). These properties make them particularly useful in thermo-acoustic, electrical insulation, and sealing applications that demand high temperature resistance, low smoke generation, and/or high biocompatibility. These include, for example, medical applications and transportation applications in aircraft, ships, and railway systems. Silicone foams also offer potential cost savings based on their reduced material cost when compared with solid silicone elastomers.

Silicone compositions and related methods


A semiconductor chip SC includes an electrode pad PAD. A Cu pillar PIL is formed on the electrode pad PAD. In addition, an interconnect substrate INT includes a connection terminal TER. The connection terminal TER contains Cu. For example, the connection terminal TER is formed of Cu, and is formed, for example, in a land shape. However, the connection terminal TER may not be formed in a land shape. The Cu pillar PIL and the connection terminal TER are connected to each other through a solder layer SOL. The solder layer SOL contains Sn. A Ni layer NIL is formed on either the Cu pillar PIL or the connection terminal TER. The minimum value L of the thickness of the solder layer SOL is equal to or less than 20 μm.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device, and relates to, for example, a semiconductor device in which a semiconductor chip is connected to an interconnect substrate in a flip-chip manner and a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device.
2. Related Art
There is flip-chip connection in one of the mounting types of a semiconductor chip. The flip-chip connection is a type in which an active surface of a semiconductor chip is caused to face an interconnect substrate, and then an electrode pad of the semiconductor chip and a terminal of the interconnect substrate are connected to each other through a solder. In recent years, in order to cope with the miniaturization of an electrode pad, a structure has been developed in which a Cu pillar is formed on the electrode pad, and the Cu pillar and the electrode pad are connected to each other by a solder. Here, as a solder, a Sn-based solder in which Pb is not used has been employed.
On the other hand, W. H. WU, and Three Others, "The influence of Current Direction on the Cu—Ni Cross-Interaction in Cu/Sn/Ni Diffusion Couples", Journal of ELECTRONIC MATERIALS, Vol. 38, NO. 12, 2009 shows a result of examining electromigration when Sn is disposed between Cu and Ni. In this document, it is known that the distance between Cu and Ni is approximately 60 to 80 μm when seen from a photograph. In this condition, the formation of a void in Sn due to electromigration is reported.
When the Cu pillar is provided on the electrode pad, Cu diffuses from the Cu pillar to the Sn-based solder due to electromigration. When Cu diffuses to the Sn-based solder, an alloy Cu and Sn is formed, which leads to the formation of a void in the solder. When a void is formed in a solder, there is a high possibility of the solder being severed. Other problems and new features will be obvious from the description and the accompanying drawings of the present specification.

Semiconductor device and method of manufacturing semiconductor device


A pressure regulator is provided for adjusting a pressure in a hydraulic flow, which pressure can be at least partially regulated using a solenoid. The solenoid can adjust a position of a driver that comprises a solenoid armature, a solenoid armature rod, and a delimiting part. The solenoid armature can be arranged around a solenoid armature rod and can be axially displaceable inside a solenoid chamber in a housing. The solenoid armature rod can have one or more holes that fluidly interconnect a first chamber to a solenoid chamber of the regulator. The delimiting part can be arranged around the solenoid armature rod adjacent to the housing and be configured such that clearances between the delimiting part, the solenoid armature rod, and the housing enable a certain radial movement between the driver and the housing.

1. Field of the Inventions
The inventions relate to an electrically controlled pressure regulator, which comprises an actuator in the form of a solenoid primarily intended to determine the pressure in a damping medium flow between the damping chambers of a shock absorber.
2. Description of the Related Art
A known design within the field of the inventions is described by patent SE531108 of the Applicant, in which the closing actuating force of a pilot stage in a shock absorber valve is determined by the force from an electrically controlled solenoid.
In this patent application, a valve/pressure regulator is described in the form of a pilot-controlled two-stage valve, intended to control a damping medium flow between the two damping chambers of a hydraulic shock absorber. The shock absorber valve comprises a valve housing having at least one main valve with a movable valve part in the form of a main cone disposed between a main valve spring arrangement and a seat, as well as a pilot valve comprising a pilot slide. The main cone delimits a pilot chamber in the valve housing, in which the valve main spring and the pilot slide are disposed. The characteristics of the shock absorber valve are primarily controlled by the pressure build-up in the pilot chamber that is adjusted by the position of the pilot slide in the pilot chamber. The position is determined by the force balance between the spring force of a pilot spring and the counter actuating force from an electrically controlled solenoid, but also by the feedback pressure opening force created by the pressure in the pilot chamber. Energization of the solenoid adjusts the position of a driver or a solenoid armature having a solenoid armature rod disposed inside a solenoid chamber in the solenoid. The solenoid chamber is pressurized by virtue of the fact that a longitudinal and a transverse hole run in the solenoid armature rod and connect the pilot chamber to the solenoid chamber. As a result of different diameters of the upper and lower part of the pilot slide, a certain damping of the movement of the pilot slide is created.
The pressurization of the solenoid chamber causes damping medium to flow through the solenoid that thus can become more sensitive to dirt. Precise tolerances between the solenoid armature rod and the valve housing are therefore required to enable dirt insensitivity to be attained. Precise tolerances can lead to high production costs and a certain undesirable friction.

Pressure regulator comprising an actuator