Disclosed herein is a process for producing acicular magnetic iron oxide particles comprising the steps of: mixing an aqueous dispersion of acicular magnetic iron oxide particles with an aqueous solution of a Co salt and an alkaline aqueous solution, or an aqueous solution of a Co salt, an aqueous solution of an Fe(II) salt and and an alkaline aqueous solution; and heat-treating the alkaline suspension solution obtained at 50.degree. to 100.degree. C.; wherein an Sr salt, a Ba salt or an Sr salt and a Ba salt is added to one selected from the group consisting of said aqueous dispersion of acicular magnetic iron oxide particles, said aqueous solution of a Co salt, said aqueous solution of an Fe(II) salt, said alkaline aqueous solution and said alkaline suspension solution before heat-treatment, and at least one selected from the group consisting of Si compound, Al compound, Zn compound and Mg compound is added to one selected from the group consisting of said aqueous dispersion of acicular magnetic iron oxide particles, said aqueous solution of a Co salt, said aqueous solution of an Fe(II) salt, said alkaline aqueous solution, said alkaline suspension solution before heat-treatment and said alkaline suspension solution during heat-treatment.

The present invention relates to a process for producing acicular magnetic iron oxide particles for magnetic recording which have a high coercive force and an excellent erasing characteristic.
With progressing miniaturization and weight-reduction of magnetic recording and reproducing apparatuses in recent years, the necessity for a recording medium having a higher performance such as a magnetic tape and a magnetic disk has been increasing more and more. In other words, a magnetic recording medium is required to have a higher recording density.
In order to improve the recording density of a magnetic recording medium, the particles of the magnetic material of the magnetic recording medium must have as high a coercive force as possible. This fact is described in, for example, Reports of Technical Researches of the Institute of Electronics and Communication Engineers of Japan, MR77-36 (1987), p. 37, "In order to improve the recording density of a magnetic tape, it is necessary to enhance the coercive force of the magnetic powder which is used for the tape".
As acicular magnetic iron oxide particles having a high coercive force, (1) Co-doped acicular magnetic iron oxide particles and (2) Co-coated acicular magnetic iron oxide particles are conventionally known. The coercive force of these acicular iron oxide particles have a tendency of enhancing with the increase of the Co content. The Co-doped particles (1) are obtained by adding a Co salt to the formulation reaction system of the acicular goethite particles before the reaction, thereby obtaining Co-containing acicular goethite particles, and reducing the Co-containing acicular goethite particles to obtain Co-doped acicular magnetite particles or further oxidizing the thus-obtained magnetite particles to obtain Co-doped acicular maghemite particles. The Co-coated particles (2) are obtained by reducing the acicular goethite particles to obtain acicular magnetite particles or further oxidizing the thus-obtained acicular magnetite particles to obtain acicular maghemite particles, and modifying the surface of the acicular magnetite particles or acicular maghemite particles as precursor particles, thereby obtaining acicular magnetite particles or acicular maghemite particles coated with Co or Co and Fe(II).
Since a magnetic recording medium is repeatedly used for a long time for recording and erasing, it is required to have an excellent erasing characteristic.
In order to satisfy this demand against a magnetic recording medium, it is necessary that the magnetic iron oxide particles used for the magnetic recording medium have an excellent erasing characteristic.
Japanese Patent Publication Nos. 60-51242 (1985) and 60-51243 (1985) and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (KOKAI) No. 61-111508, for example, describe a method of improving various properties of Co-coated acicular magnetic iron oxide particles by adding an Sr salt or a Ba salt together with a Co salt at coating the magnetic iron oxide particle with Co. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (KOKAI) Nos. 55-72007 (1980), 59-50504 (1984), 59-159502 (1984), 60-165703 (1985), 1-219025 (1989) and 1-290534 (1989), for example, describe a method of improving various properties of Co-coated acicular magnetic iron oxide particles by adding at least one selected from the group consisting of Si compound, Al compound, Zn compound, Mg compound and Ca compound together with a Co salt at coating the magnetic iron oxide particle with Co.
As described above, acicular magnetic iron oxide particles having a high coercive force and an excellent erasing characteristic are in the strongest demand at present. Though the above-described Co-doped acicular magnetic iron oxide particles have a high coercive force, the coercive force distribution enlarges due to the diffusion of Co in crystals, etc., resulting in the deterioration in the erasing characteristic.
This phenomenon is described in the said Reports of Technical Researches of the Institute of Electronics and Communication Engineers of Japan, "Co-solid solution (doped) magnetic iron oxide powder suffers from a serious defect in that since the coercive force thereof is apt to change with heat and passage of time, when a tape is produced by using the magnetic powder, the thus-obtained tape is inferior in print through and erasing characteristic. This defect is considered to be caused by the fact that Co ions move in crystals even at room temperature."
In contrast, the said Co-coated acicular magnetic iron oxide particles have not only a high coercive force but also a superior erasing characteristic as compared to that of Co-doped magnetic iron oxide particles. This phenomenon is described in the said Reports of Technical Researches of the Institute of Electronics and Communication Engineers of Japan, " . . . In the Co-epitaxial (Co-coated) magnetic iron oxide powder, since it has a double structure, these defects are solved. The Co-epitaxial magnetic iron powder is stable thermally independance to change with time, and the tape produced by using the magnetic powder has excellent print through and erasing characteristic . . . "
However, there is no end to the demand for the improvement of the erasing characteristic, and it is pointed out that the said Co-coated acicular magnetic iron oxide particles cannot be said to have a satisfactory erasing characteristic, since the coercive force distribution thereof still enlarges.
This fact is described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (KOKAI) No. 61-17426 (1986), " . . . It has been found that in the above-described magnetic powder using the .gamma.-Fe.sub.2 O.sub.3 particles, the coercive force distribution has a tendency of enlarging as the .gamma.-Fe.sub.2 O.sub.3 particles become smaller, and a tendency of further enlarging if these particles are coated with cobalt. . . . If the above-described Co-coated .gamma.-Fe.sub.2 O.sub.3 particles are made smaller in order to realize high-density recording, although a predetermined coercive force (Hc) is obtained, the magnetic powder is deteriorated in the coercive force distribution and is inferior in the erasing characteristic. . . . "
The coercive force distribution of Co-coated acicular magnetic iron oxide particles has a tendency of enlarging with the increase of the Co content, resulting in the deterioration in the erasing characteristic. That is, there is a reverse correlation between the improvement of the coercive force distribution and the improvement of the coercive force.
Accordingly, it is a technical problem of the present invention to improve the erasing characteristic while maintaining the coercive force of Co-coated acicular magnetic iron oxide particles.
As a result of the present inventors' ernest study, it has been found that in a process for producing acicular magnetic iron oxide particles comprising heat-treating at 50.degree. to 100.degree. C., an alkaline suspension solution which is obtained by mixing an aqueous dispersion of acicular magnetic iron oxide particles, an aqueous solution of a Co salt and an alkaline aqueous solution or by mixing an aqueous dispersion of acicular magnetic iron oxide particles, an aqueous solution of a Co salt, an aqueous solution of an Fe(II) salt and an alkaline aqueous solution so as to coat (modify) the acicular magnetic iron oxide particles with Co or Co and Fe(II), by adding an Sr salt and/or a Ba salt to one selected from the group consisting of the aqueous dispersion of acicular magnetic iron oxide particles, the aqueous solution of a Co salt, the aqueous solution of an Fe(II) salt, the alkaline aqueous solution and the alkaline suspension solution before heat-treatment, and adding at least one selected from the group consisting of Si compound, Al compound, Zn compound and Mg compound to one selected from the group consisting of the aqueous dispersion of acicular magnetic iron oxide particles, the aqueous solution of a Co salt, the aqueous solution of an Fe(II) salt, the alkaline aqueous solution, the alkaline suspension solution before heat-treatment and the alkaline suspension solution during heat-treatment, the said technical problems have been solved. The present invention has been attained on the basis of this finding.


A base film-forming composition includes a compound including a group capable of reacting with Si—OH or Si—H, and a solvent. The base film-forming composition is for forming a base film provided between a layer including a silicon atom and a directed self-assembling film in a directed self-assembly lithography process. The receding contact angle of the base film for pure water is no less than 70° and no greater than 90°. The compound is preferably represented by formula (1). In the formula (1), A represents a linking group having a valency of (m+n); D represents a monovalent organic group having at least 10 carbon atoms; E represents the group capable of reacting with Si—OH or Si—H; and m and n are each independently an integer of 1 to 200.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a base film-forming composition, and a directed self-assembly lithography method.
Discussion of the Background
Miniaturization of various types of electronic device structures such as semiconductor devices and liquid crystal devices has been accompanied by demands for miniaturization of patterns in lithography processes. At present, although fine resist patterns having a line width of about 90 nm can be formed using, for example, an ArF excimer laser, further finer pattern formation is required.
To meet the demands described above, a self-assembly lithography process in which a phase separation structure by directed self-assembly, as generally referred to, is utilized that spontaneously forms an ordered pattern has been proposed. As such a directed self-assembly lithography process, a method for forming an ultrafine pattern by directed self-assembly has been known in which a block copolymer is used which is obtained by copolymerizing a monomer compound having one property with a monomer compound having a property that is distinct from the one property (see Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, Publication No. 2008-149447, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application (Translation of PCT Application), Publication No. 2002-519728, and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, Publication No. 2003-218383). According to this method, annealing of a film containing the block copolymer results in a tendency of clustering of polymer structures having the same property, and thus a pattern can be formed in a self-aligning manner. In addition, a method of forming a fine pattern by permitting directed self-assembling by using a composition that contains a plurality of polymers having properties that are different from one another has been also known (see US Patent Application, Publication No. 2009/0214823, and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, Publication No. 2010-58403).
In such a directed self-assembly lithography process, it has been known that a phase separation through the aforementioned directed self-assembling may efficiently occur by providing on other layer, a film containing a component such as a polymer to be subjected to directed self-assembling. The layer has been diversely investigated, and it would be reportedly possible to form a variety of phase separation structures by appropriately controlling the surface free energy of the layer when directed self-assembling is allowed by using the block copolymer (Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, Publication No. 2008-36491 and see Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, Publication No. 2012-174984).

Base film-forming composition, and directed self-assembly lithography method


A method and apparatus for reconstructing an image of an object using a three dimensional (3D) computerized tomographic (CT) imager having a cone beam radiation source and detector arrangement for acquiring measurement data. The source and detector arrangement is operated at a plurality of source positions along a spiral scan path so as to acquire a corresponding plurality of sets of measurement data representative of radiation attenuation caused by the object. Image reconstruction processing information required for processing of the acquired measurement data in a Radon space partitioned by plurality of vertically oriented coaxial .phi.-planes for reconstructing the image, is pre-calculated and stored in a hitlist. The stored information is pre-calculated on less that all of the .phi.-planes, but due to a symmetry that is induced in the reconstruction processing, the stored information can be used for calculating Radon data for all of the .phi.-planes that partition the Radon space. The size of the hitlist is thus reduced by a factor equal to the number of .phi.-planes for which the stored information is re-used, e.g., 360 for 1/2 degree .phi.-plane spacing and storage of reconstruction processing information for a single .phi.-plane.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to computed tomographic (CT) imaging apparatus that performs three-dimensional (3D) image reconstruction by processing cone beam measurement data representative of an object, and more specifically, to a way of greatly reducing the size of a "hitlist" used to store pre-calculated information used in the reconstruction processing.
2. Description of the Background Art
Recently a system employing cone beam geometry has been developed for three-dimensional (3D) computed tomographic (CT) imaging that includes a cone beam x-ray source and a 2D area detector. An object to be imaged is scanned, preferably over a 360.degree. angular range and along its length, by any one of various methods: i.e., by rotating the x-ray source in a scan path about the object while the object is being translated, by rotating and translating the source while the object remains stationary, or by rotating the object while one of the source or object is translated. These scanning techniques are all equivalent in that the position of the area detector is fixed relative to the source, and relative rotational and translational movement between the source and object provides the scanning (irradiation of the object by radiation energy). The cone beam approach for 3D CT has the potential to achieve 3D imaging in both medical and industrial applications with improved speed, as well as improved dose utilization when compared with conventional 3D CT apparatus (i.e., a stack of slices approach obtained using parallel or fan beam x-rays).
As a result of the relative movement of the cone beam source to a plurality of source positions (i.e., "views") along the scan path, the detector acquires a corresponding plurality of sets of cone beam projected measurement data (referred to hereinafter as measurement data), each set of measurement data being representative of x-ray attenuation caused by the object at a respective one of the source positions. After acquisition, the measurement data is processed for reconstructing a 3D image of the object.
As compared with the processing required for reconstructing an image when using an x-ray source supplying parallel or fan beams, the processing of the measurement data acquired when using a cone beam source is computationally much more complex. This is because when using a parallel or fan beam source, the measurement data is already directly representative of a 2D Radon transform of a cross-section of the object. However, this is not the case when using a cone beam source. Processing of the measurement data acquired using a cone beam source comprises:
1) conversion of the measurement data to Radon derivative data. This may be accomplished using the techniques described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,257,183 entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CONVERTING CONE BEAM X-RAY PROJECTION DATA TO PLANAR INTEGRAL AND RECONSTRUCTING A THREE-DIMENSIONAL COMPUTERIZED TOMOGRAPHY (CT) IMAGE OF AN OBJECT issued Oct. 26, 1993, hereby incorporated by reference, PA1 2) conversion of the Radon derivative data to Radon data at polar grid points using, for example, the technique described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,446,776 entitled TOMOGRAPHY WITH GENERATION OF RADON DATA ON POLAR GRID POINTS issued Aug. 8, 1995, also hereby incorporated by reference, and PA1 3) performing an inverse 3D Radon transformation of the Radon data using known techniques, such as those described in detail in the forenoted U.S. Pat. No. 5,257,183 for reconstructing image data that, when applied to a display, provides a view of the 3D CT image of the object.
Although the theory for exactly reconstructing an image using cone beam measurement data is generally known, such as from the US patents noted above, a practical implementation of the processing turns out to be quite problematic. Not only is the amount of measurement data to be processed very large and rapidly acquired in accordance with a timing that is mainly determined by the geometry of the scan path, but the calculations required on the acquired data are quite complex. For example, if one decides to reconstruct an object with 200.times.200.times.200=8.multidot.10.sup.6 voxels (voxel=volume element of the object), for good quality one needs to obtain the object's 3-D Radon transform with a multiple amount (e.g., 4) of Radon samples, i.e., 32.multidot.10.sup.6 samples, and then perform the Radon inversion. The most computationally expensive part of the object reconstruction is the calculation of the Radon derivative data (step 1 noted above). As noted in the above U.S. patents, as well as in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 5,463,666 entitled HELICAL AND CIRCLE SCAN REGION OF INTEREST COMPUTERIZED TOMOGRAPHY issued Oct. 31, 1995, hereby incorporated by reference, for calculating the value of the Radon data at a given Radon sample point, it is typically necessary to process the measurement data acquired from several source positions, with the measurement data from each source position developing a contribution to the final value for that sample point by way of data combination. Thus one needs to calculate about 100.multidot.10.sup.6 line integral derivatives. Each line integral derivative requires the calculation of 200.multidot.10.sup.6 single line integrals, since one uses the difference between two closely spaced line integrals to calculate a single line integral derivative. However, before one can perform these line integral derivative calculations, one has to compute for each Radon sample which source positions will provide the measurement data that must be processed, and determine the lines on the measurement data along which the integration must be performed. These latter determinations involve highly nonlinear calculations and are therefore computationally costly. In order to compute the contributing source positions, one has to intersect the source scanning path with the Radon integration plane as explained in the forenoted U.S. Pat. No. 5,463,666. When using a spiral scan path, this requires the solution of transcendental equations, which are computationally expensive. Furthermore, in addition to determining the lines on the measurement data along which the integration must be performed, one also has to calculate the appropriate end points of those lines for data combination purposes and region-of-interest masking. The complexity of these above-noted calculations leads to severe bottlenecks in processing of the measurement data, so as to prevent rapid and efficient image reconstruction.
In U.S. patent application 97E7969 application Ser. No. 08/940,924 entitled A PRE-CALCULATED HITLIST FOR REDUCING RUN-TIME PROCESSING OF AN EXACT CONE BEAM RECONSTRUCTION ALGORITHM, filed contemporaneously herewith, a method and apparatus is described in which before operation of a cone beam imaging apparatus for acquiring and processing of measurement data to reconstruct an image of an object, information required for processing of the acquired measurement data is pre-calculated and stored. The pre-calculated information is then used during the imaging operation of the cone beam apparatus for processing of the acquired measurement data to reconstruct an image of the object. The pre-calculated image reconstruction information is organized into what is referred to as a "hitlist". In general, the hitlist contains processing information that is determined primarily by geometric parameters of the imaging apparatus that are already predetermined during its imaging operation, such as the pitch and other parameters of the source/detector scan path, the object dimensions, the detector resolution, and a desired sampling of the scan path and the Radon space. The hitlist includes processing information indicating the correspondence between points in Radon space and the source positions that contribute thereto, parameters that define the line integrals that need to be calculated in the measurement data acquired at each of the source positions, as well as other information useful for image reconstruction processing.
Although calculation of the hitlist information is computationally expensive, since the information in the hitlist must be calculated anyway in order to process each set of the acquired measurement data during imaging operation of the apparatus, its pre-calculation provides a very significant speed-up of the run-time (image) processing of the measurement data and results in a greatly improved efficiency in the implementation of the image reconstruction algorithm. However, as described in more detail in the forenoted 97E7969 U.S. patent application, since hitlist information is required for each of the many points in Radon space that define the objects region of support, the size of the hitlist is actually quite large. For example, as previously noted, approximately 100.times.10.sup.6 line integral derivative calculation are required. If the image reconstruction processing information stored in the hitlist comprises 24 bytes to describe the processing for determining each line integral, then 2.4 Gbytes of memory is required.
For practical reasons it would be desirable to reduce the memory requirement of the hitlist.

Reduction of hitlist size in spiral cone beam CT by use of local radon origins


An information classifying device calculates, for a plurality of populations containing pieces of sample information, evaluation distance between a center of gravity of the pieces of sample information belonging to each population and a piece of sample information as an object of classification (object sample), calculates statistical information such as mean, variance and standard deviation of the evaluation distance for each population, evaluates the evaluation distance of the sample information to the population based on the evaluation distance and the statistical information and evaluates degree of assignment relevancy of the object sample to the population, determines to which population the object sample is to be assigned in accordance with the degree of assignment relevancy, and assigns the object sample to the population. Evaluation distance between the center of gravity of each updated population and the object sample belonging to each population is calculated. If the degree of assignment relevancy to every population is out of a prescribed range, a new population is formed, and the object sample is assigned to the new population. Thus, autonomous and stable classification of object sample to a population becomes possible.

As methods of classifying or recognizing pieces of information, generally, a method in which matrix information groups are subjected to orthogonal decomposition to find an optimal solution using a plurality of matrix information groups, Baum-Welch algorithm as a method of likelihood estimation, or an algorithm for mathematically calculating an optimal solution such as minimum error classification, has been used.
Further, a method has been known in which a neural network is corrected such that Mahalanobis distance is maintained at an arbitrary, constant distance, when an optimal value of an intermediate layer in the neural network is to be calculated (see, for example, Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2003-76976 (hereinafter referred to as "Patent Document 1").
As a method of vector quantization, a method referred to as K-means has been known, in which an arbitrary center of gravity is applied to a population and recursive classification is continued until the center of gravity reaches an optimal position.
Patent Document 1 discloses a method of optimizing boundary conditions by maintaining Mahalanobis distance constant.
Further, as a method of dividing mixture distribution, expectation maximization, referred to as EM algorithm, has been known in which local solutions are continuously changed to find a local optimal solution in inductive manner, based on frequency distribution of sample appearance and likelihood distribution.
As another method of dividing mixture distribution, a method referred to as support vector machine has been known. According to this method, a non-linear map of a population is transformed to a space of different dimension using an arbitrary function, to determine boundary condition and boundary width.
According to an article "An Estimation of Data Distribution with a Neural Network Model Based on Bayesian Estimation", Fukashi KOJYO and Hiroshi WAKUYA, material of Technical Society of Measurement, Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan, October 2003, IM-03-55, pp. 13-18 (hereinafter referred to as Non-Patent Document 1), evaluation for estimating mean and variance as well as standard deviation of a population is performed in accordance with Bayes method, by evaluating whether each sample position is within a specific range of standard deviation or not from the center of gravity of the entire population. Further, "Analysis of Cepstral Features of Japanese Spontaneous Speech Using Mahalanobis Distance", Masanobu NAKAMURA, Koji IWANO and Sadaoki FURUI, paper of 2005 Spring Meeting of The Acoustical Society of Japan, March 2005, vol. 1, 2-1-14, pp. 231-232 (hereinafter referred to as Non-Patent Document 2) describes high accuracy of phoneme evaluation using Mahalanobis distance.
Methods involving division of mixture distribution and vector quantization as described above have been generally used.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2003-76976
Non-Patent Document 1: "An Estimation of Data Distribution with a Neural Network Model Based on Bayesian Estimation", Fukashi KOJYO and Hiroshi WAKUYA, material of Technical Society of Measurement, Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan, October 2003, IM-03-55, pp. 13-18.
Non-Patent Document 2: "Analysis of Cepstral Features of Japanese Spontaneous Speech Using Mahalanobis Distance", Masanobu NAKAMURA, Koji IWANO and Sadaoki FURUI, paper of 2005 Spring Meeting of The Acoustical Society of Japan, March 2005, vol. 1, 2-1-14, pp. 231-232.

Information classifying device, information classifying method, information classifying program, information classifying system


A gathering and picking device comprising a picking gap, which is used to separate fruits from plants standing on a field. The gathering and picking device is provided with a first feed element operating at a first feeding speed and a second feed element operating at a second feeding speed. Both feed elements are located adjacent to the input region of the picking gap. The second feed element is arranged above the first feed element. Both feed elements cooperate to convey the plants into the picking gap. The second feeding speed is higher than the first feeding speed to slope the plants rearward as they engage the feeding elements.

Pickers are used in agricultural harvesting to separate the fruits of plants from the other parts of the plants. Such pickers generally have two picking rolls, between which the plant stem is pulled in. Occasionally only one picking roll is used, which cooperates with a fixed wall. The picking roll or rolls pull the plants through a picking gap, whose dimensions are narrower than the fruit. Because of this, the fruit, for example, a corn cob, is separated from the rest of the plant and can be processed separately.
In the corn picker disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,571,865 A, plant stems are gathered by a chain conveyor having carriers which draw the stems into and through the picking gap. A feed auger is arranged on the side of the picking gap opposite and above the chain conveyor. The feed auger is the first moving part of the picker that comes in contact with the corn stems. Its purpose is to convey the stems uniformly to the site at which the stems come in contact with rotating blades acting as picking rolls. The feed auger also ends at roughly this site. U.S. Pat. No. 4,377,062 A discloses a corn picker in which a feed auger is arranged above the picking rolls. It conveys plant stems into and through the picking gap. It also transports the picked fruits away. On the side of the picking gap opposite from the feed auger, a lower gathering wheel is located at the inlet beneath the picking gap. An upper gathering wheel is arranged coaxially to the lower gathering wheel above the feed auger. The gathering wheels are used to convey the plants into the picking gap.
A corn harvester attachment device for a self-propelled harvesting machine is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,119,443. The device mows the plants standing on a field, independently of the row, and picks the corn cobs from the plants. The device comprises a rotating conveying disc provided with recesses and a rotating blade located beneath the conveying disc. The plants are fed to conventional picking units mounted downstream of the mower. Clean-out disks or tips of picking rolls that extend into the rolling circle of the mower are provided in order to remove the plants being processed from the mower and introduce them to the picking unit. The separated cobs of the plants are transported through two chain conveyors arranged above the picking gap. A drawback here is considered to be the fact that the transfer of ripe, soft stems into the picking unit can be problematical. In the U.S. published patent application Ser. No. 2002/0014064, a gathering and picking device for picking of stem-like plants is described in which the plants are brought into a picking gap by a gathering element rotating around a roughly vertical axis. At the inlet of the picking gap, two feed elements are provided in the form of feed augers, one of which is arranged above the picking gap and the other beneath it. The two feeders are arranged on the side of the picking gap opposite the gathering element and have the same feed speeds. The upper gathering element prevents especially ripened, soft plants from kinking at the input to the picking gap, at which they are deflected rearward at a relatively acute angle. Owing to the same feed speeds of the two feeders, the plant remains in a vertical position.


A wiring board comprises a patterned wiring formed of electrically conductive resin composed primarily of silver and embedded into a substrate in a manner that a surface thereof is exposed above the substrate, and a covering conductor formed primarily of carbon covering the surface of the patterned wiring. The wiring board of this structure is superior in resistance to moisture absorption and water, prevents silver migration attributable to the moisture, and reduces contact resistance in the connection between a terminal portion of the wiring board and an external apparatus.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wiring board comprising a patterned wiring formed of conductive resin mainly composed of silver on a substrate. The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing the wiring board.
2. Background Art
A wiring board hitherto known has a patterned wiring composed of silver paste formed on a substrate by using a printing method such as screen printing. However, the patterned wiring formed of silver paste has a drawback that silver in the patterned wiring migrates and a resistance of a wiring conductor changes when it is wet with absorption of moisture or adhesion of water, or when there is an electric field. This is because the silver is prone to migrate as compared with other electrically conductive metals although it is an excellent conductive metal having low electrical resistance. For this reason, there have been heretofore proposed numerous ideas to prevent the silver migration. Since electrodes of a terminal portion need to be exposed for connection of the wiring board with an external apparatus, silver migration tends to occur especially in the terminal portion. Prevention of the migration is therefore desired strongly for the terminal portion.
In the case of using ordinary paste made of conductive resin containing silver particles, a finished patterned wiring has a considerably asperate surface after the paste is printed and hardened. It therefore has a problem that contact resistance can not be made small in a structure in which the wiring board is connected to an external apparatus through mechanical contact of the terminal portion.
A structure shown in FIG. 8 is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication, No. 2000-307207, as an example of a wiring board structure contrived to prevent silver migration. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a terminal configuration of a conventional wiring board for connection with an external apparatus. Each of terminal portions 200 comprises silver paste layer 220 made of silver paste printed on a surface of plastic film 210, and carbon paste layer 230 made of carbon paste printed thereon. A portion of plastic film 210 is cut off between terminal portions 200 to facilitate the connection. In addition, protective film 240 is formed on top of carbon paste layer 230 in an area other than terminal portions 200. Accordingly, silver migration due to moisture absorption or adhesion of water is prevented by this double-layered structure in which silver paste layer 220 is covered with lamination of carbon paste layer 230 which is not likely to migrate easily.
There is also a method of reducing contact resistance in the connecting portion such as the method disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication, No. S58-134496, for example. That is, a surface of a patterned wiring formed of silver paste printed on a substrate such as a plastic film is smoothed by means of rolling or buffing to increase a contact area and decrease the contact resistance.
However, in the case of this double-layered structure in which the carbon paste layer is formed on the silver paste layer, side surfaces of the silver paste layer are not covered with the carbon paste layer. Because the silver paste layer is exposed at the side surfaces, this structure is unable to positively prevent the silver migration from the side surfaces. This structure also has an additional problem that formation of the patterned wiring of fine pitches is practically inhibitive, since the narrower a distance between conductors of the patterned wiring the more intense it becomes in the strength of the electrical field, which promotes the silver to migrate. Besides, the above publication does not make any reference to use of carbon paste for smoothing out asperities in a surface of the silver paste layer.
The conventional method of smoothing the surface of the silver paste layer by using a roller and the like is effective for reduction of contact resistance in the connection between the terminal portion of the patterned wiring and an external apparatus. However, it also has a problem that it is unable to prevent a failure caused by the silver migration because it is not provided with any measures to protect against the silver migration.

Wiring board and method of manufacturing the same

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


Systems (100) and methods (300) for efficient video analysis. The methods involve: automatically identifying features of at least one feature class which are contained in a first video stream; simultaneously generating a plurality of first video chips (904) using first video data defining the first video stream; displaying an array comprising the first video chips within a graphical user interface window; and concurrently playing the first video chips. Each of the first video chips comprises a segment of the first video stream which includes at least one identified feature.

1. Statement of the Technical Field
The invention concerns computing systems. More particularly, the invention concerns computing systems and methods for efficient video analysis.
2. Description of the Related Art
The large amount of video surveillance data collected and maintained today requires increasingly efficient methods for analysis. There are many challenges to the analysis of video which are imposed by it's usage as a forensic tool across military applications, law enforcement applications and commercial applications. For example, video analysis is used in unmanned mission applications, critical transportation surveillance applications, energy infrastructure surveillance applications, online geospatial video portal applications, medical applications and industrial production applications. These applications share a common need for efficient analysis of video data which may or may not exist within a geospatial context.
Some traditional approaches for video analysis involve manual video play-back and/or frame-by-frame analysis. One can readily appreciate that techniques employing manual video play-back and frame-by-frame analysis are ad-hoc, time consuming and expensive. Other traditional approaches for video analysis involve comparing the content of two or more video streams. This comparison is achieved by toggling between different video streams or by viewing different video streams that are presented in a side by side manner. Such comparison techniques are time consuming and subject to human error as a result of operator fatigue.

Systems and methods for efficient video analysis


A float-responsive valve includes a valve actuator that is selectively responsive to operation of a float to move from a first position to a second position in which the valve actuator holds the valve element in its open position. When the valve actuator is in the second position thereof, fluid pressure that would otherwise tend to force the valve element toward its seat is essentially incapable of closing the valve element. Preferably, a force vector applied through a flapper-type valve actuator forms an essentially nonnegative, more preferably generally collinear, angle with a bisector line passing through a pivot axis of the valve actuator and a primary contact point between the valve actuator and the flapper.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to valves and, more particularly, relates to a valve that is openable by a float and that remains open against closing forces generated by fluid flow through the valve. The invention additionally relates to a brine valve having these characteristics, a water softener incorporating a brine valve having these characteristics, and/or a method of operating a valve having these characteristics.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Float-responsive valves are used in a variety of applications in which a float-responsive valve actuator holds a valve element of the valve in its open position against closing forces imposed on the valve element by fluid flowing through the valve. One example, but by no means the only possible example, is a so-called "brine valve" of a water softener. Water softeners are widely used for removing calcium and other deposit-causing materials from so-called "hard water." The typical water softener relies on an ion exchange process taking place in an ion-exchange resin bed stored in a resin tank of the water softener. As the water to be processed passes through the resin-filled tank, ions of calcium and other minerals in the water are exchanged with ions found in the resin, e.g., sodium or potassium, thereby removing objectionable ions from the water and exchanging them for less objectionable ions from the resin.
The capacity of the resin to exchange ions or otherwise treat the water is finite and is reduced during the ion exchange process. If measures are not taken to regenerate the resin by replacing the undesirable ions with desirable ions, the ion exchange capacity of the resin will become exhausted. Water softeners are typically configured to periodically regenerate the ion exchange resin stored in the resin tank. Regeneration typically involves chemically replacing the objectionable ions such as calcium ions from the resin with less objectionable ions such as sodium ions. This replacement is typically performed by introducing a regenerant solution of sodium chloride or potassium chloride into the resin bed from a brine tank and thereafter flushing the spent regenerant solution from the bed. The solution is formed during a "fill" phase of the regeneration cycle by directing fresh water into the brine tank from a control valve on the resin tank, where the water contacts and dissolves the salt or the like from a regenerating agent in the tank to form the solution. Regneration of the ion exchange resin takes place during and following a "draw" phase of the regeneration cycle when the solution is transferred from the brine tank, through the control valve, and into the resin tank.
Fluid flow between the control valve and the brine tank of a typical water softener is controlled by a brine valve located in the brine tank and capable of selectively shutting off a flow passage through which fluid flows to and from the brine tank. The brine valve typically is located at the top of a vertical tube or "riser" in the brine tank and is coupled to a float that rises and falls with liquid levels in the brine tank. The typical brine valve includes a poppet, flapper or other valve element that selectively (1) seals against a seat to prevent flow through the valve and (2) moves away from the seat to permit flow through the valve. The valve element can be opened either by downward movement of the float or by suction forces within the riser. For example, during the draw phase of the regeneration cycle, liquid is drawn upwardly through the riser under suction force to force the valve element open and draw liquid from the bottom of the brine tank, through the valve, and to the resin tank. Conversely, during the fill phase, a valve actuator holds the valve element in its open position, and fluid flows downwardly through the valve to fill the brine tank to the desired level. If the liquid rises to sufficient height to lift the float to its raised position, the float moves the valve actuator to a position closing the valve. (In some situations, the float acts directly on a poppet without a valve actuator.) Flow-fill systems without timed refill or with relatively inaccurate timers rely on closure of the brine valve to determine the level of liquid in the brine tank. The brine valve functions as a primary shut-off valve in this type of system. A "timed brine" system relies at least in part on a timer to terminate the fill cycle. Fluid is supplied to the tank at a known flow rate, and the timer is set to shut off fluid flow simultaneously with the liquid level reaching the desired fill volume. Systems with relatively accurate timers will typically set the raised position of the float above the desired fluid level, in which case the timer is relied upon for primary shut-off and the fill phase usually terminates before the brine valve closes. The float responsive brine valve functions as a "safety float" or secondary shut-off valve in this type of system. In both types of systems, a float responsive valve actuator maintains the brine valve in its open position during the fill phase. It also closes the valve element at the end of a fill phase when the brine valve serves as a shut-off.
Fluid often flows into the brine valve from above very turbulently during the fill phase. The rapidly flowing turbulent fluid, often entraining a substantial volume of air, can impose relatively strong closing forces on top of the valve element. If these forces are strong enough, they can drive the valve actuator to prematurely lift the float, thereby forcing the valve element against the seat and preventing the flow of fluid into the brine tank. As a result, the fill cycle may end without the fluid level in the brine tank achieving its desired level. This is known as a "short fill" condition, which results in a "short salt" condition in the subsequent draw phase because insufficient solution is present in the tank to provide full ion exchange with the resin in the resin tank. Water softener performance therefore degrades.
The above problem can be avoided, at least to a large extent, by oversizing the float so it is exceedingly heavy and, therefore, is relatively insensitive to forces imposed on it by the valve actuator through the transmission of closing forces through the flapper. However, the heavier float still may be susceptible to premature brine valve closure during periods of unusually high velocity or unusually turbulent fluid flow through the brine valve during the fill phase.
The "short fill" problem can also be reduced by placing a diverter structure such as a baffle or cage above the valve element to reduce the impact forces imposed on the valve element by the incoming fluid stream. However, such diverters are only partially effective and may hinder valve operation during the draw phase of the regeneration cycle.
The need has additionally arisen to provide a float-responsive brine valve that is usable, e.g., in a water softener and that is relatively immune to closing forces imposed on the valve element of the valve by fluid flowing through it.

Float-responsive valve with premature closure prevention


A method of depositing a film on a substrate, comprising placing the substrate in the presence of plasma energy, and contacting the substrate with a reactive gas component comprising a compound of the formula (Rxe2x80x94NH)4xe2x88x92nSiXn, wherein R is an alkyl group, n is 1, 2, or 3, and X is selected from hydrogen or the halogens. The reactive gas composition may further comprise an oxidizer and/or a reducing agent.

This invention relates to processes and materials for the formation of films on semiconductor substrates, and in particular to chemical vapor deposition processes and materials for the formation of such films.
The manufacture of semiconductor devices often requires the deposition of thin dielectric films upon semiconductor wafers. The most commonly used process is chemical vapor deposition (CVD), using silane, disilane, or tetraethyl orthosilicate precursors for the formation of silicon-based films. Precursors for silicon nitride films in particular include tertiary amines, mixtures of dichlorosilane with ammonia, mixtures of silane with ammonia, and mixtures of diethylsilane with ammonia. Oxynitrides can be obtained by addition of nitrous or nitric oxide. These methods suffer from various drawbacks, such as high hydrogen content in the deposited films, use of chlorosilane precursors (which results in the formation and deposition of ammonium chloride), and use of pyrophoric gases. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,874,368 and 5,976,991 to Laxman et al. disclose a process for the low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) of silicon dioxide or silicon nitride films using bis(tert-butylamino) silane. However, LPCVD is disadvantageous in that it generally requires high furnace temperatures exceeding 500xc2x0 C. Higher furnace temperatures can be incompatible with other steps of the semiconductor manufacturing process such as middle and back end of line (MOL and BEOL) processing.
Alternatives to LPCVD include plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) and high density plasma chemical vapor deposition (HDPCVD), both of which may be executed at temperatures less than about 500xc2x0 C. With silane precursors, however, these processes can result in less than complete sidewall and/or bottom step coverage, particularly for high aspect ratio gap fill applications. There accordingly remains a need in the art for improved chemical vapor deposition precursors and processes for silicon nitride and oxide films that operate at lower temperature and that provide films with improved properties and improved coverage.
A method for depositing a silicon nitride or oxynitride film on a semiconductor substrate comprises placing the substrate in the presence of plasma energy, and contacting the substrate with a reactive gas composition comprising nitrogen-containing compounds of the formula (Rxe2x80x94NH)2SiX2. The temperature of the substrate may be maintained at less than about 500xc2x0 C.
An alternative preferred embodiment comprises placing a semiconductor substrate in the presence of high density plasma energy; and contacting the substrate with a reactive component comprising bis(tert-butylamino)silane and other optional reactants, optionally at a substrate temperature of less than about 450xc2x0 C. The method results in higher-quality films that are compatible with lower temperature processing requirements.

Methods and materials for depositing films on semiconductor substrates

International Business Machines Corporation


A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device includes forming a semiconductor layer containing a semiconductor material having a first oxide-generating Gibbs free energy required to become an oxide; forming a first material for a gate insulator on the semiconductor layer, said first material containing an element having a second oxide-generating Gibbs free energy required to become an oxide and becoming insulative when the element is oxidized or nitrided; and annealing the first material in an atmosphere containing hydrogen atoms, or heavy hydrogen atoms, and oxygen atoms in a temperature range where the first oxide-generating Gibbs free energy is equal to or higher than the second oxide-generating Gibbs free energy.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and a manufacturing method thereof.
2. Background Art
Along with microminiaturization of semiconductor integrated circuits, MIS semiconductor elements are getting more and more miniaturized. ITRS (International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors), 2003 Edition, predicts that EOT (Equivalent Physical Oxide Thickness) of gate insulators will be reduced to 0.7 nm or less in 2010 or later. To prevent leak current while employing so thin gate insulators thinned to this level, the use of highly dielectric metal insulators (High-k films) such as ZrO2 and HfO2 will be indispensable.
High-k films have many vacancies, for which oxygen atoms diffuse fast. Therefore, if a High-k film is formed as a gate insulator on a silicon substrate, SiOx will be produced along the interface between the silicon substrate and the gate insulator. In addition, when a gate electrode of polysilicon is formed on the gate insulator, SiOx will be produced along the interface between the gate insulator and the gate electrode. SiOx increases EOT and invites crystalline defects.
To cope with this problem, there is a proposal to use a MIS structure including a germanium substrate thermodynamically weaker in chemical reaction with High-k films than silicon and a metal as the gate electrode (see C.O. Chui et al., IEEE Electron Device Letter, 23, 473(2002)).
Although germanium is thermodynamically less reactive with High-k films than silicon, it forms a GeO2 layer, which is low in thermal stability and low in dielectric constant, along the interface between such a High-k film and the germanium substrate. The GeO2 layer invites an increase of EOT (see D. Chi et al., 3. Appl. Phys., 96, 813(2004)). Furthermore, easy-to-oxidize metals undesirably react with High-k films. Oxygen atoms from the High-k film diffuse into an easy-to-oxidize metal. Therefore, if a metal is used as the gate electrode, a metal oxide layer is formed along the interface between the High-k film and the gate electrode. When oxygen atoms diffuse from the High-k film, vacancies in the High-k film increase. This results in increasing the leak current and degrading the reliability.
Here is a need for a semiconductor device having a gate insulator suppressed in thermal reaction with a semiconductor layer and in thermal reaction with a gate electrode, thereby reduced in leak current and EOT.

Semiconductor device and manufacturing method thereof


A product and a method for manufacturing the product include a metallic basic body with at least one longitudinal duct disposed therein and with a number of transverse ducts branching off from the longitudinal duct. A covering layer lies on the outside of the basic body. The covering layer serves as a protective or adhesive layer. An enrichment layer covers walls of the longitudinal duct and of the transverse ducts and parts of the covering layer. A ceramic heat-insulating layer can also be provided on the outside.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a product with a metallic basic body, at least one longitudinal duct located inside the basic body and a number of transverse ducts branching off from the longitudinal duct and each having an associated outlet orifice in the basic body. The invention relates, moreover, to a method for manufacturing such a product. At the same time, the invention relates particularly to such a product which is constructed as a gas turbine component, especially as a blade.
In the case of stationary gas turbines (with previously conventional material temperatures of approximately 950.degree. C.) and gas turbines in aircraft engines (with previously conventional inlet temperatures of approximately 1100.degree. C.), an increase in inlet temperature has been achieved by the use of specially developed alloys as basic materials for parts subjected to high thermal load, such as guide blades, moving blades, heat-shield elements and the like. Metal temperatures of well above 1000.degree. C. can now be employed particularly as a result of the use of monocrystalline superalloys. The thermodynamic efficiency of a gas turbine can thereby be increased.
In addition to thermomechanical stresses, the components of gas turbines are also exposed to chemical attacks, for example by flue gases at temperatures of up to and above 1300.degree. C. In order to provide sufficient resistance to such attacks, such a component is covered with a metallic protective layer. The protective layer must also have sufficiently good mechanical properties. Particularly in view of the mechanical interaction between the protective layer and the basic material of the component, the protective layer should be sufficiently ductile to be capable of matching possible deformations of the basic material. It should also be as unsusceptible to cracking as possible, as a prevention from being laid bare, along with subsequent corrosion and oxidation of the basic material.
Metallic protective layers for metallic components, especially for components of gas turbines, which are used for increasing resistance to corrosion and/or to oxidation, are known in a wide diversity in the prior art. One class of alloys for protective layers is known by the collective term "MCrAlY alloys", with M standing for at least one of the elements from the group including iron (Fe), cobalt (Co) and nickel (Ni), and further essential constituents being chromium (Cr), aluminum (Al) and yttrium (Y).
A protective layer composed of an MCrAlY alloy, which improves the corrosion and oxidation properties of a product within a surface temperature range of 600 to 1150.degree. C., is described in Published European Patent Application 0 412 397 A1. The protective layer has a fraction of 1-20% rhenium in addition to 22-60% chromium, 0-15% aluminum, 0.3-2% yttrium or 0.3-2% of another element from the rare-earth group. The basis of the alloy is nickel and if appropriate, further elements may be added, especially cobalt. Due to the good thermal conductivity of the metallic protective layer, the component covered with the protective layer is exposed to virtually the same thermal load as the protective layer itself.
A further corrosion-resistant protective coating for components of gas turbines and further components formed of nickel-based or cobalt-based alloys is known from European Patent 0 486 489 B1. That protective coating contains the following elements (given in parts by weight): 25-40% nickel, 28-32% chromium, 7-9% aluminum, 1-2% silicon, at least 5% cobalt, and 0.3-1% rare earths, especially yttrium. The properties of the individual constituents are specified explicitly in that publication.
A two-ply metallic protective layer composed of two different alloys is described in European Patent 0 397 731 B1, corresponding to U.S. Pat. No. 5,499,905. The outer alloy is an MCrAlY alloy and contains (given in parts by weight) 15-40% chromium, 3-15% aluminum and 0.2-3% of at least one element from the group including yttrium, tantalum, hafnium, scandium, zirconium, niobium and silicon. That outer alloy is itself covered with a thermal barrier layer for protection against particularly high temperatures, if appropriate, particularly in the case of internally cooled metal articles. The thermal barrier layer can be zirconium oxide with an addition of yttrium oxide. Oxidation of the outer alloy before the application of the thermal barrier layer is provided in order to prevent the thermal barrier layer from possibly flaking off from the outer alloy.
In the prior art, it is also known, in the case of a turbine blade, to carry out an internal coating of the relatively narrow cooling ducts with a metal, for example with aluminum (see the paper by J. E. Restall et al., entitled "A Process for Protecting Gas Turbine Blade Cooling Passages Against Degradation", Superalloys, 1980, pp. 405-410). A further method for depositing aluminum on a nickel compound, which method can also be used for inner surfaces and cooling ducts, is also described in the literature (a paper by R. S. Parzuchowski: entitled "Gas Phase Deposition of Aluminum of Nickel Alloys", in Thin Solid Films 45, 1977, pp. 349-355). The use of chromium or of a combination of aluminum and chromium is also possible. Reference must additionally be made to German Patent DE 41 19 967 C1. It may be stated that the prior art generally only knows of internal coatings for cooling ducts together with identical external coatings.
Blades for highly developed gas turbines, for example for aircraft engines, and increasingly for stationary gas turbines as well, are nowadays of complex construction. A distinction can, in that case, be made between the following features: a metallic basic body, that is to say the actual blade, is cast hollow and thin-walled from a high-temperature material. Efficient cooling through the use of a cooling medium, especially a gas, such as air, from the inside of the blade is thereby to become possible. For that purpose the basic body has at least one longitudinal cooling duct and a number of transverse cooling ducts branching off therefrom.
A coating which protects the metallic basic body against oxidation and high-temperature corrosion is provided on the hot-gas side of the blade. In many instances, there is, on the coating, a further coating located on the hot gas side and formed of a ceramic material, for the purpose of reducing the heat flux in the blade. An internal coating is also desirable for protection against an oxidation-related weakening of the wall thickness and the initiation of cracking on the coolant side. In that case, the transverse cooling ducts may be considered as perforations in the blade leaf and/or the platform or platforms, with the cooling medium emerging through those perforations. Particularly good distribution and, where appropriate, the formation of a cooling-medium mist on the hot-gas side as well can be achieved thereby. That mist leads to film cooling.

Product with a metallic basic body and method for manufacturing a product


A thermal shield comprising first and second substantially flat flame resistant covering layers adapted to overlie each other. A thermal energy absorbing material is positioned between the respective layers in sandwich fashion. The thermal energy absorbing material may comprise a phase change material in bulk, micro or macro encapsulated and which may further be embedded within a base material to provide enhanced thermal protection.

It is known to provide a non-flammable or flame resistant barrier in order to protect persons or property from the detrimental effects of fire. Examples of such materials are NOMEX.RTM. manufactured by DuPont and Polybenzimidazole (PBI) manufactured by Hoechst Celanese. These fibers and the fabrics made therefrom, while effective in protecting the user from flames for limited periods of time, are only marginally helpful in protecting the user from the effects of extreme heat.
It would, therefore, be of considerable commercial value to provide an improved heat shield.
It is, accordingly, an object of the present invention to provide a heat shield that is effective against flames.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a heat shield that effectively shields against heat and especially against transient thermal pulses.

Triangle Research and Development Corporation


An interconnect structure includes at least a first interconnect layer and a second interconnect layer. Each of the first and second interconnect layers has a pad structure and each pad structure has a respective pad density. The pad density of the pad structure of the second interconnect layer is different from the pad density of the pad structure of the first interconnect layer. The pad structures of the first and second interconnect layers are connected to each other.

In order to achieve high-integration and high-speed, dimensions of semiconductor integrated circuits have been reduced, and various materials and techniques have been proposed and used during fabrication. For example, dual damascene technology and copper conductors are applied to reduce resistances and resistance-capacitance (RC) delay of interconnect structures in ICs. As ICs are made smaller, and the distance between adjacent lines is reduced, low-k (low dielectric constant) dielectric materials are used in advanced copper interconnect technology to reduce these delays.
Interconnect structures of semiconductor ICs connect the various active devices and circuits of the IC to a plurality of conductive pads on the external surface of the die. Multi-level interconnect structures have been developed that accommodate the advances in active-device density by more effectively routing conductive paths between the active devices and the surface of the die. In typical IC designs, five or more individual interconnect levels of conductive paths may be used to accommodate the active-device density. Multi-level interconnect structures arrange the metallization lines in multiple layers. The metallization lines of each individual level are formed in an interlevel dielectric (ILD) material. The ILD electrically isolates the metallization lines from one another within each level of the interconnect structure and electrically isolates metallization lines in adjacent levels.
Damascene processes are routinely used in back-end-of-line (BEOL) processing for fabricating multi-level interconnect structures. In a damascene process, trenches and vias are etched in a layer of ILD and filled with a conductive material, such as copper (Cu) or a Cu-based alloy, to create conductive lines and vertical conductive paths between the interconnect lines in different levels.
The conductive paths of the multi-level interconnect structures terminate in bond pads at the surface of the IC. The bond pads are relatively large metal areas distributed about the die. Bond pads are used to establish electrical contact between the integrated circuits and either a package substrate of an IC package or a probe pin (that is used for wafer acceptance testing, or WAT). The pads used during WAT are also referred to as, "process control monitor (PCM) pads". A probe makes an electrical contact between a probe pin and the bond pads, so voltage or current can be applied to test for device functionality and performance. Large bond pads allow longer probe needles, thus increasing parallel testing capability. The bond pads that are used for WAT may be distributed in the scribe lines between dies. These scribe lines are severed during the die singulation process, with the cuts passing through the bond pads.
A conventional approach for configuring the WAT bond pads of the interconnect structure is to include bond pads in the scribe line on each interconnect layer, aligned beneath the bond pads in scribe line of the top metal layer, and to include metal-filled vias connecting the bond pads in each of the interconnect levels, aligned beneath each bonding pad or probe pad in the top metal layer. The bond pads in the first interconnect (M1) layer may be used for in situ testing before the second (M2) through top metal (MT) layers are formed.
The dicing (or singulation) process can produce a large mechanical stress, which may be dependent on numerous conditions, including: cut width, die saw speed, die saw temperature, die saw pressure, etc.
Conventional multi-level interconnect structures have been susceptible to failure due to cracking when the PCM pad is cut by a die saw. Experience has shown that during singulation, the dielectric in the scribe lines may crack in the vicinity of the bond pads, and that these cracks may propagate to the dies. This problem becomes more acute when low-k dielectric materials (including extreme low k, ELK and ultra low k, ULK) are used for the ILD material, because low-k dielectric materials are more brittle than high k dielectrics.
It is desirable to decrease the failure rate during the die saw process, which in turn will result in a higher production yield.

Pad structure design with reduced density

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd.


Described is a method and a device for more accurate measurement of a gas supply with a gas meter. A consumption-weighted correction factor is determined by weight averaging of a sensor error factor of the gas meter with a consumption profile characteristic of the gas supply location and the measuring signal is converted using the correction factor. Embodiments relate inter alia to: operation of the gas meter as volume, mass or energy meter; formulae for determining the correction factor with sensor error factors and consumption profiles relative to volume, mass or energy; and measuring signal correction in the case of a non-registering or registering gas meter. Advantages are inter alia: subsequent customer-specific measuring signal correction; no additional measuring complexity; and improved measuring accuracy, in particular improved energy measurement by means of compensation for inherent deviations of the energy signal in the vase of heat value variations.

A gas meter which is calibrated as an energy measuring device is disclosed in WO 01/96819 A1. The calibration is based on the fact that sensor signal values are determined dependent upon the through-flow rate of a calibration gas and are stored in the gas meter in the form of a sensor calibration curve. The sensor calibration curve or the sensor signal values are multiplied by a signal conversion factor and a calorific value factor for the basic gas mixture so that the obtained product indicates gas consumption in an energy unit. With a further correction factor, the actual heat value of a supplied gas mixture can be taken into account at least approximately in the energy calibration. As actual heat value, a measured heat value which is averaged over a specific time span can be used. It is disadvantageous that an external unit is required to determine the heat value.
EP 1 227 305, a method and a gas meter for determining a gas consumption from a corrected mass flow signal or energy supply signal are disclosed. On the static gas, diffusivity and therefrom a gas-specific correction value f* for the mass flow or energy supply is determined thereby from a measured heating time.
In EP 0 373 965, a method and a device for determining a gas or energy consumption from a corrected mass flow signal are disclosed. During the signal correction, the heat conductivity, specific heat capacity and density of the gas are taken into account. The corrected mass flow signal and hence gas or energy consumption signal is independent of the type of gas and in particular is identical for air, argon, helium, carbon dioxide, methane and propane. It is disadvantageous that a mass flow signal standardised in such a way is not sensitive to the heat value of a gas or gas mixture since combustible gases with different heat values (e.g. methane or propane) produce the same mass flow signals and even the same signals as non-combustible gases (e.g. helium, argon, carbon dioxide or air).
In the U.S. Pat. No. 5,311,447, a method and a device for combustion-less determination of the specific heat value of natural gas are disclosed. For this purpose, specific heat value, density or proportion of inert gases are determined by empirical formulae from measured values of viscosity, heat conductivity, heat capacity, optical absorption, etc. The large measuring and computing complexity is disadvantageous in quantitative measurement of a plurality of independent gas type-dependent values and, in the case of combination thereof, with a volume flow measurement in a gas meter in order to determine a consumed quantity of energy.
In WO 01/18500, an improved mass flow measurement with two thermal CMOS anemometers is disclosed. On the static gas, measurements are made of heat conductivity in the case of a constant heat output and, in the case of a pulsed heat output, of heat capacity, the gas is identified and, from the specific heat value thereof together with the mass flow measurement, the total calorific value of the gas is determined. The relatively large complexity when determining the consumed quantity of energy from separate values of mass flow and specific heat value is in turn disadvantageous. In addition, the specific heat value for a sufficiently accurate determination of the energy supply must be measured continuously and with great accuracy.
In the article by D. Hoburg and P. Ulbig, "Statutory Metering and Calorific Value Reconstruction Systems", Gas ● natural gas 143 (2002) No. 1, calorific value reconstruction systems for gas networks with different supply calorific values are disclosed. By simulation of the natural gas flows in the mains system, with the assistance of measuring data such as temperature and pressure, the gas constitution at any points in the gas network can be calculated. In particular the delivery calorific value at the delivery point to the customer can be calculated dynamically from the supply calorific values, supply through-flows, delivery through-flows and further auxiliary values such as network pressures. Normal gas constitution data, which must be detected by measurement technology at the supply points, are calorific value, standard density, CO2 content and H2 content. It is also disadvantageous that the geometry and topology of the network, in particular pipe roughnesses, are mostly inadequately known and the simulation calculation becomes altogether inaccurate. Also the result of the simulation calculation depends greatly upon the chosen pipe flow model and upon the computer power which is available.


A phosphor comprises a borate of terbium, at least an alkaline-earth metal, and at least a Group-3 metal. In one embodiment, the phosphor has a formula of A3(D1-xTbx)3(BO3)5; wherein A is at least an alkaline-earth metal selected from the group consisting of calcium, barium, strontium, and magnesium; D is at least a Group-3 metal selected from the group consisting of lanthanum, scandium, and yttrium; and 0<x<0.5. The phosphor can be used in light sources such as those based on mercury discharge or light-emitting diodes and in displays.

This invention relates photoluminescent materials (or phosphors) and lighting technology. In particular, this invention relates to phosphors containing borate of terbium, alkaline-earth, and Group-3 metals, and to light sources incorporating such.
A phosphor is a luminescent material that absorbs radiation energy in a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum and emits energy in another portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. Phosphors of one important class are crystalline inorganic compounds of high chemical purity and of controlled composition to which small quantities of other elements (called "activators") have been added to convert them into efficient fluorescent materials. With the right combination of activators and inorganic compounds, the color of the emission can be controlled. Most useful and well-known phosphors emit radiation in the visible portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in response to excitation by electromagnetic radiation outside the visible range. Well-known phosphors have been used in mercury vapor discharge lamps to convert ultraviolet ("UV") radiation emitted by the excited mercury vapor to visible light. Other phosphors are capable of emitting visible light upon being excited by electrons (used in cathode ray tubes) or X rays (for example, scintillators in X-ray detection systems).
Fluorescent lamps having high luminous output and color rendering indices ("CRI"), which are based on mercury discharge and used for illumination, typically include three phosphors that convert UV radiation of the mercury discharge into relatively narrow bands of blue, green, and red visible light, concentrated in the spectral regions where the human eye has the highest sensitivity (450, 540, and 610 nm). These fluorescent lamps are commonly called tricolor lamps. Although a CRI of about 85 would give a normal appearance to most objects, some typical colors will look unnatural under illumination with tricolor lamps. Therefore, for certain applications, still higher CRIs are very desirable. Effort has been expended to provide efficient green light-emitting phosphors. Traditional green light-emitting phosphors have been LaPO4:Ce3+,Tb3+ and GdMgB5O10:Ce3+,Tb3+, which rely on a sensitization of Ce3+ ions and a transfer of energy from Ce3+ ions to Tb3+ ions. A more recently available green light-emitting phosphor has been (Ce,Tb)MgAl11O19, which also operates on the same principle. Although GdMgB5O10:Ce3+,Tb3+ uses lower amounts of cerium, LaPO4:Ce3+,Tb3+ and (Ce,Tb)MgAl11O19 require considerable amounts of cerium, which contribute to their manufacturing costs. In addition, these phosphors still exhibit some undesirable UV emission from the cerium ions. Therefore, there is a continued need for efficient green light-emitting phosphors that do not emit UV radiation. It is also desirable to provide green light-emitting phosphors that use smaller amounts of expensive materials. It is also very desirable to use such novel phosphors to produce light sources having high energy efficiency and high CRIs.

Phosphors containing borate of terbium, alkaline-earth, and Group-3 metals, and light sources incorporating the same


Apparatus and methods are disclosed for scoring nonobjective assessment materials by displaying images of the assessment materials or of text in lieu of images on a computer screen, for scoring by a human scorer. A digitized image of the assessment material may be captured by scanning an assessment form and storing the image in an electronic file. The stored digitized image or other data is displayed to the scorer and a score entered by the scorer is stored. In disclosed embodiments, the apparatus provides for scoring by multiple scorers on a network located at a single, central site; scoring by multiple scorers on a network remote from the central site; and scoring by one or more individual scorers remote from the central site. Apparatus and methods are disclosed for controlling and controlling access to assessment materials; for matching the qualifications of the scorers to the assessment materials made available to them for scoring; and for evaluating the performance of the scorers. In remote scoring in accordance with the invention, data from various files may selectively be transferred from central to remote sites, using diverse techniques in accordance with the needs of the particular job and setting.

This invention relates to apparatus and methods for controlling the scoring or grading of nonobjective assessment materials (such as essays handwritten on paper), using scorers or readers at diverse geographic locations. More particularly, the invention relates to apparatus and methods for allocating appropriate activities to scorers, distributing materials to scorers required for those activities, monitoring scorers' performance in those activities, and recording the results of the scorers' activities. The present invention provides improved control methods for scoring "on screen", a technique pioneered by the assignee of this application and marketed under the trademark "Score Image".RTM.. In general, the "Score Image.RTM." technique is described in the commonly assigned and insert in its place--U.S. Pat. No. 5,672,060, (the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference)

Method for scoring and control of scoring open-ended assessments using scorers in diverse locations


A novel method for replying to unsolicited e-mail communication such as SPAM or the like. The method includes a variety of steps such as displaying an remove icon on a display, and receiving a selection of the remove icon from a user in response to the unsolicited e-mail communication. The method also includes creating an e-mail communication having a remove message, in response to the selection of the remove icon, the e-mail communication addressed to a reply e-mail address specified by the unsolicited e-mail communication. A step of sending the e-mail communication to the reply e-mail address also is included. These and possibly other steps can permanently remove a portion of unsolicited e-mail in an easy and cost effective manner.

The present invention relates generally to telecommunication techniques. More particularly, the present invention provides a novel technique, including computer codes, to remove unwanted e-mail messages from a personal computer, workstation, or the like. These unwanted e-mail messages that were unsolicited are commonly referred to as unsolicited commercial e-mail (UCE) or "SPAM." SPAM includes junk mail or junk e-mail messages, advertisements, adult web site information, and the like.
A variety of techniques have been used to transmit written messages from one geographic location to another. In the early days, people or messengers were the sole means used to carry written information from one person to another person. Although effective and still used today, messengers were limited by their physical abilities. That is, some messengers could not travel over rough terrain such as rocks, jungles, and other landscapes. Large bodies of water were also difficult to cross. Additionally, messengers generally could not travel over long distances in a short period of time. A human messenger could only travel a few miles or tens of miles during a typical day.
Accordingly, messengers were replaced, at least in part, by carrier pigeons. More particularly, carrier pigeons were used to move small pieces of papers having written information thereon from one geographic location to another. Carrier pigeons were quite efficient in some applications but could not generally travel over substantial distances. Accordingly, a relay of ponies and human riders was used for long distance travel across the North American continent. This relay of ponies was called the "Pony Express." The Pony Express carried written communication in the form of mail on leather pouches carried on the relay of ponies across the United States. Although all of these techniques were somewhat effective, they were often costly, unreliable, and difficult to achieve.
In the modern day world, a combination of transportation techniques are used in the postal system. These techniques include, among others, human carriers (e.g., mailmen), motorized vehicles such as cars or trucks, and airplanes, jets, and the like to physically transport mail throughout the United States. Conventional postal systems are often reliable and cost efficient. They are so efficient that they are often subject to many undesirable influences. One of these influences is the routine transmission of unsolicited advertisements, information, and the like to many households across the United States.
On any typical day, an average household receives at least one, if not more than one, unsolicited advertisement. As merely an example, the advertisement can be for carpet cleaning, credit cards, and other goods or services that are routinely sent by companies in an attempt to secure a purchase from the household. In many cases, these unsolicited advertisements often burden the postal system. Additionally, households are burdened by the advertisements, which are throw away. These unsolicited advertisements are also termed as "Junk Mail."
Unfortunately, junk mail is not limited to use in only the conventional postal systems. In many wide area computer networking applications, junk mail is commonly sent to users in large groups, often thousands or perhaps millions of users. For instance, a user of a well known wide area network of computers, which is known as the "Internet," often receives numerous lines of junk mail, which has been coined as SPAM! In fact, SPAM refers to such unsolicited advertisements that come to the user by way of electronic mail, also known as "e-mail."
SPAM has become a significant problem degrading Internet performance due to the large number of junk e-mails sent every day, increases the cost to Internet Service Providers and corporations due to the increased need for storage space, decreases the productivity of recipients of e-mails, and the like. Furthermore, the junk e-mail sender pays very little for the ability to clog up the Internet, businesses, and individuals with junk e-mail.
Many distributors of SPAM send the SPAM with instructions on how to be removed from the SPAM distribution list. However e-mail messages often do not include such instructions on how to remove a recipient from a junk e-mail distribution list. In the cases where instructions are provided, many drawbacks exist to end users attempting to remove themselves from the e-mail lists. As merely an example, some of the ways to be removed from the mailing lists are time consuming to the recipient. Additionally, there are simply no standards in being removed from such mailing lists. Furthermore, the techniques that are available to be removed from the junk e-mail distribution list often require the recipient to perform time consuming tasks, such as sending a reply e-mail to the junk e-mail message and specifically typing a request to be removed from the mailing list, forwarding the e-mail message to another e-mail address and typing a request with specified text requesting removal, connecting to a particular web site and following instructions for removal (benefiting the web site provider by providing an advertising "hit"), and the like.
Filters have also been used or proposed to remove junk e-mail messages from a recipients e-mail. In fact, various programs have been developed in an attempt to filter-out junk e-mail messages from e-mail in-boxes. Such programs appear to focus upon the e-mail address, host source, the format of the message, the content, and the like. When such programs detect junk e-mail, they automatically delete them so the user is not bothered by them. A drawback to such programs is that they may filter-out legitimate bulk e-mail messages that are of interest to the user, for example, e-mail messages from special interest groups, product recall and product warning notices, valuable product promotions from legitimate businesses, upgrade notices and bug patches for software programs, and the like.
From the above, it is seen that an improved technique for permanently removing junk e-mail messages is highly desired.

Method and device for removing junk e-mail messages


A bicycle brake device includes opposing first and second brake arms which have respective fixed lower ends and movable upper ends. Two seats support the fixed lower ends. Two brake pads are mounted on the brake arms between the upper and lower ends. A brake cable extends through and engages the upper end of the second brake arm. A directing member directs the brake cable from the upper end of the second brake arm toward the first brake arm. The directing member includes a ring plate which is connected to the upper end of the first brake arm and which has a hole for threading the brake cable therethrough. A simultaneous movement member transmits the movement of the first brake arm to the second brake arm, thereby evenly pressing a rim of a bicycle wheel during a braking operation.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a bicycle brake device, more particularly to a bicycle brake device with two opposing brake arms which can be moved simultaneously to prevent a one-sided braking action.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional bicycle brake device 10 is shown to comprise a pair of brake arms 11, 12 which are formed with a respective hole 111, 121 for mounting a brake pad 13, 14 thereon. A pair of spring seats 15, 16 are provided respectively adjacent the lower ends of the brake arms 11, 12 for mounting torsion springs (not shown) thereon, and are mountable on a forked portion of a bicycle frame (not shown). The brake arm 11 is connected pivotally to a hanger device 20 which engages a brake cable 21. The brake cable 21 interconnects the brake arm 12 and a brake handle of the bicycle (not shown). As such, when the user operates the brake handle to pull the brake cable 21, the brake arm 12 is first moved inward and the brake pad 14 first abuts against the rim of a wheel (not shown) of the bicycle. The brake arm 11 is subsequently then moved inward via movement of the hanger device 20 which is not synchronous with the movement of the brake arm 12.
The non-synchronous forces applied by the brake arms 11, 12 to the rim of the wheel usually results in more severe wearing at one of the brake pads 13, 14 or at one side of the wheel. To solve this problem, the spring seats 15, 16 are usually adjusted by using tools to equalize the braking actions of the brake pads 13, 14. The adjust task as such is inconvenient to conduct.

No. 20, Lane 666, Sec. 2, Chung-Cheng Rd.


When a request to unlock a door of one side portion of a vehicle is input, an ID request signal is transmitted from a first transmitting antenna provided in the one side portion, and an alarm signal is transmitted from a second transmitting antenna provided in the other side portion of the vehicle. A portable unit sends back a portable-unit signal in dependence on the ID request signal and alarm signal. When the portable unit receives the first signal and does not receive the second signal, a door-unlocking control part unlocks the door of the one side portion in dependence on the portable-unit signal received by a receiving antenna.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a door unlocking controller and a control method thereof, which control the unlocking of doors of a vehicle in dependence on a signal from a portable unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
Door unlocking controllers have been developed, which control the unlocking of doors of a vehicle such as an automobile without using a mechanical key or remote control key.
For instance, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-73635 discloses a conventional technique 1, in which a wide area capable of receiving a wide-area ID request signal is formed around a vehicle by an electronic radio wave whose operating range is relatively wide. If a portable unit entering this wide area sends back portable-unit ID to the vehicle in response to the wide-area ID request signal, instead of the wide area a narrow area capable of receiving a narrow-area ID request signal is formed around each door. If the portable unit enters any one of these narrow areas, the door in that narrow area is unlocked.
Recently, there has been developed another conventional technique 2. In the conventional technique 2, as shown in FIG. 6, a left-side switch 21L and a right-side switch 21R are provided near the left-side door 26L and right-side door 26R of a vehicle 20 to request unlocking of the doors 26L, 26R. Left and right transmitting-receiving antennas 23L, 23R are provided in the left and right center pillars 22L, 22R of the vehicle 20. For example, if a person 25 who holds a portable unit 24 (portable-unit holder 25) makes the right-side switch 21R on, an ID request signal to request the ID of the portable unit 24 is transmitted from the right-side antenna 23R to a region indicated by reference character Ra. In response to the ID request signal, the portable unit 24 sends back portable-unit ID. If the portable unit ID corresponds to the vehicle ID given to the vehicle 20, the right-side door 26R of the vehicle 20 is unlocked.
In the above-described conventional technique 1, if a portable unit enters any one of narrow areas, the door in that narrow area is unlocked even when the portably-unit holder has no intention of opening that door. Therefore, this does not always meet the unlocking of a door requested by a portable-unit holder, and there is a possibility that an unnecessary door-unlocking operation will be repeated against the intention of a portable-unit holder. In addition, since it is necessary to always form a wide area around a vehicle, it can not be said to be efficient.
Therefore, it is desirable that door-unlocking control be efficiently performed according to the intention of a portable-unit holder.
On the other hand, in the conventional technique 2, either the left-side switch 21L or the right-side switch 21R is operated, so it is found that the holder 25 of the portable unit 24 has an intention of unlocking a door. Thus, in the conventional technique 2, the unlocking of a door can be controlled according to the intention of the portable-unit holder 25. In addition, since an ID request signal is transmitted after either of the switches 21L, 21R is operated, a wide area such as that of the conventional technique 1 does not need to be formed at all times and therefore it is efficient.
However, the conventional technique 2 has a new problem that is to be described below. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the ID request signal transmitted from the right-side antenna 23R leaks out to the left side of the vehicle 20. For that reason, there is a possibility that the leakage will cause a new safety problem. The leakage region in this case is indicated by reference character Ra′.
For example, as shown in FIG. 7, when a person 30 who does not have the portable unit 24 operates the left-side switch 21L, an ID request signal is transmitted from the left-side antenna 23L to the region indicated by reference character Ra. Originally, even if the person 30 who does not have the portable unit 24 operates the left-side switch 21L, the left-side door 26L will not be unlocked. However, when the portable unit 24 of the portable-unit holder 25 is present within the leakage region Ra′, the portable unit 24 receives the ID request signal and sends back the portable-unit ID. Thus, even when the person 30 who does not have the portable unit 24 operates the left-side switch 21L, the left-side door 26L is unlocked. As a result, there is a possibility that vehicle security cannot be ensured.
There is a technique for avoiding such a problem. For instance, if the right-side switch 21R is operated, an ID request signal is transmitted from the right-side antenna 23R, and at the same time, electronic radio waves of the same strength as the ID request signal are transmitted from the antennas 23L, 23R. In response to the ID request signal, the portable unit 24 sends back the portable-unit ID, and measures the electric field strengths of the two electronic radio waves and sends back the measured electric field strengths. The vehicle 20 judges that the portable unit 24 (i.e., the portable-unit holder 25) is present in the side where the electric field strength is stronger. For example, if the judged side is the right side of the vehicle, it is judged that the portable-unit holder has operated the right-side switch 21R. And if the portable-unit ID and the vehicle ID correspond to each other, the right-side door 26R is unlocked.
However, in this case, the portable unit 24 needs to have the function of measuring the strength of an electric field, so it becomes large in size and costly. In addition, the portable unit 24 needs to measure the electric field strengths of two radio waves transmitted from both sides of the vehicle 20 and send back the measured data of the two electric field strengths, so this will overload the portable unit 24 of small electric capacity.

Door unlocking controller and control method thereof

Mitsubishi Jidosha Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha