A structure-borne sound sensor unit, in particular for an agricultural machine, includes a signal converter, which converts a mechanical sensor signal into an electrical sensor signal, and preprocessing electronics, which are connected with the signal converter. The preprocessing electronics include at least one programmable function component, a data input for receiving configuration data, and a programming interface to configure the function component based on the configuration data received. A control unit for a such a structure-borne sound sensor unit, a sensor system, which includes such a control device and such a structure-borne sound sensor unit, and a related method for controlling such a structure-borne sound sensor unit are provided.

The present invention relates to a structure-borne sound sensor unit, in particular for an agricultural machine, with a signal converter, which converts a mechanical sensor signal into an electrical sensor signal, and with preprocessing electronics, which are connected with the signal converter.
The present invention also relates to a control unit for such a structure-borne sound sensor unit, a sensor system with a structure-borne sound sensor unit, and a control device of this type.
The present invention also relates to an agricultural machine with such a sensor system, and a method for controlling a structure-borne sound sensor unit of this type.
Structure-borne sound sensors, which are often referred to as "knock sensors", are offered by various manufacturers. They are installed, in a suitable manner, on a pulse detector, e.g., directly on a suitable component of a working unit, the operating state of which is to be monitored, such that the structure-borne vibrations that occur in the particular component and that result from a certain event to be monitored can be registered by the sensor. To this end, the sensors utilize a piezo element to convert the structure-borne sound vibrations—which are usually high-frequency—into an electrical signal. Knock sensors of this type are used primarily in automotive applications. The sensors are mounted on the housing of the engine block, e.g., to regulate engine knock.
In agricultural machine technology, structure-borne sound sensors are also installed in highly diverse locations, to detect various types of vibrations and structure-borne sounds. For example, structure-borne sound sensors are used in combine harvesters to measure crop throughput and/or grain losses. To this end, a sensor of the type mentioned initially is described in EP 0 883 983 B1, which is mounted on a pulse detecting panel, which is located such that the remaining grain or waste grain in the crop material flow drops onto the pulse detecting panel and generates vibrations, which are converted into an electrical sensor signal by the signal converter. With forage harvesters, sensors of this type are used, e.g., to detect knock signals of the blades of the chopper drum on a shear bar, in order to monitor the cutting gap. An application of this type is described, e.g., in DE 30 10 416 A1. Structure-borne sound sensors can also be used in agricultural machines, e.g., as rock detectors or unbalance sensors on rotating working units.
The sensor signals must be evaluated in a control device in order to detect a certain event. With previous systems, the control device must use special input circuitry—which has been designed for the particular application of the sensor—to receive and further process the electrical signal coming from the sensor. The sensors must also be equipped differently depending on the application. There are therefore different structure-borne sound sensor units and control devices for every application. With engine knock regulation, for example, in the case of which relatively large sensor signals are produced, the sensor signals are received directly by the control device via a line connection coming from the sensor, and they are processed further in a suitable manner by the special input circuit of the control device. In the case of a knock sensor for measuring grain loss in a combine harvester, however, the measurement voltages produced at the sensor are small. Due to the losses that inevitably occur in the line from the sensor to the control device, it is therefore necessary to first amplify the signals at the sensor. The preprocessing electronics required for this are coupled directly to the sensor housing. With a sensor that is used as a loss sensor, the preprocessing electronics can also include an adjustable analog pass filter that can be adjusted for various crop materials using a preselection circuit, as described in EP 0 883 983 B1.
The disadvantage of the structure-borne sound sensor units and sensor systems described above is that they are relatively inflexible in terms of their application. Manufacturers of agricultural machines, for example, require highly diverse types of sensors and control devices with special circuitry for highly diverse applications, such as loss sensors, engine knock monitoring, unbalance sensors, cutting gap controls, etc. In terms of the manufacture of agricultural machines, this results in relatively high stockpiling costs, and it poses a problem for service, since the individual service stations must maintain stockpile a sufficient number of highly diverse sensor types and sensor control devices so they can repair a sensor system quickly when it fails. It must be taken into account that it is very costly when a machine breaks down during harvesting season, so these "down times" must be kept to a minimum.

CLAAS Selbstfahrende Erntemaschinen GmbH


A charged particle beam writing apparatus includes an emission unit to emit a charged particle beam, a stage to mount thereon a target object to be written, an objective lens to focus the charged particle beam on a surface of the target object, a chamber to house the stage, a measurement unit to measure a partial pressure of a predetermined gas in the chamber in a state where a pressure inside the chamber is controlled to be lower than an atmospheric pressure, and an adjustment unit to adjust a focus position for focusing the charged particle beam on the target object, based on the partial pressure of the predetermined gas.

1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention relate generally to a charged particle beam writing apparatus and a charged particle beam writing method, and more specifically, relate to a method for focus adjustment for an electron beam in the electron beam writing apparatus, for example.
2. Description of Related Art
The lithography technique that advances miniaturization of semiconductor devices is extremely important as a unique process whereby patterns are formed in semiconductor manufacturing. In recent years, with high integration of LSI, the line width (critical dimension) required for semiconductor device circuits is decreasing year by year. For forming a desired circuit pattern on such semiconductor devices, a master or "original" pattern (also called a mask or a reticle) of high accuracy is needed. Thus, the electron beam (EB) writing technique, which intrinsically has excellent resolution, is used for producing such a high-precision master pattern.
FIG. 11 is a conceptual diagram explaining operations of a variable shaping type electron beam writing or "drawing" apparatus. The variable shaping type electron beam (EB) writing apparatus operates as described below. A first aperture plate 410 has a quadrangular aperture 411 for shaping an electron beam 330. A second aperture plate 420 has a variable shape aperture 421 for shaping the electron beam 330 having passed through the aperture 411 of the first aperture plate 410 into a desired quadrangular shape. The electron beam 330 emitted from a charged particle source 430 and having passed through the aperture 411 is deflected by a deflector to pass through a part of the variable shape aperture 421 of the second aperture plate 420, and thereby to irradiate a target object or "sample" 340 placed on a stage which continuously moves in one predetermined direction (e.g., the x direction) during writing. In other words, a quadrangular shape that can pass through both the aperture 411 of the first aperture plate 410 and the variable shape aperture 421 of the second aperture plate 420 is used for pattern writing in a writing region of the target object 340 on the stage continuously moving in the x direction. This method of forming a given shape by letting beams pass through both the aperture 411 of the first aperture plate 410 and the variable shape aperture 421 of the second aperture plate 420 is referred to as a variable shaped beam (VSB) system.
In the writing apparatus, a pattern is written by deflecting a charged particle beam, such as an electron beam, by a deflector so as to irradiate a desired position, but there is a problem with use of the writing apparatus that beam drift occurs as the deflector becomes contaminated due to contaminants, etc. Therefore, correction of the beam drift is performed in the electron beam writing (refer to, e.g., Japanese Patent Application Laid-open (JP-A) No. 2007-43083). However, even if the drift amount is corrected, contaminants that cause the problem are not eliminated. Thus, in order to inhibit the beam drift, it is thought effective to remove the contaminants. Then, flowing cleaning gas in the optical column in the writing apparatus is considered to remove the contaminants.
However, a problem has been found that if the cleaning gas is flowed, the focus of an electron beam deviates.

Charged particle beam writing apparatus, and charged particle beam writing method


A computer program of complex instruction set code (CISC) is translated to produce a program of reduced instruction set code (RISC). Each CISC instruction is translated into a sequence of RISC instructions. The sequence includes in order four groups of instructions. The first group includes instructions that get inputs and place them in temporary storage. The second group includes instructions that operate on the inputs and place results in temporary storage. The third group includes instructions that update memory or register state and are subject to possible exceptions. The fourth group includes instructions that update memory or register state and are free of possible exceptions. When execution of the RISC program is interrupted by an asynchronous event, the RISC instruction being executed at the time of the interrupt is recorded and allowed to complete. The recorded instruction is checked against a bit map to determine whether it is a boundary instruction for the instruction sequence being executed, and if it is, then asynchronous event processing is permitted. If not, then a program counter for the RISC code is aligned with the next backup boundary instruction if any instruction remaining to be executed is subject to a possible exception. If no instruction subject to a possible exception is found, the remaining instructions in the sequence are executed while moving the program counter to the next forward boundary instruction and thereafter permitting asynchronous event processing.

The present invention relates to systems and methods for adapting program codes for execution on different computer systems and more particularly to systems and methods for translating codes based on a first instruction set to codes based on a relatively reduced instruction set while preserving instruction granularity.
In the early years of computer programming, instructions for computer programs were generated at the microcode level. With the development and growth of software engineering, more tasks were combined in single complex instructions executable by computers having a hardware architecture designed for the instruction complexity.
Increasing instruction complexity generally provided increasing price/performance benefits in the developing environment of computer hardware costs and performance capabilities. As a result, complex instruction set codes (CISC) became widely accepted.
With increased instruction complexity, however, it has become more difficult to design system hardware for higher execution speed. Instead, a reduced instruction set code (RISC), coupled with correlated RISC computer hardware architecture, has gained acceptance as a mechanism to lead to significantly improved system price/performance.
A RISC system generally employs simpler basic instructions to direct desired operations. A single RISC instruction normally specifies a single operation with at most a single memory access. Further, a RISC system normally provides a register for each basic instruction. The instructions in a RISC instruction set are thus still at a higher level than microcode.
In the typical CISC system, a single instruction may specify a complex sequence of operations and it may make many direct accesses to memory. Thus, operations performed by a CISC instruction may require several RISC instructions.
A RISC system is generally designed with optimized hardware and software tradeoffs that provide faster system operation, better overall system performance and lower system cost relative to available hardware cost and performance capability.
One obstacle to conversion from CISC systems to RISC systems is the existence of large software libraries which have been developed for CISC systems and which are not generally available for RISC systems. When a computer system user chooses to acquire a new computer system, one of the user's major considerations is whether the user's library of application programs can be used or converted for use on the new computer system, and what the cost of replacing that library would be. Thus, for computer system users who wish to achieve better price/performance through RISC computer systems, it is highly important that an economic and effective mechanism be provided for adapting, or "migrating" the user's library of application programs for execution on the RISC computer system.
Several choices are available to the user for program migration. Recompiling or recoding can be employed, but these techniques are typically used for migrating programs written in a high level language such as FORTRAN which either have no detailed machine dependencies or which have any existing machine dependencies removed by manual programming modifications. Further, in recompiling or recoding, the user typically bears all responsibility for program modification and program behavioral guarantees.
Alternatively, interpretation procedures can be used, but the penalty for this approach typically is substantially reduced program performance. More particularly, interpretation procedures are software programs that run on one computer and read a stream of subject instructions (which may well be instructions for a different type of computer) as data, and for each subject instruction perform the indicated operation. Such procedures typically execute 10 to 100 machine instructions on the one computer to interpret a single subject instruction. Thus, interpretation procedures provide substantially reduced program performance, compared to direct execution of functionally-equivalent code on the one computer.
The most effective and efficient migration, however, involves code translation. In code translation, each instruction from an existing program is translated into one or more instructions in the language of the destination machine. Accordingly, a translation of CISC programs to RISC programs, or more generally a program translation in which the translated code has a relatively reduced instruction set, requires "multiple" or "many" instructions in the translated code for each instruction in the code being translated. However, in making "one to many" or CISC-to-RISC code translations, it is generally difficult to preserve many of the instructions behavior guarantees originally provided with the CISC or other relatively complex code.
One normal CISC guarantee that presents some difficulty in translation is the requirement that no other CISC instruction or portion thereof can be executed between the beginning and ending of a single CISC instruction. Accordingly, in translating CISC to RISC it is essential that instruction wholeness or granularity be preserved. Preservation of instruction granularity requires that state or memory atomicity be preserved. Thus, either all memory accesses in an instruction must appear to happen or none must appear to happen in the translated code.
To preserve instruction granularity in the translation process, assurance must be provided that each set, or "grounds", of translated instructions corresponding to each more complex instruction will execute to produce the same result that the corresponding more complex instruction would have produced. This must be true even though asynchronous events may occur during execution of any of the "granules" of simpler translated instructions.
Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a mechanism and process for producing and executing translated codes from existing codes with preservation of instruction granularity thereby enabling computer system price/performance upgrades to be realized while preserving application code investments.

System and method for preserving instruction granularity when translating program code from a computer having a first architecture to a computer having a second reduced architecture during the occurrence of interrupts due to asynchronous events


A rigid-flexible circuit board with two rigid areas and one flexible area, with a rigid individual layer which is copper-clad on one side, with an adhesive medium and with a copper foil, the adhesive medium having recesses in the flexible area. The rigid-flexible circuit board can be produced especially easily and economically in that at least in the rigid area there is no flexible individual layer, especially no polyimide film, between the adhesive medium and the copper foil.

1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to a circuit board with at least one rigid area and at least one flexible area, with a rigid individual layer which is provided with printed conductors or is copper-clad on one or both sides, with an adhesive medium and with at least one copper foil, the adhesive medium having recesses in the flexible area. In addition, the invention relates to a process for producing such a rigid-flexible circuit board.
2. Description of Related Art
Printed electrical circuits have been used for decades, for example, in electrical devices and in motor vehicles for electronic control. Usually the circuit boards are rigid, and on the one hand, connect discrete components and highly integrated modules electrically to one another, and on the other hand, act as carriers of them. Circuit boards generally consist of one or more individual layers of glass fiber-reinforced, cured epoxy resin boards which are copper-clad on one or both sides for the formation of printed circuits or conductive patterns. For multilayer circuit boards, the individual planes or the printed circuits located on the individual layers are electrically connected to one another by plated holes in the circuit board.
In addition to rigid circuit boards, for about 30 years printed circuits have also been used which have rigid and flexible areas next to one another, so-called rigid-flexible circuit boards. By providing flexible areas, a large number of rigid circuit boards can be mechanically and electrically connected to one another in almost any desired three-dimensional arrangement without plug connectors or wiring. Moreover, the flexible areas make it possible to "fold" several rigid circuit board areas on top of one another such that a large circuit board area and thus also a host of discrete components located on the circuit boards can be accommodated in a relatively small space. The flexible areas normally consist of thin polyimide films which are likewise copper-clad on one side or both sides.
These rigid-flexible circuit boards are usually built from rigid and flexible individual layers which lie on top of one another, which extend over the entire circuit, and which are cemented to one another using an adhesive medium and pressed (EP 0 408 773 B1). There are inflexible (for example, glass fiber-reinforced epoxy resin) and flexible insulation carriers (for example, polyimide film) with copper cladding on one or both sides into which the printed conductors are etched. The shape of the rigid layers fixes the rigid part of the circuit boards. The flexible areas of the circuit boards are thus produced by removing a piece of the rigid layers in these areas in several process steps.
Both a liquid and a free-flowing cement which is applied for example by screen printing and also a film with adhesive properties can be used as the adhesive medium. In practice, in addition to pure adhesive films, especially so-called prepregs are used. A prepreg consists of a resin-impregnated glass fiber fabric, the resin not being completely polymerized. Under pressure and heat the resin liquefies and as it subsequently cures, it causes cementing to the bordering individual layers. In addition to these "normal" prepregs, there are also so-called no-flow prepregs in which flowability is reduced. In addition, so-called composite films can also be used as the adhesive medium; they consists of a flexible plastic film which is provided with adhesive on both sides. Within the framework of this invention, both cements and also the above described films—adhesive films, prepregs, no-flow prepregs and composite films—are to be included in the concept of adhesive medium.
EP 0 408 773 B1 discloses a process for producing rigid-flexible circuit boards in which before lamination of the individual layers into the overall circuit a piece is punched out of the rigid individual layer and is arranged according to the size and the desired position of the flexible area. This piece of the rigid individual layer is then inserted again into the individual layer to fit as closely as possible, the composite film in the area of the circuit board which is desired to be flexible having a recess so that the piece of the individual layer which had been punched out beforehand and inserted again is not cemented to the composite film in the following process steps. After lamination, the piece must be hermetically covered during the continuing production process in order to prevent plating on the flexible area and the transition to the rigid area. This covering is complicated and expensive, and in spite of great care damage can occur which leads to irreparable faults so that the affected circuit board can no longer be used.
Another process for producing rigid-flexible circuit boards is known from German Patent Application DE-AS 26 57 212. In this process, before pressing the individual layers, a groove (pre-groove) is made in the rigid outer layers on the side facing the flexible inside layer along the separating line of the rigid and flexible area of the circuit board, the groove depth being selected such that the outside of the rigid layers remains undamaged. The composite film using which the individual layers are cemented is cut out over the flexible area of the circuit so that cementing of the rigid outer layer over the future flexible area does not take place. In addition, separating films are often inserted which prevent flow of the composite films during pressing. After cementing the individual layers and after forming the conductive patterns on the outer layers, to produce the flexible area another groove (main groove) is then milled from the outer side of the rigid layer along the separating line of the rigid and flexible area of the circuit, this groove and the pre-groove which had already been made beforehand being aligned to one another so that the milled-out piece can be removed from the rigid individual layer.
Regardless of the manner in which the piece of the rigid individual layer is removed from the area of the circuit board which is desired to be flexible, the rigid-flexible circuit board known from EP 0 408 773 B1 which underlies the invention has the disadvantage that a relatively expensive flexible individual layer (polyimide film) is used over the entire surface and is needed actually only for the comparatively small flexible area. This leads to up to 75% or more of the expensive polyimide film being "wasted", depending on the shape of the circuit board.
Generally, rigid-flexible circuit boards which have an area of a few 10 cm2 to a few 100 cm2 are not produced separately, but a plurality of such circuit boards are located next to one another in a rigid plate which is generally called a panel. This panel typically has a square or rectangular surface with side lengths of for example 40 to 80 cm. Typically 20 to 30 completed circuit boards can be punched out of such a panel. The advantage of using these panels compared to using individual circuit boards in production is that the panels can be clamped more easily on a work table and several circuit boards can be produced at the same time with one clamping.
Since in these panels the flexible individual layer generally likewise has the dimensions of the panel, in this way the proportion of "wasted" expensive polyimide film is even increased since the polyimide film is also present in the intermediate areas between the individual circuit boards. These intermediate pieces are thrown away after the circuit boards are punched out of the panels.
For the aforementioned reasons it has been repeatedly suggested that the relatively expensive polyimide film which however has proven effective in practice be replaced by other, more economical flexible individual layers. German Patent DE 41 03 375 C1 discloses a rigid-flexible circuit board in which instead of a separate composite film and a separate polyimide film only one layer of a special flow material prepreg or a paper prepreg be used. This flow material prepreg or paper prepreg is placed directly on the entire rigid individual layer on the circuit side over the entire surface. Then likewise a copper foil is applied to the special prepreg over its entire area. To prevent the piece of the rigid individual layer which is to be removed from sticking to the special prepreg, a separating layer is applied to the side of the piece facing the prepreg. A similar rigid-flexible circuit board is known from German Patent DE 42 06 746 C1 in which, likewise, instead of an expensive flexible individual layer, a more economical thin prepreg is used which can also be bent after curing. In this circuit board, in the area which is desired to be flexible, an insulating film is also placed between the rigid individual layer and the prepreg before pressing.
German Patent Application DE 41 31 935 A1 describes a rigid-flexible circuit board which consists solely of an inherently rigid circuit board material so that expensive polyimide film has been completely abandoned. In this known circuit board which, however, withstands only a limited number of bending stresses, the rigid circuit board material in the area which is desired to be flexible has a much smaller thickness. This circuit board which can be produced relatively easily and economically is limited in its range of application, on the one hand, by the only limited flexibility, on the other hand, it is not suited for more complex circuits with several planes of printed conductors.
Finally, German Patent DE 40 03 345 C1 discloses a rigid-flexible circuit board which has a flexible polyimide film essentially only in the area which is desired to be flexible. Here, the polyimide film on the side facing the copper foil is provided with a flexible adhesive layer and on the side facing the rigid individual layer is provided with two thin adhesive strips which are located on the edge. The width and the location of the thin adhesive strips must be chosen such that the piece of the rigid individual layer which is to be removed is prevented from sticking to the adhesive strips. Since the thin adhesive strips often have a width of only 1 mm or less, the prefabrication of the polyimide film with the adhesive strips on one side and the adhesive layer on the other side is relatively time-consuming. Moreover, it is also necessary for the polyimide film which has been prepared in this way to be positioned very exactly on the rigid individual layer, since otherwise the piece of the rigid individual layer which is to be removed can likewise stick.

Circuit board with at least one rigid and at least one flexible area and process for producing rigid-flexible circuit boards


An adjustable wrench includes a head formed on one end of a tube and having an opening for slidably receiving an engaging member. The tube has a bore communicating with the opening for rotatably and slidably receiving a rod. The rod is threadedly engaged with the head for moving the engaging member toward and away from the tube for allowing the engaging member to engage with fasteners of different sizes. A handle is secured to the rod for rotating the rod and for moving the engaging member toward and away from the fastener.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wrench, and more particularly to an adjustable wrench.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Typical wrenches each includes a fixed structure which is good for driving a fastener of a particular size only, such that the user have to buy a lot of wrenches for driving various kinds of fasteners. Typical adjustable wrenches comprise a movable jaw movable toward the fixed jaw for engaging with a fastener. However, the movable jaw may be easily damaged after use.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages of the conventional adjustable wrenches.


A network device including a receiver module, a first channel estimate module, and a frequency equalizer. The receiver module is configured to receive a packet wirelessly transmitted over a channel to the network device, where the packet comprises a signal field, and where the signal field (i) comprises bits, or (ii) has corresponding sub-carriers. The first channel estimate module is configured to, (i) based on the signal field, perform multiple determinations, where each of the determinations indicates whether a respective one of the bits or a respective one of the sub-carriers has been modulated with a first predetermined value or a second predetermined value, and (ii) based on the determinations, output a first estimate of the channel. The frequency equalizer is configured to (i) receive a first signal including the packet, and (ii) equalize the first signal based on the first channel estimate.

Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) is employed in wireless communication systems for transmission of data between network devices in wireless local area networks. Channel estimation is typically performed at receivers to account for frequency selective fading and time varying factors (e.g., delay) due to wireless transmission over a channel.
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11ac is a wireless networking standard that is marketed under the brand name Wi-Fi® and is directed to high-throughput wireless local area networks (WLAN5). IEEE 802.11ac provides a physical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) data unit (PPDU) format that includes a preamble and data. The preamble and data are transmitted as OFDM symbols. The PPDU format 10 is shown in FIG. 1. The preamble includes (i) legacy fields applicable to IEEE 802.11a and IEEE 802.11n, and (ii) fields specific to IEEE 802.11ac. The legacy fields include a legacy short training field (L-STF), a legacy long training filed (L-LTF), and a legacy signal field (L-SIG). The fields specific to IEEE 802.11ac include a first very high throughput signal (VHT-SIG-A) field, a very high throughput short training field (VHT-STF), one or more very high throughput long training fields (VHT-LTFs), and a second very high throughput signal (VHT-SIG-B) field. The L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, VHT-SIG-A, VHT-STF, VHT-LTFs, and VHT-SIG-B fields have respective time durations, as shown in FIG. 1.
The legacy fields are used for backward compatibility with network devices operating according to IEEE 802.11a and/or IEEE 802.11n standards. The L-STF is used for start of packet detection, automatic gain control, initial frequency offset estimation, and initial time synchronization. The L-LTF is used for fine frequency offset estimation, time synchronization, and channel estimation. The L-SIG field is used for determining data rate and length information and time to remain "off air".
The VHT-SIG-A field identifies: whether packets are IEEE 802.11n or IEEE 802.11ac packets; a bandwidth; a number of data streams; a guard interval; a type of coding; a modulation and coding scheme (MCS); and whether packets are beamforming packets. The VHT-STF is used to improve automatic gain control for multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) network devices. One or more VHT-LTFs are included in the PPDU depending on a number of data streams and/or users (network devices) in the corresponding WLAN. Each of the VHT-LTFs is a single symbol in length and has a long training sequence that is used for channel estimation. Data tones of each VHT-LTF symbol are multiplied by entries belonging to a matrix PVHTLTF to estimate the channel (e.g., a MIMO channel). The matrix PVHTLTF is defined in IEEE 802.11n and IEEE802.11ac. At a transmitter, the VHT-LTFs are modulated and tone mapped using a first column of the matrix PVHTLTF. A receiver receives the VHT-LTFs and performs channel estimation based on the matrix PVHTLTF.
The VHT-SIG-B field is a single symbol in length and provides user specific information including data length and MCS information. The VHT-SIG-B field is primarily used for multiple user (MU) applications and is typically ignored for single user (SU) applications. The VHT-SIG-B field may include a predetermined number of length bits and a predetermined number of tail bits. Depending on a bandwidth (e.g., 20 mega-hertz (MHz), 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz or noncontiguous 160 MHz (referred to as 80+80 MHz)) allocated for transmission of the VHT-SIG-B field, the length bits and the tail bits may be repeated a predetermined number of times. FIG. 2 shows examples of the VHT-SIG-B field for the 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz and 80+80 MHz bandwidths. The symbol size of the VHT-SIG-B field changes depending on the bandwidth to include the repeated bits. The time duration associated with transmission of the VHT-SIG-B field is the same remains constant (e.g., 4 micro-seconds (μs)) for the different bandwidths.

Method and apparatus for performing channel estimation and equalization based on a signal field of a received packet


An organic light emitting display device which can prevent separation of a buffer layer, thereby reducing an electrical short is disclosed. One embodiment of the organic light emitting display device includes a substrate made of a metal, a metal thin film formed on the substrate, a buffer layer formed on the metal thin film, and an organic light emitting diode formed on the buffer layer. Accordingly, a leakage current caused by an electrical short can be effectively prevented by preventing the separation of the buffer layer.

1. Field
The instant disclosure relates to a display device, and a method of fabricating the same, and more particularly to an organic light emitting display device and a method for fabricating the same.
2. Description of the Related Technology
An organic light emitting display (OLED) device is a type of flat panel display which emits light using a layer of an organic material. An OLED device includes two electrodes and an organic light emitting layer interposed between the electrodes. When a voltage is applied between the electrodes, one of the electrodes injects holes into the light emitting layer whereas the other injects electrons into the light emitting layer. The holes and electrons recombine with each other in the light emitting layer, thereby generating excitons having an excited energy state. The excitons, while returning to the ground state, discharge energy, thereby emitting light.
An OLED device has an excellent light emitting efficiency, brightness, and viewing angle. An OLED device also has a short response time, a slim profile, and a light-weight. Thus, it has drawn attention as a next generation display device.
Recently, portable display devices have been actively developed. Accordingly, researches have focused on developing flexible and thin organic light emitting display devices. Accordingly, there has been a need to provide a substrate which can have both flexibility and heat-resistance while having a slim profile.
Certain organic light emitting display devices include a metal substrate made of, for example, SUS (Steel Special Use Stainless). Such a metal substrate typically has hardness stronger than that of a glass, and is not easily damaged even with a thin thickness. A metal substrate also has flexibility and heat-resistance. Thus, it has drawn attention as a substrate suitable for a flexible organic light emitting display device.

Organic light emitting display device with a metal substrate and method for fabricating the same


An elongated cylindrical tensile article of one or more strands of monofilament core surrounded by porous polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) which may be optionally coated or die sized on the outer surface for smoothness and/or abrasion resistance. The core filaments thereof may optionally be coated with high-temperature resistant adhesive for increased adherence to the PTFE. The article is particularly useful for fly-casting lines for fishing. The density may be controlled to produce a floating or sinking flyline or portion thereof.

Elongated cylindrical tensile articles of the type useful as flylines, are usually manufactured from a polymeric monofilament, a single or multistrand polymer filament core surrounded by a usually extruded polymer covering such as polyvinyl chloride, or a braided polymer or glass filament. The overall density of the line determines whether or not the line floats on the surface of water or sinks in water.
The flyline itself may be of a sinking or floating type or may be a generally floating line with a sinking tip or may be level (having no taper) or tapered in various segments of its length to achieve weight distributions deemed favorable for more accurate placement of a fly or for easier placement of the fly at a longer distance from the angler. Fly fishing lines are usually up to about 105 feet in length. This length is typically secured to a length of small diameter backing line which is first wound onto the reel ahead of the flyline to give extra length as necessary for casting the flyline or playing a hooked fish.
To provide a floating line, one method used at the present time is to surround a core by a polymer layer containing as filler a quantity of hollow light-weight microspheres or microballoons of about 50 to 250 micron diameter. These microballons are available in various diameters, compositions, and densities and are typically of plastic or glass composition. Such microballoons may be prepared by methods disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,797,201, for instance. An additional layer of polymer containing no filler, or a lesser quantity of microballoon filler, may surround the inner or first layer to provide a smoother more durable skin on the line and to give a less stiff or more flexible line.
In contrast, a sinking line may contain components of density greater than one or contain a heavy filler to achieve that higher density.
Other descriptions of presently available fly-casting lines and their methods of manufacture may be found described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,841,015; 3,868,785 and 4,524,540, an article by Mosser in "Fly Fishing," June 1989, pages 85-87, and an additional article in "Fly Fisherman," Dec 1989, pages 38-43, 60-61.


Methods and materials for intrathecal delivery of recombinant Adeno-associated virus 9 (rAAV9) encoding Methyl-CpG binding protein 2 (MECP2) are provided. Use of the methods and materials is contemplated, for example, for the treatment of Rett syndrome.

Rett syndrome is a neurodevelopmental X linked dominant disorder affecting ˜1 in 10,000 girls. Hemizygous males usually die of neonatal encephalopathy. Heterozygous females survive into adulthood but exhibit severe symptoms including microcephaly, loss of purposeful hand motions and speech, and motor abnormalities which appear following a period of apparently normal development. Age of onset is around 6-18 months.
Rett syndrome is classified as Typical (or Classic) Rett or Atypical Rett. Spontaneous mutations gene encoding the transcription factor Methyl-CpG binding protein 2 (MECP2) cause the majority (˜90%) of cases in both classifications although Atypical Rett can be caused by mutations in genes other than MECP2. The nature of the MECP2 mutation (e.g. deletion vs. point mutation) and skewed X chromosome inactivation impact disease severity. The MECP2 transcription factor modulates transcription of thousands of genes. Therapeutic efforts have focused on targets downstream of MECP2 including neurotransmitters, growth factors and metabolic pathways. At least nine clinical trials directed toward Rett syndrome have reported positive outcomes across different measures, but the findings have not been independently validated or resulted in new treatments [Katz et al, Trends in Neurosciences, 39: 100-113 (2016)]. There are currently no approved therapies for Rett Syndrome.
There are male and female mouse models in which the mice exhibit RTT-like behaviors [Guy et al., Nature Genetics, 27: 322-326 (2001); Chen et al., Nature Genetics 27: 327-331 (2001); and Katz et al., 5: 733-745 (2012)].
MECP2 is a 52 kD nuclear protein that is expressed in a variety of tissues but is enriched in neurons and has been studied most in the nervous system. There are two isoforms of MECP2 in humans known as MECP2A and B (FIG. 1) [Weaving et al., Journal of Medical Genetics, 42: 1-7 (2005)]. The two isoforms derive from alternatively spliced mRNA transcripts and have different translation start sites. MECP2B includes exons 1, 3 and 4 and is the predominant isoform in the brain. MECP2 reversibly binds to methylated DNA and modulates gene expression [Guy et al., Annual Review of Cell and Developmental Biology, 27: 631-652 (2011)] These functions map to the methyl binding domain (MBD) and transcriptional repressor domain (TRD), respectively [Nan & Bird, Brain & Development, 23, Suppl 1: S32-37 (2001)]. Originally thought of as a transcriptional repressor, MECP2 can both induce and suppress target gene expression [Chahrour et al., Science, 320: 1224-1229 (2008)]. MECP2 is hypothesized to support proper neuronal development and maintenance. In neurons, MECP2 facilitates translation of synaptic activity into gene expression through DNA binding and interaction with different binding partners [Ebert et al., Nature, 499: 341-345 (2013) and Lyst et al., Nature Neuroscience, 16: 898-902 (2013)]. In astrocytes, MECP2 deficiency is linked to apneic events in mice [Lioy et al., Nature, 475: 497-500 (2011)]. MECP2 deficiency can cause reduced brain size, increased neuronal packing density and reduced dendritic complexity [Armstrong et al., Journal of Neuropathology and Experimental Neurology, 54: 195-201 (1995)]. Importantly, neuron death is not associated with MECP2 deficiency [Leonard et al., Nature Reviews, Neurology, 13: 37-51 (2017)]. MECP2 is also found outside the nervous system though levels vary across tissues (FIG. 2). A recent study examined the dependence of Rett symptoms in mice on peripheral Mecp2 expression [Ross et al., Human Molecular Genetics, 25: 4389-4404 (2016)]. Peripheral deficiency was associated with hypo-activity, exercise fatigue and bone abnormalities. The majority of RTT-associated behavioral, sensorimotor, gait and autonomic (respiratory and cardiac) phenotypes were absent in mice with peripheral MECP2 knock out.
Because MECP2 is an X-linked gene, one copy of MECP2 is silenced due to X chromosome inactivation (Xci) in females. On a per cell basis, Xci is believed to be random which leads to MECP2 chimerism in Rett females. Disease severity is impacted by whether the majority of active X chromosomes contain the intact or mutated MECP2 gene. This is called skewed Xci. Males do not undergo Xci, therefore MECP2 deficiency is more severe as no cells will have a functional copy of MECP2. The nature of the MECP2 mutation also impacts disease severity. Over 600 different mutations of the MECP2 gene are described in the RettBASE database including deletions, non-sense and point mutations. The most common mutation (˜9% of patients) is the T185M allele which affects the methyl binding domain. Other common mutations are shown in FIG. 3 [Leonard, supra]. Together these account for over 40% of cases listed in RettBASE. Large scale deletions involving MECP2 were found in 8-10% of cases [Li et al., Journal of Human Genetics, 52: 38-47 (2007) and Hardwick et al., European Journal of Human Genetics, 15: 1218-1229 (2007)]. There is genotype-phenotype correlation with R133C, R294X and C-terminal mutations and deletions (downstream of the TRD) causing milder disease. Large deletions and early truncating mutations (R270X, R255X and R168X) are associated with severe Rett syndrome. Table 1 describes consensus Rett diagnostic criteria recently compiled by a group of international Rett clinicians [Neul et al., Annals of Neurology, 68: 944-950 (2010)].
TABLE 1RTT Diagnostic Criteria 2010-Consider diagnosis whenpostnatal deceleration of head growth observed.Required for typical or classic RTT1.A period of regression followed by recovery or stabilization.*2.All main criteria and all exclusion criteria3.Supportive criteria are not required, although often present in typicalRTTRequired for atypical or variant RTT1.A period of regression followed by recovery or stabilization2.At least 2 out of the 4 main criteria3.5 out of 11 supportive criteriaMain Criteria1.Partial or complete loss of acquired purposeful hand skills.2.Partial or complete loss of acquired spoken language**3.Gait abnormalities: Impaired (dyspraxic) or absence of ability.4.Stereotypic hand movements such as hand wringing/squeezing,clapping/tapping, mouthing and washing/rubbing automatisms.Exclusion Criteria for RTT1.Brain injury secondary to trauma (peri- or postnatally),neurometabolic disease, or severe infection that causes neurologicalproblems***2.Grossly abnormal psychomotor development in first 6 months of life#Supportive Criteria for atypical RTT##Breathing disturbances when awakeBruxism when awakeImpaired sleep patternAbnormal muscle tonePeripheral vasomotor disturbancesScoliosis/kyphosisGrowth retardationSmall cold hands and feetInappropriate laughing/screaming spellsDiminished response to painIntense eye communication- "eye pointing"*= Because MECP2 mutations are now identified in some individuals prior to any clear evidence of regression, the diagnosis of "possible" RTT should be given to those individuals under 3 years old who have not lost any skills but otherwise have clinical features suggestive of RTT. These individuals should be reassessed every 6-12 months for evidence of regression. If regression manifests, the diagnosis should then be changed to definite RTT. However, if the child does not show any evidence of regression by 5 years, the diagnosis of RTT should be questioned.**= Loss of acquired language is based on best acquired spoken language skill, not strictly on the acquisition of distinct words or higher language skills. Thus, an individual who had learned to babble butthen loses this ability is considered to have loss of acquired language.***= There should be clear evidence (neurological or ophthalmological examination and MRI/CT) that the presumed insult directly resulted in neurological dysfunction.#= Grossly abnormal to the point that normal milestones (acquiring head control, swallowing, developing social smile) are not met. Mild generalized hypotonia or other previously reported subtle developmental alterations during the first six months of life is common in RTT and do not constitute an exclusionary criterion.##= If an individual has or ever had a clinical feature listed it is counted as a supportive criterion. Many of these features have an age dependency, manifesting and becoming more predominant at certain ages. Therefore, the diagnosis of atypical RTT may be easier for older individuals than for younger. In the case of a younger individual (under 5 years old) who has a period of regression and ≥2 main criteria but does not fulfill the requirements of 5/11 supportive criteria, the diagnosis of "probably atypical RTT" may be given. Individuals who fall into this category should be reassessed as they age and the diagnosis revised accordingly.
Adeno-associated virus (AAV) is a replication-deficient parvovirus, the single-stranded DNA genome of which is about 4.7 kb in length including 145 nucleotide inverted terminal repeat (ITRs). The nucleotide sequence of the AAV serotype 2 (AAV2) genome is presented in Srivastava et al., J Virol, 45: 555-564 (1983) as corrected by Ruffing et al., J Gen Virol, 75: 3385-3392 (1994). Cis-acting sequences directing viral DNA replication (rep), encapsidation/packaging and host cell chromosome integration are contained within the ITRs. Three AAV promoters (named p5, p19, and p40 for their relative map locations) drive the expression of the two AAV internal open reading frames encoding rep and cap genes. The two rep promoters (p5 and p19), coupled with the differential splicing of the single AAV intron (at nucleotides 2107 and 2227), result in the production of four rep proteins (rep 78, rep 68, rep 52, and rep 40) from the rep gene. Rep proteins possess multiple enzymatic properties that are ultimately responsible for replicating the viral genome. The cap gene is expressed from the p40 promoter and it encodes the three capsid proteins VP1, VP2, and VP3. Alternative splicing and non-consensus translational start sites are responsible for the production of the three related capsid proteins. A single consensus polyadenylation site is located at map position 95 of the AAV genome. The life cycle and genetics of AAV are reviewed in Muzyczka, Current Topics in Microbiology and Immunology, 158: 97-129 (1992).
AAV possesses unique features that make it attractive as a vector for delivering foreign DNA to cells, for example, in gene therapy. AAV infection of cells in culture is noncytopathic, and natural infection of humans and other animals is silent and asymptomatic. Moreover, AAV infects many mammalian cells allowing the possibility of targeting many different tissues in vivo. Moreover, AAV transduces slowly dividing and non-dividing cells, and can persist essentially for the lifetime of those cells as a transcriptionally active nuclear episome (extrachromosomal element). The AAV proviral genome is infectious as cloned DNA in plasmids which makes construction of recombinant genomes feasible. Furthermore, because the signals directing AAV replication, genome encapsidation and integration are contained within the ITRs of the AAV genome, some or all of the internal approximately 4.3 kb of the genome (encoding replication and structural capsid proteins, rep-cap) may be replaced with foreign DNA such as a gene cassette containing a promoter, a DNA of interest and a polyadenylation signal. The rep and cap proteins may be provided in trans. Another significant feature of AAV is that it is an extremely stable and hearty virus. It easily withstands the conditions used to inactivate adenovirus (56° to 65° C. for several hours), making cold preservation of AAV less critical. AAV may even be lyophilized. Finally, AAV-infected cells are not resistant to superinfection. Multiple serotypes of AAV exist and offer varied tissue tropism. Known serotypes include, for example, AAV1, AAV2, AAV3, AAV4, AAV5, AAV6, AAV7, AAV8, AAV9, AAV10, AAV11, AAV12, AAV13 and AAVrh74. AAV9 is described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,198,951 and in Gao et al., J. Virol., 78: 6381-6388 (2004).
There remains a need in the art for methods and products for delivering MECP2 polynucleotides to, and expressing the polynucleotides in, the central nervous system.

Intrathecal delivery of recombinant adeno-associated virus encoding Methyl-CpG binding protein 2


An arranging structure spans a wire harness for a motor vehicle between a vehicle body and a slide member. The structure includes a corrugated tube for sheathing the wire harness; a protector made of a resin material, the protector holding opposite ends of the corrugated tube in a longitudinal direction and threading the wire harness; and a rotary member integrated with the protector or coupled to the protector as a different element from the protector, the rotary member being rotatably supported on supporting members provided on the vehicle body and the slide member.

Before, in order to supply at all times electrical power to electrical components in a slide member, such as a slide door of a motor vehicle, a wire harness is spanned between a vehicle body and a slide member. In such a kind of arranging structure, for example, a construction shown in FIG. 11 (JP 2004-40863A) has been proposed. In this construction, a wire harness W/H is threaded into a crawler type cable guide 2 in which a plurality of link members 1 are coupled to one another on a line. The crawler type cable guide 2 that threads wire harness W/H is arranged between a vehicle body 3 and a slide door 4 in an S-shaped path.
The crawler type cable guide 2 has not only a function of protecting an electrical cable but also functions of controlling a bending of the wire harness W/H and of preventing the wire harness W/H from interfering with peripheral members by giving a clearance between the vehicle body and the wire harness W/H
On the other hand, the crawler type cable guide 2 is expensive and the wire harness W/H threaded into the crawler type cable guide 2 is exposed from clearances among the link members 1. Accordingly, it is necessary for a tube 5 shown in FIG. 12 to further sheathe the crawler type cable guide 2 so as to prevent the wire harness W/H from being exposed. This will increase the number of parts and costs in production.
Some of the slide members, such as slide doors, move up and down in a direction perpendicular to a sliding direction while changing the moving angles. It is necessary to further provide an upward and downward moving mechanism shown in FIG. 13 (JP 2004-40862A) in order to follow such vertical movement.
That is, it is necessary to provide a coupling member 7 that is supported rotatably in upward and downward directions (directions shown by arrows T) between a fixing member 6 secured to the vehicle body 3 and an end of the crawler type cable guide 2. This will increase the number of parts and make the arranging structure complicated.
On the other hand, there is a construction in which a corrugated tube provided with annular crests and troughs arranged alternately in an axial direction is used as a sheathing member for a wire harness in lieu of the crawler type cable guide and the opposite ends of the corrugated tube are supported on supporting members provided with rotary mechanisms.
Thus, if the corrugated tube is used as a sheathing member, it is possible to suppress costs, not to expose the wire harness outward and to absorb an upward and downward movement of the slide member by flexibility of the corrugated tube, thereby permitting the wire harness to smoothly follow the motion of the slide member.
However, it is difficult to control a trajectory of the corrugated tube in a following action on account of flexibility of the corrugated tube and there is a possibility that the corrugated tube hangs down during the following action and interferes with peripheral members.
Patent Document 1: JP 2004-40863A
Patent Document 2: JP 2004-40862A

Arranging structure of wire harness for motor vehicle


An array substrate and a method for manufacturing the same, a method and assembly for detecting light, and a display device are provided. The array substrate includes: a base substrate having a pixel region; a light detecting unit, a switch unit, and a light emitting unit that are located in the pixel region, where the light emitting unit and the light detecting unit share the switch unit.

With the development of display technology, more and more display products are integrated with a light detecting unit to achieve light detection functions. For example, a display product integrated with a light detecting unit can detect the ambient light in the environment where the display product is located. Generally, the light detecting unit may be integrated on the array substrate of the display product.

Array substrate and method for manufacturing the same, method and assembly for detecting light, and display device


A method for operating illumination sources includes receiving a first set of images of one or more illumination sources that are generated by an image capturing device. The method further includes computing a first distance and a first perspective angle between the image capturing device and each illumination source during the generation of the first set of images. Furthermore, the method includes generating first characteristic information for each illumination source based on a comparison between at least one of the first distance or the first perspective angle for each illumination source with at least one of a predefined distance or a predefined perspective angle for each illumination source. The method also includes generating a command signal based on a comparison between the first characteristic information and a predefined characteristic threshold for each of the one or more illumination sources.

The present invention relates generally to illumination devices, and more particularly, to a method and system for controlling operation of illumination devices.
Incandescent and fluorescent lights have been used as light sources in commercial and domestic applications. However, with significant investment by manufacturers and an increased demand from consumers to develop efficient lighting systems, light emitting diodes (LEDs) have become an attractive as well as an economic option.
LEDs are being used as single light sources as well as a part of an array of light sources. Arrays of LEDs are utilized to generate light over the visible spectrum. Light from different LEDs in the array are mixed to generate a desired color from the array of LEDs. For example, in an LED panel, multiple LEDs emitting red light, green light, as well as blue light may be present. The LED panel is coupled with control electronics such that appropriate colored LEDs are activated to produce desired colors. Further, the intensity of light emitted by the red LEDs, blue LEDs, and green LEDs may also be controlled to generate desired colors. Such control requires accurate determination of light emitted by each LED in the LED panel. Further, due to continued usage of an installed LED panel, it is possible that some LEDs from the panel do not emit light of the desired intensity and/or wavelength and thus lead to a deviation in the desired color output of the LED panel.
Control systems are employed with current lighting systems to adjust the intensity of light emitted by the LEDs. Control systems are also configured to determine the color emitted by the LEDs and adjust the colors when any or all of the LEDs emit colors that are different from their prescribed colors. Determination of color emitted by a light source involves determining the coordinates of the color in a color space. Examples of color space include, but are not limited to, International Commission on Illumination (CIE) 1931, and CIE 1976. Further, color determination may also include determination of a Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) of the light source. The CCT value of a light source is an indicator of apparent "warmth" or "coolness" of the light emitted by the light source. CCT is typically expressed as a single number with Kelvin (K) as the unit of measurement. For commercially available light sources, manufacturers typically specify the color points as well as the CCT value for the light source.
Control systems are designed to maintain the emitted light within the prescribed range for CCT as well the color points. Manufacturers may provide a typical aging curve for lighting systems to indicate the change in both intensity and color point of the light source with an increase in operational time. However, in case of LED light sources, the aging curve may not be accurate since existing LED aging patterns have not been widely accepted.
Current systems and methods involve determination of color point and CCT values for a light source based on images of the light source and image processing techniques. However, these systems require imaging systems that are highly accurate. Also the image processing techniques, utilized to process high resolution images of the imaging systems, require high speed processing capabilities. These requirements add to the cost of controlling operations of lighting systems. Systems that are economical in terms of selection of components tend to compromise of accuracy of characteristic estimation. Accuracy in characteristic estimation is paramount to the determination of colors and the actions that need to be initiated to keep the light emitted by the light source in the prescribed color range.
Hence, there is a need for a system and a method that effectively determines color characteristics of illumination sources.

Method and system for controlling color characteristics of one or more illumination devices


An apparatus for transporting processed sheets within a printing device. The apparatus includes a compiler including a slot for receiving the processed sheets. The slot is defined at least in part by a paper guide. An elevator is in operative communication with the compiler. The elevator includes a stop for supporting the processed sheets and a drive mechanism for moving the stop and processed sheets supported thereby between a plurality of positions. The stop has a first position for initially receiving the processed sheets. The stop is movable from the first position in a generally upward direction to a second position for breaking adhesion between a processed sheet and the paper guide. The stop is movable in a generally downward direction from the second position to a third position.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to automated booklet makers, in which printed sheets are formed into a booklet, and more particularly, to transporting the printed sheets in a booklet maker.
2. Brief Discussion of Related Art
Booklet makers are well-known devices for forming folded booklets which are stapled along the crease thereof. It is becoming common to include booklet makers in conjunction with a finisher module of an office-range printer. The word "printer" as used herein encompasses any apparatus, such as a digital copier, bookmaking machine, facsimile machine, multifunction machine, etc. which performs a print outputting function for any purpose. In basic form, a booklet maker includes a slot for accumulating processed sheets, as would be produced by a printer. The accumulated sheets, forming the pages of a booklet, are positioned within the stack so that a stapler mechanism and complementary anvil can staple the stack precisely along the intended crease line. The creased and stapled sheet sets are then pushed, by a blade, completely through crease rollers, to form the final main fold in the finished booklet. The finished booklets are then accumulated in a tray downstream of the crease rollers.
When the processed sheets are sitting in the slot awaiting the remaining sheets to be printed, adhesion may occur between the sheets and a portion of a paper guide forming the slot. When the sheets are transported for further finishing, the adhesion prevents the sheets from moving uniformly to the desired finishing position. This results in an improperly assembled booklet and/or jamming.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a booklet maker which reliably and uniformly transports the processed sheets to produce a quality booklet.


A lighting device comprising a plurality of overlapping leaves hingedly attached to a base that can be manipulated to control the size of an opening through which light from a light source passes, and thereby the size and intensity of the light. In some embodiments the device includes an off-center lighting source whereby a light beam is emitted at an angle to an axis passing through the center of the opening formed by the leaves.

The shape and intensity of light emitted from a light source is generally controlled mainly by the shape of an object in which the light source is located (e.g. a lamp shade); and that object or shade is typically static. Alternatively, the intensity of light emitted from a light source is often controlled via an electronic dimmer device. Many devices for controlling the shape and/or amount of light either emitted or received, as in the case of a camera, require an outer casing to receive the device used to control the light.


A semiconductor device comprises a magneto-resistive device capable of performing multiple functions with low power. The semiconductor device comprises a cell transistor in which a first impurity region and a second impurity region are respectively arranged on both sides of a channel region in a channel direction, a source line connected to the first impurity region of the cell transistor, and the magneto-resistive device connected to the second impurity region of the cell transistor. The first impurity region and the second impurity region are asymmetrical about a center of the cell transistor in the channel direction with respect to at least one of a shape and an impurity concentration distribution.

Embodiments disclosed herein relate to semiconductor devices comprising magneto-resistive devices, and more particularly, to a semiconductor device comprising a transistor that is connected to a magneto-resistive device.
With rapid developments in the electronic industry and demands of users, electronic devices are becoming more compact and lightweight. The need for portable electronic devices is increasing. Thus, to satisfy the need for portable electronic devices, there is an increasing need for semiconductor devices capable of low-power multi-functional performance.

Semiconductor device including magneto-resistive device


A system of generating a three-dimensional (3D) scan of an environment includes multiple 3D scanners including a first 3D scanner at respective first and second positions. The system further includes a controller coupled to the 3D scanners via a common communications network. The first scanner and second scanner transmit a subset of data to the controller while acquiring a set of 3D coordinates. The controller registers the subsets of data to each other while the sets of 3D coordinates is being acquired.

The present application is directed to a system that optically scans an environment, such as a building, and in particular to generating a point cloud of the scanned environment by combining scanned data of the environment that is acquired by multiple scanner devices.
The automated creation of digital point clouds for existing structures is desirable as it allows the size and shape of the environment to be used in many processes. For example, a 2D or 3D floorplan may be generated from the captured point clouds, the floorplan desirable in search and rescue missions, security missions, army applications, and other such mission critical applications. Such floorplans may find other uses such as in documenting a building for a fire department or to document a crime scene, in the planning of construction or remodeling of a building, and the like. Various other uses of the floorplan can be envisioned.
Existing measurement systems typically use a scanning device that determines coordinates of surfaces in the environment by emitting a light and capturing a reflection to determine a distance or by triangulation using cameras. These scanning devices are mounted to a movable structure, such as a cart, and moved through the building to generate a digital representation of the building. These systems tend to be more complex and require specialized personnel to perform the scan. Further, the scanning equipment including the movable structure may be bulky, which could further delay the scanning process in time sensitive situations, such as a crime or accident scene investigation. Further yet, such scanning requires a single scanning equipment to be moved in the environment to capture different sections sequentially.
Accordingly, while existing scanners are suitable for their intended purposes, what is needed is a system for having certain features of embodiments of the present invention.

System and method of registering point cloud data using subsample data


The present disclosure relates to a system and method for locating a target subject associated with an X-ray system. The X-ray system may include an X-ray source, a detection component, an arm, and a platform. The X-ray system may also include a first positioning component, a second positioning component, or a third positioning component. The first positioning component may be configured to determine a target point where a region of interest (ROI) of the target subject locates. The second positioning component may be configured to locate the target subject. The third positioning component may be configured to obtain location information of a target device associated with the target subject in real-time.

In a surgical operation (e.g., a puncturing surgery), an operator may perform the surgical operation at a lesion point (e.g., a puncturing point) associated with a target subject (e.g., a patient). An anatomical image may be determined by emitting X-rays towards the target subject by a medical imaging system, which may assist the operator to determine the lesion point. In some cases, the lesion point may be determined based on the anatomical image and clinical experience of the operator, which may be relatively inefficient or inaccurate. In some cases, in the surgical operation, anatomical images from different perspectives may be needed, and the operator may need to adjust the radiation of the X-rays (e.g., a direction of the X-rays) to ensure the lesion point at or near to the center of the anatomical image from the different perspectives. In some cases, in order to navigate the surgical operation in real-time (e.g., navigate an operation equipment), at least one additional device (e.g., a trolley) used for placing the navigation device in an operation room. In one hand, the additional device may occupy the space of the operation room. In the other hand, the additional device may have to register with the medical imaging system before navigation, which may be inefficient. Thus, it may be desirable to develop a method or a system to locate the target subject or the target device in a medical imaging procedure.

System and method for locating a target subject

SHANGHAI UNITED IMAGING HEALTHCARE CO., LTD.


An electromagnetic holding brake comprising a switchable electromagnet (4) for holding a movable sheet (6) in a predetermined position, wherein said brake further comprises a second fixated sheet (5) which is arranged substantially parallel to the movable sheet (6), such that said movable sheet (6) is clamped between the electromagnet (4) and the second sheet (5) when the current is switched on.

Electromagnetic holding brakes of this kind are used in medical devices in order to clamp and hold a movable sheet. The movable sheet is connected with a certain part of the medical device, the position of which can be changed. The braking force or holding force can be defined as the force the sheet can be pulled with, without any movements occurring between the electromagnet and the sheet. The braking force depends on the thickness of the sheet, the magnetic properties of the sheet, the power of the electromagnet and the surface friction between the electromagnet and the sheet.


A hair dye composition containing an azo dye (1) or a salt thereof,

Hair dyes can be classified by the dye to be used or by whether they have any bleaching action on melanin or not. Typical examples include a two-part permanent hair dye composed of a first part containing an alkali agent, an oxidation dye and optionally a direct dye such as a nitro dye and a second part containing an oxidizing agent; and a one-part semi-permanent hair dye containing an organic acid or an alkali agent, and at least one direct dye such as an acid dye, basic dye or nitro dye.
The above-described two-part permanent hair dye however has drawbacks that the color tone imparted by the oxidation dye is not so vivid or that the color of the hair dyed with the nitro dye, which is ordinarily employed as a direct dye and produces a vivid-color, markedly fades over time and becomes dull quickly although the color tone immediately after dyeing is very vivid. A variety of direct dyes such as cationic direct dyes and nitro dyes have been used in combination in permanent hair dye products in order to produce a vivid color.
Direct dyes available at present however cannot bring about sufficient effects. Moreover, the number of direct dyes that can be used in combination with an oxidation dye is limited because they are required to have stability against alkali peroxides during the hair dying process. In any case, the color fades very quickly due to the loss of the direct dye as a result of washing or exposure to light. This phenomenon is marked in damaged or porous hair (hair having pores formed therein).
The present inventors provided azo dyes having a dissociative proton as a direct dye capable of overcoming the above-described problems (for example, refer to Patent Documents 1 and 2). These dyes however still have problems to be improved, such as resistance to light, shampooing, sweat, friction or heat, or stability against an alkalizing agent or an oxidizing agent.
[Patent Document 1] JP-A-2003-342139
[Patent Document 2] JP-A-2004-107343

Abstract: (wherein R1 to R4 represents H, aliphatic hydrocarbon group, aryl group, halogen atom, acyl group, cyano group, acylamino group, or the like, wherein R1 and R2, and/or R3 and R4 may be coupled to form a 5- or 6-membered ring; X represents C or N, with the proviso that when X represents C, n stands for 1, and when X represents N, n stands for 0; A1, A2, A3 and A4 each represents N or represents C substituted by Y or having H, with the proviso that at least one of A1, A2, A3 and A4 is a nitrogen atom; and Y represents a substituent with the proviso that m stands for an integer from 0 to 3).


Disclosed is a battery pack including battery cells or unit modules (unit cells), wherein the battery pack is configured to have a structure in which the unit cells are uprightly arranged in a width direction (a horizontal direction) of the battery pack in a state in which a spacing distance for coolant flow is provided between the respective unit cells to constitute a battery module, a plurality of battery modules is arranged to constitute a battery module group, battery modules groups are vertically arranged from a coolant introduction direction of a coolant inlet port in a height direction (a vertical direction) of the battery pack to have a two or more layer structure or laterally arranged from the coolant introduction direction of the coolant inlet port in a length direction (a horizontal direction) of the battery pack to have a two or more row structure.

Recently, a secondary battery, which can be charged and discharged, has been widely used as an energy source for wireless mobile devices. In addition, the secondary battery has attracted considerable attention as a power source for electric vehicles (EV) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEV), which have been developed to solve problems, such as air pollution, caused by existing gasoline and diesel vehicles using fossil fuels.
Small-sized mobile devices use one or several battery cells per device. On the other hand, middle or large-sized devices, such as vehicles, use a middle or large-sized battery module having a plurality of battery cells electrically connected to one another because high power and large capacity are necessary for the middle or large-sized devices.
Preferably, the middle or large-sized battery module is manufactured so as to have as small a size and weight as possible. For this reason, a prismatic battery or a pouch-shaped battery, which can be stacked with high integration and has a small weight to capacity ratio, is usually used as a battery cell of the middle or large-sized battery module. In particular, much interest is currently focused on the pouch-shaped battery, which uses an aluminum laminate sheet as a sheathing member, because the pouch-shaped battery is lightweight, the manufacturing costs of the pouch-shaped battery are low, and it is possible to easily modify the shape of the pouch-shaped battery.
In order for the middle or large-sized battery module to provide power and capacity required by a specific apparatus or device, it is necessary for the middle or large-sized battery module to be configured to have a structure in which a plurality of battery cells is electrically connected in series to each other or in series and parallel to each other and the battery cells are stable against external force.
Meanwhile, the battery cells constituting the middle or large-sized battery module may be secondary batteries which can be charged and discharged. Consequently, a large amount of heat is generated from such high-power, large-capacity secondary batteries during charge and discharge of the secondary batteries. If the heat, generated from the unit battery during charge and discharge of the unit battery, is not effectively removed from the unit battery, the heat accumulates in the unit battery with the result that deterioration of the unit battery is accelerated. According to circumstances, the unit battery may catch fire or explode. For this reason, a battery pack for vehicles, which is a high-power, large-capacity battery, needs a cooling system to cool battery cells mounted in the battery pack.
In a middle or large-sized battery pack including a plurality of battery cells, on the other hand, the deterioration in performance of some battery cells leads to the deterioration in performance of the entire battery pack. One of the main factors causing the non-uniformity in performance is the non-uniformity of cooling between the battery cells. For this reason, it is necessary to provide a structure to secure cooling uniformity during the flow of a coolant.
As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional middle or large-sized battery pack may be configured to have a structure in which battery modules are uprightly arranged in a width direction of a battery pack 20 to constitute a battery module group 10 and two battery modules groups 10 are vertically arranged from a coolant introduction direction of a coolant inlet port 15 in a height direction of the battery pack 20 to have a two-layer structure.
Consequently, a coolant, introduced from the coolant inlet port 15, which is formed at the lower part of the battery pack, sequentially passes through flow channels defined between the unit cells 11 to cool the unit cells 11 and is discharged from the battery pack through a coolant outlet port 17 formed at the upper part of the battery pack.
However, the above structure affects distribution of flow rate of the coolant introduced into the unit cells and causes temperature deviation between the layers. In addition, the coolant flow channel is increased to generate differential pressure. As a result, it is difficult to achieve uniform cooling between the battery cells.
Consequently, there is a high necessity for technology to fundamentally solve the above problems.

Battery pack providing improved distribution uniformity in coolant


An image forming apparatus includes a development device, a toner storage part, a drive unit, a control unit, and an image carrying member. The development device includes a development casing, a developer carrying member, a first stirring transport member, a second stirring transport member, a discharge impeller, and a reverse transport impeller. The development casing includes a first partition wall, a communication part, a developer replenishment port, and a developer discharge part. The first stirring transport member includes a first rotation shaft and a first transport impeller. The second stirring transport member includes a second rotation shaft and a second transport impeller. The control unit can perform a developer discharge mode, in which the first rotation shaft and the second rotation shaft are rotated reversely during a non image formation period, so that the developer around the reverse transport impeller is discharged through the developer discharge part.

The present disclosure relates to an image forming apparatus.
The image forming apparatus using an electrophotographic method, such as a copier, a printer, a facsimile machine, or a multifunction peripheral thereof, includes a development device that develops a latent image formed on an image carrying member such as a photosensitive drum into a visualized toner image. As one of the development devices, there is one that adopts a two component development method using a two component developer containing carrier and toner. The development device of this method includes a development casing that stores the developer, a developing roller (developer carrying member) that supplies the developer to the image carrying member, and a stirring transport member that supplies the developer in the development casing to the developing roller while stirring and transporting the same.
In the development device of the two component development method described above, the toner is consumed by the development operation while the carrier is not consumed and remains in the development device. Then, the carrier in the development casing is stirred endlessly and is gradually deteriorated. As a result, carrier's charging performance to the toner is gradually deteriorated.
Therefore, there is proposed a development device equipped with a CASS (Carrier Auto Streaming System), which replenishes new developer containing carrier into the development casing while discharging excessive developer, so as to suppress deterioration in charging performance of the carrier due to its deterioration (Patent Document 1). The development device described in the Patent Document 1 is configured to replenish new two component developer and to discharge excessive developer containing carrier when volume of the developer in the development casing exceeds a predetermined volume, so that the carrier in the development casing is interchanged.
The development device described in the Patent Document 1 has a specific structure including a transport screw in the development casing and a return screw that has a reverse spiral to the transport screw and is disposed on a downstream side of the same in a discharging direction. The return screw is disposed in a developer discharge path. If volume of the developer is less than a predetermined volume, the developer is pushed back by the return screw and is prevented from being discharged outside the development casing. When new developer is replenished and volume of the developer increases to exceed a predetermined volume, excessive developer passes through a gap between an outermost part of the return screw and an inner wall surface of the development casing and is discharged from the development casing in such a manner as to go over the return screw.
In addition, the development device described in the Patent Document 1 includes a disk section disposed adjacent to the return screw in the developer discharge path (see FIG. 5 in the Patent Document 1). This disk section stabilizes developer discharge amount and suppresses splashing of the developer.

Image forming apparatus that can decrease variations in volume and weight of developer in a development casing


A monolithic integrated circuit for controlling a high-side switching element for a load using a bootstrap capacitor is disclosed. The integrated circuit comprises a first supply voltage input for receiving a first input supply voltage V1, a second supply voltage input for receiving a second, current-limited input supply voltage VCP, a voltage-sensing input for receiving a source voltage, a first output for providing a drive signal VG to the switching element, a second output for providing a charging signal VBS to a bootstrap capacitor, a pre-driver for generating the drive signal, the pre-driver having a voltage input and an output which is coupled to the first output, and a power supply control section comprising first and second switches. The first and second switches are arranged in series between the first input and the second output, the second input is coupled to a node between the first and second switches, and the second node is coupled to a voltage input of the pre-driver. The first and second switches are selectively operable following switching of the switching element from an ON state to an OFF state and in response to a determination that the source voltage is below a predetermined level, to decouple the second output and in response to determination that the source voltage is above the predetermined level to couple the second output to the second output.

so High-side switching elements (or "switches") are increasingly being used to drive loads, such as actuators, in automotive applications including engine control, passenger comfort electronics and chassis control.
High-side switches can be realized using power n-channel metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors or "N-channel MOSFETs" (often referred to simply as "nMOS transistors). nMOS transistors tend to be preferred over pMOS transistors due to having a lower ON-resistance and being cheaper. However, nMOS transistors require a high source-gate voltage to switch it ON and so a suitable circuit for supplying a higher voltage is required.
Referring to FIG. 1, one such suitable circuit is a bootstrap circuit which includes a bootstrap capacitor Cbs and an auxiliary voltage source stacked above a supply voltage source, which in this case is a battery. The battery supplies a voltage Vbat to the nMOS transistor drain. A load Zload is connected between an nMOS transistor source node and ground GND. To turn the nMOS transistor ON, a pre-driver circuit is supplied with a higher voltage VCP using the auxiliary voltage source, where VCP>Vbat.
Many applications have a complex load with significant inductive component. Consequently, turning the nMOS transistor causes the load Zload to drive the transistor source node VS negative. The negative voltage can be either clamped using a suitable element, such as a Zener diode (not shown), or be controlled an integrated pre-driver power control circuit supplied with a voltage VCP from the auxiliary voltage source and with a stabilized voltage V1 from a stable voltage source.
The nMOS transistor is often a discrete element, while the pre-driver and its power supply control circuit are provided in an integrated circuit, such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC).
A challenge facing pre-driver integrated circuits (which are typically based on a BiCMOS process) is to how to deal with negative voltages at the transistor source node and, thus, the pre-driver negative supply level. The pre-driver should ensure not only that the nMOS transistor is switched ON in the ON state, but also that the transistor is switched OFF in the OFF state. Moreover, the speed (i.e., slew rate) of the negative so source node drop in both transitions should not lead to big transient currents into or out of the bootstrap capacitor Cbs and so avoid circuit destruction and/or reverse current to the stabilized base supply V1. This is made more challenging since the slew rate of clamping events can have a value lying in a wide range, for example, from −100 mVμs−1 to −300 Vμs−1.

Controlling a high-side switching element using a bootstrap capacitor


A creeping plant supporting frame assembly includes a plurality of upright support frames, which are each comprised of a plurality of elongated upright rods spaced from one another around a circle and connected together by a spiral tie bar around the periphery, anchor rods for supporting the upright support frames on the ground, a meshed head frame supported over the upright support frames for climbing creeping plants, feeder bottles respectively suspended on the upright support frames for watering and feeding liquid fertilizer, and baskets and hangers respectively hung on the upright support frames for carrying fruits.

The present invention relates to creeping plant supporting frame assemblies fastened in the ground by anchor rods to support meshed head frames for climbing creeping plants. Fruit baskets and fruit hangers are suspended from the upright support frames thereof for carrying fruits.
In gardening, stakes and sticks are commonly used for supporting creeping plants. However, a stake or stick may be damaged easily under stress of weather. Furthermore, a stake or stick provides less climbing space for climbing creeping plants and has no supporting means for carrying the fruits of the creeping plants being supported.

Creeping plant supporting frame assemblies

No. 603, I-Cheng Road Section 1, Pa-Pao Village


The invention relates to a method for deblocking filtering a macroblock (M1) on the basis of a coding standard for image information which is stored in macroblocks (M1, M2) which are arranged adjacent to one another horizontally in macroblock rows and adjacent to one another vertically in macroblock columns, wherein each macroblock (M1, M2) is formed from blocks (B) which are arranged adjacent to one another horizontally in block rows M and adjacent to one another vertically in block columns n and form block elements Mmn, where m=1 to 4 and n=1 to 4, of a first matrix M, wherein the blocks (B) have vertical edges (14, 15) and horizontal edges (18, 19), which each provide external boundaries for the blocks (B), and, starting with the block element MII, the vertical edges (14, 15) and the horizontal edges (18, 19) of the blocks (B) of a macroblock (M1, M2) are filtered, in which a context region (K1) comprising the blocks (B) of a first macroblock (M1) to be filtered is stipulated which is formed from blocks (B) which are arranged adjacent to one another horizontally in block rows o and adjacent to one another vertically in block columns p and form block elements Kop, where o=1 to 7 and p=1 to 7, of a second matrix K, wherein the block elements K1-S, where r=3 to 6 and s=3 to 6, correspond to the block elements Mmn, where m=1 to 4 and n=1 to 4, of the first matrix M. Next, the vertical edges (1, 3) and horizontal edges (2, 10) of the blocks (B) of the context region (K1) are filtered, starting with the block element KII of the second matrix K, on the basis of the coding standard for image information.

1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments relate to methods for deblocking filtering a macroblock.
2. Background of the Related Art
In many applications, standardised methods are used to code image information. The video compression method according to the standard H.264 is used, for example, for:                high-resolution television such as High Definition Television (HDTV) with video data storage on high-definition digital versatile disc (HD DVD) and Blu-ray disc,        mobile terminals such as mobile telephones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), portable games consoles and MP3 players on which videos can be played back,        multimedia,        video-conference technology, and        video cameras and digital cameras.
In video compression, video data is coded in a transmitter, transmitted to a receiver in coded form, and decoded in the receiver. The standards used are therefore also called codecs, a combination of the English words "code" and "decode".
In standard H.264 and its predecessor, standard H.263, individual video images, also called frames, are split into blocks and coded block by block, whereby in both standards, a deblocking filter is used in each case in the coding loop. Other video compression standards have deblocking filters with which the coded frames are filtered in a post-processing stage. The deblocking filter is used to increase the perceived image quality, whereby optically perceptible transitions between adjacent blocks, also called block artefacts, which can form between adjacent blocks, are smoothed by the filtering of the image points of each frame saved in the blocks. Below, "filtering" means "deblocking filtering". "Filtering a block" means "filtering the image points, also called pixels, saved in this block".
The blocks which are adjacent horizontally and vertically, and exist in a multiplicity of rows and columns, can be imagined as fields in a chessboard arrangement in a Cartesian coordinate system. The filtering of a block at position (x/y) of the Cartesian coordinate system is, according to standard H.264, dependent on filtered pixels of the blocks in the positions (x−1/y) and (x/y−1) of the Cartesian coordinate system. With the coding of image information according to standard H.264, the blocks are combined to form macroblocks, wherein each macroblock is made of blocks which are arranged adjacent to each other horizontally in block rows and adjacent to each other vertically in block columns, with four blocks in each case. "Filtering a macroblock" means "filtering the pixels of the blocks in the macroblock saved in this macroblock".
Filtering is carried out via a sequence of calculation steps also called an algorithm, wherein the calculation steps normally proceed in the context of a filter program on a computer. To carry out these calculation steps, a processor normally with a computation core, or simply core, is used. There is currently a trend towards processors with a number of cores, also called a "many-core processor" or a "many-core system". Even architectures of processors with a multiplicity of cores, also called "multi-core processors" or "multi-core systems", are being developed, as evidenced by the "Terascale" project or the "Larrabee" project from the company Intel. Graphics processors, called "graphic processor units" (GPUs), for example from the company NVidia, even today have many-core processors, which because of their high computing power and ease of programming are increasingly used for high-performance computing applications. To fully use the computing power available, processors with several or many cores need algorithms which are parallelisable. In parallelised algorithms, one calculation step does not depend on the results of previous calculation steps. If a calculation step depends on the results of previous calculation steps, these calculation steps must be carried out in series, i.e. consecutively, and cannot proceed in parallel with each other.
A problematic area in the implementation of standard H.264 in many-core processors is the deblocking filter in which there is no provision for a filtering of a macroblock independently of another macroblock due to the dependence of the filtering of a block at position (x/y) on the filtered pixels of the blocks at positions (x−1/y) and (x/y−1).
A known method for the partial parallelisation of the calculation steps of the filtering taking into account the data dependence described in the previous section consists of combining a number of blocks in the image of the Cartesian coordinate system into a diagonal. The diagonals formed from blocks are filtered consecutively in series, whereby the filtering of the blocks within a diagonal occurs in parallel to each other. However, in the procedure of the filtering of diagonals of blocks using a GPU from the company NVidia, drawbacks do arise:                1. The algorithm in which the implementation model of the filter programs is found, is also called a "kernel". There is a high cost in terms of time to initialise the GPU, also called the startup overhead, for the running of the filter programs for the parallel filtering of blocks within a diagonal, as the kernel algorithm, which becomes extensive to meet the requirements of the parallel filtering of blocks within a diagonal, has to be transferred onto the graphics card which contains the GPU and the computation cores of the GPU have to be configured according to the kernel algorithm before the calculation steps start.        2. "Kernel" algorithms carried out in parallel cannot be synchronised with each other or can only be synchronised with long delays, also called latency times.        3. The diagonals of blocks are often not long enough to fully utilise all the computation cores of the GPU, and in this case some of the GPU's computing power remains unused.
Another option for parallelising the calculation steps of the filtering consists of the filtering of macroblocks without taking account of the data dependence arising during filtering according to standard H.264, whereby this type of filtering is described by the inventor as a naive filter method. A filtered video frame is used to predict video frames which follow the filtered frame. If, the macroblocks needed to filter a macroblock and adjoining said macroblock are not filtered, discrepancies arise between this filtering result and the filtering result according to the standard. These discrepancies lead to pixel discrepancies between the filtering result of the naive filter method and the filtering result according to the standard, whereby these pixel discrepancies are also described as a drift effect, which clearly adversely affects the image quality of the decoded video frame compared to the image quality with filtering according to the standard.