An exposure apparatus for measuring a position of a stage, configured to hold a substrate, using a laser interferometer, and exposing the substrate through an original, and an optical element opposite to the substrate with a gap between the optical element and the substrate filled with liquid. A first supply nozzle is arranged around the optical element, which supplies the liquid to the gap, a first recovery nozzle arranged around the first supply nozzle recovers the liquid from the gap, a second supply nozzle supplies a gas outside the first recovery nozzle, a controller controls an amount of the liquid supplied from the first supply nozzle and an amount of the liquid and gas recovered from the first recovery nozzle, and a wall portion is arranged around the optical element and substantially parallel to a surface of the substrate. If Q1 is the amount of the liquid supplied from the first supply nozzle and Q2 is a sum of the amount of the liquid and gas recovered from the first recovery nozzle, a relationship Q1<Q2 is satisfied.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an exposure technique for exposing a substrate to light with a gap between a projection optical system and the substrate filled with liquid.
2. Description of the Related Art
A process for manufacturing a semiconductor device formed from a micropattern of an LSI or VLSI adopts a reduction projection exposure apparatus which reduces a pattern formed on a mask and projects and transfers it onto a substrate coated with a photosensitive agent. As the degree of integration of a semiconductor device increases, further micropatterning becomes necessary. The exposure apparatus has coped with micropatterning along with the development of the resist process.
To increase the resolving power of an exposure apparatus, it is a common practice to shorten the exposure wavelength or to increase the numerical aperture (NA) of a projection optical system.
As for the wavelength of exposure light, a shift, from a 365-nm i-line to KrF excimer laser light having an oscillation wavelength around 248 nm, is in progress, and an ArF excimer laser having an oscillation wavelength around 193 nm is under development. A fluorine (F2) excimer laser having an oscillation wavelength around 157 nm is also under development.
On the other hand, a liquid immersion method or liquid immersion lithography is receiving a great deal of attention as a technique for increasing the resolving power in a completely different way from the above methods. The conventional methods fill, with a gas, the space between the end face of a projection optical system and the surface of an exposure target substrate (e.g., a wafer). However, the liquid immersion method executes projection exposure while filling that space with a liquid. Assume, for example, that the liquid immersion method uses pure water (refractive index: 1.44) as the liquid to be supplied to the space between the projection optical system and the wafer, and sets the maximum incident angle of a light beam imaged on the wafer equal to that in the conventional methods. In this case, the liquid immersion method can advantageously attain a resolving power 1.44 times that in the conventional methods even by using a light source having the same wavelength. This amounts to increasing the NA of the projection optical system in the conventional methods to 1.44 times. The liquid immersion method can attain a resolving power whose NA is one or more, which is practically impossible in the conventional methods.
An attempt to apply the liquid immersion method to an exposure apparatus is recently in progress. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-124873 discloses a prior art exposure apparatus to which the liquid immersion method is applied. FIG. 17A is a side view showing the structure of the exposure apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-124873. Referring to FIG. 17A, filling a liquid tank (chamber) 109 with a liquid 130 provides the ability to fill, with the liquid 130, the space between a wafer 102 and the end face (an optical element 107) of a projection optical system 104. The liquid tank 109 accommodates a wafer transfer device, wafer chuck 112, X-Y stage 113, fine moving stage 114, and part of or all of each of coarse alignment devices 111-1 to 111-4. The wafer transfer device loads the wafer 102 from a wafer cassette 110 and sets it on the wafer chuck 112.
Reference numeral 115 denotes a laser interferometer. A reference mirror 116 is attached to the surface of the fine moving stage 114 along the X and Y directions (the Y direction is not shown), and reflects light from the laser interferometer 115 to measure the position of the fine moving stage 114. The liquid tank 109 has a window 117, which passes light from the laser interferometer 115. A heat-insulating material 118 is formed outside the liquid tank 109 and thermally insulates the liquid tank 109 from outside.
As shown in FIG. 17B, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-124873 describes another arrangement example of the exposure apparatus designed to mount the liquid tank 109 on the fine moving stage 114 while placing, in the liquid tank 109, only constituent parts, including the wafer chuck 112, or while directly placing the wafer chuck 112 on the bottom surface of the liquid tank 109. That is, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-124873 describes an exposure apparatus using a method of mounting, in the liquid tank 109, the whole wafer 102 and the end face of the projection optical system 104.
International Publication No. WO99/049504 describes still another example in which the liquid immersion method is applied to an exposure apparatus. International Publication No. WO99/049504 describes an exposure apparatus using a method of supplying a liquid to only the space between a projection optical system and the wafer surface, so as to fill that space.
This method uses a laser interferometer to measure the position of a stage. However, the laser interferometer suffers from a measurement error, due to a change in refractive index of a gas (to be referred to as an ambient gas hereinafter) on its measurement optical path, along with changes in its composition, temperature, and humidity.
For example, an amount Δn of a change in refractive index due to a change in humidity of the ambient gas is expressed by Δn=Ke·Δe where Ke is a coefficient, and Δe (%) is the amount of change in humidity. The coefficient Ke is a constant, which depends on the type of ambient gas used, and the wavelength of a laser used. If, for example, the ambient gas is air, and the light source uses a He—Ne laser, Ke=1E-8 approximately holds. Hence, when the humidity of the ambient gas has changed by 1%, the amount of change in refractive index satisfies:Δn=1E-8*1=1E-8.At this time, if the length of the measurement optical path of the laser interferometer is 1 m, a measurement error ΔL is:ΔL=1E-8*1=10 nm.
Accordingly, it is necessary for an exposure apparatus, to which the conventional liquid immersion method is applied, that a change in refractive index of an ambient gas never influences the measurement accuracy of the laser interferometer. Additionally, to reduce a change in refractive index of the ambient gas on the measurement optical path of the laser interferometer, that exposure apparatus seeks to reduce changes in temperature and humidity of the ambient gas on the measurement optical path of the laser interferometer.
For example, the exposure apparatus in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-124873, having the structure shown in FIG. 17A, provides the ability to prevent the influence of a change in refractive index of an ambient gas on the measurement accuracy of the laser interferometer 115, by directly attaching the laser interferometer 115 to the side surface of the liquid tank 109, as shown in FIG. 17C.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-303114 exemplifies a technique for reducing changes in temperature and humidity of an ambient gas on the measurement optical path of a laser interferometer. FIG. 18 is a side view showing the structure of an exposure apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-303114. At a predetermined height, a wall portion LB is formed on the entire outer peripheral portion of a holder table WH which holds a wafer W. The inner side of the wall portion LB is filled with a liquid LQ at a predetermined depth.
For an exposure scheme, which causes the laser interferometer to project a reference beam BSr onto a reference mirror ML of a projection lens system PL, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-303114 describes a technique for preventing a fluctuation in the optical path of the reference beam BSr by interposing a cover plate 287 between the optical path of the reference beam BSr and the liquid LQ, so as to cut off the flow of the vapor ascending from the liquid LQ.
As described above, an exposure apparatus to which the liquid immersion method is applied seeks to reduce changes in temperature and humidity of a gas on the measurement optical path or to prevent a change in refractive index of the ambient gas from influencing the measurement accuracy of the laser interferometer.
However, it is necessary for the exposure apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-124873 to directly attach the laser interferometer 115 to the side surface of the liquid tank 109, as shown in FIG. 17C, in order to prevent a change in refractive index of the ambient gas from influencing the measurement accuracy of the laser interferometer. It is also necessary to place, in the liquid tank 109, the wafer 102, wafer chuck 112, X-Y stage 113, fine moving stage 114, and part of or all of each of coarse alignment devices 111-1 to 111-4. This complicates the apparatus and increases its size, resulting in an increase in its cost.
Additionally, as shown in FIG. 17B, when the wafer 102 and wafer chuck 112 alone are placed in the liquid tank 109, the vapor produced from the liquid 130 changes the composition of an ambient gas on the measurement optical path of the laser interferometer 115. This changes the refractive index of the ambient gas, resulting in degradation in measurement accuracy of the laser interferometer 115. Especially, if the liquid 130 is pure water, not only does the composition of the ambient gas, but also, the humidity of the ambient gas, greatly changes. This causes a larger change in refractive index, so the laser interferometer 115 suffers from a measurement error that is absolutely unallowable.
For the sake of simplicity, the expression that the refractive index of an ambient gas on the measurement optical path of a laser interferometer actually changes indicates the following phenomenon. That is, the refractive index of an ambient gas on the measurement optical path of a laser interferometer changes due to a change in composition and/or humidity of the ambient gas. The expression that the vapor of a liquid from the space between a projection optical system and the wafer surface influences an ambient gas on the measurement optical path of a laser interferometer actually indicates the following phenomenon. That is, the vapor of a liquid from the space between a projection optical system and the wafer surface leaks out onto the measurement optical path of a laser interferometer and, therefore, the refractive index of an ambient gas on the measurement optical path changes.
The exposure apparatus discussed in international Publication WO99/049504 does not consider any vapor of the liquid from the space between the projection optical system and the wafer surface. Therefore, the vapor produced from the liquid from the space between the projection optical system and the wafer surface changes the refractive index of the ambient gas on the measurement optical path of the laser interferometer. The laser interferometer suffers from a measurement error. Consequently, the apparatus often manufactures a defective semiconductor element, resulting in degradation in its productivity.
Since the exposure apparatus in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-303114 mounts the cover plate 287, it is possible to prevent a fluctuation in the optical path of the reference beam BSr. However, the vapor of the liquid LQ still influences a measurement beam BSm, so the fundamental problem remains.


The invention relates to a transmission diversity detecting apparatus and method. The transmission diversity detecting apparatus is applied in a Wideband Code-Division Multiple-Access (WCDMA) system having a CIPCH channel and a synchronization channel for detecting an antenna diversity of a cell. The transmission diversity detecting apparatus includes an antenna diversity detecting unit for determining the antenna diversity; and a quality indicator generator, electrically connected to the antenna diversity detecting unit, for generating a quality indicator utilized for indicating the reliability of the antenna diversity determined by the antenna diversity detecting unit.

The invention relates to a transmission diversity detecting apparatus and the related method applied to a WCDMA system, and more particularly, to a transmission diversity detecting apparatus capable of generating a quality indicator and the related method thereof.
In WCDMA systems, for registration, an user equipment (UE) must obtain certain system information to camp on a cell. For that purpose, the UE usually provides a cell searcher for getting the system information. Generally, after the UE is powered on, the cell searcher is performed to acquire the timing of the cell and the corresponding scrambling code. However, to read the system information from P-CCPCH, the UE must further detect the antenna diversity of the cell. If the use of antenna diversity is unknown to the UE, the UE might wrongly decode signals from the cell and the decoding performance will degrade significantly.
Please refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. FIG. 1 is the schematic diagram of the synchronization channel (SCH) in the non-TXTD mode. FIG. 2 is the schematic diagram of the SCH in the TXTD mode. As shown in the figures, "a" is a flag showing the transmission diversity of the P-CCPCH channel, "cp" is the primary synchronization code, and "cs" is the secondary synchronization code. It should be noted that the sign of the flag "a" would be different in these two modes. For example, the flag "a" is equal to "−1" when P-CCPCH channel is in non-STTD mode and is equal to "1" when P-CCPCH channel is in STTD mode. It is known that the use of antenna diversity on P-CCPCH channel can be detected from the sign of flag "a". If the sign of the flag "a" is positive, then it is determined to be in Space-Time Transmission Diversity (STTD) mode; otherwise, it is in non-STTD mode. Please note that the use of the transmit diversity on P-CCPCH is independent of the use of the transmit diversity on SCH.
However, in the related art, to detect the antenna diversity, the UE typically needs to estimate the channel response at two antennas of the cell first. That is, the conventional transmission diversity detecting apparatus must perform the channel estimation procedure before determining the flag "a". Please refer to FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the primary common pilot channel (CPICH1) transmitted by antenna 1 and the secondary common pilot channel (CPICH2) transmitted by antenna 2. As shown in FIG. 3, the CPICH1 and CPICH2 are utilized to transmit the pilot symbols that includes the channel information, which could be either "A" or "−A". To detect the signs of the flag "a", it is necessary to use the pilot symbols respectively in CPICH1 and CPICH2 to estimate the channel responses of antenna 1 and antenna 2 first. Once the channel responses of the two antennas are obtained by utilizing these pilot symbols, the related art can further determine the transmission diversity by evaluating the sign of the flag "a".
The operations of estimating the channel responses h1(i), h2(i) of the two antennas can be represented by the following equations:
                                          h            i                                          (            i            )                          =                              [                                                            D                  cp                                                                  (                  i                  )                                            +                                                D                  cp                  ′                                                                  (                  i                  )                                                      ]                    ·                      1            2                    ·                                    A              *                                                                      A                                            2                                                          Equation                                                            (          1          )
                                          h            2                                          (            i            )                          =                                            (                              -                1                            )                        i                    ·                      [                                                            D                  cp                                                                  (                  i                  )                                            +                                                D                  cp                  ′                                                                  (                  i                  )                                                      ]                    ·                      1            2                    ·                                    A              *                                                                      A                                            2                                                          Equation                                                            (          2          )
In Equation (1) and (2), Dcp(i) denotes the first symbol received in the i-th time slot, and Dcp′(i) denotes the second symbol received in the i-th time slot.
Since we don't know if the SCH channel is in the TSTD mode, and the channel compensation by the channel estimation result is ambiguous, the detection of the use of the transmission diversity is therefore not guaranteed in the prior art.

Transmission diversity detecting apparatus capable of generating quality indicator and related method thereof


Provided is a driver's airbag module assembly structure including: an inflator for generating gas by igniting an exploder; an airbag inflated toward a driver by the gas generated by the inflator; a cage covering the inflator; a mounting plate for accommodating the inflator, the airbag, and the cage to be fixed in a cover member disposed at a handle; and a horn plate installed between the mounting plate and a steering wheel, characterized in that the mounting plate has a plurality of fixing clips formed at its outer surface, the cover member has a plurality of coupling holes coupled with the fixing clips, the horn plate is provided with a bracket having an angled tip and a fastening hole, and the steering wheel is provided with a groove having an angled step corresponding to the bracket of the horn plate.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a driver's airbag module assembly structure, and more particularly, to a driver's airbag module assembly structure enabling easy assembly of an airbag module installed in a steering wheel.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Generally, an airbag system for an automobile is a safety device for reducing injury due to impact in a collision by instantly inflating an airbag installed in a steering wheel or a glove box between a driver and the steering wheel or between a passenger and the glove box. The airbag system works independently from a seat belt.
The airbag system for driver/passenger has an inflator for generating gas by igniting an exploder. The gas generated by the inflator expands to deploy the airbag toward the driver sitting in the driver's seat.
In addition, the airbag system includes a mounting plate fixed to a cover member provided on the steering wheel by a bolt, etc., an airbag module having a horn plate, and so on, installed on the mounting plate, an impact sensor for detecting an impact signal upon collision, and an electronic control module for igniting the exploder of the inflator in response to the impact signal.
The airbag of the driver's airbag module is covered with the cover member separated from the steering wheel when the airbag is expanded. The inflator of the driver's airbag module contains a gas generating agent for expanding gas generated by igniting the exploder and supplying the expanding gas into the airbag.
However, in the conventional art, since the mounting plate and the cover member are assembled by fastening the bolt, the assembly process is complicated and the number of parts is increased, thereby increasing manufacturing cost and weight.
FIG. 1A is an exploded perspective view of an airbag module assembly structure.
As shown in FIG. 1A, the airbag module includes a cover member 30a supported by ribs 22a formed at a rear surface of an airbag module cover 20a, a mounting plate 40a engaged with the cover member 30a, fastening parts 50a formed on the mounting plate 40a, and fastening support parts 60a formed on the cover member 30a.
Each of the fastening parts 50a includes a fastening hole 52a formed at the cover member 30a, and a fastening piece 54a projecting from a side surface of the mounting plate 40a to pass through the fastening hole 52a, and bent at its tip away from the fastening hole 52a.
In addition, each of the fastening support parts 60a includes a coupling hole 62a formed at the cover member 30a, and a fastening support piece 64a projecting from the side surface of the mounting plate 40a to be hooked by the fastening hole 62a. The fastening support part 60a is formed adjacent to the fastening part 50a.
Further, the coupling hole 62a has a fastening aperture (not shown) through which the fastening support piece 64a passes, and a support threshold (not shown) formed at a predetermined space vertically punched from the fastening aperture. Here, the coupling hole 62a further includes a support aperture formed under the support threshold and in communication with the fastening aperture.
FIG. 1B is an exploded perspective view of another airbag module assembly structure different from that of FIG. 1A.
As shown in FIG. 1B, the airbag module assembly structure includes a mounting plate 20b having coupling projections 22b, and a cover member 30b having coupling holes 32b, the coupling projections 22b and the coupling holes 32b being engaged with each other.
Each of the coupling projections 22b includes a fastening piece (not shown) projecting from a side surface of the mounting plate 20b with a uniform thickness and bent at its tip away from the engagement, and a support piece (not shown) having a width smaller than the fastening piece and extending from an upper surface of the fastening piece to an outer surface of the mounting plate.
In addition, each of the coupling holes 32b includes a fastening aperture (not shown) through which the tip of the fastening piece passes to be inserted, a guide aperture (not shown) vertically punched from the fastening aperture to a predetermined distance to guide vertical movement of the support piece, and a support threshold (not shown) naturally formed by forming the fastening aperture and the guide aperture.
The coupling hole 32b further includes a support aperture horizontally elongated from a position vertically adjacent to the fastening aperture and through which the guide aperture passes.
FIG. 1C is an exploded perspective view of yet another airbag module assembly structure different from those of FIGS. 1A and 1B.
As shown in FIG. 1C, the airbag module assembly structure includes a mounting plate 40c, a cover member 30c formed at a rear surface of an airbag module cover 20c, and coupling projections 42c and coupling holes 32c coupled with each other.
Each of the coupling projections 42c includes a body projecting from an outer surface of the mounting plate 40c and having an upper width larger than a lower width, and a tip bent away from a coupling direction of the body.
In addition, the coupling hole 32c includes a fastening aperture formed at the cover member 30c and through which an upper part of the body passes.
However, since all of the conventional art described above requires strong external force for coupling the cover member and the mounting plate, assembly is a time consuming operation, therefore lowering productivity.
Further, FIG. 1D illustrates a conventional driver's airbag module assembly structure.
As shown in FIG. 1D, the conventional driver's airbag module assembly structure includes an insert 2 formed of a flat plate, and a base plate 25 detachably installed at the insert 2. The insert 2 has bushings 28 projecting upward from the insert 2, and locking springs 29 resiliently installed at the bushings 28.
In addition, the base plate 25 has snap pins 26 projecting from a lower surface thereof corresponding to the bushings 28 and fixing an inflator 21 at a center thereof. The snap pins 26 have fastening grooves 26a allowing detachable installation into the locking springs 29.
In the conventional airbag module assembly structure, the snap pins 26 of the base plate 25 are inserted into the bushings 28 of the insert 2, and the locking springs 29 are hooked by the fastening grooves 26a, thereby securely fixing the base plate 25.
Since the conventional airbag module assembly structure is fastened by the bushings, the locking springs, and the snap pins, it is possible to reduce the number of parts required for mounting the airbag module, thereby improving assembly performance and reducing manufacturing cost. In addition, since the base plate should be strongly pressed and assembled into the insert, its assembly operation is also difficult.

Driver's airbag module assembly structure

Abstract: Therefore, hooks of a mounting plate push flexible pieces formed at coupling holes of a cover to allow the mounting plate and the cover to be easily coupled with each other. In addition, since the hooks are closely inserted into lower horizontal holes, movement of the hooks can be reduced. Further, the hooks do not separate from the coupling holes when the airbag is deployed.


A bill escrow/return device is provided which includes a bill escrow chamber sized and positioned to receive a bill of a predetermined width, a bill pusher plate reciprocally mounted for movement into and out of the bill escrow chamber, a bill stacker unit for receiving the bill from the bill escrow chamber by means of the pusher plate upon confirmation of a vend transaction, and a bill return chute for deposit of the bill upon cancellation of the vend transaction. The bill escrow chamber has a first bill receiving area for receiving the bill in a vertical orientation, a wing stop member having an opening therethrough sized to allow passage of the bill pusher plate, yet smaller in width than the width of the bill, a pair of wings pivotally biased against the wing stop member, the wings laterally spaced apart a distance slightly less than a width of the bill pusher plate such that movement of the plate against the wings will cause the wings to pivot and move away from the wing stop member, a second bill receiving area defined between the wing stop member and the wings, and a bill drive mechanism for engaging and driving the bill from the second bill receiving area to the bill return chute.

The present invention relates to a bill escrow and return device for use in combination with a bill acceptor for a vending machine.
In the past vending machines have typically been operated by the use of one or a plurality of coins. However, more recently, vending machines have been equipped with bill acceptors for accepting paper money as well. With the increased use of bill acceptors in the vending industry and increased prices of items being vended, it becomes necessary to provide for the return of multiple customer inserted bills when the customer changes his mind about a bend before buying a product. In order to provide for the return of bills after they have been inserted into the vending device, it is necessary to utilize an escrow function. U.S. Pat. No. 4,540,081 discloses a bill accepting device which includes a bill discriminating section and an escrow section capable of retaining a bill accepted by the bill discrimination section and returning the retained bill. U.S. Pat. No. 5,076,413 discloses a multiple bill escrow and storage apparatus. In operation, a bill passes through a bill validator and into an escrow box. If the bills are to be returned, the escrow box is reciprocated from a handling station to an ejection station and a separate ejection device is disposed at the ejection station for ejecting the bill contained in the escrow box.


An on-vehicle navigation apparatus 50 includes a current location calculator 21 calculating a current location of an own vehicle, a map information database 2 storing map information including road map data, a driving lane specifying section 23 detecting a lane change in response to an operation signal from a winker and specifying a driving lane of the own vehicle, and a guidance-timing controller 24 detecting a turnoff road ahead of the own vehicle in a traveling direction and conducting turnoff road guidance on a driver at a forward position distanced from the detected turnoff road depending on a location of the specified driving lane of the own vehicle.

The present invention relates to an on-vehicle navigation apparatus, a turnoff road guiding method, a driving lane-specifying device, and a driving lane specifying method.
An on-vehicle navigation apparatus, disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3161280, is configured such that in order to enhance a safety of in driving during a lane change, a current location, inclusive of a driving lane, of an own vehicle is specified based on road information acquired from a Differential Positioning System (D-GPS) serving as a satellite positioning sensor, a vehicle speed sensor, a direction sensor and road map data stored in a map information database.
Such an apparatus is operative to receive correction data through FM broadcasting based on a positioning error calculated in a D-GPS standard station that receives radio waves from a GPS satellite.

On-vehicle navigation apparatus, turnoff road guiding method, driving lane specifying device, and driving lane specifying method


A hydrogen generator having double burners and a method of operating the samewhere the hydrogen generator includes a housing, a barrier wall to divide a space in the housing into a first chamber and a second chamber, a fuel reformer installed in the first chamber, a first burner installed in the first chamber to heat a fuel reformer, a shift reactor installed in the second chamber, a second burner mounted in the barrier wall to heat the shift reactor, and a first igniter and a second igniter respectively ignite the first burner and the second burner.

1. Field of the Invention
Aspects of the present invention relate to a hydrogen generator having double burners and a method of operating the same, and more particularly, to a hydrogen generator having double burners in order to reduce the time taken to begin a shift reaction in a shift reactor and a method of operating the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
A fuel cell is an electricity generating system that transforms the chemical energy of hydrogen and oxygen into electrical energy. The hydrogen is contained in a hydrocarbon group material such as methanol, ethanol, and/or natural gas. Fuel cell systems include a system that uses liquid hydrogen and a system that uses hydrogen gas.
A fuel cell that uses hydrogen gas includes a fuel cell stack and a fuel processor. The fuel cell stack constitutes a main body of the fuel cell and has a few to a few tens of unit cells in its fuel cell structure, each having a membrane electrode assembly (MEA) and a separator.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a conventional fuel cell system.
Referring to FIG. 1, a fuel that includes hydrogen atoms is reformed into hydrogen gas in a fuel processor, and the hydrogen gas is supplied to a fuel cell stack. The fuel cell stack generates electricity through an electrochemical reaction between the hydrogen gas and oxygen.
The fuel processor includes a desulfurizer and a hydrogen generator. The hydrogen generator includes a fuel reformer and a shift reactor. The desulfurizer removes sulfur from the fuel to prevent catalysts in the fuel reformer and the shift reactor from being adversely affected by sulfur compounds.
The fuel reformer produces hydrogen by reforming hydrocarbon, but also produces carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. The carbon monoxide adversely affects a catalyst used for an electrode of the fuel cell stack. Therefore, the reformed fuel cannot be directly fed to the fuel cell stack, but must be passed through a shift reactor, which is a carbon monoxide removing apparatus. The shift reactor may reduce the carbon monoxide content in the fuel to less than 10 ppm.
To remove the carbon monoxide, the following three reactions, that is, shift reaction/ methanation reaction/PROX reaction have been used.CO+H2O→CO2+H2   [Reaction 1]CO+2H2→CH4+½O2   [Reaction 2]CO+½O2→CO2   [Reaction 3]
To obtain less than 10 ppm carbon monoxide content in the fuel using the above shift reaction, a shift reactor must be maintained at a temperature greater than 200° C. It takes about one hour to raise the temperature of the shift reactor to 200° C. However, it is a waste of time to wait for an hour to use electricity when electricity is readily available whenever it is necessary. Therefore, much research has been conducted to improve this adverse effect.
An apparatus using one burner that can sequentially heat a fuel reformer and a shift reactor has been disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 2004-31280. When the shift reactor is heated using the burner for heating the fuel reformer, the shift reactor is separately positioned from the burner, and a long time is required to raise the shift reactor temperature to its operating temperature.
A system that heats the shift reactor using an additional electric heater has been disclosed in Japanese Publication Patent No. 2001-354404. However, this system consumes much electrical energy.
Accordingly, there is a need to develop a hydrogen generator that has a simple structure and can rapidly raise the temperature of a shift reactor.

Hydrogen generator having double burners and method of operating the same


A rating of a plurality of ratings is predicted. The rating is associated with a user of a plurality of users and the rating corresponds to an item of a plurality of items. One of the plurality of ratings, corresponding to at least one of the plurality of items, is provided for each of the plurality of users. A predictability relation between ones of the plurality of users and other ones of the plurality of users is calculated based on ratings provided by users. One of a plurality of nodes is assigned to each of the plurality of users. Ones of the plurality of nodes are connected with other ones of the plurality of nodes by a plurality of edges based on the predictability relation. A graph which includes the plurality of nodes and the plurality of edges is searched for a path from a node assigned to the user of the plurality of users to another node assigned to another user of the plurality of users. The rating of the plurality of ratings associated with the user of a plurality of users is calculated based on the path and the predictability relation. If desired, a predicted rating may be produced for identifying products and customers in an e-commerce applications.

The present invention relates generally to making a prediction about a user based on data provided in association with other users. In particular, a rating associated with a user is forecasted based on a predictability graph. Furthermore, the present invention relates to an automated system and method for providing recommendations of items for sale in an e-commerce environment.
A computing environment offers an opportunity to collect information relating to the various preferences of users. User preferences may take the form of a rating which is associated with an item. A rating may be a quantitative measure of a users relative like or dislike of an item. For example, a user purchasing compact discs, books, or videos over the Internet may provide an integer, in a given range, indicating his/her satisfaction with a product available for sale.
Rating information provided by a group of users may be useful for recommending items to a user. In other words, the preference of a user may be predicted based on ratings for items provided by a group of users. One user may be found xe2x80x9csimilarxe2x80x9d in his preferences to other users. Users with xe2x80x9csimilarxe2x80x9d ratings may be used to predict each other""s preferences. Deducing the preferences of a given user by examining information about the preferences of other xe2x80x9csimilarxe2x80x9d users is often referred to as collaborative filtering. Users collaborate by each rating a subset of a set of items. The collective knowledge attained from the collaborative rating of items may then be used to make recommendations. For example, if, based on the collective knowledge, it is predicted that an item would be highly rated by a user, the item may be recommended to the user.
Collaborative filtering may be used to make recommendations to customers purchasing items for sale on the World Wide Web. Alternatively, collaborative filtering may be used to make marketing recommendation to vendors using the World Wide Web. In general, due to the nature of a distributed computer environment, collaborative filtering may be used to make recommendations and/or customize preferences of users involved in electronic transactions or e-commerce. Suppose, for example, that the amount of time a user spends viewing a Web page is regarded as an implicit rating of the Web page by the user. Users with xe2x80x9csimilarxe2x80x9d viewing habits may be detected. Based on the observed viewing habits of users, recommendations may be calculated which estimate the interest a user may take in a particular Web page. In this way, a Web page estimated to be of interest to a particular user may be recommended to the user. For instance, if a user spends much time browsing Web pages detailing information relating to running, a Web page giving a comparative study of running shoes may be recommended to the user. The Web page giving the comparative study of running shoes may be recommended based on the amount of time other users, viewing running related Web pages, spend viewing the study.
Several collaborative filtering engines are currently available. A discussion of such collaborative filtering engines may be found, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,870,579 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,996,642 both issued to John B. Hey (employed in collaborative filtering technology offered by LikeMinds Inc.), and Upendra Shardanand and Pattie Maes (a founder and former director of Firefly Network, Inc.), xe2x80x9cSocial Information Filtering: Algorithms for Automating Word of Mouth,xe2x80x9d Proceedings of CHI ""95, Denver, Colo., 1995,pages 210-217.
The technology employed by LikeMinds Inc., as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,870,579 and 4,996,642 involves random sampling of users. A measure of xe2x80x9cagreement strengthxe2x80x9d between a current user and the randomly sampled users is computed. A subset is then chosen of the randomly sampled users. Each member of the subset corresponds to either a relatively high xe2x80x9cmeasurement strengthxe2x80x9d or a relatively high item coverage. Item predictions are computed based on a xe2x80x9cclosenessxe2x80x9d function of pairs of ratings by member of the subset.
The technology employed by Firefly Network, Inc. involves computing a Pearson r coefficient to measure the xe2x80x9csimilarityxe2x80x9d between two users. Users who are xe2x80x9csimilarxe2x80x9d to a given user are identified. Predictions are made by forming a weighted average of ratings provided by the xe2x80x9csimilarxe2x80x9d group of users. The weighting factor used to form the average of ratings of items is made proportional to the Pearson coefficient.
A rating of a plurality of ratings is predicted. The rating is associated with a user of a plurality of users and the rating corresponds to an item of a plurality of items. One of the plurality of ratings, corresponding to at least one of the plurality of items, is provided for each of the plurality of users. A predictability relation between ones of the plurality of users and other ones of the plurality of users is calculated based on ratings provided by users. One of a plurality of nodes is assigned to each of the plurality of users. Ones of the plurality of nodes are connected with other ones of the plurality of nodes by a plurality of edges based on the predictability relation. A graph which includes the plurality of nodes and the plurality of edges is searched for a path from a node assigned to the user of the plurality of users to another node assigned to another user of the plurality of users. The rating of the plurality of ratings associated with the user of a plurality of users is calculated based on the path and the predictability relation.

System and method for collaborative filtering with applications to e-commerce

International Business Machines Corporation


A nonvolatile semiconductor memory having a single bit cell array and a multi-bit cell array formed on a substrate of the memory is provided. The memory includes a plurality of memory blocks that correspond to the input/output lines and is divided into a plurality of pages. A plurality of bit lines of the single bit cell array is coupled to a plurality of page buffers. The multi-bit cell array includes a plurality of memory blocks in which one of the blocks corresponds to a plurality of the input/output lines and is divided into a plurality of pages. A plurality of bit lines of the multi-bit cell array is coupled to a plurality of page buffers, A timing controller arranges the processing operations in the two arrays.

High density nonvolatile memories, specifically flash EEPROMs, are currently considered as mass storage devices (or medias) for portable handy terminals such as digital still cameras and memory cards, and also for hard disks in personal computers, because of their advanced performance that comes from higher programming speed and lower power consumption. The flash memory is distinguished into two types of logical configurations, NAND and NOR. The NOR-type, in which each of memory cells is connected to its corresponding word line and bit line without being dependent upon adjacent memory cells, needs more contacts for coupling bit lines and memory cells than that of the NAND-type which is superior to the NOR-typed in integration density. In the NAND-type flash memory, each string containing plural memory cells is connected to a corresponding bit line only through one contact, whereas memory cells of the NOR-type are each coupled to a bit line.
In an ongoing effort for efficient integration density for more expanded memory capacity there has been development of multi-bit (multi-level, multi-state, or multiple bit) technology where a plurality of bits are stored in one memory cell. It is acknowledged that the multi-bit technology contributes to reduction of the cost per bit. A prior multi-bit configuration has been disclosed on pp. 132-133 of ISSC Digest of Technical Paper dated Feb. 1995, entitled "A Multilevel-Cell 32Mb Flash Memory" by M. Bauer et al., in which a cell array is arranged in the NOR-type and a memory cell stores one of four states with two bits such as "00", "01", "10" and "11". Each of the four states corresponds to a unique voltage level, e.g., "00"=2.5 V, "01"=1.5 V, "10"=0.5 V and "11"=-3 V. The voltage values are threshold voltages involved in reading out data from the memory cell storing one of the four states of data. Substantially, one memory cell contains a distribution profile corresponding to the plural states of threshold voltages and memory cells coupled to one word line have different threshold voltages each other.
To detect the state of a memory cell, a read voltage with voltage level interposed between threshold voltage levels (or positioned on a lower side or a higher side from the level of a threshold voltage) must be applied to gates of memory cells through a word line coupled in common thereto. In this situation, the width between adjacent threshold voltages (hereinafter referred to as "window") is less than in a normal flash memory. For example, the window in a four-state flash memory is about 0.6 V. Furthermore, when a word line voltage for reading is located in the window of about 0.6 V, the margin from an edge of the threshold voltage profile and the level of the word line voltage may be not more than about 0.3 V. Therefore, if a multi-bit flash memory is made with the accompanying variations of manufacturing process or influenced by variations in word line voltage level and temperature, the possibility of invalid sensing operations is increased. Such weak immunity against variations of external conditions reduces the utility of the multi-bit flash memory to a storage device for mass information such as audio data, where even failure for storing several data bits does not disturb a sufficient organization of information as a whole. Up to now, normal flash memories are used for storing stable information, such as BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) or fonts.
Even though the advantages of the normal and multi-bit flash memories have been well known, the two different types of flash memories are respectively fabricated on separated semiconductor chips. The prior art aforementioned just performs the alternative one out of single bit and multi-bit operations over the entire memory cells.

Nonvolatile semiconductor memory equipped with single bit and multi-bit cells


A stack-up assembly for tibial insert trial is provided. The stack-up assembly for tibial insert trial is inserted between a femoral component and a tibial component of an artificial knee joint. The stack-up assembly for tibial insert trial includes an insert trial body and a plurality of first augments. The insert body is operatively connected with the femoral component. The first augments are stacked between the tibial component and the insert trial body.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a stack-up assembly for tibial insert trial. More particularly, the present invention relates to a stack-up assembly for tibial insert trial of an artificial knee joint.
2. Description of Related Art
Artificial knee joints are used to cure patients with knee joint illnesses. However, due to the big difference in bone size for different patients, there should be a large number of artificial knee joints with different dimensions provided for different patients. In practice, due to different conditions of patients, the space at the knee of a patient provided for the implantation of an artificial knee joint cannot be accurately determined before operation. As a result, the traditional approach is to prepare a large number of insert trials, and then put the insert trials at the knee of the patient during an operation, so as to obtain the optimum dimensions for the particular patient. Finally, an implanting insert of corresponding dimensions is implanted into the artificial knee joint in the body of the patient.
However, the preparation of a large number of insert trials before each operation leads to an increase in cost, and also involves the inconvenience of transportation and storage. Moreover, the transportation of a large number of insert trials into an aseptically processed operating room will increase the risk and the workload of aseptic processing.

Stack-up assembly for tibial insert trial


A double-row angle pin connector is provided for a patch plug that has an insertion direction that is parallel to the printed circuit board. The angle pin connector comprises angle pins (8) arranged in two rows in an inner, patch plug-side row (12) as well as in an outer row (13). The angle pins (8) have printed circuit board-side soldered ends (6) and patch plug-side plugged ends (5). The angle pin connector furthermore includes a housing bottom (14) and a housing cover (15) for fixing the angle pins (8). The soldered ends (6) arranged in the patch plug-side row (12) are fixed between the housing bottom (14) and the housing cover (15) by housing support straps (17) bent during the mounting of the housing. The arrangement provides reliably operating multi-pole patch plugs, without angle plugs with a separate extrusion coating, whereby installation space and costs can thus be saved.

Angle pin connectors of this class are typically arranged on an electronic board or printed circuit board and are used to establish a connection for receiving a multi-pole plug in the area of the printed circuit board, where the plug or the cable exiting from the plug exits from the angle pin connector in parallel to the surface of the printed circuit board for space reasons in the case being considered.
The connection pins of an angle pin connector have solder-side ends for connection to the strip conductors arranged on the printed circuit board as well as patch plug-side ends for receiving plug pins or contact prongs of an electrical connection plug. The patch plug-side ends are arranged in angle pin connectors at right angles to the soldered ends in order to thus make possible the desired exit direction of the connection plug or connection cable from the angle pin connector in parallel to the printed circuit board.
Besides the prior-art angle pin connectors, in which the connection pins or angle pins are arranged in a plug housing of their own, for example, extrusion-coated with a housing material, and in which the angle pins are thus held by the plug housing very firmly and immovably, multi-row angle pin connectors are also known, in which the specified spacings between the pins of the angle pins are maintained by a narrow strip only.
However, the latter angle pin connectors, though being especially inexpensive and, moreover, compact, have the drawback that the angle pins of such connectors are protected insufficiently against displacement of the patch plug-side ends in the axial direction of these ends. The forces that bring about such an axial displacement of the patch plug-side ends are especially plugging forces, which are transmitted during the plugging in or even during the pulling off of the corresponding electrical connection plugs. If these plugging forces exceed a certain value, the patch plug-side ends of the angle pins can be pushed into the angle pin connector in the prior-art angle pin connectors of a simple design.
Such excessively strong plugging forces may occur, for example, when contact pins or contact prongs are deformed, contaminated or corroded or when the plug is not moving exactly in parallel to the contact pins during insertion but is inserted in a tilted position. As a result, one or more of the angle pins may then be displaced by their corresponding counterpart in the plug from their desired position and bent.
However, such a deformation of connection pins is problematic because they may cause especially contact problems, and the intended flow of current is thus no longer reliably guaranteed in the deformed connection pins affected. The deformation of individual angle pins may even cause short-circuits in the area of the angle pin connector, especially when plug-side, inner angle pins are deformed to such an extent that they come into contact with the outer connection pins located at the same level in the other row.
It has not hitherto been possible in multi-row angle pin connectors to protect the connection pins arranged in the patch plug-side row or the soldered ends of these connection pins in a simple but effective manner against the displacement mentioned or from bending, because the pin row arranged on the patch plug side, i.e., the inner pin row, is precisely covered by the outer pin row. Therefore, only the angle pins of the outer pin row have hitherto been often supported, but the problem mentioned at the beginning, namely, the risk of bending during pushing in and possibly also during the pulling out of the plug, has continued to be present in the angle pins of the inner pin row.


A circuit for calculating the number of idle virtual path identifiers and virtual channel identifiers which includes a counting unit for counting clock cycles indicating the number of idle virtual path identifiers and virtual channel identifiers, and clock cycles indicating the number of busy virtual path identifiers and virtual channel identifiers; and an operating unit for calculating the number of idle virtual path identifiers and virtual channel identifiers from the number of idle virtual path identifiers and virtual channel identifiers, and the number of busy virtual path identifiers and virtual channel identifiers, which were generated by the counting unit.

1. Technical Field
This invention relates to an asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) exchange system, and more particularly, relates to a circuit for calculating the number of idle virtual path identifiers and virtual channel identifiers in an ATM exchange system.
2. Related Art
Generally, ATM is a specific packet-oriented transfer mode using an asynchronous time division multiplexing technique where both line switching and packet switching are unified and many pieces of information such as voice, data, and pictures are organized in fixed-sized blocks, called cells. ATM can operate as both a packet exchange system and a circuit exchange system in one transmission mode for efficiently embodying both high speed and wide band communication networks. For this reason, ATM is a target transfer mode solution for implementing a broadband integrated services digital network (B-ISDN) whereas conventional synchronous transfer mode (STM) can only transmit subscribers information on channels having a fixed band.
Both ATM and STM have similarities, in that they transfer information in a digital format and support multiple channels for the flow of information. There is, however, one significant difference between the two systems relating to a method of assigning and identifying information channels. In STM, information is transferred through a fixed channel, where the channel is identified according to relative location of a frame pattern. If a channel is not transmitting information, the channel remains continuously assigned. Thus, in STM, the band channel is not effectively utilized. In ATM, on the other hand, a band channel is assigned only if there is information for transmission. Band channels that are not assigned can be used for information transmission by another subscriber. As a result, ATM offers a more effective channel management. Information channel identification in the ATM is embodied by the virtual path and virtual channel identifiers (hereinafter, referred to as "VPI & VCI") or similar connection identifiers which are placed in a header of each cell for identifying cells belonging to the same virtual channel on an asynchronous time division multiplex. Such channel identification of the ATM facilitates the use of a multiplex, de-multiplex and exchange of digital information, and serves to decrease the costs of broad-band communication network facilities because of its flexibility in a bandwidth distribution. Conventionally, there are a variety of ATM switching networks. Exemplary configurations are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,956,839 for ATM Switching System issued to Torii et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,214,642 for ATM Switching System And Adaption Processing Apparatus issued to Kunimoto, U.S. Pat. No. 5,249,178 for Routing System Capable Of Effectively Processing Routing Information issued to Kurano et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,280,475 for Traffic Shaping Method And Circuit issued to Yanagi et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,280,483 for Traffic Control System For Asynchronous Transfer Mode Exchange issued to Kamoi et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,301,184 for Control System For Switching Duplicated Switch Units In ATM Exchange issued to Uriu et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,357,510 for Apparatus And A Method For Supervising And Controlling ATM Traffic issued to Norizuki, U.S. Pat. No. 5,537,402 for ATM Switch issued to Notani et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 5,557,609 for Switching Apparatus for ATM issued to Shobatake et al.
In a communication system or switching system using the ATM, a call processing unit must assign the VPI and VCI to each ATM cell whenever the subscriber requires a call connection. The VPI and VCI assignment is accomplished by reading in the order of VPI and VCI which are not under assignment every time the subscriber requires a call connection as disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,119,369 for "Packet Switch Communication Network Using Packet Having Virtual Channel Identifier" issued to Tanabe et alii. A call which receives the assignment of the VPI and VCI placed in a header area of an ATM cell is then transferred through a transferring channel. Assigning VPI and VCI for call connection is, however, extremely burdensome to the call processing unit. This is because the call processing unit must search for available VPI and VCI values whenever a call is made. At an initial stage of assignment, it may be easy to sequentially allot values to VPI and VCI responding to the call connection requirement. After assigning values to all VPIs and VCIs to be utilized, however, the call processing unit must check for idle VPI and VCI. When there is a call, the ATM network must manage the number of VPI and VCI, which are used for connecting a call, and the number of idle VPI and VCI available.
Conventional ATM switching system includes a VPI and VCI table for indicating the status of each VPI and VCI. Busy VPI and VCI are counted to check how many VPI and VCI are in use. Idle VPIs and VCIs are also counted. Busy VPIs and VCIs, and idle VPIs and VCIs are managed within the table. The status of VPI and VCI are monitored by counting busy VPIs and VCIs and idle VPIs and VCIs where necessary. Generally, there are few problems in counting busy and idle VPIs and VCIs when a small number of VPIs and VCIs are utilized. However, as the number of VPIs and VCIs utilized increases, it becomes more difficult to count busy and idle VPIs and VCIs. Thus, it takes longer to perform this operation, and management cannot be performed efficiently.

Circuit for calculating number of idle virtual path identifier and virtual channel identifier


A drive piston assembly is provided that is operable to selectively open a poppet valve. The drive piston assembly includes a cartridge defining a generally stepped bore. A drive piston is movable within the generally stepped bore and a boost sleeve is coaxially disposed with respect to the drive piston. A main fluid chamber is at least partially defined by the generally stepped bore, drive piston, and boost sleeve. First and second feedback chambers are at least partially defined by the drive piston and each are disposed at opposite ends of the drive piston. At least one of the drive piston and the boost sleeve is sufficiently configured to move within the generally stepped bore in response to fluid pressure within the main fluid chamber to selectively open the poppet valve. A valve actuator assembly and engine are also provided incorporating the disclosed drive piston assembly.

It is known to provide a valve train or valve actuator assembly for an internal combustion engine of a vehicle. Typically, the valve train includes one or more intake and exhaust valves, a camshaft, driven by the engine and having at least one or more cams, and a rocker arm operatively connected with each cam and valve.
More recently, camless valve trains for internal combustion engines have been developed. Because of the ability to provide valve lift profiles tailored to specific engine operating conditions to improve engine performance, the camless valve train has been met with much enthusiasm by the internal combustion engine design community.

Drive piston assembly for a valve actuator assembly


A method of reducing oxide thickness variations in a STI pattern that includes both a dense trench array and a wide trench is described. A first HDP CVD step with a deposition/sputter (D/S) ratio of 9.5 is used to deposit a dielectric layer with a thickness that is 120 to 130% of the shallow trench depth. An etch back is performed in the same CVD chamber with NF3, SiF4 or NF3 and SiF4 to remove about 40 to 50% of the initial dielectric layer. A second HDP CVD step with a D/S ratio of 16 deposits an additional thickness of dielectric layer to a level that is slightly higher than after the first deposition. The etch back and second deposition form a smoother dielectric layer surface which enables a subsequent planarization step to provide filled STI features with a minimal amount of dishing in wide trenches.

As ground rules continue to shrink for devices in new technologies, device isolation regions called shallow trench isolation (STI) features have become increasingly popular as a means of separating active regions from one another. Devices such as transistors, resistors, and diodes are formed on active regions of a substrate. Increasing circuit density and improving device performance not only require that individual components of a device shrink in size but that the shallow trench isolation features are also reduced in dimension, especially the width or distance between adjacent active regions.
Each pattern that is formed in a substrate is typically first printed in a photoresist layer by a lithographic process involving an exposure followed by developing in an aqueous base solution. Selected portions of the photoresist are removed to expose an underlying layer and the remaining photoresist layer serves as an etch mask while the pattern is transferred into the substrate to form lines and spaces, for example. Typically, the pattern is complex and contains isolated, semi-isolated, and dense features in various arrays. A variation of a line/space pattern is a trench which may have a width that ranges from about 0.1 microns to greater than 10 microns. One version of a trench pattern is a shallow trench that has a depth of approximately 3000 to 4000 Angstroms (0.3–0.4 microns). The width of the active region between shallow trenches may have a similar range of sizes as the trench. Generally, an oxide liner is grown on the sidewalls and bottom of a trench as a means of preventing dopant in adjacent source/drain regions from migrating into the STI features and rounds the adjacent silicon device edge to minimize leakage current.
A necessary result of shallow trench isolation (STI) fabrication is that the insulating material which fills the shallow trench should form a smooth surface after a planarization step. This condition ensures that a subsequent step such as patterning a photoresist to form a template for a gate layer in a transistor device will have an optimum focus and exposure latitude. However, a high density plasma (HDP) chemical vapor deposition (CVD) step that is often used to deposit an oxide insulating layer into a shallow trench is known to form a thicker insulating layer in portions of a shallow trench pattern that have densely packed trenches with small opening widths while forming a thinner insulating layer in wide shallow trenches. A subsequent planarization process involving a chemical mechanical polish (CMP) step cannot compensate for the thickness variation and causes a dishing or bowl shaped indentation in the insulating layer formed within wide shallow trenches. The problem is not easily corrected and expensive rework steps may result. Therefore, an improved STI fabrication method that overcomes oxide thickness variations in a pattern having different opening widths is needed.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,494,857, a polish assist layer is deposited on an oxide filler layer in an STI scheme. A photoresist is patterned on the polish assist layer and etched to form blocks of the assist layer in large depressions. The assist blocks enable a CMP step to form a planar surface on the oxide fill layer that is independent of pattern density.
An STI method is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,258,692 in which a buffer layer such as silicon nitride is deposited on a mask layer and in a shallow trench followed by deposition of a SiO2 insulating layer to fill the trench. The SiO2 layer is partially removed by a CMP step and then an etch back removes the buffer layer and SiO2 above the level of the shallow trench to leave a planar surface.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,319,796, a first dielectric layer is formed over a shallow trench pattern by a HDP CVD method. The HDP CVD method is continued with a different deposition/etch ratio to give a second dielectric layer on the first dielectric layer. The thickness of the combined dielectric layers may be adjusted to minimize thickness variation over trenches with different widths.
An STI method is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,232,043 that involves partial etching of an HDP CVD layer over an active region before a CMP is performed. The oxide thickness to be removed during CMP is determined by the % of active area and the % of etched area relative to total wafer area. However, the method is not applicable when the width of the active region shrinks to about 0.13 micron or less. A similar STI method is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,242,322 where a HDP CVD oxide is deposited to fill wide and narrow trenches and a wide island between the trenches. A polysilicon layer is deposited on the HDP CVD oxide followed by a selective CMP step to form a self-align reverse poly mask which exposes only the oxide on the wide island. A large portion of the exposed oxide is removed by a selective etch and then a second CMP step planarizes the oxide layer.
Two step deposition processes are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,573,152 and 6,211,040 in which a first portion of a dielectric layer is deposited in a HDP CVD process with a first etch/deposition (E/D) ratio and a second portion of the dielectric layer is deposited with a second E/D ratio that is higher than the first E/D ratio. However, these prior art methods do not address the issue of different size trenches or trenches with different pattern densities that need to be filled to the same level.

Shallow trench isolation method for reducing oxide thickness variations at different pattern densities

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.


A method for repairing a defect in tissue includes the steps of placing at least one collagen pad on the tissue surrounding a tissue defect. A prosthetic is then placed over the defect and the collagen pad. Pressure and energy are then applied to the prosthetic at the collagen pad until the tissue and the collagen pad adhere to each other.

The present invention relates, in general, to the surgical repair of tissue, and more particularly, to a new and useful method for repairing a defect in tissue such as an inguinal hernia and a novel prosthetic used in carrying out the method.
It is established practice in the surgical field to repair defects in tissue, for instance, an inguinal hernia, through the use of PROLENE.TM. mesh (manufactured and sold by Ethicon, Inc., Somerville, N.J.). Generally the mesh is cut to a desired size for placement over the inguinal hernia. Once the sized mesh has been placed over the defect, the mesh is attached to the surrounding inguinal tissue using several known attachment means.
Once the mesh is in place, it is important that the mesh serve as a barrier over the defect in order to restrict the lower viscera in the patient's abdomen from protruding through the defect. Accordingly, it is essential that the attachment means used to secure the mesh to the inguinal tissue have an initial strength of several pounds of force in both the tensile and shear directions. Moreover, it is important that the mesh remain in place for several days so that natural adhesions can form to ensure that the mesh is sufficiently anchored to the tissue.
One common way of attaching the mesh to tissue is through the use of suture and needle. As would be expected, the suturing technique for this procedure requires a great deal of skill and is normally conducted by very experienced surgeons, especially for minimally invasive or laparoscopic procedures. Since the learning curve for laparoscopic suturing is extremely steep, many surgeons are slow to adopt this technique.
In response to the challenges associated with suturing, other fastening techniques have evolved. Accordingly, it is now common practice to use a surgical stapler such as the ENDOSCOPIC MULTI-FIRE STAPLER.TM., (manufactured and sold by Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio). U.S. Pat. No. 5,470,010 (Rothfuss et al.) discloses a disposable, endoscopic stapler that is used to place a number of staples at various locations of the placed mesh in order to properly secure the mesh to the tissue. Although the endoscopic stapler is efficient and easy to use for a surgeon, there is a cost issue associated with its use for this type of procedure.
In an effort to alleviate the costs associated with a disposable, multiple fire stapler, some surgeons prefer a re-usable, "single shot" stapler such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,246,156 (Rothfss et al.). Although there is a cost savings to the user, the procedure time is extended when using this type of stapler over the disposable, multiple fire stapler.
In addition to using surgical staplers to secure mesh to inguinal tissue to repair a hernia, other types of fasteners have been developed. One of these fasteners is a helical fastener such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,258,000 (Gianturco). This type of fastener is also disclosed in WO 96/03925 (Bolduc et al.). However, although these type of fasteners are also easy to use and decrease the procedure time, cost is also an issue.
Up until now, there is no known procedure and/or device that allows for the repair of tissue defects, such as an inguinal hernia, that is minimally invasive, time and cost effective and easy to use.

Energy-base method applied to prosthetics for repairing tissue defects


The present disclosure relates to a mapping system adapted for detecting objects in an environmental scene, by scanning an environmental scene with propagating energy, and receiving reflected energy back from objects present in the environmental scene, in a prioritized manner, for later use. The system may comprise an imaging subsystem which includes a detection and ranging subsystem for initially identifying primitive objects in the environmental scene. The imaging subsystem may also include an identification and mapping subsystem for prioritizing the primitive objects for further scanning and analysis, to ultimately identify one or more of the primitive objects as one or more abstract objects. An environmental model, updated in real time, is used to maintain a map of the primitive objects and the known abstract objects within the environmental scene, as new primitive objects and new abstract objects are obtained with repeated scans of the environmental scene.

This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Autonomous vehicles have an environmental mapping challenge, owing to the requirement placed on these vehicles to far out perform human drivers. To ensure widespread adoption, autonomous vehicles must be not only safer than those driven by human operators, but safer by orders of magnitude greater than those operated by humans. This is because drivers are often uncomfortable passing control of the vehicle from their hands to an autonomous navigation system, and are likely to be quick to assign blame in a crash to the autonomous navigation system. A small chance of operator error, when a human is driving a vehicle, is generally acknowledged by the driver, and by other vehicle operators, when any vehicle is being operated by a human driver. Generally speaking, human vehicle operators realize this small risk as an acceptable, unavoidable risk when operating a motor vehicle on public roads. A failure of a self-driving vehicle, is out of the hands of the driver and may still be perceived as negligence attributable to the vehicle operator, even though the vehicle operator was not piloting the vehicle when the accident occurred. This remains the case even if the self-driving vehicle is statistically far less likely to be the cause of an accident compared to a vehicle being operated by a human driver. Widespread adoption of autonomous vehicles therefore requires a thorough solution to the challenge of vehicle safety.
Near perfect safety can only be achieved through near perfect environmental awareness. Once the environmental map has been passed to an algorithm, it becomes possible to ensure the algorithm can be robustly tested and refined to find a safe outcome. But inaccurate measurement or assessment of the environment in the vicinity of the vehicle acts as an error on the input to the algorithm, which cannot be fixed algorithmically when determining the needed vehicle controls (i.e., steering, braking, acceleration, etc.).
Any failure in environmental mapping will exponentially decrease vehicular safety. Autonomous vehicles must possess outstanding sensory capabilities in order to meet the needs to mass market adoption of autonomous operation to the general public. Present sensing capabilities possess a range of advantages and drawbacks, meaning that no single technology has shown itself to be the single solution to the problem. Engineers and scientists working in this field have begun experimenting with multi-sensor data fusion to solve this challenge. See, for example, the iDAR technology developed by AEye, as well as US 2016/0231746 and U.S. Pat. No. 9,097,800. However, these attempts have not focused on how to structure the data capture process to build on the strengths of the various categories of sensing technologies. Rather, they largely overlay the sensors to essentially add maps to one another. These systems are not fully realizing the opportunity for the sensing system to adapt to the perceived environment.

System and method for adaptive object-oriented sensor fusion for environmental mapping

Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC


A hernia repair device includes a surgical mesh configured to extend across a tissue defect and a plurality of filament loops coupled to the surgical mesh toward an outer periphery thereof. A tissue retracting member is slidably disposed about each of the filament loops. Each tissue retracting member is configured for slidable movement about the filament loop between a first position, wherein the tissue retracting member is spaced-apart from the surgical mesh, and a second position, wherein the tissue retracting member is positioned adjacent the surgical mesh to facilitate the retraction of tissue surrounding the tissue defect.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to hernia repair devices and, more particularly, to surgical mesh prosthetics for use in hernia repair.
2. Background of Related Art
Wound closure devices, such as sutures, filaments, and staples, as well as other repair devices, such as mesh or patch reinforcements, are frequently used to repair tissue defects, e.g., herniated tissue, and other damaged and/or diseased tissue. For example, in the case of hernias, a surgical mesh or patch is commonly used to reinforce the abdominal wall. The surgical mesh is generally sized to extend across the defect and is adapted to flex or bend in order to conform to the abdominal wall. The surgical mesh is typically held in place by adhering, suturing or stapling the mesh to the surrounding tissue.
However, difficulties may arise during the course of a hernia repair procedure, particularly with regard to securely affixing the mesh to surrounding tissue. These difficulties are often attributed to anatomical spatial constrains and/or reduced, or limited, access to the surgical site. Improper or faulty affixing of the mesh may result in re-herniation, dislodging or repositioning of the surgical mesh relative to tissue and/or may allow viscera to enter the defect.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,828,854 discloses an implantable repair device formed from multiple structures including a patch member, reinforcing elements, and a pair of looped elements extending therefrom. The looped elements include sutures (or other grasping elements) inserted therethrough. In use, the implantable repair device is inserted into a tissue defect and the sutures are pulled to position the implantable repair device against the tissue. The looped portions are then secured to tissue to fix the implantable repair device in position.


A walker assists a user to walk, sit down, and stand up from a sitting position. The walker includes a set of side frames, a connection bar, and a set of arm rests. The walker also includes a brake assembly for wheel assembly connected to front portion of both side frames to prevent any movement of the walker as the user attempts to achieve an upright position.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a walker. More specifically, the present invention is a walker that assists a user when attempting to stand up from a sitting position in a safe manner.
2. Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98.
Traditional walkers comprise a variety of features that are meant to assist and protect an individual when walking A few standard features include rubber handles, rubber bases, wheels and a brake system. These features help an individual when walking, however plenty of accidents occur not only when walking, but during the process of standing up. Traditional walkers do not provide the necessary support for a safe uplift. Some, in fact do not even have the necessary components that prevent the walker from slipping forward when the user is leaning on the walker and relying on the walker when trying to stand up.
A number of different types of walkers are present in prior art. For example, see: U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/760,908 to David; U.S. Pat. No. 6,340,168 to Norman; U.S. Pat. No. 6,733,018 to Eli; U.S. Pat. No. 7,377,285 to Karasin et al; U.S. Pat. No. 7,481,445 to Robert; U.S. Pat. No. 7,669,863 to Steiner et al; U.S. Pat. No. 8,151,812 to Eli; U.S. Pat. No. 8,215,652 to Dashew et al; U.S. Pat. No. 8,540,256 to Thomas.
Prior art, U.S. Pat. No. 7,377,285 discloses a walker having two sets of handles positioned for rising from and lowering to a seated position in addition to serving as a walking aid. The walker comprises a frame having a front section comprising a pair of front vertical supports and a rigid cross-piece, and two side sections each comprising a rear vertical support having a load-bearing axis formed through a ground-engaging point, rigid connectors connecting the side sections to the front section, a first pair of handles positioned to support a user in a standing or walking position, and a second pair of handles positioned below and to the rear of the first set of handles to support a user in rising from or lowering to a seated position, in which the geometric centers of each of the second pair of handles is positioned to the rear of the load-bearing axis of each of the rear vertical supports.
Another prior art, U.S. Pat. No. 8,215,652 discloses a mobilizer that consists of an open, inverted "U" shaped frame when viewed from above with the legs or the "U" pointed towards the rear. Pivoting caster wheels are attached to the front lower corners and rear wheel support arms extend rearward and curve downward each bearing a smaller non-pivoting wheel. Two vertical upright support members rise from the frame and are equipped with height adjustment mechanisms. Horizontal arm support assemblies, each with a hand grip and brake handle are attached to the upper ends of the support members. The user is supported by his elbows and shoulder girdle resulting in decompression of his spine. The arm support assemblies can be pivoted 180 degrees so that the grip portions and the hand brake levers face the rear of the mobilizer at about waist height. This allows the user to stand and grasp the handles as he walks forward.
Another prior art, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/760,908 discloses a pair of arm rest platforms and vertical handles so the user of a rolling walker can have added or alternate support not provided by a conventional rolling walker or rollator. The arm rest platforms are supported at a vertical distance above the conventional walker by providing a pair of arm rest frames each extending between the main frame of the conventional walker and a respective arm rest platform. The arm rest frames each includes an main arm rest frame member carried by the main frame of the conventional walker and an arm rest support member to carry the arm rest platform and vertical handles. The conventional hand brakes can also be relocated; to be operated when gripping the vertical handles. The arm rest platforms can be adjusted in both horizontally and vertically with respect to the main frame of the conventional walker for better distribution of the user's weight.
The present invention serves to eliminate any deficiencies of traditional walkers. The present invention comprises a couple of side frames, a connection bar, and a couple of arm rests. The couple of side frames supports the user and eases the movement of the user with a wheel mechanism which includes a brake assembly. The connection frame is meant to connect the couple of side frames. Alternate embodiments of the connection frame may collapse for more convenient storage. The couple of arm rests are fixed to the couple of side frames in order to provide support and stability to the user's forearm when attempting to stand up. The preferred use of the present invention is to engage the brake assembly when attempting to stand up.


A method of manufacturing a display substrate which includes a central display area and an arc-shaped stretch area located at a corner of the central display area, wherein the method includes: preparing a substrate to be etched, which includes a flexible substrate, a stack structure disposed on the flexible substrate, and a last-dry-etched metal layer disposed on a side of the stack structure away from the flexible substrate, the stack structure including an active layer, at least one conductive layer, and a plurality of insulating layers, wherein the last-dry-etched metal layer is a last metal layer that is formed through dry etching; and forming a stretch groove by patterning the substrate to be etched, wherein the stretch groove is disposed in the stretch area and passes through the stack structure and a part of the flexible substrate. A display substrate, a display panel and a display device are further provided.

In order to achieve a full screen, it is a typical manner to design four sides of a display screen as curved-surface display. For further optimization, four corners of the display screen are also designed as curved-surface display. For an Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED) display screen, curved-surface display of arced area at the four corner regions is typically formed by stretching.
In order to improve stretching performance of the OLED substrate and prevent stretching from affecting functional film layers disposed on the flexible substrate of the OLED display screen, it is necessary to pattern a stretch area of the flexible substrate to form a stretch groove. In a method of forming a stretch groove known to the inventors, there are metal residues in the stretch groove, which may cause uneven etching of the flexible substrate and affect the stretching performance of the flexible substrate.

Display substrate, manufacturing method thereof, display panel, and display device

Chengdu BOE Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd.


An isolator assembly is disclosed. The assembly comprises a laminate consisting essentially of a block of homogenous material and a set of electrical contacts. A first die is coupled to a surface of the laminate. An isolation barrier is located entirely above the surface of the laminate. A second die is coupled to the laminate. The second die is galvanically isolated from the first die by the isolation barrier. The second die is in operative communication with the first die via the isolation barrier and a conductive trace on the laminate. The first die, the second die, the laminate, and the isolation barrier are all contained within an assembly package.

In specific circumstances electronic devices need to be galvanically isolated from one another while still being in operative communication. For example, devices that need to be communicatively coupled to exchange information while at the same time operating in different power regimes may need to be isolated so that the lower power device is not damaged by exposure to current levels that it cannot withstand. As another example, a peripheral device operating with a power supply having a first ground level, such as the negative terminal of a battery, may need to communicate with a host device operating with a separate ground level, such as the ground terminal of a mains wall socket. In these circumstances, isolation is required to prevent current flowing from one "ground" to the other when the devices are coupled together. As another example, isolation can protect a device from being adversely affected by fault conditions in a separate device. In all of these circumstances, the devices may be galvanically isolated while still being in communication via electrical, optical, mechanical, or acoustic means.
One of the main considerations that must be taken into account when designing an isolator is the ability of the isolator to withstand large power levels while maintaining a desired degree of isolation. Traditional isolators have therefore utilized a split paddle assembly process in which each side of the isolator is supported by an entirely separate substrate. The two separate substrates are in turn bound together through a packaging process to an overall lead frame that will generally also support contacts to the overall circuit. The isolation device itself is formed between the separate paddles and provides a communication channel between the two while maintaining their galvanic isolation.
FIG. 1 illustrates another approach to enhance the power hold-off capability of an isolator which is to form the isolation devices themselves in the substrate to which the isolated devices are connected. FIG. 1 illustrates isolator assembly 100 that comprises substrate 101 in which two capacitors 102 have been formed via a dielectric layer 103 and conductive traces 104. Separate isolated devices 105 can be connected to the conductive traces at locations 106 and 107 and are thereby isolated via the two capacitors 102. Since the isolation device is formed in the substrate and the breakdown voltage of dielectric 103 is much larger than air, the hold-off voltage capability of the isolator is commensurately increased. Separate devices 105 can include transceiver circuits for encoding signals to be sent through the capacitors 102 and can connect to external isolated circuits via conductive traces 108.

Single-laminate galvanic isolator assemblies


An airfoil for a gas turbine engine blade includes a plurality of film cooling holes extending through its outer surface. The film cooling holes are formed by defining at least a first datum structure and a second datum structure, and then forming each film cooling hole at a location on the airfoil outer surface relative to the first and second datum structures. As a result, each film cooling hole has a centerline extending therethrough that forms a compound angle with respect to a tangent to the outer surface, and the distance between the centerlines of each film cooling hole is at least a predetermined minimum distance.

A gas turbine engine may be used to power various types of vehicles and systems. A particular type of gas turbine engine that may be used to power aircraft is a turbofan gas turbine engine. A turbofan gas turbine engine may include, for example, five major sections, a fan section, a compressor section, a combustor section, a turbine section, and an exhaust section. The fan section is positioned at the front, or "inlet" section of the engine, and includes a fan that induces air from the surrounding environment into the engine, and accelerates a fraction of this air toward the compressor section. The remaining fraction of air induced into the fan section is accelerated into and through a bypass plenum, and out the exhaust section.
The compressor section raises the pressure of the air it receives from the fan section to a relatively high level. In a multi-spool engine, the compressor section may include two or more compressors. For example, in a triple spool engine, the compressor section may include a high pressure compressor, and an intermediate compressor. The compressed air from the compressor section then enters the combustor section, where a ring of fuel nozzles injects a steady stream of fuel. The injected fuel is ignited by a burner, which significantly increases the energy of the compressed air.
The high-energy compressed air from the combustor section then flows into and through the turbine section, causing rotationally mounted turbine blades to rotate and generate energy. Specifically, high-energy compressed air impinges on turbine vanes and turbine blades, causing the turbine to rotate. The air exiting the turbine section is exhausted from the engine via the exhaust section, and the energy remaining in this exhaust air aids the thrust generated by the air flowing through the bypass plenum.
Similar to the compressor section, in a multi-spool (e.g., multi-shaft) engine the turbine section may include a plurality of turbines. For example, in a triple spool engine, the turbine section may include a high pressure turbine, an intermediate pressure turbine, and a low pressure turbine. The energy generated in each of the turbines may be used to power other portions of the engine. For example, the low pressure turbine may be used to power the fan via one spool, the intermediate turbine may be used to power the intermediate pressure turbine via another spool that is concentric to the low pressure turbine spool, and the high pressure turbine may be used to power the high pressure compressor via yet another concentric spool.
Gas turbine engines, such as the one described above, typically operate more efficiently with increasingly hotter air temperature. The maximum air temperature is typically limited by the materials used to fabricate the components of the turbine, such as the turbine blade airfoils. Thus, the airfoils are cooled using a variety of schemes, including directing some air discharged from the compressor section, and into and through cooling channels formed within the airfoils, to remove heat via convective heat transfer. At high temperatures, however, this convective heat transfer process may not sufficiently cool the airfoils, and a film cooling scheme is implemented. With the film cooling scheme, cooling air is injected onto the external surface of the airfoil via small film cooling holes that extend through the airfoil surface, and into the internal cooling channels. The merit of film cooling can be measured by a so-called "film effectiveness."
In order to maximize the film effectiveness, the amount of cooling flow directed onto the airfoil outer surface is preferably maximized. Thus, the amount of cooling flow passing through, and thus the cross-sectional area of, the film cooling holes extending through the airfoil sidewall, is also preferably maximized. Moreover, it is preferable that the ratio of the length to diameter of each of the film cooling holes extending through the airfoil sidewall be greater than two. If the length-to-diameter ratio is greater than two) then the cooling flow will exit the film cooling holes fairly close to the upstream sidewall outer surface, which will further maximize film effectiveness. However, the thickness of the airfoil sidewall is, in many cases, small enough that other design constraints, such as the minimum distance between film cooling holes, cannot be met if these other constraints are met. Moreover, while a small relative hole angle is generally advantageous, as the hole angles relative to the airfoil surface are reduced, the inlets of the holes in a single coolant channel can interfere with one another, thereby reducing film effectiveness.
Hence, there is a need for a method of forming and locating holes in turbine blade airfoils that allows film effectiveness to be maximized, for a given airfoil geometry, and/or allow turbine operation at higher temperatures. The present invention addresses one or more of these needs.

Gas turbine engine including airfoils having an improved airfoil film cooling configuration and method therefor