A clamp assembly for securing a vibratory device to a pile comprising a frame, first and second clamp members, and an actuator. The frame is adapted to be secured to the vibratory device. The first clamp member is supported by the frame and comprises a first engaging surface defined by a first surface layer formed of carbide alloy material. The second clamp member is also supported by the frame and comprises a second engaging surface defined by a second surface layer formed of carbide alloy material. The actuator is arranged to displace at least one of the first and second clamp members such that first and second engaging surfaces engage the pile such that the pile is gripped by between first and second clamp members.

For certain construction projects, rigid members, such as piles, anchor members, caissons, sheet pile barriers, and mandrels for inserting wick drain material, must be placed into the earth. The term "piles" will be used herein to refer to the rigid members typically driven into the earth during construction projects. It is well-known that such rigid members may often be driven into or extracted from the earth without excavation by applying a driving or extracting force on an upper end of the pile.
When applying a downward driving force to a pile, it is not necessary, although perhaps desirable, to clamp the pile driver to the pile. However, when a pile is extracted from the earth, a clamp system must be used to transmit an upward extracting force to the pile to pull the pile from the earth. In addition, during both pile driving and pile extracting, a reciprocating vibratory force, typically up and down, may be applied in addition to the driving or pulling force. The use of vibratory forces also requires a clamp system to ensure that the vibratory forces are effectively transmitted to the pile.
A clamp system typically comprises first and second clamp members that engage the pile. A clamping force may be applied to one or both of the clamp members such that the pile or a portion of the pile is securely gripped between the clamp members. The clamp members may be contoured to accommodate the shape of the pile or portion of the pile to be gripped. The clamp members may be otherwise textured in some form to increase friction between the clamp members and the pile.
A primary point of failure of a pile driving or extracting system is when the driving, pulling, and/or vibratory forces are not adequately transmitted to the pile. The need thus exists for improved clamp systems for pile extractors and for pile drivers and extractors that employ vibratory forces.

Clamp systems and methods for pile drivers and extractors


A front hood system has a front hood of a vehicle that is coupled to the frame of the vehicle via at least one multiple-joint hinge. In addition, the vehicle's front opening hood can be latched by means of at least one hood lock. At least one multiple-joint hinge has at least one link that can separate into at least two parts due to the force of impact of a pedestrian.

The invention relates to a front-hood arrangement wherein a front hood of a vehicle is coupled to the frame of the vehicle via at least one multiple-joint hinge, which front hood furthermore can be locked by means of at least one hood lock.
By now, numerous safety devices, such as airbags and the like, for passengers in automobiles are known from practical applications. By contrast, protective measures for pedestrians who are hit by the front end of a passenger automobile have to date scarcely been proposed or implemented in practice. Accidents involving pedestrians which take place at speeds of up to 60 km/h have proven particularly problematical, since, if the pedestrian is hit head-on, his head often strikes the engine hood of the passenger automobile, and the pedestrian dies from his injuries. The seriousness of the injury results from the fact that although the front or engine hood, which is usually formed from thin metal sheet, would tend to bend, it then strikes parts which are arranged beneath the engine hood and in practice cannot be deformed or can only be deformed with difficulty, such as the engine block, the suspension-leg carrier, the air filter, the valve cover or the frame side and cross members of the vehicle. It would be desirable if the consequences of an impact in particular of the head of a pedestrian could be made less severe. By contrast, at speeds of over 60 km/h, the pedestrian, after he has been hit, is thrown over the vehicle.
DE-C-29 22 893 proposes that the engine hood and the wing, in the region of the joint formed between these two parts, be supported, by means of energy-absorbing U-sections which run along the two parts, on body components, and in the event of a collision these U-sections convert the impact into deformation energy. A first drawback of this arrangement is that considerable forces have to act on the sections in order to bend them. Moreover, these otherwise useless U-sections are expensive to procure and difficult to fit.
DE-A-27 37 876 describes an impact protection device which uses a prestressed pivot flap to displace a mesh-like absorption element out of an at-rest position, in which the mesh rests substantially on the front hood, into an absorbing position, which runs substantially in front of the windshield of the automobile. This device is used more to protect the windshield than the pedestrian from an excessively hard impact on the front hood. Moreover, any contact with the sensor which triggers the pivoting movement and is integrated in the front bumper can cause the mesh to be triggered, with the result that a whole range of situations arise in which the mesh completely blinds the driver.
DE-A-28 41 315 describes a safety device in which, in reaction to a signal from a sensor arranged at the front of a vehicle, to detect a collision with a pedestrian, the front hood is displaced out of an at-rest position into an impact position, which is raised with respect to the at-rest position, by a piston-cylinder unit, the displacement being effected by an energy store. During the raising operation, the front hood is pivoted about a horizontal pivot pin which is arranged at the front of the vehicle.
DE-A-197 10 417 describes an arrangement for lifting the front hood in which pivoting about a horizontal pivot pin arranged at the front of the vehicle is triggered by the same pneumatic spring which also assists with the raising of the front hood which is coupled to the other end.
DE-A-197 21 565 describes a safety device on motor vehicles for raising the front hood in which the raising of the front hood takes place in a speed-dependent manner by means of a mechanism which is integral with the hood lock. For this purpose, either the unlocking of the lock which is acted on by a compression spring, which for safety reasons is normally triggered from the driver's compartment, is triggered by a sensor which is triggered by an impact, or alternatively, particularly at relatively high speeds, a piston-cylinder unit which is integrated in the catch bolt of the hood lock is expanded by a propelling charge. A first drawback of this arrangement is that the force required to close the front hood must not exceed a defined threshold, in order to allow the driver to close the front hood with ease. Since the forces which strike in the event of an accident involving a person are considerable, the front hood is pressed down rapidly, and the known injuries occur, in particular in the region of the head. Providing a propelling charge in order to expand a piston-cylinder unit also causes problems, since the service life of this charge, in particular in a relatively unprotected arrangement, is limited, and the charge is difficult to exchange. Moreover, there is a risk of the compression spring and the piston-cylinder unit being triggered simultaneously, with the result that the opening of the front bonnet would become so great that the airstream would bring the hood into contact with the windshield, thus preventing the driver from being able to see.
DE-A-27 11 338 describes a device for damping the impact of a pedestrian, in which an airbag is arranged in the region of the cowl, the filling of which airbag is triggered by a sensor signal. In this case, the airbag may be arranged in such a way that, at the same time, it raises a part of the front hood; to do this it overcomes a spring force which preloads two links, which are connected to one another via a rotation point and one of which is arranged rotatably on the front hood and the other of which is arranged rotatably on a fixed part of the motor vehicle, into an angled position. Furthermore, it is proposed to arrange resilient profiled bodies in strip form in the manner of a seal between hood and side parts, in order in this way to provide further protection in the event of an impact.
DE-A-27 11 339 describes a front hood which is coupled at the front side and in which the coupling is designed to be resilient, in such a manner that it allows a horizontal displacement of the front hood through the impact of a pedestrian, the front hood which is displaced toward the rear being connected at the rear side to one end of a rigid locking element, the other end of which, in the event of displacement of the front hood, is displaced upward and toward the rear in a guide curve in such a manner that the front hood executes an upward movement. This lifting only takes place if horizontal displacement of the front hood has actually occurred, which is not always the case, for example, in the event of impacts of children.
EP-A-0 509 690 describes a front hood, which at its front side is coupled to the vehicle structure in such a manner that, as a result of an impact, the front hood is displaced toward the rear, the closure or pivot means arranged at the rear side, as a result of a movement of the front hood toward the rear, triggering an upward pivoting movement of the front hood, so that the deformation travel of the hood is increased in the event of the impact of a pedestrian. The pivoting movement is guided, for example, by a four-joint hinge, which is otherwise used to pivot the front hood when it is desired to release access to the engine and other parts. In this case too, the front hood is only lifted in the event of a very substantial displacement of the front hood, while a weak impact does not displace the front hood toward the rear and therefore upward.
DE-A-197 12 961 describes the arrangement of a front hood on a vehicle in which a hinge is arranged on a hinge mount, which hinge, in the event of a collision with a pedestrian, is pivoted upward in order to raise the front hood. A problem of this arrangement is that the hood lock for the front hood defines a pivot axis which does not allow optional displacement of the hinge mount, and consequently the hinge mount described is, for example, blocked.
EP-B-0 630 801 describes a front-hood arrangement, in which the hinge arrangements for mounting the front hood on the body are provided in the frontal region of the engine compartment, and the locking means are arranged in the rear part of the engine compartment. The hinge arrangement is designed as a four-joint mechanism which, as a particular feature, can be pivoted overall about an axis which runs between the part which forms the body part and the body, so that there is no change in the links of the four-joint mechanism when the front hood is opened and closed or in the event of a collision with a pedestrian. To open and close, the front hood is displaced about the axis together with the four-joint hinge, while in the event of a collision with a pedestrian the four-joint mechanism is responsible for the vertical and horizontal change in position of the front hood.
DE-C-39 16 739 describes a four-joint coupling for a trunk lid, in which one of the two links of the four-joint mechanism is designed as a "buckling joint", and for installation of the tailgate can be activated by loosening a screw, with the result that the actual pivoting movement of the four-joint mechanism is left and the trunk lid can be pulled back so that the tailgate can be installed. It will be understood that in this position the trunk lid is not latched in the lock. It is clear that this change to the four-joint arrangement does not take place as a result of a collision with a pedestrian, but rather through the loosening of a screw, which is impossible in the event of an impact.
DE-A-33 15 129 describes a tailgate hinge which, in a manner which is often to be encountered, is designed as a swan neck and in which the principal joint provided for the application can be put out of operation as a result of a screw connection which connects a first section and a second section of the swan-neck section being released, with the result that a spring locks the first section and the pivot joint then pivots about an auxiliary joint. However, this is not a multiple joint, the screw connection being released not through the impact of a pedestrian and not being intended to be destroyed in the event of external loads on the tailgate.
FR-A-2 690 405 describes a trunk lid which can be pivoted about a pivot axis defined by a single joint, a support device which can be pivoted about an axis which is parallel to the axis being designed as a buckling joint arrangement which is arranged pivotably in the region of the trunk lid. Already, this is not a multiple joint. Furthermore, the support device, also does not define the pivot axis of the hood arrangement.
Overall, as yet no solution has been proposed which proposes an inexpensive arrangement, which can be readily restored after use and which is so well developed that it could be used in mass-produced vehicles.


A downhole load cell calibrated for enhanced accuracy. The load cell may be a dry load cell calibrated by storage of pre-determined temperature and pressure data relative to the load cell based on known loads applied thereto. Thus, surface equipment employed with the load cell may include a computer program that takes advantage of the stored pre-determined information. The computer program may then be employed for calibration of downhole load cell data based on readings from the load cell along with downhole temperature and pressure information.

Exploring, drilling, completing, and operating hydrocarbon and other wells are generally complicated, time consuming and ultimately very expensive endeavors. In recognition of these expenses, added emphasis has been placed on information available for each stage of well completion and operation. From early seismic data to logging and profiling of the well to the continuous monitoring of well conditions throughout the life of the well, available well information plays a critical role in cost effective hydrocarbon recovery efforts.
In addition to the condition of the well itself, accurate information regarding downhole tools employed during well intervention is also of critical importance. For example, coiled tubing, wireline, and other downhole well applications involve the directing of downhole tools through the depths of the well. In many cases, the well may be of extreme depths, of a highly deviated nature, or involve other challenging characteristics making direct information regarding the downhole tool difficult to ascertain. For example, in a logging application, surface equipment at an oilfield may be used to deliver a logging head several thousand feet into a well by use of a wireline. Certain information regarding the wireline itself may be available through readings of the wireline taken at the surface. The amount of wireline disposed into the well or the tension imparted on the wireline may be measured at the surface. However, these readings may not constitute a true indication as to the depth to which the logging head has actually been disposed within the well nor the amount of tension imparted on the wireline downhole, at the location of the logging head. Such inaccurate or incomplete information may be adverse to the logging application. Inaccurate knowledge of downhole wireline tension at the logging head in particular may be catastrophic to the logging application. Unintentional breaking of the wireline at the logging head or a perceived inability to affect the depth or position of the logging head may result.
In order to help provide some level of accuracy regarding wireline tension at a downhole location of the logging head, a load cell is generally incorporated into a logging head or other tool at the end of the wireline. The load cell generally includes a strain gauge assembly configured to detect tension and electrically transmit tension readings uphole through the wireline. In this manner, direct readings of tension at the location of the logging head may be processed by uphole equipment and used in directing the logging application.
Unfortunately, the accuracy of the load cell is limited for reasons such as the downhole pressure of the well environment. That is, well pressure may increase significantly deeper and deeper within the well. However, certain load cells may remain isolated within the logging head, safeguarded from exposure to the harmful downhole environment. As a result, readings obtained by this type of load cell may fail to provide a true and accurate measurement of tension at the downhole location of the logging head within the well.
In order to address the inaccuracy of tension measurements provided by a load cell as indicated above, the load cell may instead be a 'wet load cell'. That is, the load cell may be provided within a pressurizable, oil-filled chamber of the logging head. In such a situation, the pressurizable chamber within the logging head may be affected by movement of a piston in response to an influx of pressure at the other side of the piston. That is, the logging head may be configured to intentionally allow an influx of pressure at one side of a piston, whereas the other side of the piston may define the chamber housing the load cell. As such, the pressure within the chamber housing the load cell may be altered to roughly match the pressure of the outside well environment. Thus, in theory, a more reliable reading of tension at the location of the logging head may be obtained and transmitted uphole by the load cell.
Unfortunately, there remain significant limitations to the use of a wet load cell to provide downhole tension information as described above. Namely, while providing some degree of additional accuracy as compared to a load cell unaffected by downhole pressure, even a wet load cell has a significant degree of inaccuracy. For example, a wet load cell configuration may provide a degree of tension measurement accuracy to within no more than about +/−3%. While this may be sufficient for smaller load cells in wells of limited depths, a tension measurement error of 3% for a several thousand pound load cell in a deep well may amount to error in the neighborhood of several hundred pounds of load. Furthermore, the nature of the wet load cell involves exposure of strain gauges to oil as described above. As such, the useful life of the gauges and the load cell itself is generally in the neighborhood of about a year.


A golf ball retriever includes an elongate telescoping handle to which is attached a frame defining a golf ball entrance plane to be positioned over a golf ball. The dimensions of the plane are large relative to the diameter of the ball so that it is easily positioned under adverse conditions of visibility. A U-shaped hoop connected at both ends to the frame defines a ball-retaining chamber having openings large enough to freely pass mud and debris but too small to pass the ball. An elastic member or spring extends at least partly across the entrance plane, thereby dividing the entrance plane into two parts, neither of which is large enough to permit passage of the ball unless the spring is forced aside. The spring is arranged to be readily forced aside when the frame is pushed onto the ball to admit the ball to the ball-retaining chamber. The spring is stiff enough to prevent spontaneous release of the ball from the chamber. The spring has tubular ends. It may be a helical wire compression spring or a rubbery tube. It is held in place elastically at the entrance plane by two in-line projections attached to opposite sides of the frame that fit into the tubular ends.

In the game of golf, various obstacles are presented on the course to make successful play more challenging. These may include overgrown vegetation, sand traps, and water hazards. When the ball can be seen, but not reached conveniently, such as in a body of water, the player may be confronted with the loss of the costly ball or employing various implements to retrieve the ball. The U.S. Pat. No. 5,188;409 issued Feb. 12, 1993 to Ferey provides a review of the prior art golf ball retrievers, which are complex and expensive. The retrievers of the prior art generally have a ball receiving aperture that is only slightly larger than the ball diameter. In order to operate these devices successfully, the user must be able to locate the ball and position the retriever over it quite precisely. Because of the refraction of light at the water air interface, this is not easily done. Furthermore, the water surface may be disturbed by wind, also hindering precise positioning of the retriever. Any moving parts are easily disturbed by the sand, mud and other elements to which the device will be exposed in normal operation.
Some retrievers of the prior art employ a spring across the entrance plane to removably reduce the entrance plane dimensions to prevent passage of the ball. Pressure of the ball displaces the spring momentarily enough to pass the ball. These devices employ tension springs whose ends are anchored by passing through holes and bending closed. Every time the spring is displaced, it pulls these ends at the fastening. When the user is pulling the ball free, he may inadvertently pull the spring with it. This may break the spring free at its end or so distort the spring that it no longer closes off the entrance plane. Molding or casting a retriever head with transversely directed holes for the spring ends requires an expensive mold or post molding operations.

Golf ball retriever with compression spring


A light emitting device includes a first layer of a first conductivity type, a second layer of a second conductivity type, a light emitting layer between the first and second layers, a first electrode disposed on a surface of the first layer, and a second electrode disposed on a surface of the second layer and electrically insulated from the first layer. The first layer has first and second regions, each of which contacts the first electrode. A dopant concentration in the first region is less than a dopant concentration in the second region.

Nitride semiconductor light emitting devices are widely used in illuminating devices, video displays, signals transmission, and so on. In these applications, semiconductor light emitting devices having low operating voltages and high optical outputs are generally preferred.
In nitride semiconductor light emitting devices, it is common to provide a p-side electrode and an n-side electrode on a same side of a semiconductor laminate on a surface having a stepped portion, that is a surface with different levels, and use the other side of the laminate as the emission side (i.e., the light output side) of a light emitting device.
When charge carriers are intensively injected into a narrow area of a light emitting layer close to the p-side electrode and the n-side electrode, Auger non-radiative recombination and carrier overflow increases. For this reason, the luminous efficiency decreases, and thus high optical output is not obtained, and the operating voltage becomes higher.
Further, when carriers are concentrated in sub-portions of the light emitting layer, other problems may occur, for example, chromaticity is different between the central portion and peripheral portion of a chip, and color irregularity occurs.


A method of manufacturing a vehicle trim panel having a storage compartment includes providing a first mold assembly comprising a first mold section and a second mold section, wherein the first mold assembly defines a first cavity. A second mold assembly is provided and comprises a third mold section and a fourth mold section. The second mold assembly defines a second cavity. A first material is introduced into the first cavity, thereby producing a substrate. A second material is introduced into the second cavity, such that the second material forms a movable wall. The substrate and the movable wall define a vehicle trim panel, wherein the movable wall includes a fold formed therein for permitting movement of the movable wall to expand the storage compartment.

It is known to provide an interior trim panel for a vehicle, and components thereof, which is aesthetically and/or tactilely pleasing to the vehicle occupants. Such trim panels may include a cavity, such as a map pocket, covered by an articulating cover, or door. However, known articulating doors are typically complex and require many components and complex and expensive methods of manufacturing. It would therefore be desirable to provide an improved method of manufacturing an articulating door for a cavity formed in an interior vehicle trim panel.

International Automotive Components Group North America, Inc.


A toy kit includes a ring base, a ring gem and/or a ring dome, and preferably a plurality of each component. A first work station for assembling a toy ring base with either a toy ring gem or a toy ring dome includes a base and an upright support structure attached to the base. A ram is movably mounted to the support structure so as to move between a most distal position with respect to the base and a most proximal position with respect to the base. The toy kit further includes a hollow, flexible tube having at least one open end, a particulate substance sized to pass within the open end of the tube and a liquid substance, and preferably a plurality of each. A second toy work station for assembling the tube with particulate or liquid substances includes a base and an upright support structure attached to the base and having a passage sized to accommodate particulates. A carriage is movably mounted to the support structure and has a holder configured to receive and retain the tube. A linkage is connected with the carriage so as to move the carriage to displace the holder alternately toward and away from the passage of the support structure. After particulates and/or liquids are inserted into the tube, a continuous loop simulating a piece of jewelry is formed by inserting a connector into both ends of the tube.

The present invention relates to toy jewelry kits and, more specifically, to toy jewelry kits having one or more work stations for assembling together jewelry components.
Toy kits have recently become an important aspect of the toy industry. Such kits provide children with the opportunity to both make and use toy articles. Toy kits therefor have the added benefits of providing a child with a sense of accomplishment and teaching the child to make and use handicrafts.
It would be desirable to provide a toy kit that will allow young children, particularly young girls, to fabricate jewelry of a sufficient quality to be worn.

Toy jewelry kit with assembly work stations


A method for forming a deep trench structure comprises the steps of providing a silicon substrate; forming a mask layer of a predetermined pattern on the silicon substrate to expose a portion of the silicon substrate; forming a first trench in the exposed portion of the silicon substrate, the first trench having a first depth; forming a nitride layer on the surfaces of the whole structure; forming a second trench in the first trench downward, the second trench having a second depth greater than the first depth; forming another nitride layer on the surfaces of the whole structure; and forming a third trench in the second trench downward, the third trench having a third depth greater than the second depth. The method of the present invention can make the whole trench have better etch uniformity, thereby obtaining good electrical performance.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor process, more specifically, to a method for forming a deep trench structure and a deep trench capacitor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Deep trench capacitors have been widely employed in the conventional semiconductor memory (such as DRAM) process, in order to reduce the occupied areas and to increase capacitances. In general, the formation of a deep trench capacitor is completed by forming a deep trench with desired depth (e.g., 7–8 μm) in a substrate once, followed by implementing some steps, including deposition, photoresist, etching, etc, several times, to form the buried plate (BP) (i.e., the bottom electrode), dielectric layer, upper electrode, collar oxide layer, connection electrode, and buried strap (BS) separately.
However, because the aforementioned deep trench process is restricted in process capability with the gradual shrinking of the dimension of components, particularly in sub-90 μm process, the etching uniformity inside the trench becomes worse, thereby influencing the overall electrical performance of the capacitors.
Therefore, a need for overcoming the above problem is required. The present invention fulfils this need.

3-stage method for forming deep trench structure and deep trench capacitor


In a control system for a train composed of a towing vehicle and a trailer, the towing vehicle is equipped with an electronically actuatable drive train. A trailer steering angle actual value sensor determines a trailer actual steering angle of a wheel axle which steers the trailer. The driver of the vehicle can input a trailer setpoint steering angle via a trailer steering angle setpoint value sensor. A reversing device is provided which determines, from the trailer actual steering angle and the trailer setpoint steering angle, a modified towing vehicle setpoint steering angle of a wheel axle which steers the towing vehicle. In the active state of the reversing device, the modified towing vehicle setpoint steering angle takes the place of the present towing vehicle setpoint steering angle in a modified movement vector; and when the train is moving, it changes the trailer actual steering angle into the trailer setpoint steering angle when the modified movement vector is processed.

This application claims the priority of German patent document 103 22 828.4, filed 19 May 2003, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.
The invention relates to a control system for a vehicle having a towing component with an electronically actuatable drive train, and a towed component.
German patent document DE 100 32 179 A1 discloses a control system of this type in which the vehicle is equipped with an electronically actuatable drive train having at least a steering system, a brake system and a drive assembly. Such control systems for vehicles with an electronically actuatable drive train are also referred to as drive-by-wire systems or as X by-wire systems. In such systems, the steering system, brake system and drive assembly of the vehicle can be controlled electronically without there being a continuous mechanical or hydraulic connection between corresponding operator control elements such as the steering wheel, brake pedal and accelerator pedal and the respective component of the drive train.
The control system comprises an operator control device which is fixed to the vehicle and into which a driver of the vehicle inputs a driver request by means of corresponding operator control elements such as a steering wheel, a brake pedal and an accelerator pedal. The operator control device generates a standardized movement vector from the driver request. The movement vector corresponds here, for example to a bus protocol, in particular a CAN protocol. The operator control device thus forms an input level for predefined values (driver requests) which are to be processed by the drive train.
The control system also comprises a control device which generates and outputs control signals for actuating the drive train from an input movement vector. The control signals are then transmitted to and processed by the drive train, in order to implement the driver request. The control device thus forms a coordination level which permits the standardized setpoint signals (driver request) to be implemented at the drive train.
In a "train" composed of a towing vehicle and trailer, maneuvering (particularly reversing) is comparatively difficult due to the complex kinematics between the towing vehicle and trailer, and even an experienced driver requires a comparatively large amount of time to carry it out. Such an articulated train has two steered wheel axles, one for the towing vehicle and one for the trailer, so that the kinematic coupling between the towing vehicle and trailer for reversing the train is complex.
Furthermore, an additional person is necessary to give instructions in order to reduce risks of collision between the train and obstacles. Since the person giving instructions is superfluous in terms of the actual function of the train, which is generally to transport a payload from a starting location to a destination, it is worthwhile to simplify the maneuvering of the train to such an extent that it can be carried out without a person giving instructions.
One object of the present invention is to provide a control system of the type described, which simplifies in particular the maneuvering and reversing of the train.
This and other objects and advantages are achieved by the control system according to the invention, in which the problem of reversing a train is reduced to a comparatively simple reversing problem for a single-element vehicle which has only one steered wheel axle. The reversing of a single-element vehicle with a steered front axle corresponds to the reversing of a normal passenger car and can therefore be carried out comparatively easily. In the present invention, the driver of the vehicle predefines a setpoint value for the trailer steering angle of a wheel axle which steers the trailer, using a corresponding setpoint value sensor. The setpoint value steers the trailer to the desired destination when the vehicle is reversed.
For this purpose, the invention provides a reversing device which, in an active state, determines a steering setpoint angle from the trailer setpoint steering angle (selected by the driver) and a current trailer actual steering angle for the steering system of the towing vehicle. The steering setpoint angle is calculated in such a way that, when it is implemented in a moving train, it changes the trailer steering angle to the desired setpoint value. In other words, the reversing device takes into account the complex kinematics between the towing vehicle and the trailer and generates, at the towing vehicle, a steering activation which brings about the steering activation at the trailer which is desired by the driver as the train moves. Maneuvering, and in particular reversing the train, can thus be considerably simplified.
Implementing the reversing device in the control system is comparatively simple here since only one modified movement vector has to be generated using the reversing device. This vector then brings about the desired steering movement of the trailer when the train moves.
In one advantageous embodiment, the driver of the vehicle inputs a driver request into a remote control device and which generates the movement vector from the driver request. A transceiver arrangement permits the necessary communication between the remote control device (which is remote from the vehicle), the reversing device and the control device. The communication expediently takes place by means of a drive train interface arrangement. The remote control device can have a trailer steering angle setpoint value sensor, so that it is particularly easy for the driver of the vehicle to predefine the necessary trailer setpoint steering angle by positioning himself at a suitable location in the vicinity of the trailer.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, in the active state, the reversing device utilizes a towing vehicle steering angle setpoint value sensor (in particular that of the remote control device) as a trailer steering angle setpoint value sensor. In the passive state of the reversing device, the driver of the vehicle uses the towing vehicle steering angle setpoint value sensor of the cockpit and/or of the remote control device to input towing vehicle setpoint steering angles; while in the active state, the reversing device uses the towing vehicle setpoint steering angles which can be tapped at the towing vehicle steering angle setpoint value sensor present at the trailer setpoint steering angle. The invention thus makes use of a towing vehicle steering angle setpoint value sensor which is present in any case and gives it a double function. The reversing device is thus implemented without the need for additional steering angle setpoint value sensors for the trailer, and is therefore comparatively economical.
It goes without saying that the features which are mentioned above and the features which are to be explained below can be used not only in the respectively specified combination but also in other combinations or in isolation without departing from the scope of the present invention.


A process for preparing a water-soluble, radio-opaque paint for marking acrylic resin dental stents includes the steps of preparing a solution comprising 50 ml of ethanol, 6.4 grams of glycerol; 4.0 ml of benzaldehyde; 1.0 ml of glacial acetic acid, and 0.15 grams of hydroxy propyl cellulose. A radio-opaque powder, such as 50 grams of barium sulfate powder having a mean particle diameter of about 10 .mu.m, is then added to the solution. The solution is then mixed to obtain the paint, wherein the paint has a uniform dispersion of the radio-opaque powder. This paint may be used on dental stents to locate and guide placement of dental implants. The method may include the steps of preparing a water-soluble, radio-opaque paint for marking dental stents comprising the steps of preparing a solution described above; adding a radio-opaque powder, such as 50 grams of barium sulfate powder; and mixing the solution to obtain the paint, wherein the paint has a uniform dispersion of the radio-opaque powder. The uniform dispersion may be obtained by using ultrasound. Further, the method comprises applying the paint to a dental stent; placing the stent in contact with a patient's teeth; taking a radiographic image of the stent and the patient's teeth. The stent then is removed from the patient's teeth, and the paint is removed from the stent.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the fabrication of a durable, but water soluble; non-toxic coating which may be applied to and removed from radio-lucent medical stents. In particular, this coating allows the radiographic imaging of the stents mounted on teeth in a patient's mouth, and such stents may be used to position and to guide the placement of dental implants.
2. Description of the Related Art
The placement of an implant-retained dental restoration in a patient's mouth is a complicated, multi-step process. In order to anchor the restoration in the patient's mouth, a dental implant is placed into the patient's jaw or skull. This implant provides an anchoring device for the abutment and screw which will eventually secure the restoration, e.g., a replacement tooth or bridge. However, it often is difficult to locate sufficient maxillary (sinus) or mandibular (jaw) bone within which to fix the implant, so that an adequate foundation and proper positioning of the restoration may be achieved. Because the underlying bone structure and its density or mass may not be readily apparent on radiographs, implants may inadvertently be positioned in bone structure of insufficient density or mass to form a proper foundation for the implant. This may ultimately lead to the implant's failure. In addition, an implant seated at an improper angle may have an unaesthetic appearance, and an improperly seated implant may result in a malocclusion. Preoperative radiographic evaluations, such as conventional radiographs, X-ray images, CAT-scans, and the like, are used in combination with dental (or medical) stents to determine the proper site and angle of implantation.
The orientation of dental implants is usually governed by the existing anatomy and the desired position of the restoration(s). Once a functionally and esthetically desirable implant location has been identified, stents are fabricated to allow preferred positioning of the implant in the underlying bone. At the time of surgery, the anatomic information obtained from the radiographic evaluation is correlated with the desired implant location, as indicated by the stent, to position the implant at the preferred location and orientation. However, it is desirable to correlate the information obtained from the radiographic evaluation and the stent prior to surgery.
The stent is placed in a patient's mouth and is aligned with the location at which an implant is to be placed. A radiographic image is taken of the patient's mouth showing the position of the stent. By examining the radiographic image, a dentist, oral surgeon, or periodontist may determine whether sufficient bone exists under the stent to support the implant. If insufficient bone is present, additional bone may be grafted to the patient's sinus or jaw, a different location for the periodontal implant may be chosen, or a different mode of treatment eliminating the use of an implant may be selected. If sufficient bone is present, however, the stent may later be used to guide the placement of the implant. The stent may either be transparent or translucent and may have guide holes or slots through which the implant may be positioned. Thus, stents preferably possess two qualities: (1) they are radiographically opaque and (2) they are visually translucent or transparent.
Stents may be fabricated by technicians from an acrylic resin. However, acrylic resin is radio-lucent, i.e., not radio-opaque. The stent may be made radio-opaque by the addition of a radio-opaque powder, such as barium sulfate powder, to the acrylic resin during the fabrication of the stent. Many procedures or recipes for preparing stents containing barium sulfate are possible and are used. Generally, however, technicians simply mix a quantity of radio-opaque powder into the acrylic resin base. Such powders are readily available from medical and dental laboratory supply companies. Although, barium sulfate is a frequently used radio-opaque powder, other radio-opaque powders, such as metal powders, also are used. Nevertheless, metal powders or metal flakes tend to reflect or deflect the X-rays, which may cause unsatisfactory radiographs and uncontrolled or blurred exposure.
The lack of a standardized procedure or recipe, however, is a disadvantage of the current methods of fabricating radio-opaque stents. Unless the barium sulfate powder is added in the proper quantity and is thoroughly mixed in the acrylic material, the opacity of the stent may be uneven. Further, settling may occur during the hardening of the acrylic, which may create additional unevenness in the opacity. If the stent is not uniformly radio-opaque, it may be difficult to properly locate the position for the proposed implant. Therefore, existing radio-opaque medical stents may not provide an accurate determination of proper drilling angles for positioning of implants and may create distortion in the radiographs, for example, due to the presence of metallic powders or flakes.


A method and apparatus for encoding and decoding data for a recording system. The method of encoding data involves encoding input data into a predetermined code and precoding the predetermined code so that output levels of a channel can be detected, the channel being defined by a predetermined channel polynomial.

This application claims the priority of Korean Patent Application No. 2003-65540, filed on Sep. 22, 2003, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to data encoding and decoding methods and apparatuses for a recording system, an more particularly, to data encoding and decoding methods and apparatuses that have great performance even at a low signal-to-noise ratio.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the integration density or recording systems increases, the signal-to-noise ratio of signals read from the recording systems decreases. Therefore, data detectors for high-density recording systems are now required to have better detection performance than their conventional counterparts. There are a few reliable conventional data detecting methods, i.e., a partial response maximum likelihood method, a noise-predictive maximum likelihood method, and a low-density parity check (LDPC) method, which has better performance than a turbo code decoding method in terms of approaching the Shannon limit.
An LDPC code is a linear block code that encodes data by using an LDPC matrix most of whose elements are "0"s. The performance of the LDPC code is considerably dependent upon the size of the LDPC matrix and the pattern of distribution of "1"s in the LDPC matrix. The LDPC code is decoded using a probability propagation method, which is also known as a belief propagation algorithm.
In order to decode the LDPC code, a likelihood function should be calculated first. In order to calculate the likelihood function, input data should be a signal whose output levels are detectable. However, it is difficult to detect output levels of a signal output from a partial response (PR) equalizer that compensates for a signal reproduced from a recording system, i.e., an output level of a PR channel.
This problem also applies to a turbo-like system used for improving the performance of a storage system. A conventional turbo-like system adopts different decoding techniques for an outer code and an inner code. For example, the conventional turbo-like system uses an LDPC code decoding method to decode an outer code and uses a partial response maximum likelihood (PRML) or non-parametric maximum likelihood (NPML) method to decode an inner code, and the reason is as follows. An LDPC code decoder should receive a signal with detectable output levels as input data so as to perform an LDPC code decoding process. However, as described above, output levels of a signal output from a PR equalizer, i.e., output levels of a PR channel, are hard to detect, which makes it difficult to form the conventional turbo-like system of LDPC codes only in a PR channel.
More specifically, since the output levels of the PR channel are hard to detect, an LDPC code is only used as an outer code. However, due to the characteristics of the LDPC code, a likelihood function should be calculated as a-priori information before decoding the LDPC code. In order to calculate the likelihood function, extrinsic information should be provided from an outer code to an inner code, and the output levels of the PR channel should also be provided. However, the output levels of the PR channel cannot be easily detected and are not provided to the outer code. Therefore, the outer code has to calculate the likelihood function by only using the extrinsic information. Accordingly, the LDPC code decoder may not be able to precisely calculate the likelihood function, and the extrinsic information provided from the outer code to the inner code may be inaccurate.

Encoding and decoding methods and apparatuses for recording system

Institute for Information Technology Advancement


The wear sleeve in the present invention comprises a rearward split ring portion and an intermediate cylindrical ring portion adjacent a forward shoulder portion. The outer diameter of the wear sleeve intermediate portion and rearward split ring portion is uniform. The wear sleeve is inserted into the bit holder's stepped bore aperture. The split ring portion is radially compressed by the smaller diameter opposite portion end as the sleeve is hammered and axially displaced into the bit holder. The split ring portion forms frictional contact with the opposite end portion of the aperture. The wear sleeve friction fit can be easily removed manually in the field. The bit holder and cooperating support block are designed to limit the amount of relative yaw between the two members during operation to reduce the overall wear there between. The invention includes a groove having side surfaces that are inclined at least 15 degrees with respect to the horizontal axis and the cutting bit is positioned more apt toward the central axis of the support block than prior art designs.

The present invention relates to mining and construction cutting bits and holders, the holders being attached to a rotating cutting drum. The holder includes a replaceable wear sleeve that receives the cutting bit tool.
Cutting tools are subjected to large torques and loads. The cutting bits generally need to be replaced daily. Since the cutting tools require routine maintenance there is a preference and need in the industry to construct a cutting tool assembly that is easily and quickly replaceable in the field.
The holders are often designed to permit the cutting tool to rotate to avoid uneven wear of the bit tool holder and cutting bit. This rotation of the bit causes the holding surface of the bit holder to wear at an accelerated rate. The bit holders become unusable after they wear causing the cutting bit to stop rotating or to fall out of the bit holder. The bit holders take a significant amount of time to replace, typically either by blow torching off the old bit holder and welding a new bit holder onto a rotatable drum, or by mechanically removing the old bit holder mechanically fixing on a new bit holder.
To extend the life of bit holders in the prior art a replaceable wear sleeve is inserted into the bit holder. The sleeve limits the internal wear to which the bit holder is subjected by the cutting bit tool. Eventually these wear sleeves fail and must also be replaced. Prior art wear sleeves are provided with an upstream shoulder that surrounds the aperture of the bit holder to resist the axial forces and loads that would otherwise be directly absorbed by the exposed top face of the bit holder during operation of the cutting tool to prevent wear of the bit holder. Nonrotating wear sleeves tend to wear unevenly on upstream shoulder of the protective sleeve.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,088,797 to O'Neill, a replaceable wear sleeve for bit holders is disclosed. The wear sleeve is fixed to the tool holder by interference fit. The interference fit is designed so as to permit the sleeve to be removable in the field. Such interference fit designs require precise manufacturing tools for cutting out the outside diameter of the wear sleeve and precision honing equipment for constructing the sleeve holder bore in the bit holder. The holding and cutting equipment for such precision is costly and the manufacturing steps time consuming. Slight deviations in the outside diameter of the sleeve and diameter of the bit holder bore affects the amount of interference and results in large variations in the amount of manual force necessary to remove the wear sleeve from the bit holder.
In the prior art designs such as in U.S. Pat. No. 4,542,943 wear occurs between a replaceable bit holder and a support block that is welded onto a drum. The contacting joint surfaces between the bit holder and support block in this prior art wears during the lifetime of the assembly on account of a yaw movement imposed upon the pick tool assembly during cutting operations. In some less friendly environments silica accumulates between the bit holder and support block and the wear rate between the bit holder and support block significantly increases. This continual wear between the holder and support block also requires that operators constantly tighten the fastening bolt to adequately secure the bit holder to the support block, preventing undesirable catastrophic failure caused by rocking and fretting as the bolt becomes loosened. In some severe environments the wear between the blocks and bit holders becomes so great that the support block and bit holder have to be serviced as frequently as on a monthly basis.
In Montgomery U.S. Pat. No. 4,542,943 the T-shaped shank that fits into the support block groove includes a preferential failing groove situated along the peripheral surface of the shank. Cutting tools are employed in constructing this peripheral groove about the shank. This groove is costly and time consuming to manufacture.
Applicant has invented a non-rotatable wear sleeve that will significantly reduce wear of the bit holder but can still be removed manually while the mining equipment is at its field location.

Manually replaceable protective wear sleeve


A circuit board type connector includes a connector socket and a connector plug. In the connector plug, a circuit board replaces wires or cables to transmit signals. The connector is provided with a clipping device to clip the circuit board and securely connect the connector plug with the connector socket. The clipping device includes a pair of clips, a supporting plate and a circuit board cover to securely hold the circuit board. The clip engages with a clip connection slot of the connector socket to securely connect the connector plug with the connector socket.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a connector, and in particular to a circuit board type connector. In the connector, a circuit board replaces wires or cables to transmit signals.
2. The Prior Arts
Generally, connectors are connecting components and their accessories for transmitting electronic signals and connecting power. The connectors are the connection among the signals. The qualities of the connectors not only affect the reliability of transmitting the currents and the signals, but also affect the operation quality of the whole electronic instruments.
The connectors used in computers are usually classified into two categories: I/O (Input/Output) and Interconnection. The I/O connector transmits signals between the computer main system and peripheral equipments, such as a mouse, a monitor, a keyboard, a printer, and a plotter. The I/O connector may also transmit signals between the computer main system and network systems. The I/O connectors include a circular connector, a rectangular connector, a coaxial connector, etc. The Interconnection connector is used in the main computer system and peripheral equipments, which provides signal connection in the installation of electronic components or between modules in the systems. The Interconnection connectors include an integrated circuit socket, a board edge connector, a flat cable, etc.
A conventional connector uses wires or cables to transmit signals. When the wires or cables are electrically connected to the connector, the wires have to be soldered to the terminals. It needs to solder the wires on by one, so it is time consuming to manufacture a channel cable. It also needs to keep spacing between soldering points, and thus it is hard to increase the wire density.
At present, some technical features, such as a display card, solve the problems mentioned above. Signals are transmitted via circuits on a circuit board instead of wires or cables. When the circuit board is inserted into a slot, such as a PCI slot, the circuit board still cannot work as a connector to transmit signals between two ends due to lacking of a supplementary fixture device. If there is no reliable fixture device, the circuit board is easy to get loose from the slot or the connection mount under pulling or impact on the circuit board. It leads to failure of the whole electronic device.


Described herein is a method and a unit for the formation of groups of products in a machine for continuous packaging of products, according to which at least two continuous rows of products are fed via two conveyor devices set in series with respect to one another along a first given path and in contact with at least one alignment element, which is set transverse to the first path and in front of the rows of products to align the rows themselves with respect to one another, and is displaced along a second, loop-like, path defined by two portions, along which the alignment element is set on the inside and on the outside, respectively, of the first path.

Machines for packaging of products currently on the market normally comprise one first conveyor device and one second conveyor device, which are set in series with respect to one another, are connected to one another in a position corresponding to a transfer station, and are designed to feed at least two continuous rows of products set alongside one another along a given path and in a given direction.
The rows of products are fed by the conveyor devices in contact with an alignment element set transverse to the aforesaid path and at a distance from the transfer station which is such as to enable each time transfer on the second conveyor device of a number of products equal to the number of products of a group.
Once the rows of products are set in contact with the alignment element, the first conveyor device is deactivated, and the alignment element is displaced, normally via at least one actuator cylinder, transverse to, and on the outside of, the aforesaid path to enable the second conveyor device to separate a group of products from the rows themselves.
Known packaging machines of the type described above present some drawbacks mainly deriving from the fact that said machines have a relatively low productivity on account of the dead times introduced by the displacements of the alignment element under the thrust of the aforesaid actuator cylinder.

Method and unit for the formation of groups of products in a machine for continuous packaging of products

KPL Packaging S.p.A. Societa Unipersonale


Embodiments of the present invention provide a method of fabricating a contact structure in a layer of dielectric material between a semiconductor device and a back-end-of-line interconnect. The method includes creating at least one contact opening in said layer of dielectric material; forming a first TiN film through a chemical-vapor deposition process, said first TiN film lining said contact opening; and forming a second TiN film through a physical vapor deposition process, said second TiN film lining said first TiN film. A contact structure fabricated according to embodiments of the invention is also provided.

In semiconductor industry, tungsten (W) is primarily used as middle-of-the-line (MOL) contact material because of its relatively low resistance, less stress, and electro-migration properties. A MOL contact may be a conductive stud working as an interface between contact areas of an active semiconductor device (or integrated circuit), which may be referred to as front-end-of-the-line (FEOL), and its overlying interconnects or interconnecting structures, which may be referred to as back-end-of-the-line (BEOL). Contact areas of an active semiconductor device may be made of, for example, silicide material. MOL contacts are usually formed in a layer of dielectric material, for example, SiO2 formed on top of the active semiconductor device. The layer of dielectric material has openings, wherein MOL contacts are formed, extending to the surfaces of the contact areas of underlying semiconductor device.
It is well known in the art that, due to a high aspect ratio (a ratio of depth to width) greater than, for example, three (3) and small feature sizes (on the order of about 0.1 microns or less), a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process is generally applied in depositing W into the openings in the dielectric material to form the MOL contact. The deposition process is typically performed in two or more steps, for example, a nucleation step and a bulk fill step.
During the nucleation step, WF6 and a silane, for example SiH4, may be used as precursors. Recently, B2H6 is used in the reduction of WF6 and a chemical reaction as follows may occur:WF6(g)+B2H6(g)→W(s)+6HF(g)+2B(s)  Equation 1
During the bulk fill step, WF6 and H2 are used and the following chemical reaction may occur:WF6(g)+3H2(g)→W(s)+6HF(g)  Equation 2
It shall be noted that in the above equations, (g), denoting gas, and (s), denoting solid, are used to indicate the state of the chemical material used or produced during the reaction process.
From the above chemical reaction equations 1 and 2, it is apparent that the process of CVD deposition of W may produce, as a by-product, HF, which is well-known to be corrosive to silicon. To protect silicon (Si) inside the silicide from corrosive reaction, a liner may be deposited prior the CVD deposition of W. The use of the liner may additionally reduce a contact resistance between the silicide contact areas and the CVD-deposited W contact and function as an adhesive layer between the CVD-deposited W and the dielectric material wherein contact openings are created.
Various different types of liners are known in the prior art. For example, one widely used liner may include a Ti/CVD TiN stack. Ti (titanium) is known to be a good oxygen "getter" (that is, Ti has a high affinity for oxygen) and thus the application of a Ti layer helps clean up surface oxide of contact openings. The stack also includes a layer of CVD-deposited TiN, on top of the Ti layer, to provide coverage of the bottom and corners of the contact openings. The CVD-deposited TiN layer helps prevent the formation of volcano defects, which otherwise would occur as a result of reaction of exposed Ti and/or Si with WF6 during the nucleation and/or bulk fill steps.
Although Ti/CVD TiN stack liner may prevent silicide contact areas of a semiconductor device, such as, a source and/or drain and/or gate region, from getting in contact with corrosive HF produced during CVD deposition of W for stud contact, the existence of CVD-deposited TiN in the stack promotes the formation of beta-W, which is known to have a high resistance, causing increase in overall resistance of stud contact. In view of the above, there is a need to develop MOL contact structures that will overcome the drawbacks as mentioned above.

Low resistance contact structure and fabrication thereof

International Business Machines Corporation


Bezafibrate is used for the treatment of normolipidaemic diabetes mellitus type II.

The present invention is concerned with the novel use of bezafibrate for the treatment of diabetes.
Bezafibrate, i.e. 2-[4-[2-(4-chlorobenzamido)ethyl]-phenoxy]-2-methylpropionic acid, is an agent known from Federal Republic of Germany Patent Specification No. 21 49 070 which is widely used for the treatment of hyperlipidaemias (hypertriglyceridae-caias and hypercholesterolaemias). Since hyperlipoproteinaemias are an especially frequently occurring accompanying metabolic disturbance in the case of diabetes mellitus and can lead to premature arteriosclerosis, in a series of studies a simultaneous treatment of hyperlipidaemic diabetics with sulphonylureas or insulin and bezafibrate has already been investigated. The decrease of the serum triglyceride and cholesterol concentration which occurs in comparison with a sole treatment with sulphonylureas or insulin thereby also leads to a significant decrease of the fasting blood sugar values. After discontinuation of the bezafibrate, all three parameters again increase. It is assumed that the strong triglyceride lowering with bezafibrate, just as in the case of appropriate diet, brings about the parallel retrogression of the glucose. An improvement of the glucose utilisation by bezafibrate is conjectured (cf. Bruneder et al., Dtsch. med. Wschr., 106, 1653-1656/1981).

Use of bezafibrate for treating diabetes


A fuel injection system having a novel electromagnetic actuated fuel pump in which four pumping elements, equally-spaced around a camshaft are mounted such that a pair of opposed pumping elements alternate to deliver pressure to a high pressure common rail with a second pair of the pumping pair of pumping elements. In one embodiment of the invention, the pumping process is mechanically actuated, and in another is electronically actuated. The high pressure common rail is adapted to reduce surges in the fuel pressure from the pump by using central and side chambers connected with cross-drilled orifices. The common rail has a relief valve for safety protection not to allow the pressure in the rail to exceed the maximum preset pressure. The electromagnetic injector has a pressure balanced control valve to control fuel flow to the nozzle and has a pressure assistance mechanism at the end of injection to obtain a sharp end of injection. Also, at the beginning of the next injection, the needle opening can be slowed down to meet the engine requirements.

This invention is related to a high-pressure, common rail, fuel injection system for injecting metered amounts of highly pressurized fuel into the cylinder of a diesel engine.
Conventional fuel injection systems employ a "jerk" type fuel system for pressurizing and injecting fuel into the cylinder of a diesel engine. A pumping element is actuated by an engine-driven cam to pressurize fuel to a sufficiently high pressure to unseat a pressure-actuated injection valve in the fuel injection nozzle. In one form of such a fuel system having an electromagnetic unit injector, the plunger is actuated by an engine driven cam to pressurize the fuel inside the bushing chamber when a solenoid is energized and the solenoid valve is closed. The metering and timing is achieved by a signal from an electronic control module (ECM) having a controlled beginning and a controlled pulse. In another form of such a fuel system, the fuel is pressurized by an electronic or mechanical pumping assembly into a common rail and distributed to electromagnetic nozzles, which inject pressurized fuel into the engine cylinders. Both the electronic pump and the electromagnetic nozzles are controlled by the ECM signal.
One problem with using a common rail results from the high pressures experienced in diesel engines, which are in the neighborhood of 20,000 psi. Another problem in conventional fuel injection systems is achieving a controlled duration and cut-off of the fuel injection pressure. Standard fuel injection systems commonly have an injection pressure versus time curve in which the pressure increases to a maximum and then decreases, following a somewhat skewed, triangularly-shaped curve. Such pressure versus time relationship initially delivers a relatively poor, atomized fuel penetration into the engine cylinder because of the low injection pressure. When the pressure curve reaches a certain level, the pressure provides good atomization and good penetration. As the pressure is reduced from its peak pressure, the decreasing pressure again provides poor atomization and penetration, and the engine discharges high emissions of particulates and smoke.
One of the objects of fuel injection designers is to reduce unburned fuel by providing a pressure versus time curve having a square configuration, with an initially high pressure increase to an optimum pressure, providing good atomization, and a final sharp drop to reduce the duration of poor atomization and poor penetration.
Examples of some prior art fuel injection nozzles may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,527,737 which issued July 9, 1985 to John I. Deckard; U.S. Pat. No. 4,550,875 which issued Nov. 5, 1985 to Richard F. Teerman, Russell H. Bosch, and Ricky C. Wirth; U.S. Pat. No. 4,603,671 which issued Aug. 5, 1986 to Turo Yoshinaga, et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 3,331,327 which issued to Vernon E. Roosa on Jul. 18, 1967; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,509,691 which issued Apr. 9, 1985 to Robert T. J. Skinner. An example of a high pressure common rail of the prior art may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,777,921, which issued Oct. 18, 1988, to Miyaki et al. Literature pertaining to electromagnetic fuel injection pumps may be found in Paper No. 880421 of the SAE Technical Paper Series entitled "EMI - Series - Electromagnetic Fuel Injection Pumps" discussed at the Feb. 29-Mar. 4, 1988 International Congress & Exposition at Detroit, Mich. Other literature pertaining to the subject include: SAE Technical Paper Series No. 840273 discussed Feb. 27-Mar. 2, 1984 at the International Congress & Exposition, Detroit, Mich.; SAE Technical Paper Series 850453 entitled "An Electronic Fuel Injection System for Diesel Engines" by P. E. Glikin discussed at the International Congress & Exposition at Detroit, Mich. on Feb. 25, 1985; SAE Technical Papers Series 810258 by R. K. Cross, P. Lacra, C. G. O'Neill entitled "Electronic Fuel Injection Equipment for Controlled Combustion in Diesel Engines," dated Feb. 23, 1981; SAE Technical Paper Series 861098 entitled "EEC IV--Full Authority Diesel Fuel Injection Control" by William Weseloh presented Aug. 4, 1986; and, United Kingdom Patent Application No. GB-2118624A filed Mar. 3, 1983 by Henry Edwin Woodward.

High pressure electronic common-rail fuel injection system for diesel engines


The present invention relates to a cutting device for cutting straw and similar material into pieces, of the type which comprises a driven shaft (11) kept in a housing (21), where said shaft (11) is provided with longitudinally proceeding rows (1-6) of knife attachments for knives (15), which extends radially from the shaft and are provided with cutting edges. Said knives (15), under operation pass between a row of counter knives (19) directed towards said shaft and preferably provided with cutting edges in the same way, whereby the straw material to be cut is fed towards said counter arms (9). The number of rows (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6) with knife attachment (14) are at least six. The distances between three knife attachments in a longitudinally proceeding row, have a proportion of 4:4:5 of a repeating unit, where the arms (4,5) in a rotation round at least forms two screw lines.

The present invention relates to a cutting device for cutting straw and similar material into pieces, of the type which comprises a driven shaft kept in a housing, where said shaft is provided with longitudinally proceeding rows of knife attachments for knives, which extends radially from the shaft and are provided with cutting edges, whereby said knives under operation pass between a row of counter knives directed towards said shaft and in the same way suitably are provided with cutting edges, whereby the straw material to be cut is being fed towards said counter arms.
Cutting devices for the cutting of straw and the like into pieces are previously known, which comprises a rotating drum shaft, on which pivotable knives are arranged in rows, which knives through their passage between counter knives cut fed straw material, compare for instance GB-A-1,060,179. These known devices have always exhibited as a maximum, four rows of knives, usually arranged in pairs opposite each other or with the rows slightly displaced in respect to adjacent rows. The problem with the known devices is a limited amount of cutting, the average cutting length being too long and too low a level of splintering, which severely affects the ability of mouldering of the cut straw, even if the knife rotor normally works with a high rotational speed, which requires a high energy input.
A cutting device for cutting turnip tops and other green fodder to be ensilaged is previously known from SE 117 423 C, where a high degree of decomposition is required, which one has attempted to achieve by means of the arrangement of six rows of knives. As long as the green fodder is fresh, even a four-row cutting device will manage the required degree of cutting, but not when the material is dry and tough. The device must also tolerate that stones can be brought with the green fodder into the cutting device. This problem has been solved, by the removal of the traditional, rigid counter knives and instead transporting the green fodder to, in the rotational direction of the knife rotor, the rear half of the drum, where an opening is arranged through which the stones may leave the device.
Since the known cutting device lacks counter knives, it can not be used for cutting straw or the like, additionally would it, due to its particular construction, very rapidly become jammed by uncut straw as the material to be cut has to be fed more than 180xc2x0 through the housing.
The purpose of the present invention is to provide a cutting device, which:
has a large input opening for straw,
has a higher cutting capacity per time period,
gives a shorter average cut length than conventional devices,
has a high splinter degree,
has a high peripherical speed,
has a smoother operation,
has a lower noise level,
and this at essentially the same energy demand as a conventional cutting device.
Surprisingly, it has now been shown possible to increase the cutting capacity with a device according to the invention, which has at least six rows of knives distributed over the periphery of the shaft drum and which extend over essentially the whole width of the threshing machine, which provides for the increase of the straw input opening. The increased number of knife rows and the fact that each knife attachment carries double, pivotable knives has lead to a major increase of the capacity.
The greater number of pivotable knives has also lead to the corresponding increase of the number of rigid counter knives, leading to a decreased average cutting length and a higher degree of splintering of the straw, at the same time as increasing the peripherical speed at the same rotation speed, by increasing the diameter of the shaft drum of the knives.
A smoother operation and a better balancing, and a lower noise level have been reached experimentally, by placing the knife attachments to the shaft drum in such way that they follow a sinusoidal helicoidal line.


An improved actuator assembly is disclosed. The actuator has a rotor assembly rotatably mounted in a stator frame formed of a synthetic resin material. The stator frame has a borehole therein that receives a rotor assembly, a pair of mounting recesses, and a pair of bobbins portions. Each bobbin portion includes a slot. Induction magnets are mounted in each mounting recess of the stator frame such that they face the rotor assembly. A coils is would about each bobbin portion of the stator frame. The coils and induction magnets are angularly spaced about the rotor assembly. A core having a plurality of poles and holding portions, is also provided. Each core pole extends through an associated one of the bobbin slots and faces the rotor magnet. The holding portions are arranged to hold the induction magnets in place.

This application claims the priority of Japanese Patent Application No. 3-129949 filed on May 31, 1991 which is incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an actuator, and more particularly, to an actuator which drives, for example, an intake valve in an internal combustion engine.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional actuator of this type is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2-140419. As shown in FIG. 5, such an actuator 30 comprises a four-pole stepping motor 31 whose core 32 is shaped into a square barrel. The core 32 includes a peripheral wall 32a which forms magnetic paths and four poles 33a to 33d which protrude inward from the peripheral wall 32a. The core 32 is formed of a plurality of laminated metal plates. Each of the metal plates is made through a pressing process and has four side edges linked to one another and four projections which extend inward from the respective side edges of the plate in association with the poles 33a to 33d, respectively. The core 32 has coils 34a to 34d wound around the poles 33a to 33d, respectively. A rotor 36 with a magnet 36a is held rotatable in the center of the core 32. The rotor 36 will be intermittently rotated every 90 degrees by properly changing the direction of conduction to one coil pair 34b and 34d while keeping the direction of conduction to the other coil pair 34a and 34c the same.
The prior art described above is designed to have the poles 33a to 33d projecting inward from the inner surface of the peripheral wall 32a. With this structure, to wind the coils 34a through 34d around the respective poles 33a-33d is relatively difficult because the adjacent poles, which have their coils already wound thereabout, and the peripheral wall 32a interfere with this work.
Since the coils 34a to 34d should be arranged so that they do not interfere with one another, clearances have to be provided between the coils. The internal space of the core 32 cannot therefore be effectively used.
The opposing pair of poles 33a and 33c in FIG. 5 may be replaced respectively with magnets 35a and 35b shown in FIG. 6. This provides another type of actuator in which the rotor 36 may be rotated in 90 degree intervals. This actuator has its core 31 provided with a pair of poles 33b and 33d. It is therefore easier to wind the coils 34b and 34d around the poles 33b and 33d in this case than in the above described prior art.
This modified actuator does not differ from the conventional case in that the peripheral wall 32a is still an obstruction when the coils 34b and 34d are to be wound around the poles 33b and 33d. Further, this modification gives rise to a new shortcoming where the magnets 35a and 35b have to be incorporated at the determined positions of the metallic core against their magnetic force.


A method for tuning a purge system of a barrel reactor used for chemical vapor deposition of layers of material on semiconductor wafers includes placement of rotameters and adjustable flow-control valves in each of multiple purge lines. The flow rates of purge gas in the lines are monitored and the valves adjusted to make sure that the flow is all in a direction toward the barrel reactor, so that there is no siphon effect to draw reactant gases into the purge system. The oxygen presence in the barrel reactor is also monitored and the flow rates adjusted to reduce the oxygen presence. The flow rates are adjusted to assure full purge of reactant gases from the barrel reactor after a chemical vapor deposition cycle is complete. Reduced levels of metals contamination in layers of deposited material are achieved.

This invention relates generally to barrel reactors used to deposit material on a semiconductor wafer by chemical vapor deposition, and more particularly to a method for tuning a purge system of such a barrel reactor.
Barrel reactors of the type to which the present invention generally relates are used for deposition of epitaxial layers on semiconductor wafers. Epitaxy is an important process in the semiconductor material industry for achieving the necessary electrical properties of the semiconductor material. For example, a lightly doped epitaxial layer grown over a heavily doped substrate permits a CMOS device to be optimized for latch up immunity as a result of low resistance of the substrate. Other advantages, such as precise control of the dopant concentration profile and freedom from oxygen are also achieved.
Reactant gas carrying the material (e.g., silicon) to be deposited on the wafers is injected into a reaction chamber vessel of the barrel reactor where the deposition of the material onto the wafers is accomplished. Multiple wafers are held in a generally vertical orientation on walls of a susceptor so that one face of the wafer is exposed for deposition of silicon. The reaction chamber vessel is typically made of quartz. A seal plate which closes the reaction chamber, but can be moved to open the chamber for inserting or removing semiconductor wafers from the chamber, is made of stainless steel. A gas ring between the seal plate and reaction chamber is also made of stainless steel.
It is important that the layer of silicon deposited on the wafers not be contaminated with metals, such as iron, nickel and molybdenum, which can deleteriously affect the minority carrier lifetime of the epitaxial layer. The presence of non-metallic foreign particles in the layer is also to be avoided. The quartz reaction chamber vessel will not be a source of metals contamination, but the stainless steel in the seal plate and gas ring does provide a source for metals contamination. Contact with certain byproducts (e.g., HCl) of the reactant gas in the presence of residual moisture can cause the stainless steel to corrode. Corrosive agents such as HCl may also be present in the chamber as a result of it use to etch back deposits of silicon from the susceptor. Corrosion products from the stainless steel may be transported into the reaction chamber and become entrained with the reactant gas and material deposited on the wafers. Moreover, SiO.sub.2 deposits formed on the stainless steel by a reaction of the reactant gas with residual oxygen in the barrel reactor must be cleaned. Otherwise, some of the SiO.sub.2 can flake off and be deposited on the wafers.
To avoid contamination from the seal plate and gas ring, the barrel reactor is constructed to divert the flow of reactant gas away from the seal plate and gas ring by baffles and by a flow of purge gas over the areas of the seal plate and gas ring exposed to the reactant gas. The seal plate and gas ring are also water cooled. The conventional purge system comprises a single line of purge gas which branches off into multiple lines before reaching the seal plate for delivering purge gas to several different locations around the seal plate. The lines are connected to holes extending through the seal plate and opening on the underside of the seal plate for bathing in purge gas those areas of the seal plate and gas ring exposed to reactant gas.
In operation of a typical barrel reactor, the purge gas system is controlled by a microprocessor to first purge the seal plate and reaction chamber with nitrogen to rid the chamber of oxygen. Following the nitrogen purge, hydrogen is fed through the purge lines for several minutes prior to beginning the deposition cycle by the injection of reactant gas into the reaction chamber. The flow of hydrogen continues throughout the deposition cycle, and thereafter to purge reactant gas from the chamber. However before the seal plate is removed from the chamber, there is another nitrogen purge to remove hydrogen from the chamber.
The existing system of baffles and purge gas to avoid metals and particulate contamination from the stainless steel seal plate and gas ring is only partially successful. In particular, the purge systems are not adequate to purge substantially all of the oxygen and water vapor from the barrel reactor. As a result of the presence of oxygen (in the form of free oxygen or in the form of water vapor), significant deposits of SiO.sub.2 are formed on the seal plate and gas ring during a deposition cycle which must be removed after only a few cycles of operation of the barrel reactor. It has been found that substantial deposits occur in locations between the gas ring and seal plate which are spaced farthest away from the purge gas line which delivers gas to purge the space between the seal plate and gas ring. The act of cleaning the SiO.sub.2 deposits from the seal plate can cause corrosion of the seal plate. Any water introduced to the seal plate during cleaning which is not removed will promote reaction of the stainless steel with HCl. The shape of the seal plate often makes it difficult to remove all of the water.
In existing purge systems, the differences in pressure between the various purge lines can cause a siphon effect, in which reactant gases are actually drawn into one or more of the lines of the purge system and discharged against the seal plate. Often the reactant gas drawn in the system is ejected into a rotation mechanism of the seal plate, causing significant corrosion. Thus, rather than protecting the seal plate and gas ring from silicon deposits and corrosion, the purge system promotes their deterioration. In addition, the present systems do not adequately purge the reactant gas from the chamber after a deposition cycle. As a result, the stainless steel may react with HCl from the reactant gas when the reaction chamber is opened and moisture ladened air comes into contact with the seal plate.

Method for tuning barrel reactor purge system


In a 4F2 memory cell designed using an SGT as a vertical transistor, a bit line has a high resistance because it is comprised of a diffusion layer underneath a pillar-shaped silicon layer, which causes a problem of slowdown in memory operation speed. The present invention provides a semiconductor storage device comprising an SGT-based 4F2 memory cell, wherein a bit line-backing cell having the same structure as that of a memory cell is inserted into a memory cell array to allow a first bit line composed of a diffusion layer to be backed with a low-resistance second bit line through the bit line backing cell, so as to provide a substantially low-resistance bit line, while suppressing an increase in area of the memory cell array.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a semiconductor storage device and a production method therefor.
2. Background Art
With a view to achieving higher integration and higher performance of an LSI, an SGT (Surrounding Gate Transistor) has been proposed which is a vertical transistor comprising a pillar-shaped semiconductor layer formed on a surface of a semiconductor substrate, and a gate formed to surround a sidewall of the pillar-shaped semiconductor layer (see Patent Document 1: JP 2-188966A). In the SGT, a source, a gate and a drain are arranged in a vertical direction, so that an occupancy area can be significantly reduced as compared with a conventional planar transistor.
In cases where a DRAM is designed using an SGT, a memory cell array can be configured as a cross-point type, so that a cell size of 4F2 can be achieved, in theory. Thus, it is possible to drastically reduce a cell size, as compared with a conventional planar transistor-based DRAM having a cell size of 6F2 or 8F2. Therefore, an SGT-based DRAM (hereinafter referred to as "SGT-DRAM") has great potential as a DRAM requiring higher integration as a top priority, and an embedded memory for a CPU requiring an increase in capacity of a cache memory, etc. An example of a conventional SGT-DRAM is disclosed in the Patent Document 1 and the following Patent Document 2. The conventional example will be described below.
An SGT-DRAM disclosed in the Patent Document 1 will be described based on FIGS. 60(a) and 60(b) which are a top plan view and a bird's-eye view thereof, respectively. Referring to the top plan view of FIG. 60(a), a pillar-shaped silicon layer 703 is formed on an intersection of a word line 701 and a bit line 702, and a selection transistor Qm7 is formed based on the pillar-shaped silicon layer. Further, a capacitance element Cm7 is formed on a top of the selection transistor. Thus, a cross-point memory cell, i.e., a memory cell located at the intersection of the bit line and the word line, is constructed. Referring to the bird's-eye view of FIG. 60(b), the bit line is comprised of an N+ diffusion layer 702, and the word line 701 is comprised of polysilicon. The pillar-shaped silicon layer 703 is fabricated by forming a contact hole to extend from a top to a bottom of the word line and then forming a gate dielectric film and a silicon film within the contact hole through epitaxial growth to make up the selection transistor Qm7. The capacitance element Cm7 is formed on the top of the selection transistor Qm7 to have the same structure as that of a capacitance element in a conventional stacked DRAM. In this SGT-DRAM, although a memory cell area is as small as 4F2, there is the following problem. The bit line comprised of the N+ diffusion layer 702 has a significantly high resistance, as compared with a bit line comprised of a metal film, such as a tungsten film, which is commonly used in conventional DRAMs having a cell size of 6F2 and 8F2. Particularly, as a prerequisite to achieving a cell size of 4F2 in this SGT-DRAM, it is necessary to form the bit line in a minimum fabrication size (F). Thus, along with progress of miniaturization, a DRAM operation speed becomes slower due to an increase in resistance of the bit line, to cause difficulty in achieving a DRAM operation speed required in the future.
The Patent Document 2 discloses an SGT-DRAM designed while taking into account the above problem. The SGT-DRAM disclosed in the Patent Document 2 will be described based on FIGS. 61(a) and 61(b) which are a top plan view and a sectional view thereof, respectively. Referring to the top plan view and the sectional view of FIGS. 61(a) and 61(b), in a DRAM cell, a capacitance contact 805 is laterally offset from a top of a pillar-shaped silicon layer 803. Thus, as compared with the DRAM cell in the Patent Document 1, a cell size is increased to about 8F2. However, a bit line 802 can be comprised of tungsten polyside (a laminated film of tungsten silicide and polysilicon) to have a lower resistance than that of the N+ diffusion layer, so that it is possible to suppress the problem of a reduction in DRAM operation speed due to an increase in resistance of a bit line in the Patent Document 1.
However, this SGT-DRAM has the following problem. The pillar-shaped silicon layer 803 is fabricated by forming a contact hole to extend from a top to a bottom of a gate electrode and then growing silicon from the tungsten polyside bit line within the contact hole, in the same manner as that in the Patent Document 1. The silicon is transformed into polysilicon through a heat treatment for forming a transistor, so that a large number of defects, such as grain boundaries, occur in the pillar-shaped silicon layer. DRAM production yield is extremely sensitive to junction leak caused by defects in a transistor. Thus, it is difficult to ensure sufficient production yield by the above production method. As above, although the SGT-DRAM disclosed in the Patent Document 2 is capable of lowering a resistance of a bit line, it would be hardly practicable due to difficulty in ensuring sufficient production yield.
As measures against an increase in resistance of a bit line as described above, it is contemplated to reduce the number of memory cells to be connected to one bit line, so as to shorten a length of the bit line. In existing planar transistor-based DRAMs, a bit line is comprised of a low-resistance metal film, and about 256 or 512 memory cells are generally connected to one bit line. For example, if the number of bit lines to be connected to one bit line can be reduced to about 32 or 64, it is possible to suppress the reduction in operation speed even if a high-resistance bit line is used. However, if the number of bit lines to be connected to one bit line is reduced to downsize a DRAM cell array, an extra area due to an increase in the number of peripheral circuits is increased to cause a significant increase in chip area.
Patent Document 1: JP 7-99311A
Patent Document 2: JP 7-244414A
In view of the above problems, as a prerequisite to practical realization of an SGT-DRAM, it is essential to achieve a memory cell capable of reducing a memory cell size to about 4F2, and lowering a resistance of a bit line, while ensuring sufficient production yield.
As means for lowering a resistance of a bit line, there are a first technique of using a low-resistance material for a bit line as in the Patent Document 2, and a second technique of backing a bit line with a low-resistance interconnection layer to provide a substantially low-resistance bit line. In the present invention, the second technique of backing a bit line with a low-resistance interconnection layer is employed as the means for lowering a resistance of a bit line.
The present invention provides a memory cell structure designed such that a high-resistance bit line comprised of a diffusion layer is backed with a relatively low-resistance interconnection line within a memory cell array to provide a substantially low-resistance bit line, while minimizing an increase in extra area.


A device to guarantee the sequence of movement of at least two fluid-actuated displacement units. A primary displacement unit includes a cylinder (Z) with a retractable and extendable piston rod (4). Integrated into the cylinder (Z) is a directional control valve that can be controlled by the piston rod (4). The directional control valve has a closed position and an open position. The directional control valve is switched into the closed position when the piston rod (4) is not fully extended or not approximately fully extended, and into the open position when the piston rod is fully or approximately fully extended, and a compression chamber (1a) of the cylinder (Z) is thereby placed in communication with a compression chamber of the secondary displacement unit (secondary cylinder 2b).

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a device to guarantee the sequence of movement of at least two fluid-actuated displacement units, with a primary displacement unit moved chronologically before a secondary displacement unit, and with the primary displacement unit in the form of a cylinder having a retractable and extendable piston rod.
2. Technical Considerations
A device of the known art is described in DE 101 25 351 A1 and is provided in that case for use in lifting masts of industrial trucks (e.g., fork-lift trucks).
In lifting masts of this type, a primary lifting cylinder in the form of a plunger piston cylinder that is initially extended is connected with load holding means, such as a fork carrier. A secondary lifting cylinder (or two secondary lifting cylinders) that is also in the form of a plunger piston cylinder that is extended after the primary lifting cylinder is engaged on a mast that can be moved vertically and is guided in a stationary mast. The sequence in which the piston rods of the primary and secondary lifting cylinders are extended is determined by the piston surface area, with the primary lifting cylinder being extended first on account of its larger piston surface. Only when the piston rod of the primary lifting cylinder has been fully extended or comes in contact against a limit stop does the piston rod of the secondary lifting cylinder begin to be extended as a result of the increase in the system pressure.
On account of the different piston surface areas of the lifting cylinders, the lifting speeds are different, which can be avoided by the use of lifting cylinders that have equal areas. In this case, the sequence of extensions is determined exclusively by the dead weight of the components to be lifted by the lifting cylinders.
Regardless of the relationship between the piston surface areas, it can occur under unfavorable conditions, in particular at low oil temperatures, that the piston rod of the secondary lifting cylinder is extended first. This reversal of the desired sequence of movement can also occur when the lifting frame is retracted. Although, in that case, the situation is considered less critical.
In one exemplary embodiment described in DE 101 25 351 A1, two secondary lifting cylinders are connected in parallel to a pressure medium source and a primary lifting cylinder is connected in series downstream of one of the secondary lifting cylinders. Upstream of the other secondary lifting cylinder is a stop valve that opens as a function of the pressure. As a result of which, the pressure difference between the primary lifting cylinder and the second secondary lifting cylinder is increased and a reversal of the desired sequence of movement is prevented.
Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide a device of the general type described above but that has a simplified construction.

Device to guarantee the sequence of movement of at least two fluid-actuated displacement units