A semiconductor device comprising, a semiconductor substrate, a first gate insulator film formed on the semiconductor substrate, a floating gate formed on the first gate insulator film, a second insulator film formed on the floating gate, a control gate formed on the second insulator film, and a silicon film doped with nitrogen and an impurity, and interposed between the floating gate and the second gate insulator film and/or between the second gate insulator film and the control gate.

This invention relates to a semiconductor device such as a nonvolatile memory or a MOS transistor and a method of manufacturing the semiconductor device, and in particular to a flash EEROM and a method of manufacturing the same.
In recent years, there are increasing demands for the higher integration, improved performance and lower power consumption of a semiconductor device. It is very important for meeting these demands to make thinner the gate insulator film of a MOS transistor or the insulator film of a memory cell such as a nonvolatile memory. In order meet this requirement for thinning the gate insulator film, etc., an improvement on the method of manufacturing the gate insulator film or the gate electrode has become necessary.
FIGS. 1A to 1H are cross-sectional views illustrating the method of manufacturing the memory cell portion of a flash EEPROM representing the conventional nonvolatile memory. In the followings, the same constitutional component will be identified by the same reference numeral, thereby omitting the repetition of explanation thereof.
As shown in FIG. 1A, first of all, a field oxide film (not shown) is formed on, for example, a p-type silicon substrate 1 for the purpose of isolation by making use of a selective oxidation method. Then, as shown in FIG. 1B, a silicon dioxide film 2 having a thickness of 10 nm is formed on the silicon dioxide substrate 1 by making use of a thermal oxidation method. This silicon dioxide film 2 is intended to be used as a first gate oxide film or a so-called tunnel oxide film in general.
Then, as shown in FIG. 1C, a polycrystalline silicon film 3 having a thickness of 200 nm and containing phosphorus as an impurity is formed on the silicon dioxide film 2 by making use of the LPCVD method. This polycrystalline silicon film 3 is intended to be used as a first gate electrode or a so-called floating gate in general.
Then, as shown in FIG. 1D, a silicon dioxide film 4, a silicon nitride film 5 and a silicon dioxide film 6, each having a thickness of 6 nm, are successively formed on the floating gate 3 by making use of the LPCVD method. The insulator film having this three-layered structure is intended to be used as a second gate insulator film or a so-called inter-poly insulator film or a so-called ONO film in general.
Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 1E, a polycrystalline silicon film 8 containing phosphorus as an impurity is formed on the ONO film 7 by making use of the LPCVD method. This polycrystalline silicon film 8 is intended to be used as a second gate electrode or a so-called control gate in general.
Further, as shown in FIG. 1F, a photoresist 9 is coated on the control gate 8 and then worked into a desired pattern by making use of a photoengraving method. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 1G, the control gate 8, the ONO film 7 and the floating gate 3 are successively etched perpendicularly by means of a dry etching method such as an RIE (Reactive Ion Etching) method with the photoresist 9 being employed as a mask. In this occasion, the silicon dioxide film 2 functions as an etching stopper when the floating gate 3 is etched.
Then, as shown in FIG. 1H, a photoresist 9 is removed. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 2A, a silicon dioxide film 10 is formed by means of a thermal oxidation method for the purposes of suppressing a leak current at the gate terminal, improving the surface breakdown voltage of peripheral circuit MOS transistor of high breakdown voltage, i.e. the breakdown voltage of the gate insulator film, and recovering from a damage that might be introduced via the gate electrode into the gate oxide film at the occasion of the RIE etching. This oxidation process is generally called a post-oxidation process, and the silicon dioxide film 10 formed in this process is called a post-oxide film.
Subsequently, source/drain regions (not shown) are formed by way of ion implantation using an impurity, and, in subsequent to the deposition of an insulator film (not shown) and formation of openings, predetermined wirings (not shown) are formed thereon, thus forming the memory cell portion of the EEPROM.
In the followings, problems associated with this conventional manufacturing method of the memory cell will be explained.
First of all, oxygen, etc. functioning as an oxidant may be diffused from the oxide films 4 and 6 of the ONO film 7, thereby oxidizing the polycrystalline silicon film of the control gate 3 and the floating gate 8. Specifically, the gate terminal of the ONO film 7 is excessively oxidized, thus increasing the thickness of oxide film as indicated for instance by the reference numeral 11 in FIGS. 2A and 2B. This swollen oxide film portion 11 which is formed at the gate terminal is generally called a gate bird's beak.
This gate bird's beak invites an increase in effective film thickness of the inter poly-insulator film 7, and since it is difficult to control the manner of formation of the gate bird's beak, it will give rise to non-uniformity in film thickness of the inter poly-insulator film 7 between the memory cells.
Moreover, as shown in FIG. 2A, as the gate length 12 becomes shorter due to an increased fineness of the memory cell, the ratio of the gate bird's beak length 11 to the gate length 12 becomes larger. Therefore, the influence of the gate bird's beak will become more prominent as the fineness of memory cell is further advanced, so that any attempt to make the inter-poly insulator film 7 thinner will be substantially hindered.
Further, since the silicon dioxide film formed by means of the CVD method is poor in the effect of inhibiting the diffusion of oxidant as compared with the silicon dioxide film formed by means of thermal oxidation method, the gate bird's beak will creep more prominently and deeply in the inter-poly insulator film 7.
Usually, the writing and erasing of data to a memory cell are effected at first by distributing the voltage impressed onto the control gate 8 by the ratio between the capacity of the capacitor constituted by the substrate 1, the tunnel oxide film 2 and the floating gate 3 and the capacity of the capacitor constituted by the floating gate 3, the inter-poly insulator film 7 and the control gate 8, and then by impressing thus distributed voltage onto the inter-poly insulator film 7. Therefore, if the film thickness of the inter-poly insulator film 7 is increased due to the aforementioned post-oxidation, or the film thickness of the inter-poly insulator film 7 is non-uniform, the writing and erasing characteristics of the memory cell will be deteriorated or fluctuated.
Furthermore, if the gate terminal of the inter-poly insulator film 7 is oxidized, the growth of crystal grain of the polycrystalline silicon constituting the floating gate 3 and the control gate 8 is promoted. As a result, the shape of gate electrodes of the floating gate 3 and the control gate 8 would be deformed, thus giving rise to a local concentration of electric field in the inter-poly insulator film 7. As a result, the reliability of the insulator film would be deteriorated, or under some circumstance, it may give rise to a defective insulator film, thus deteriorating the yield of memory cell.
FIG. 3 is a graph illustrating the distribution of breakdown voltage of the ONO film before and after the post-oxidation. It will be seen from FIG. 3 that when the post-oxidation is performed, the distribution of breakdown voltage of the ONO film is enlarged and at the same time the breakdown voltage is lowered.
In the foregoing, the problem of gate bird's beak in the inter-poly insulator film 7 has been mainly discussed. However, a bird's beak similar to that mentioned above may also be generated in the tunnel oxide film 2 due to the post-oxidation, thereby causing an increase in film thickness or the non-uniformity of film thickness of the tunnel oxide film 2, thus deteriorating the characteristics of the memory cell.
Furthermore, it is impossible with the aforementioned conventional manufacturing method to perform the en bloc working of the gates of the memory cell portion and peripheral circuit transistor portion of the flash EEPROM.
FIGS. 4A to 4J and FIGS. 5A to 5J illustrate the manufacturing process for simultaneously working the gates of the memory cell portion and the peripheral circuit transistor portion, and problems involved in this manufacturing process. Specifically, FIGS. 4A to 4J show the cross-sections of the memory cell portion in the manufacture thereof; while FIGS. 5A to 5J show the cross-sections of the peripheral circuit portion in the manufacture thereof.
First of all, a field oxide film (not shown) for isolation is formed on a p-type silicon substrate 1 by making use of a selective oxidation method. Then, as shown in FIGS. 4A and 5A, a silicon dioxide film 13 having a thickness of 20 nm is formed on the silicon dioxide substrate 1 by making use of a thermal oxidation method. Subsequently, a photoresist 14 is coated on the silicon dioxide film 13 and then a portion of the photoresist 14 that has been coated on the memory cell portion is removed by making use of a photoengraving method.
Thereafter, as shown in FIGS. 4B and 5B, a portion of silicon dioxide film 13 that has been coated on the memory cell portion is selectively removed by means of a wet etching method with the photoresist 14 being used as a mask, and then the photoresist 14 is also removed.
Then, as shown in FIGS. 4C and 5C, a silicon dioxide film 2 having a thickness of 10 nm is formed by means of a thermal oxidation method. In this step, the film thickness of the silicon film 13 which has been formed in advance at the peripheral circuit portion is increased. The silicon dioxide film 2 is intended to be employed as a tunnel oxide film of the memory cell portion, while the silicon dioxide film 13 is intended to be employed as a gate oxide film of the peripheral circuit transistor.
Then, as shown in FIGS. 4D and 5D, a polycrystalline silicon film 3 having a thickness of 200 nm and containing phosphorus as an impurity is formed on the silicon dioxide film 2 by making use of the LPCVD method. This polycrystalline silicon film 3 is intended to be used as a floating gate in general. Then, an ONO film 7 comprising a silicon dioxide film 4, a silicon nitride film 5 and a silicon dioxide film 6 is formed on the floating gate 3 by making use of the LPCVD method. Thereafter, a photoresist 15 is formed on the ONO film 7 and a portion of which has been formed on the peripheral circuit transistor is removed by making use of a photo-engraving method.
Thereafter, as shown in FIGS. 4E and SE, a portion of ONO film 7 that has been formed on the peripheral circuit transistor portion is selectively removed by means of the RIE method with the photoresist 15 being used as a mask, and then the photoresist 15 is also removed.
Then, a polycrystalline silicon film 8 having a thickness of 300 nm and containing phosphorus as an impurity is formed all over the surface by means of the LPCVD method. At the memory portion, this polycrystalline silicon film 8 is formed on the ONO film 7 and functions as a control gate. At the peripheral transistor portion, the polycrystalline silicon film 8 is formed on the polycrystalline silicon film 3, and these polycrystalline silicon films 3 and 8 are used as the gate electrode of a MOS transistor.
Further, as shown in FIGS. 4F and 5F, a photoresist 16 is coated on the polycrystalline film 8, and then the portions of the photoresist 16 that have been formed on the memory cell portion and the peripheral circuit transistor portion are worked respectively into a desired pattern by means of a photo-engraving method.
Then, the polycrystalline film 8 is subjected to etching by means of the RIE method with the photoresist 16 being used as a mask. In this RIE, an etching gas having an selective etching property, i.e. an etching gas which is capable of etching silicon but incapable of etching silicon dioxide film and silicon nitride film is employed. In this etching process, the ONO film 7 acts as an etching stopper in the memory cell portion as shown in FIG. 4G. Whereas, in the peripheral circuit transistor portion, since the ONO film is not existed as shown in FIG. 5G, the polycrystalline silicon film 3 is also etched so that the silicon dioxide film 13 acts as an etching stopper.
Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 4H, a portion of the ONO film 7 which is formed in the memory cell portion is etched by means of the RIE method employing an etching gas which is capable of etching silicon dioxide film and silicon nitride film but incapable of etching silicon.
Since the oxide film 13 is exposed in the peripheral circuit transistor portion in this etching step, the oxide film 13 is etched as shown in FIG. 5H, thus exposing the substrate 1. FIG. 5H shows a cross-section of the peripheral circuit transistor portion at this step.
Subsequently, the polycrystalline silicon film 3 is selectively and perpendicularly etched by means of the RIE method employing an etching gas which is capable of etching silicon but incapable of etching silicon dioxide film. In this etching process, the silicon dioxide film 2 acts as an etching stopper in the memory cell portion as shown in FIG. 4I.
Since the silicon substrate 1 is exposed in the peripheral circuit transistor portion in this etching step as shown in FIG. 5I, the silicon substrate 1 is etched.
Subsequently, as shown in FIGS. 4J and 5J, a photoresist 16 is removed.
If the gate electrodes of the memory cell portion and the peripheral circuit transistor portion are formed en bloc, a portion of the silicon substrate located beside the gate electrode in the peripheral circuit transistor portion is etched so that it is impossible to actuate the transistor of the peripheral circuit normally. Because of this reason, it is imperative for the conventional technique to perform the working of the gate electrode of the memory cell portions in separate from the working of gate electrode of the peripheral circuit transistor portions.
Moreover, since the silicon nitride film can be hardly oxidized, it is conceivable to form the inter-poly insulator film only with the silicon nitride film so as to prevent the degradation of the inter-poly insulator film. However, since the silicon nitride film formed by means of the LPCVD method is prone to generate a lot of leak current, problems may be raised if the silicon nitride film is employed as it is as an inter-poly insulator film.

Semiconductor device having a nitrogen doped polysilicon layer


The present invention provides a process for producing a flexible optical waveguide which comprises the steps of: immersing a substrate having an optical waveguide formed thereon in water to thereby reduce adhesion between the optical waveguide and the substrate and then peeling the optical waveguide from the substrate; temporarily bonding the peeled optical waveguide to a surface of a pressure-sensitive adhesive layer containing a foaming agent; cutting the temporarily bonded optical waveguide into a given length; allowing the foaming-agent-containing pressure-sensitive adhesive layer after the cutting step to foam by heating, thereby reducing adhesion between the foaming-agent-containing pressure-sensitive adhesive layer and the optical waveguide; and peeling the optical waveguide cut into the given length from the foamed adhesive layer.

Optical waveguides are incorporated in optical waveguide devices, optical integrated circuits, and optical wiring boards and are in extensive use in optical communication, optical information processing, and other general optical fields. In the case of such an optical waveguide produced on a substrate such as, e.g., silicon or quartz, it is constituted of a core layer which transmits light and one or more cladding layers which have a lower refractive index than the core layer. More specifically, examples thereof include an optical waveguide 1 of a three-layer structure formed on a substrate 2 as shown in FIG. 11. This optical waveguide 1 comprises an undercladding layer 11 formed on the substrate 2, a core layer 12 formed on the undercladding layer 11, and an overcladding layer 13 which surrounds the core layer 12.
There are cases where an optical waveguide 1 is used in a flexible form. In such cases, the optical waveguide 1 described above is formed on a substrate 2 and is used after it is cut into a given length on the substrate 2 and then peeled from the substrate 2.
In general, fluorinated polyimides, which are excellent in both heat resistance and light transmission, are used as a material for forming the two cladding layers 11 and 13 or as a material for forming the core layer 12. However, the undercladding layer 11 (fluorinated polyimide) in such constitution has considerably reduced adhesion to the substrate 2 (e.g., a silicon wafer). There is hence a problem that separation between the substrate 2 and the undercladding layer 11 occurs during cutting and the optical waveguide 1 moves, resulting in a distorted cut surface. In case where the optical waveguide 1 has an end surface having a distorted shape, this arouses troubles in light transmission.
A technique for enhancing adhesion between the undercladding layer of an optical waveguide and a substrate so as to facilitate the cutting of optical waveguides has been proposed (see, for example, patent document 1). This technique comprises using as a substrate a glass substrate having a surface coated with vapor-deposited copper and forming an optical waveguide over the surface through an adhesive. In this technique, the optical waveguide is cut into a given length and thereafter the glass substrate with the cut optical waveguide is immersed in dilute hydrochloric acid to dissolve away the vapor-deposited copper on the glass substrate surface and thereby peel the optical waveguide from the glass substrate.
Patent Document 1: JP 08-313747 A (Examples 1 and 2)
However, the technique disclosed in patent document 1 has drawbacks that the peeling operation is accompanied by a danger because hydrochloric acid, which is a strong acid, is used for peeling and that workability is poor.

Process for producing flexible optical waveguide


A method for removing noise from an electrical signal in an alarm system using a software filter, the method including the steps of converting the electrical signal from an analog signal into a digital signal, wherein the digital signal includes a series of sampled values, entering a most recent of the sampled values into a circular index containing a number of previously sampled values, multiplying each of the values in the circular index by a predetermined filter coefficient, and summing products of each of the multiplied circular index values and filter coefficients to arrive at a filtered digital signal value.

Alarm systems, such as burglar and fire alarm systems, typically include one or more centralized control panels that receive information from various sensors distributed throughout a structure, building, area, house, etc. For example, a typical household burglar alarm system may include a plurality of magnetic contacts, motion sensors, and vibration sensors that are grouped into independently-monitored detection circuits connected to a control panel. Each detection circuit may be installed in a designated area or "zone" within a building. During normal operation of the alarm system, the control panel may monitor a voltage signal in each detection circuit for variations that may represent the occurrence of a particular alarm condition within a zone. For example, an elevated voltage signal in a particular detection circuit may represent the detection of a broken window by a vibration sensor in a corresponding zone of the house, and may cause the control panel to enter an alarm mode. Since the physical location of each zone of an alarm system is known, homeowners and response personal are readily apprised of the area of the house in which the alarm condition originated.
Like many other electrical systems, alarm systems are sensitive to various types of electromagnetic interference or "noise." Noise refers to the unintentional or unwanted introduction of energy of a specific frequency, or range of frequencies, into an electrical signal. A predominant cause of electrical signal noise in alarm systems is so-called "line frequency noise." Line frequency noise (and noise stemming from its harmonic frequencies, which occur at integer multiples of the underlying line frequency) in alarm systems is a byproduct of the near ubiquitous presence of generated electricity and devices powered by electricity located near various components of an alarm system. In the United States, for example, electrical power is distributed in the form of an alternating current (AC) that cycles at 60 Hz, which can produce noise at 60 Hz and at harmonics thereof. Such noise is commonly referred to as "AC induction noise."
Because electrical noise can introduce unwanted components into an electrical transmission signal, it can create significant problems in the context of alarm systems where various sensors communicate with a control panel. For example, line noise may interfere with voltage signals associated with detection circuits. Thus, unless the part of a signal that is attributable to noise is filtered out, a control panel of an alarm system may incorrectly interpret the operational state of a zone in the system. For example, the presence of noise in a detection circuit may cause a control panel to record an alarm condition in a particular zone when no such condition exits, creating a so-called "false alarm." In another example, the presence of noise could cause a control panel to erroneously record a fault condition, such as may be indicative of a system malfunction, when an alarm condition actually exits. Such inaccurate reporting runs counter to the fundamental requirements of most alarm systems, which dictate that an alarm system should not false alarm and should operate as intended when subjected to an alternating current induced on any signal lead, sensing lead, loop, DC power lead, or any other lead that extends throughout the wiring of a monitored premises.
In certain alarm systems, hardware signal filters are used to remove unwanted electrical noise from monitored voltage signals. For example, conventional notch filters are commonly employed in alarm systems to attenuate signal frequencies at or near 60 Hz which are known to be associated with AC induction noise. These frequencies are thereby ignored by a control panel and are prevented from affecting proper operation of the alarm system. Although hardware signal filters can be effective for improving the robustness of alarm systems to the extent they filter out AC induction noise, they have several shortcomings and disadvantages. For example, the additional circuit components necessary for implementing hardware signal filters can significantly increase the cost of an alarm system. Since each detection circuit in an alarm system must generally be associated with a separate hardware signal filter, the cost of implementing filters in systems having a large number of zones can be substantial.
Another shortcoming associated with hardware signal filters is that they can be slow to respond to the introduction of signal noise. For example, a typical control panel will record an alarm condition in a zone if a voltage signal representative of such a condition persists in the detection circuit of the zone for longer than a predetermined "loop response time," usually ranging from of about 30 milliseconds to about 2.5 seconds. In the case of so-called "fast loop response zones," which typically have response times of about 30 milliseconds, an alarm condition induced by signal noise may be recorded by a control panel before a conventional hardware filter is able to remove the unwanted signal frequencies, thus causing a false alarm. Additional circuit components can be added to alarm system circuitry to improve the speed with which hardware filters are able to counteract noise, but such components further increase the complexity and cost of typical alarm systems. A further disadvantage associated with hardware signal filters in alarm systems is that such filters are generally difficult to install and, once installed, are difficult to modify. For example, disabling or altering the operational characteristics of a hardware filter generally requires the physical alteration of alarm system circuitry, necessitating trained personal as well as significant additional time and expense.
In view of the foregoing, it would be advantageous to provide an alarm system having noise filtering means, and particularly AC induction noise filtering means, that are inexpensive, fast-responding, and that can be easily implemented.


In a connector including a conductive contact, an insulating housing holding the contact, and a conductive shell covering the housing, the housing includes a protruding portion of a flat-plate shape having first and second principal surfaces faced to each other. The contact includes a first contacting portion disposed on the first principal surface of the protruding portion and a second contacting portion extending from the first contacting portion to the second principal surface of the protruding portion. The shell includes a shell contacting portion disposed on the second principal surface of the protruding portion. The second contacting portion and the shell contacting portion have confronting end faces faced to each other.

A connection apparatus of the type is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication (JP-A) No. 2004-362827. The connection apparatus includes two connectors adapted to be connected to each other. One of the connectors comprises a plurality of conductive contacts, an insulating housing holding the contacts, and a conductive shell covering the housing. The housing has a protruding portion. The contacts are extended and exposed on one surface of the protruding portion. Each of the contacts is bent in a crank-like shape in the vicinity of its end portion to be exposed on the other surface of the protruding portion and forms two contact points on the side of the one and the other surfaces, respectively. The other connector also has a plurality of conductive contacts. Each of the contacts of the other connector has a bifurcated shape having two branches different in length from each other and has two contact points.
When these connectors are connected to each other, the two contact points of each contact of the one connector are contacted with the two contact points of each contact of the other connector. Thus, when the connectors are connected to each other, electrical connection is established at two positions shifted in position from each other in a connecting direction.

Japan Aviation Electronics Industry, Limited


A water-based drilling fluid having a polymer latex capable of providing a deformable latex film on at least a portion of a subterranean formation has been discovered to provide reduced drilling fluid pressure invasion when used to drill in shale formations for hydrocarbon recovery operations. A precipitating agent such as a silicate or an aluminum complex (e.g. sodium aluminate) is preferably used in conjunction with the polymer. Typically, the water present contains a salt to form a brine, often to saturation, although the invention may be practiced with fresh water. If a salt is employed, it is often helpful to additionally employ a surfactant, such as a betaine, for example.

Drilling fluids used in the drilling of subterranean oil and gas wells as well as other drilling fluid applications and drilling procedures are known. In rotary drilling there are a variety of functions and characteristics that are expected of drilling fluids, also known as drilling muds, or simply "muds". The drilling fluid is expected to carry cuttings up from beneath the bit, transport them up the annulus, and allow their separation at the surface while at the same time the rotary bit is cooled and cleaned. A drilling mud is also intended to reduce friction between the drill string and the sides of the hole while maintaining the stability of uncased sections of the borehole. The drilling fluid is formulated to prevent unwanted influxes of formation fluids from permeable rocks penetrated and also often to form a thin, low permeability filter cake which temporarily seals pores, other openings and formations penetrated by the bit. The drilling fluid may also be used to collect and interpret information available from drill cuttings, cores and electrical logs. It will be appreciated that within the scope of the claimed invention herein, the term "drilling fluid" also encompasses "drill-in fluids".
Drilling fluids are typically classified according to their base material. In water-based muds, solid particles are suspended in water or brine. Oil can be emulsified in the water or brine. Nonetheless, the water is the continuous phase. Oil-based muds are the opposite. Solid particles are suspended in oil and water or brine is emulsified in the oil and therefore the oil is the continuous phase. Oil-based muds that are water-in-oil emulsions are also called invert emulsions. Brine-based drilling fluids, of course are a water-based mud in which the aqueous component is brine.
Optimizing high performance water base mud design is commonly at the forefront of many drilling fluid service and oil operating companies' needs due to the various limitations of invert emulsion fluids. Invert emulsion fluids formulated with traditional diesel, mineral or the newer synthetic oils are the highest performing drilling fluids with regard to shale inhibition, borehole stability, and lubricity. Various limitations of these fluids, however, such as environmental concerns, economics, lost circulation tendencies, kick detection, and geologic evaluation concerns maintains a strong market for high performance water based fluids. Increased environmental concerns and liabilities continue to create an industry need for water based drilling fluids to supplement or replace the performance leading invert emulsion mud performance.
A particular problem when drilling into shale formations with water-based fluids is the pore pressure increase and swelling from penetration of the shale by the fluid. Shale stabilizers are typically added to the mud to inhibit these phenomena and to stabilize the shale from being affected by the mud.
Reducing drilling fluid pressure invasion into the wall of a borehole is one of the most important factors in maintaining wellbore stability. It is recognized that sufficient borehole pressure will stabilize shales to maintain the integrity of the borehole. When mud or liquid invades the shale, the pressure in the pores rises and the pressure differential between the mud column and the shale falls. With the drop in differential pressure, the shale is no longer supported and can easily break off and fall into the well bore. Likewise, the invasion of water into the shale matrix increases hydration or wetting of the partially dehydrated shale body causing it to soften and to lose its structural strength. Chemical reactivity can also lead to instability. There is always a need for a better composition and method to stabilize the shale formations.
In the drilling of depleted sands, there is also a need to prevent of intrusion of drilling fluid through the borehole and into the formation. Rather than concern for formation stability, the loss of drilling fluid and resulting higher production costs are the more commonly the main concern. It would be desirable to be able to reduce the loss of drilling fluid into depleted sands.
It is apparent to those selecting or using a drilling fluid for oil and/or gas exploration that an essential component of a selected fluid is that it be properly balanced to achieve all of the necessary characteristics for the specific end application. Because the drilling fluids are called upon to do a number of tasks simultaneously, this desirable balance is difficult to achieve.
It would be desirable if compositions and methods could be devised to aid and improve the ability of drilling fluids to simultaneously accomplish these tasks.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Water-based drilling fluids using latex additives


A complex magnetic field generating device, comprising a frame, a plurality of magnets capable of producing a magnetic field, wherein each of the plurality of magnets has a north pole and a south pole and a longitudinal axis passing therethrough, the plurality of magnets are positioned in a side by side axis parallel orientation and are partially held in place by the frame, a coil of electrically conducting material wrapped about the plurality of magnets and orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of each of the plurality of magnets, and a source of electrical energy for supplying an electrical current to the coil enabling a magnetic field detectable with iron filings to be produced therefrom. A switch is provided to enable the electrical current to flow in a first direction and a second direction opposite to the first direction. The plurality of magnets that are positioned in a side by side axis parallel orientation are oriented so that the like poles of the plurality of magnets are positioned adjacent each other.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to apparatuses and devices for creating a complex magnetic fields, but more particularly those that have a multi-phase capability. A permanent magnetic field, and a magnetic field created from a current carrying wire overlapping the permanent magnetic field in either an additive or an opposing manner.
2. Description of the Related Art
Magnetism is a property of charge in motion and is related to the electrical theory. Each individual atom of magnetic substance is, in effect, a tiny magnet with a north pole and a south pole. The magnetic polarity of atoms, on the other hand, stem primarily from the spin of electrons about their own axes and is due only partially to their orbital motions around the nucleus.
Magnetic properties of materials may be classified as diamagnetic, paramagnetic, and ferromagnetic. Their classification relates to the manner in which the material reacts in a magnetic field. It is a familiar observation that certain solids such as iron are strongly attracted to magnets. Such materials are called ferromagnetic. Other substances (not necessarily in the solid state) such as oxygen gas and copper sulfate are weakly attracted to magnets. These are called paramagnetic. Still other substances, such as sodium chloride are very feebly repelled by magnets and are called diamagnetic. When heated, ferromagnetic materials eventually lose their magnetic properties. This loss becomes complete above the so-called Curie temperature. While ferromagnetism is exclusively a property of the solid state, all three types of magnetic behavior arise from electrons in atoms.
Magnetism is related to current flowing in a conductor. One of the early discoverers of magnetism and its applications was Nicola Tesla after which the measurement of magnetism (Tesla) was named.
A magnetic field surrounds a conductor through which current travels according to the well known right hand rule. That is, if the thumb of the right hand points in the direction of current flow, the fingers wrap in the direction of the magnetic field. Hence, depending upon the direction of travel, the magnetic field surrounding a conductor may flow either clockwise or counterclockwise when viewed perpendicular to the axis of the conductor through which the current flows.
Magnetism and the application of magnetic fields have been regarded by some as the energy to cure or detect many conditions, ills and maladies of mankind. Such conditions, ills and maladies have been reported to include, but not be limited to, the following: AIDS, cancer, paralysis, inflammation, arthritis, multiple sclerosis, harmful viruses within the body, aging, pain, irregular tissue and bone growth or healing, vision impairments, and many, many other things.
Until now, a device for establishing or otherwise creating a contained complex magnetic field, but more particularly such a device having a three phase capability such that a permanent magnetic field is present to constitute one phase, and a magnetic field created from a current carrying wire overlapping the permanent magnetic field in either an additive or an opposing manner to present a second and third phase, has not been invented.

Complex magnetic field generating device


An engine system and method for variable valve lift (VVL) diagnostic techniques are provided. In one exemplary implementation, the techniques include receiving, at a controller, a camshaft position signal indicative of detected edges of teeth of a camshaft toothed member that is coupled to a camshaft of an engine. The camshaft is configured to actuate a VVL system, which is configured to control a lift of a valve of the engine. The techniques also include calculating, at the controller, a camshaft speed signal indicative of a rotational speed of the camshaft based on the camshaft position signal. A valve stuck index (VSI) value is then calculated, at the controller, based on the camshaft speed signal. The techniques also include determining, at the controller, whether the valve is stuck based on a comparison of the VSI value to a predetermined threshold.

An internal combustion engine draws air into an intake manifold through an induction system that is regulated by a throttle. The air in the intake manifold is distributed to a plurality of cylinders via respective intake valves and combined with fuel to create an air/fuel mixture. The air/fuel mixture is compressed and combusted to rotatably turn a crankshaft and generate drive torque. Exhaust gas is expelled from the cylinders and into an exhaust system via respective exhaust valves. A variable valve lift (VVL) system is configured to adjust a maximum lift of the intake valves and/or the exhaust valves based on operating parameters of the engine. For example only, the VVL system could increase the valve lift at high engine loads and the VVL system could decrease valve lift at low engine loads. In some cases, a particular valve becomes stuck at a particular lift of the VVL system, thereby causing decreased performance, increased emissions and/or decreased fuel economy if not corrected.

Variable valve lift diagnostic techniques based on camshaft speed


The present invention relates to a data storage device comprising: a data storage medium for storing data in the form of topographic features; and at least one probe for writing and/or reading the data stored in the data storage medium, wherein the data storage medium is formed on a support layer, the support layer having a lower shear modulus than the data storage medium.

A data storage device based on the atomic force microscope (AFM) is disclosed in "The millipede—more than 1,000 tips for future AFM data storage" by P. Vettiger et al., IBM Journal Research Development, Vol. 44, No. 3, March 2000. The storage device has a read and write function based on a mechanical x-, y-scanning of a storage medium with an array of probes each having a tip. The probes operate in parallel with each probe scanning, during operation, an associated field of the storage medium. The storage medium comprises a polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) layer. The tips, which each have a diameter of between 5 nm to 40 nm, are moved across the surface of the polymer layer in a contact mode. The contact mode is achieved by applying forces to the probes so that the tips of the probes can touch the surface of the polymer layer. For this purpose, the probes comprise cantilevers, which carry the tips on their end sections. Bits are represented by indentation marks, each encoding a logical "1", or non-indentation marks, each encoding a logical "0", in the polymer layer. The cantilevers respond to these topographic changes while they are moved across the surface of the polymer layer during operation of the device in read/write mode.
Indentation marks are formed on the polymer layer by thermomechanical recording. This is achieved by heating the tip of a respective probe operated in contact mode with respect to the polymer layer. Heating of the tip is achieved via a heater dedicated to the writing/formation of the indentation marks. The polymer layer softens locally where it is contacted by the heated tip. The result is an indentation mark, for example, having a nanoscale diameter comparable to the diameter of the tip that is used in its formation, being produced on the layer.
Reading is also accomplished by a thermomechanical concept. For this purpose a heater dedicated to the process of reading/sensing the indentation marks is energized. The heater is thermally decoupled from the tip of the probe. Accordingly, softening of the polymer layer does not occur where it is contacted by the tip during reading. The thermal sensing is based on the fact that the thermal conductance between the heater and the storage medium changes when the probe is moving in an indentation mark as the heat transport is in this case more efficient. As a consequence of this, the temperature of the cantilever decreases and hence, also its electrical resistance changes. This change of electrical resistance is then measured and serves as the readback signal.
The configuration in which previously-proposed devices are formed is that the data storage medium, usually a polymer layer, is formed on a substrate that has a comparably higher shear modulus. FIGS. 1a and 1b in the accompanying drawings respectively show examples of such previously-proposed data storage devices. In FIG. 1a, a data storage medium 3 comprising a polymer layer is deposited onto a silicon substrate 4. The device of FIG. 1b differs from that of FIG. 1a in that the data storage medium 3 is deposited onto a secondary layer 5 that has a higher shear modulus than the polymer material of the data storage medium 3. The secondary layer 5 may, for example, be SU8 that is provided on the silicon substrate 4. A role of the secondary layer 5 could be seen as preventing penetration of the tip, which is used to produce indentation marks on the polymer layer, through the polymer layer since this would cause contact between the tip and the silicon substrate 4 and, therefore, tip wear.
The geometry of the indentation marks produced in the polymer layer may play a role in determining a data density (the number of bits per unit area) and, therefore, a data storage capacity, of the above-described data storage devices. In particular, when an indentation mark is formed in the polymer layer, polymer material is displaced from where the indentation mark is formed and deposited onto the region surrounding the opening thereof, thereby forming a rim around the indentation mark. Rim formation around indentation marks may limit the data density, this especially being the case when the distance between the bits is reduced to, for example, 20 nm, in order to increase a storage capacity of the data storage device. Furthermore, the rim formation also affects the readback signal obtained during the read operation since the height of the surface between adjacent bits, i.e. where a non-indentation mark is present/logical "0" is encoded, is increased relative to what is obtained for an indentation mark. Thus, the noise associated to the non-indentation marks or logical 0's may be increased, which causes lowering of the signal-to-noise (SNR) ratio.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a data storage device in which rim formation around an indentation mark is reduced compared to what is obtained in previously-proposed data storage devices.

Data storage device and method of production therefor

International Business Machines Corporation


A Natural Language Product Comparison Guide Synthesizer that lets developers easily create web-based comparison guides for a given type of product. Each comparison guide will solicit users' product requirements, let them compare different products, and recommend one or more products based on their preferences. The guide uses automatically generated natural language to facilitate the comparison of products, and to convey and explain its recommendations.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention pertains to the field of methods for automatically generating natural language text. More particularly, the invention pertains to generating text which helps a user to compare the features of different products in a given category, and which gives the user recommendations as to which products are best suited to the user's individual needs.
2. Description of Related Art
We are aware of four main examples of software systems which perform some of the same functions as the present invention, but none of which performs all of the functions in combination. Two of these systems are research prototypes described in academic publications; one is a type of interactive wizard found on several commercial websites; and one is a commercial software product for creating web-based expert systems.
The ILEX system (O'Donnell et al., 2000) is designed to generate textual descriptions of objects, such as museum artifacts, using information about the objects stored in a generic relational database. By providing the system with extra information about the semantics of the database, and linguistic resources with which to describe the database objects, the developer can improve the quality and readability of the text generated by the system. Like the present invention, ILEX uses a combination of generic text generation rules and domain-specific lexicon, provided by the developer, to generate textual descriptions. However, unlike the present invention, ILEX requires considerable specialized expertise for the developer to specify the linguistic resources and semantic properties of the database, making this a somewhat open-ended task, rather than a concretely specified and finite process. ILEX is also not specialized to the task of comparing or recommending products.
Carenini (2000) and Carenini & Moore (2000) have described an experimental software system that generates recommendations for users choosing a house in a given neighborhood, based on various attributes of the available houses. Like the present invention, the system generates textual recommendations which are tailored to the user's preferences, and which make use of generic rhetorical patterns for explaining the best features of a given house. However, unlike the present invention, the system is custom-built for the purpose of selecting houses, and does not provide a process for easily extending its domain to other types of products. Its textual output is also limited to recommendations of a particular house, and does not extend to comparisons of two or more houses.
Several commercial web sites, such as www.activebuyersguide.com and www.deja.com, offer wizards that let users search for products in a given category, and rank products according to the user's preferences. Like the present invention, these wizards perform customized ranking of products based on a weighted combination of scores for various features, and lets the user compare products side-by-side, while recommending the top-ranked products. However, unlike the present invention, they do not generate natural language texts to explain comparisons or recommendations, or how they relate to the user's preferences.
The CORVID expert system shell (www.exsys.com) from EXSYS, Inc., of Albuquerque, NM can be used to develop web-based product selection wizards, which recommend products to users based on their preferences. Like the present invention, this product lets the developer create numerous product comparison guides for different product types, and these guides can include natural language explanations of product features. However, unlike the present invention, this product requires the developer to create the logical rules for matching, weighting and scoring product features from scratch for each new product type, as well as the text generation rules. It also does not generate textual descriptions for side-by-side product comparisons.

Natural language product comparison guide synthesizer


A dual pixel-size color image sensor, including an imaging surface, for imaging of incident light, and a plurality of color pixels, each color pixel including (a) four large photosites, including two large first-color photosites sensitive to a first color of the incident light, and (b) four small photosites including two small first-color photosites sensitive to the first color of the incident light. The large and small first-color photosites are arranged such that connected regions of the imaging surface, not associated with large and/or small first-color photosites, are not continuous straight lines. A method for manufacturing a color filter array on an imaging surface of a dual pixel-size image sensor includes forming a first-color coating on first portions of the imaging surface to form large and small first-color photosites sensitive to a first color, wherein connected portions of the imaging surface, different from the first portions, are not continuous straight lines.

Standard image sensors have a limited dynamic range of about 60 to 70 dB or less. For example, an 8-bit sensor has a dynamic range of only 48 dB. However, the luminance dynamic range of the real world is much larger and natural scenes often span a range of 90 dB or more. When an image sensor captures a scene with a luminance dynamic range in excess of the sensor dynamic range, information is necessarily lost. Depending on the exposure settings, the brighter regions may be saturated and/or the dimmer regions may be underexposed, producing a captured image of a quality unable to reproduce the actual scene.
In order to simultaneously capture highlights and shadows of a scene, image sensors have used High Dynamic Range (HDR) technologies to increase the captured dynamic range. One of the most common techniques to increase the dynamic range is to merge multiple exposures, captured with a standard, low dynamic range image sensor, into a single HDR image that has a much larger dynamic range than a single exposure image. For instance, images of the same scene could be recorded at a series of different exposure times, where the longest exposure is set to optimally capture the dimmest portions of the scene and the shortest exposure is set to optimally capture the brightest portions of the scene. However, such image combination methods frequently suffer from artifacts caused, for example, by objects in the scene moving between exposures.
HDR color image sensors that capture an HDR color image in a single frame have been developed. One example hereof is an image sensor where every other row of the color pixel array operates at a shorter exposure time. Bright light data and low light data are obtained from the rows operating at the shorter exposure time and longer exposure times, respectively. Another example is an image sensor based on pixels that are characterized by a piecewise linear photoresponse curve. The photoresponse curve is composed of linear segments of different photoresponsivity. During exposure, the pixels are partially reset multiple times to acquire data corresponding to these different photoresponsivities. However, both of these sensors may still suffer artifacts associated with moving objects, as the time periods for acquiring data from different portions of the dynamic range are not identical.

Dual pixel-sized color image sensors and methods for manufacturing the same


A cutting apparatus for foam sponges with irregular contours comprises a foam sponge clamping mechanism, a cutter driving mechanism, a cutter rotating mechanism, a template, and a main frame. The main frame is equipped with a vertical frame on which are mounted a lead screw, a driving motor, and a clamping mechanism constituted of upper and lower clamping plates that are driven by the lead screw to secure foam sponges. The cutter driving mechanism and the cutter rotating mechanism are respectively installed on an U-shaped table located under the vertical frame; the driving mechanism making use of a motor mounted on the central rear of the table to drive a cutter rocking device through a combination of timing belts and rotary shafts so that the cutter can perform a reciprocating cutting operation, and the cutter rotating mechanism employing a duplicating needle attached to a hand wheel that is located on one side wall of a template insertion groove formed on one side of the table to dominate the rotation of the cutter through chains. Holding a foam sponge slab in the clamping mechanism and moving the duplicating needle of the hand wheel along the periphery of the pattern plate can cut the slab into foam sponges with an outline similar to that of the pattern plates.

Manufacturers generally use foam slab machines to produce foam sponge slabs of great bulk and so these foam sponge slabs need to be cut by a cutting machine into required sizes and shapes in accordance with their individual applications.
As an example of inner lining foam sponges used for car seats, the outlines are either rectangular, square or slightly curved and so the cutting machines for them are also simple, only placing foam sponge slabs on a working table moving to and fro in conjunction with the cutting action of a saw blade and then a desired foam sponge product being made.
Naturally the cutting process for these foamed sponges with regular outlines is rather easy. But in some cases, the desired foam sponges should be of irregular outlines, for example, a streamlined outline with a lifting tail. The applications of those irregular foam sponges are increasingly popular, not to speak of the outlines full of variety being more attractive. And thus a conventional cutting machine for foam sponges with straight outlines is not suitable any longer.

Cutting apparatus for foam sponges having irregular contours


Provided are transmitting side and receiving side terminals and a method of monitoring a network using the terminals. The transmitting side terminal includes a packet classifier configured to classify an input service packet as a probing packet or a non-probing packet according to a feature of the service packet, and a packet transmitter configured to transmit the probing packet or the non-probing packet.

1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to network monitoring technology, and more particularly, to transmitting and receiving side terminals that perform network monitoring using a service packet actually used for service and a method of monitoring a network using the terminals.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Thus far, a method of measuring network status by additionally transmitting probing packets has been used for network monitoring. In this case, the probing packets are used in addition to packets for actual service, and there is a problem in that a bandwidth of the corresponding network is additionally consumed by the probing packets. This problem causes a reduction in a network bandwidth that can be used for the service, and may disrupt normal running of the service.
To solve the problem, Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 10-2006-0122901 (data of publication: Nov. 30, 2006) discloses a technique for performing network monitoring by inserting probe information in service packets used for actual service without additionally using probing packets.

Transmitting and receiving side terminals and method of monitoring network using the same


A method and system for capturing and managing electronic notes in a computer based application is presented. Electronic notes are captured in a note object and the context of the captured note is associated to the note object. Note objects are stored in a notes database for later retrieval. The notes can be queried, filtered, and sorted to obtain useful information from the notes.

Computer based collaboration tools, which allow two or more remotely located users to simultaneously view data and communicate over a computer network, allow remotely located users to conduct online meetings. Just as in face-to-face meetings, the ability to take notes is important in online meetings for the purpose of capturing the events, issues, action items, and decisions made during the meeting. In the past, notes taken by participants of an online meeting are typically taken individually by the various meeting participants and then distributed via paper memos or email. The current computer-based note-taking capabilities are problematic for several reasons.
First, current solutions often do not capture enough context to understand the note (e.g., the issue or decision made during the online meeting). This is due in part to the fact that notes are often limited to text, missing important graphical information about what was being discussed (such as the state of the computer display) at the time the note was taken.
A further problem with current note-taking solutions is that captured notes are usually unmanaged, meaning that there is no way to query the system for decisions made at a meeting or about a particular subject or for action items assigned to specific people. It is often difficult to track the status of notes, such as the status of actions items.
Yet a further problem is that different participants take notes that often disagree with each other. This is especially true in the case where each participants' notes cannot be easily displayed to the other participants.
Accordingly, an improved online note-taking technique is needed that supports the capture, storage, sharing, management of, and extraction of information from notes generated during an online meeting.

Method and system for capturing, storing, sharing, and managing notes taken during a computer based meeting

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


A brachytherapy source for use in radiation treatment of the body includes radioactive material, and a housing. The housing is used to contain the radioactive materials, and is formed by at least one tube having two ends. The two ends of the at least one tube are sealed by welding such that a radiation distribution of the brachytherapy source approximates a point source that is free of cold zones to minimize underexposure or overexposure of the body to radiation and to simplify the placement of the brachytherapy source in the body. Preferably, the ends of the at least one tube are sealed by laser welding, and a laser performs the laser welding while the brachytherapy source is rotated relative to the laser, which is activated in short pulses. For example, the laser is activated in a first series of pulses to initially collapse one end of the at least one tube and to at least partially close off the one end, then the laser is activated for a second series of pulses to seal off the one end of the at least one tube and remove excess material, next the laser is activated in a third series of pulses to initially collapse the other end of the at least one tube and to at least partially close off the other end, and finally, the laser is activated for a fourth series of pulses to seal off the other end of the at least one tube and remove excess material.

Over the years, brachytherapy sources implanted into the human body have become a very effective tool in radiation therapy for treating diseased tissues, especially cancerous tissues. The brachytherapy sources are also known as radioactive seeds in the industry. Typically, these brachytherapy sources are inserted directly into the tissues to be irradiated using surgical methods or minimally invasive techniques such as hypodermic needles. These brachytherapy sources generally contain a radioactive material such as iodine-125 which emits low energy X-rays to irradiate and destroy malignant tissues without causing excessive damage to the surrounding healthy tissue, as disclosed by Lawrence in U.S. Pat. No. 3,351,049 ('049 patent). Because radioactive materials like iodine-125 have a short half-life and emit low energy X-rays, the brachytherapy sources can be left in human tissue indefinitely without the need for surgical removal. However, although brachytherapy sources do not have to be removed from the embedded tissues, it is necessary to permanently seal the brachytherapy sources so that the radioactive materials cannot escape into the body. In addition, the brachytherapy source must be designed to permit easy determination of the position and the number of brachytherapy sources implanted in a patient's tissue to effectively treat the patient. This information is also useful in computing the radiation dosage distribution in the tissue being treated so that effective treatment can be administered and to avoid cold spots (areas where there is reduced radiation).
Many different types of brachytherapy sources have been used to treat cancer and various types of tumors in human or animal bodies. Traditional brachytherapy sources are contained in small metal capsules, made of titanium or stainless steel, are welded or use adhesives, to seal in the radioactive material.
These various methods of permanently sealing the brachytherapy sources, used so that the radioactive materials cannot escape into the body and do not have to be removed after treatment, can have a dramatic effect on the manufacturing costs and on the radiation distribution of the brachytherapy sources. Increased costs reduce the economic effectiveness of a brachytherapy source treatment over more conventional procedures such as surgery or radiation beam therapy. In addition, the poorer radiation distribution effects, due to these sealing methods, in conventional brachytherapy sources may ultimately affect the health of the patient, since higher doses of radiation are required or additional brachytherapy sources must be placed inside the human body. All which leads to a less effective treatment that can damage more healthy tissue than would otherwise be necessary.
A first type of conventional brachytherapy source 10 is shown in FIG. 1, and uses two metal sleeves 12 and 14. The brachytherapy source 10 is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,891,165 issued Jun. 2, 1990 to Sutheranthiran and assigned to Best Industries of Springfield Va. Each of the sleeves has one closed end 16 and 18 using die-drawn techniques. Sleeve 14 has an outer diameter that is smaller than an inner diameter of the sleeve 12 to permit the sleeve 14 to slide inside sleeve 12 until the open end of sleeve 14 contacts the closed end 16 of the sleeve 12. Radioactive material, such as pellets, are placed inside the smaller sleeve 14, and then the larger external sleeve 12 is slid over the smaller sleeve 14. Next, the brachytherapy source 10 is permanently sealed by TIG (Tungsten Inert Gas) welding the open end of the larger sleeve 12 to the closed end 18 of the smaller sleeve 14. Laser welding may also be used. Although the welding of the two sleeves 12 and 14 together provides a good seal, the brachytherapy source 10 suffers from several drawbacks.
One drawback results from the radiation seed 10 being formed from two distinctly different sized pieces (the two sleeves 12 and 14), which involves an additional assembly step of fitting the two sleeves 12 and 14 together. This is time consuming and can slow the assembly process down, as well as increase the overall cost of producing the brachytherapy sources 10.
Another conventional brachytherapy source 30, as shown in FIG. 2, uses a single tube 32 which has end caps 34 and 36 inserted at the ends 38 and 40 of the single tube 32 to hold the radioactive material. The brachytherapy source 30 is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,784,116 issued Nov. 15, 1988 to Russell, Jr. et al. and assigned to Theragenics Corporation of Atlanta, Ga. The ends 38 and 40 are then welded, or adhesively secured, to the end caps 34 and 36 to close off and seal the brachytherapy source 30. Although the brachytherapy source 10 provides a single wall and a better radiation distribution along the length (or sides) of the brachytherapy source 30, the brachytherapy source 30 still suffers from several drawbacks.
A first drawback is that the ends 38 and 40 of the brachytherapy source 30 do not provide a uniform radiation distribution approximating a point source, because the end caps 34 and 36 provide a double wall at the end of the brachytherapy source 30 that blocks off a substantial amount of radiation. A further drawback results form the welds used to seal the end caps 34 and 36 to the ends 38 and 40 of the singe tube 32, since these also reduce the radiation distribution. Another drawback results from there being a three-step assembly process; rather, than the two step assembly process discussed above, since there are now three separate parts to be assembled together (the single tube 32 and the end caps 34 and 36).
In an alternative to this type of conventional brachytherapy source, a brachytherapy source 50, as shown in FIG. 3, has end plugs 52 and 54 that are slid into the open ends of a single tube 56. The brachytherapy source 50 is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,683,345 issued Nov. 4, 1997 to Waksman et al. and assigned to Novoste Corporation of Norcross, Ga. The end plugs 52 and 54 are either secured in place with an adhesive and the metal of the single tube 56 is then bent around the end plugs 52 and 54, or the end plugs 52 and 54 are welded to the single tube 56. The brachytherapy source 50 suffers from the same drawbacks as discussed above. In addition, the radiation distribution out the end plugs 52 and 54 is substantially reduced due to the added thickness of the end plugs 52 and 54.
In another conventional brachytherapy source 70, as shown in FIG. 4, some of the drawbacks of the multiple piece assembly are overcome by using a single tube 72 to provide a body with a uniform side wall along the length of the brachytherapy source 70. The brachytherapy source 70 is distributed by Amersham International PLC. One end 74 of the single tube 72 is TIG welded, and then the radioactive material is inserted into the open end 76 of the single tube 72. Next the open end 76 is TIG welded to seal the single tube 72 to provide a single unitary brachytherapy source structure. However, the brachytherapy source 70 suffers from many drawbacks.
For example, TIG welding the ends 74 and 76 causes formation of a bead of molten metal at the ends 74 and 76 of the single tube 72. Due to the nature of TIG welding the welded ends 74 and 76 generally form a bead that may be as thick as the diameter of the single tube 72. Therefore, the radiation distribution is substantially diminished out of the ends 74 and 76 of the brachytherapy source 72 due to the thickness of the beads 78 and 80 closing off the ends 74 and 76. In addition, the end 76 is only closed after the radioactive material is inserted into the single tube 72, and the end 76 may not seal in the same manner due to the presence of the radioactive material carrier body effecting the thermal characteristics of the brachytherapy source 70. Thus, the bead 80 can be a different shape than the bead 78, which may further alter the radiation distribution and could lead to inconsistent radiation distributions from one brachytherapy source to another, making the prediction of the actual radiation distribution more difficult.
Therefore, although the brachytherapy source 70 overcome some of the drawbacks in the earlier brachytherapy sources by minimizing the assembly steps associated with multiple pieces, it does not provide an even radiation distribution. In fact, due to the potential for variations of the second end during the TIG welding, the distribution can vary substantially from brachytherapy source 70 to brachytherapy source 70. Typical radiation distribution patterns for conventional brachytherapy sources 70 using the single tube 72 are shown in FIGS. 5(a) and 5(b). As is shown in FIGS. 5(a) and 5(b), the radiation distribution patterns 102 and 104 tend to diminish substantially toward the ends 74 and 76 of the brachytherapy source 70 and form cold zones 106 and radiation lobes 108. This means that depending on how the brachytherapy sources 70 are placed adjoining each other, there may be cold spots in the radiation distribution between adjoining brachytherapy sources 70, where cells are not receiving radiation from the cold zones 106 at the ends 74 and 76. Or if the adjoining brachytherapy sources are placed close enough together, to assure no cold spots from the presence of the cold zones 106, there will be overlapping areas in the radiation lobes 108 that may provide an excessive dose of radiation. Either of these two conditions could result in either too much or too little radiation, which results in a less effective medical treatment.

Laser welded brachytherapy source and method of making the same


The method and system provides a set of permutation primitives for current and future 2-D multimedia programs which are based on decomposing images and objects into atomic units, then finding the permutations desired for the atomic units. The subword permutation instructions for these 2-D building blocks are also defined for larger subword sizes at successively higher hierarchical levels. The atomic unit can be a 2×2 matrix and four triangles contained within the 2×2 matrix. Each of the elements in the matrix can represent a subword of one or more bits. The permutations provide vertical, horizontal, diagonal, rotational, and other rearrangements of the elements in the atomic unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to permuting subwords packed in registers in which the subwords can be re-arranged within a register and between registers for achieving parallelism in subsequent processing, such as two-dimensional multimedia processing.
2. Description of the Related Art
Efficient processing of multimedia information like images, video and graphics breaks both the sequential processing paradigm and the linear data processing paradigm inherent in the design of computers. Computers have been conventionally designed primarily to process linear sequences of data: memory is addressed as a linear sequence of bytes or words, and data is fetched into the programmable processor and processed sequentially. Efficient processing of pixel-oriented visual material is inherently parallel rather than sequential, and two-dimensional rather than linear (1-D).
Multimedia extensions have been added to general-purpose processors to accelerate the processing of different media types, see Ruby Lee, "Subword Parallelism with MAX-2", IEEE Micro, Vol. 16 No. 4, August 1996, pp. 51–59; IA-64 Application Developer's Architecture Guide, Intel Corporation, Order Number: 245188-001, May 1999. http://developer.intel.com/design/ia64; and AltiVec Extension to PowerPC Instruction Set Architecture Specification. Motorola, Inc., May 1998. http://www.motorola.com/AltiVec. Subword parallelism has been deployed by multimedia instructions in microprocessor architectures and in media processors to accelerate the processing of lower-precision data, like 16-bit audio samples or 8-bit pixel components. SIMD (Single Instruction Multiple Data) parallel processor techniques within a single processor have been referred to as microSIMD architecture, see Ruby Lee, "Efficiency of microSIMD Architectures and Index-Mapped Data for Media Processing", Proceedings of Media Processors 1999, IS&T/SPIE Symposium on Electric Imaging: Science and Technology, January 1999, pp. 34–46. A subword-parallel (or microSIMD) instruction performs the same operation in parallel on multiple pairs of subwords packed into two registers, which are conventionally 32 to 128 bits wide in microprocessors and mediaprocessors. For example, a 64-bit word-oriented datapath can be partitioned into eight 8-bit subwords, or four 16-bit subwords, or two 32-bit subwords.
Conventional shift and rotate instructions have been used to move all the bits in a register by the same amount. Extract and deposit instructions, found in instruction-set architectures like PA-RISC move one field using one or two instructions, as described in Ruby Lee, "Precision Architecture", IEEE Computer, Vol. 22, No. 1, January 1989, pp. 78–91. Early subword permutation instructions like mix and permute in the PA-RISC MAX-2 multimedia instructions are a first attempt to find efficient and general-purpose subword permutation primitives, as described in Ruby Lee, "Subword Parallelism with MAX-2", IEEE Micro, Vol. 16 No. 4, August 1996, pp. 51–59. The subwords in the source register are numbered and a permute instruction specifies the new ordering desired in terms of this numbering. The mux instruction in IA-64 described in IA-64 Application Developer's Architecture Guide, Intel Corporation, Order Number: 245188-001, May 1999. http://developer.intel.com/design/ia64 and the vperm instruction described in Altivec, AltiVec Extension to PowerPC Instruction Set Architecture Specification. Motorola, Inc., May 1998. http://www.motorola.com/AltiVec are similar. There is a limit to the efficiency of the permute instruction for many subwords, since the control bits quickly exceed the number of bits permuted. Permuting four subwords requires only 8 control bits, which can be encoded in the permute instruction itself. Beyond four elements and up to sixteen elements, any arbitrary permutation can still be performed with one instruction, by providing the control bits for the permutation in a second source register, rather than in the 32-bit instruction. Permuting 32 elements requires 160 bits, and permuting 64 elements requires 384 bits (n*log n bits). Hence, permuting more than 16 elements cannot be achieved by a single instruction with two source registers, using this method of specifying permutations. The problem is further complicated by the fact that image, video or graphics processing requires mapping of two-dimensional objects onto subwords in multiple registers and then permuting these subwords between registers.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,321 describes a computer instruction (MIXxx) which selects subword items from two source registers in pre-defined ways, for example: MIXWL (Mix Word Left) concatenates the left half (32 bits) of register R1 with the left half of register R2. MIXWR (Mix Word Right) concatenates the right half of R1 with the right half of R2. MIXHL (Mix Half-word Left) concatenates in turn, the first half-words of R1 and R2, followed by the third half-words of R1 and R2. MIXHR (mix Half-word Right) concatenates in turn, the second half-words of R1 and R2, followed by the fourth half-words of R1 and R2, and the like. The instruction also may contain other fields. For example, the MIXxx instructions described above may be used to transpose a 4×4 matrix of half-words contained in four registers R1, R2, R3, R4, each with 4 half-words. MIXBx selects alternate bytes from two source registers, R1 and R2, in two pre-defined ways: MIXBL alternates the 4 odd bytes of R1 with the 4 odd bytes of R2; MIXBR alternates the 4 even bytes of r1 with the 4 even bytes of r2. The MIXBL instruction may be used, for example, to unpack and pack bytes into and out of the more significant half of corresponding half-words. This instruction may be used to "unpack" a register with 8 bytes into 2 registers of 4 half-words each, with each byte being the more significant byte of each half-word. The MIXBL instruction may also be used to unpack and pack bytes into and out of the less significant half of corresponding half-words.
It is desirable to provide efficient subword permutation instructions that can be used for parallel execution for example in 2-D multimedia processing.

Method and system for performing subword permutation instructions for use in two-dimensional multimedia processing


Methods and apparatus for serving content to a wireless device (106) are disclosed. In an embodiment, a gateway (114), or any other suitable device or system, determines that at least one message (e.g., a text or text-like message) containing a first pointer (e.g., a unicast URL) to the content (e.g., a web page) is to be transmitted via an emergency alert system (e.g., CMAS). In response thereto, the gateway (114) obtains the content using the first pointer and generates a second different pointer (e.g., a multicast/broadcast URL) to the content. The gateway (114) provides at least a portion of the at least one message and the second pointer for transmission via the emergency alert system (118). The gateway (114) also provides the content for transmission via a wireless multicast/broadcast channel (120) based on the second pointer.

Messages, such as text messages and email messages, often contain a pointer (e.g., data indicative of a location for other data) to additional content such as a uniform resource locator (URL). Typically, the additional content is only downloaded to the device if requested by the user. For example, a relatively small text message sent to a wireless device may contain a hyperlink, and when the user clicks the hyperlink, the wireless device may load a relatively large web page.
Wireless devices must share the available bandwidth with other wireless devices in the same geographic area. As a result, if a large number of wireless devices in the same geographic area all request additional content at approximately the same time, the network may become congested and slow down or fail. For example, if an emergency message is sent to a large number of wireless devices in a certain geographic region, and that message includes a hyperlink (e.g., to a web page with detailed evacuation instructions, maps, etc.), the network may be flooded with requests for the additional content.


A hook (15) of a sewing machine (1) is pivotably mounted on a hook carrier (25). The hook (15) is moved from a working position (X) into a bobbin case withdrawal position by a pivoting movement of the hook carrier (25). The pivoting movement displaces the hook (15) and the bobbin case (17) towards or above the opening which is opened by the flap (13) in the lower arm (13). In this way, the withdrawal of the bobbin case (17) or the bobbin is significantly simplified.

The subject matter of the invention is a sewing or embroidery machine according to the preamble of claim 1.
The very minimal supply of bobbin thread in comparison with the needle thread, which can be supplied in any amount outside of the sewing machine, forces the operator of a sewing or embroidery machine to remove the bobbin from the hook in the lower arm, flat bed, or base of the sewing machine and to replace it with a full bobbin at short time intervals. For exchanging the bobbin in a sewing machine with a hook rotating or oscillating about a vertical axis, the fabric must be lifted from the needle plate and the bobbin must be detached from the hook with no or with minimal needle contact and later the new bobbin must be reinserted into this hook. Also, for hooks rotating or oscillating about a horizontal axis, quick bobbin exchanges require a certain amount of skill, although the fabric is less of an obstacle for accessing the hook than in the first mentioned example. However, for this reason, there is a worse view of the hook during the bobbin changing process. The tight spatial relationships and the usually very small cross-sectional opening in the lower arm, through which the bobbin case with the bobbin lying therein can be lifted out of the hook housing, also makes the use of bobbins with a larger quantity of thread more difficult.
This disadvantage applies to all sewing machines, both household sewing machines and also industrial sewing machines, for which, due to economical reasons, a faster bobbin change is already a requirement.
Therefore, for industrial or commercial sewing machines, automatic bobbin or hook changer systems have already become known.
From DE-C1 196 53 296, an embroidery machine with a hook changer is known, for which the entire hook including hook shaft, bobbin, and bobbin case, are removed from the hook drive by a handling device and replaced with a new hook with a full bobbin. In a first configuration of this known device, the handling device comprises a revolver carrier, on which the hook with the empty bobbin is placed and is pivoted about an axis after moving away from the hook drive and then the full hook is placed on the hook drive. Here, the revolver of the handling device performs not only a rotational movement, but simultaneously also a shifting movement. Such a device can definitely replace an empty bobbin with a full bobbin within a short time. However, the hook with the empty bobbin must be removed from the handling device. Then the bobbin must be detached from the hook and replaced with a new, full bobbin. Such a device cannot be used in a household sewing machine with a free arm due to reasons of space. In addition, the costs for such a hook changer are disproportionate to the costs of the sewing machine. The use of such a hook changer is thus limited to flat bed, embroidery, or sewing machines, which are used in industrial applications. Use in a free arm household sewing machine is not possible.
Furthermore, from EP-A1 829565, an automatic bobbin changer for a flat bed sewing machine is known, for which the empty bobbin together with the bobbin case is detached from the hook with a handling device that can move on a curved track, is fed to a revolver carrying several bobbin cases with bobbins, and then a bobbin case with a full bobbin is taken from this revolver and brought to the hook. This device also can be used only in commercial machines.

Fritz Gegauf Aktiengesellschaft Bernina-Nahmaschinen Fabrik


A storage medium leader mechanism for threading a film of a storage medium on a machine reel in a storage medium apparatus along a guide includes a rotational shaft and a leader block. The leader block includes a first contact unit that is contactable with the guide that guides the leader block, and a second contact unit that is contactable with the guide. The first and second contact units are co-planar, a co-planarity of the first and second contact units being substantially perpendicular to a rotation axis of the rotational shaft.

The present invention relates to a storage medium leader mechanism (e.g., a leader mechanism for threading a wound film medium, e.g., magnetic tape, a web, etc.).
For example, this invention relates to a magnetic tape device for extracting a leader pin attached to one end of a magnetic tape stored in a tape cartridge from within that cartridge, moving the leader pin along a specified guide path and threading the magnetic tape on a reel within the device.
A conventional magnetic tape device contains a leader block with a hook for engaging and holding a leader pin attached to the tip of the magnetic tape stored within the tape cartridge, as disclosed for example in JP-A No. 135003/2001.
The leader block is axially supported for free movement on the tip of the threading arm. The threading arm is axially supported for free movement on the threader drive arm driven by a drive device.
In order to thread the magnetic tape from the tape cartridge loaded in the magnetic tape device, onto the machine reel in the magnetic tape device, a hook on the leader block picks up the tape. That is, first of all, the leader block engages with and holds the leader pin installed on the tip of the magnetic tape. The leader block holding the magnetic tape is then guided from the tape cartridge by the swinging of the threading arm into the center section of the machine reel.
The leader block at this time moves along a specified guide path so that the magnetic tape of the tape cartridge is guided past the front edge of the magnetic head to the center section of the machine reel. The leader block therefore slides along the guide formed on the specified guide path.
The guide section or the leader block of the conventional magnetic tape device is described next while referring to the drawings. FIG. 6 shows a perspective view showing one example of the magnetic tape device of the related art, FIG. 7 shows a perspective view as seen from the upper side of just the guide section for guiding the leader block in the device of FIG. 6, FIG. 8A shows an upper view of the guide section shown in FIG. 7, FIG. 8B shows a perspective view as seen from that upper side, FIG. 9A shows a bottom view of the guide section shown in FIG. 7, FIG. 9B shows a perspective view as seen from that lower side, FIG. 10A shows an upper view, and FIG. 10B shows a frontal view of the leader block guided by the guide section shown in FIG. 6 through FIG. 8B. Though FIG. 6 can be found in JP-A No. 004521/2006 (but is not prior art against the claims of the present application since it was published after the underlyning priority document (i.e., JPA No. 2005-139658) of the present application was filed), FIGS. 7-9 are not published outside of the assignee's company.
The conventional magnetic tape device contains guide section 100, as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7. Guide section 100 includes a first guide for guiding the leader block from the magnetic tape entrance/exit of the tape cartridge loaded within the device, to the center section of the machine reel; and a second guide for restricting how the leader block faces when guiding the leader block.
The first guide is made from groove 101a (FIG. 9A) formed on the rear side of cam plate 101 as shown in FIG. 8A-FIG. 9B.
Threader-rail-in 102 is installed on one side of groove 101a on the rear side of cam plate 101. Threader-rail-out-front 103, threader-rail-out-rear 104, and threader-rail-plate 105 are installed on the other side. A second guide (called a "threader rail") is formed by side surface 102a of threader-rail-in 102, and side surface 105a of threader-rail-plate 105 and side surface 104a of threader-rail-out-rear 104, and side surface 103a of threader-rail-out-front 103 facing side surface 102a across a gap. In other words, the second guide is formed along the first guide at a position whose height is changed with respect to the first guide.
The threading pin is first clamped to the tip of the threading arm as was described above referring to JP-A No. 135003/2001. The edge of leader block 107 is axially supported on the bottom edge of threading pin 106 for free movement, as shown in FIG. 10A and FIG. 10B. Bearing 108 is inserted into the upper edge of threading pin 106. Bearing 108 is inserted into and guided by groove 101a functioning as the first guide and formed on the rear side of cam plate 101.
Leader block 107 rotates freely with respect to the threading arm in the state where the bearing on the upper edge of threading pin 106 is inserted just into groove 101a and so the positioning of leader block 107 (how it faces) is unstable when being guided.
Stud 107a for making sliding contact with a second guide (side surfaces 102a through 105a) is therefore formed on the upper side of leader block 107. Thus, the direction that leader block 107 faces is restricted during the guiding.

Storage medium leader mechanism, a storage medium leader apparatus, a web storage device, and a method of forming a storage medium leader mechanism