The present invention provides a noveal isolated and purified nucleic acid molecule having a nucleotide sequence that in nature directs transcription of CTP:phosphocholine cytidylyltrransferase (CCT), i.e., is a novel CCT promoter, and methods of use thereof.

Promoters and other regulatory components from bacteria, viruses, fungi and animals have been used to control gene expression in animal cells. Numerous transformation experiments using DNA constructs comprising various promoter sequences fused to various foreign genes, such as bacterial marker genes, have led to the identification of useful promoter sequences.
The limitations of currently available eukaryotic promoters include the fact that they lack sufficient activity when used to induce expression of proteins, are too large to be packaged into adenoviral vectors for in vivo gene delivery, or succumb to promoter "turn-off" by inflammatory factors elaborated by the host. In addition, such promoters are often based on sequences obtained from viruses.
There is, therefore, an unmet need for a eukaryotic promoter that exhibits robust activity with several fold greater activity than the presently known promoters.


A silence-suppression scheme for a packet voice transmission system (FIG. 1) accurately regenerates the silence signals at the receiving end. The following discipline is implemented at the transmitting end (100): if speech is detected (200), transmit (204) a packet carrying the speech; if silence is detected (200) and the last-transmitted packet carried speech (202), transmit (204) a packet carrying the silence; if silence is detected (200) and the last-transmitted packet carried silence (202), transmit nothing. The following discipline is implemented at the receiving end (101): if a packet is received during a packet time interval (300), output (302) the contents of the packet; if a packet is not received during a packet time interval (300), output (306) again the contents of the last-received packet. Thus, while only one silence-carrying packet is transmitted, the receiver regenerates silence signals for the entire silence interval. Also, no special transmission protocol is required to implement this scheme.

Transmission of digitized voice in packet form is becoming widespread. An example thereof are asychronous transfer mode (ATM) transmission systems. To conserve transmission bandwidth, various techniques have been developed that minimize the amount of information that is sent over the transmission channel while maintaining the perceived quality of the reconstructed speech at the receiving end. Fundamental among these techniques is silence suppression, which is a technique that detects silence intervals in the voice stream at the sending end and suppresses the sending of data representing the silence. Illustrative of these techniques is Time-Assigned Speech Interpolation (TASI), which is a speech-compression technique that examines the digitized voice signal before transmission and eliminates the data which represent silence, so that only data which represents actual speech sounds are transmitted. "Silence" in this context means the absence of speech, and includes the presence of sound below some threshold, e.g., background noise.
A problem with this and other techniques which suppress the transmission of silence is that the recipients of the transmitted and reconstructed voice perceive the lack of the background noise which normally accompanies speech during the silence intervals and rate the quality of the transmission as lower than one which does transmit silence. In an attempt to improve the quality of suppressed-silence transmission systems, synthesized "comfort noise" is added by some systems to the reconstituted voice during silence intervals. Although some improvement in quality is achieved thereby, it does not substantially improve the overall perceived quality of the transmission because the "comfort noise" does not model the actual background noise at the speech source.

Efficient transmission of voice silence intervals


A uranium-free fuel for a fast nuclear reactor comprising an alloy of Pu, Zr and Hf, wherein Hf is present in an amount less than about 10% by weight of the alloy. The fuel may be in the form of a Pu alloy surrounded by a Zr--Hf alloy or an alloy of Pu--Zr--Hf or a combination of both.

The secure and timely disposal of transuranic materials (primarily plutonium) has been the subject of intense debate in recent years. The two primary sources of transuranics are disassembled nuclear weapons and spent fuel from existing power reactors.
Large quantities of weapons-grade plutonium currently exist in U.S. and C.I.S. weapons stockpiles which are to be dismantled in accordance with current arms reduction treaties. This material must be closely safeguarded to prevent its diversion for use in nuclear weapons. The weapons-grade material can be quickly put into a form which is not readily usable for nuclear weapons by diluting the material and introducing radioactivity, thus rendering it difficult to handle. However, this short-term "disposal" of weapons material does not remove the long-term proliferation risk, and such denatured material requires perpetual active safeguarding. Therefore, the only enduring solution is to actively safeguard the denatured weapons material in the short-term and eventually destroy the material.
Even larger quantities of transuranics are contained in the spent fuel inventories of existing nuclear reactors. This material does not pose an immediate proliferation concern because it already exists in a dilute (transuranics constitute about 1% of the total heavy metal mass) and radioactive form. The current U.S. waste management strategy calls for direct disposal of the LWR spent fuel in a centralized repository. However, direct disposal of LWR spent fuel in a centralized repository is complicated by the presence of the transuranics, which dominate the long-term radiotoxicity of LWR spent fuel. Thus, from a waste management perspective it is desirable to process the LWR spent fuel to remove the transuranics and process the remaining waste material into a more stable form. Subsequent destruction of the separated transuranic material reduces its long-term radiological and proliferation hazards.
Therefore, sufficient motivation exists for eventual destruction of the transuranics from both disassembled weapons and spent fuel: i.e., the reduction of proliferation and radiotoxicity hazards. Destruction by fission is the only means available to permanently destroy the transuranics. Although fission creates radioactive fission products which have a higher short-term hazard than the original fuel material, the fission products decay much more rapidly, so the long-term hazard is significantly reduced. Furthermore, the energy produced by the fission reactions can be converted to electrical power (the fission of 1MT of actinides yields enough energy to produce approximately 1GWe-year of electricity), and the sale of this power allows revenue recovery for the disposition activity.
In all conventional fission nuclear reactor systems, the transuranic destruction rate is mitigated by in-situ production of Pu-239 (by U-238 neutron capture). The available range of destruction/production characteristics in metal-fueled cores allows a flexible transuranic management strategy. Conventional fast reactor cores maintain or even increase the transuranic inventory (conversion ratio of 1.0-1.3); this allows sustained power production from a fixed transuranic inventory. By removing fertile material and/or altering the neutron balance, the conversion ratio can be reduced. Core designs with conversion ratios between 0.5 and 1.0 have been investigated; further reductions in the conversion ratio would require transuranic contents greater than 30 weight percent, as previously investigated in the Integral Fast Reactor (IFR) metal fuels testing program. The partial burner core designs, with 0.5-1.0 conversion ratios, are referred to as conventional burner designs because they utilize conventional IFR metallic fuel alloys.
Because the minimal conversion ratio of conventional burners is 0.5, they can achieve transuranic consumption rates of roughly half the maximum value (1/2.times.1 g/MW.sub.t d). To allow more rapid destruction of the transuranics, non-conventional metal fuel alloys are required; to achieve the maximum transuranic consumption rate of 1.0 g/MW.sub.t d, a non-uranium fuel form is required. Preliminary neutronic investigations of non-uranium core designs (called pure burners because they achieve the maximum destruction rate) have been discussed in R. N. Hill, D. C. Wade, E. K. Fujita, and H. Khalil, "Physics Studies of Higher Actinide Consumption in an LMR." International Conference on the Physics of Reactors Marseille, France, Apr. 23-27, 1990, p.1-83; R. N. Hill, "An Evaluation of Reactivity Coefficients for Transuranic Burning Fast Reactor Designs," Transactions of the American Nuclear Society, Vol. 65, p. 450 (1992); and GE Nuclear Energy, "Plutonium Disposition Study," GEFR-00919, May 1993. However, the fuel material design properties and behavior were not investigated in any detail.

Fuel element design for the enhanced destruction of plutonium in a nuclear reactor

The United States of America as respresented by the United States Department of Energy


A face protection system is provided in the form of a face shield attachable to a hard hat. An upper portion of the face shield includes at least one loop surrounding at least a portion of an opening. The opening is sized to allow at least a portion of a dome of the hard hat to fit upward therethrough, but small enough to keep the entire hard hat from passing therethrough, so that the upper portion of the face shield rests upon the hard hat. A mask extends down from the upper portion of the face shield and preferably includes a plurality of columns on a front side thereof in front of a face of a wearer of the hard hat. Preferably ribs extend laterally between the columns, with the columns and ribs together forming the mask. A visor can optionally be placed inboard of the mask.

In the construction industry and related industries, a common item of headgear is the "hard hat." A primary purpose of the hard hat is to protect the wearer's head from objects falling from above. Hard hats generally have a hemispherical dome sized to fit over and slightly above the head of a wearer. The hard hat also has a brim which diverges laterally from a lower edge of the hemispherical dome. This brim can extend horizontally, but typically extends somewhat downwardly in a diagonal manner away from the lower edge. Some hard hats include a brim which circumscribes the hemispherical dome, while other hard hats include the brim only on a forward portion, or otherwise with the brim extending in an asymmetrical manner from the hemispherical dome. The hard hat has a hollow interior which typically includes head supporting structure therein which is often adjustable to fit directly against the head of a wearer and suspend the hemispherical dome somewhat above the head of the wearer. Padding is also often associated with an interior of the hard hat. Typically a hard hat does not include any form of chinstrap.
Construction workers and other hard hat wearing workers often utilize other protective equipment upon the head. Such protective equipment can include goggles, other protective eyewear, ear protection, visors, breathing masks, and other accessories. Most typically these protection structures are provided separate from the hard hat. This allows a worker to utilize their personal hard hat with a variety of different additional protection equipment, depending on the work being performed and the hazards being encountered. While many additional safety accessories can be readily worn along with the hard hat, without either the hard hat or the accessory interfering with each other, other accessories to some extent take up space used by the hard hat, so that some integration therebetween is called for, or some other accommodation or modification is necessitated.
Visors are known to be provided as safety equipment worn over a face of a worker. Such visors can be formed of clear solid material or formed of a woven material with fenestrations therein. A primary purpose of the visor is to protect eyes of the wearer from being impacted by small items, such as those which often fly at the worker when the worker is performing some cutting operation or similar task. The small lightweight items flying at the worker impact the visor and are deflected away from the eyes of the wearer. Such a visor also can protect the face of the wearer more generally. Another goal of the visor is to allow the wearer to still be able to see a work area clearly through the visor.
One form of hazard encountered by construction workers and other similar workers is the risk of a cutting tool "kicking back" at the worker, especially when the cutting tool encounters an object during cutting which has a different hardness or other character, or when the cutting tool malfunctions somehow, such as when a chain comes off of a chainsaw, or a grinder or concrete cutting tool encounters reinforcing bar, hard aggregate within cementitious material, or other elements of varying hardness embedded within the workpiece being cut.
When such a tool kicks back at the worker, a worker needs to resist the motion of the tool quickly and strongly to keep the cutting tool from impacting the worker, especially the head and neck area of the worker. The head of the worker can be impacted by such a cutting tool if the speed and forces of the kickback exceed what can be effectively resisted by the worker, causing the cutting tool to impact the head of the worker. A visor is not designed to resist forces associated with the cutting tool coming into contact with the visor, but rather is only designed to deflect small pieces of material which may fly from a cutting tool toward the head of the worker. Accordingly, a need exists for a face shield accessory, and especially a face shield accessory which is configured to resist forces encountered by contact with a cutting tool such as a grinder, concrete cutting saw, chainsaw, chop saw or similar high power cutting tool kicking back at a head of a worker.


To provide an image forming apparatus that can highly accurately position and convey, even if an inter-sheet distance of sheets to be conveyed is reduced, the sheets from registration rollers to a transfer position when a toner image on an image bearing member moving at process speed is transferred onto the sheet in the transfer position. A sheet fed from a paper feeding cassette by a pulse-motor driven paper feeding roller is conveyed to pulse-motor driven registration rollers by pulse-motor driven conveying rollers. When the sheet is conveyed to the transfer position according to restart of the registration rollers, the sheet is conveyed by the registration rollers at sheet conveying speed different from the process speed before the leading end of the sheet reaches the transfer position and is conveyed at the process speed after that.

Conventionally, an image forming apparatus such as a color printer includes a sheet conveying device that conveys a recording sheet (hereinafter referred to as sheet) stored in a paper feeding cassette to a printing position (a transfer position) in order to print (transfer) an image on the sheet. In the image forming apparatus that prints a toner image on the sheet, the sheet on which an unfixed toner image is transferred in the transfer position is conveyed to a fixing device. When the sheet passes a fixing nip portion, the unfixed toner image is heated and pressed to be fixed on the sheet.
The sheet conveying device conveys the sheet to the transfer position with registration rollers to be timed to coincide with the start of conveyance by the registration rollers such that a leading end position of a toner image born on an image bearing member such as a photoconductive drum or an intermediate transfer belt or a transfer belt and the leading end of the sheet are aligned. When the sheet is conveyed, the sheet is put on standby with the leading end thereof set in contact with a nip portion of the registration rollers not rotating. The photoconductive drum or the intermediate transfer belt is driven with process speed, which is speed for performing image formation, set as circumferential speed. The registration rollers are driven to be timed to coincide with the timing when the leading end of an image on the intermediate transfer belt moving at the process speed reaches to the transfer position, and convey the sheet from the registration position to the transfer position at the process speed. Then, the leading end of the toner image and the leading end of the sheet are aligned in the transfer position. The toner image is accurately transferred onto the sheet.
When printing on plural sheets or printing of continuous pages is performed, image formation is performed with continuously fed sheets spaced apart from each other by an inter-sheet distance. Therefore, if the registration rollers are restarted at the process speed at the timing for starting registration, sheets are conveyed to the transfer position in printing after that while the inter-sheet distance is kept.
In the color image forming apparatus, for example, color toners of four colors, yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K), are born in order on the image bearing member such as the transfer belt. A sheet on which unfixed color toner images are transferred in the transfer position is conveyed to the fixing device and fixed on the sheet by pressing and heating. When a color image is continuously printed, it is desirable to set the inter-sheet distance as short as possible in order to secure fixability of the color toners. Further, if color printing speed (PPM: print per minute) is reduced, a heat quantity per one sheet can be secured. In this case, it is desired to realize a reduction in the inter-sheet distance and realize an increase in speed as much as possible, although the number of prints decreases.
As an image forming apparatus including a sheet conveying device that aligns the leading end of a toner image on an image baring member and the leading end of a sheet according a reduction in an inter-sheet distance, there is an image forming apparatus disclosed in JP-A-59-24870.
The image forming apparatus including the sheet conveying device in the past horizontally feeds a sheet in a paper feeding cassette directly to registration rollers with a paper feeding roller and horizontally conveys the sheet to a transfer position for transferring a toner image. The start of second and subsequent sheets by the registration rollers is controlled according to the registration start timing. An inter-sheet distance of sheets conveyed by the registration rollers to the transfer position at process speed is set as a normal inter-sheet distance. When the inter-sheet distance is set shorter than the normal inter-sheet distance, if the registration rollers are restarted at the registration start timing, at the time of the restart, a leading end position of the toner image is present further on the transfer position side than that in the case of the normal inter-sheet distance. Therefore, registration acceleration for conveying the sheet at sheet conveying speed by the registration rollers higher than the process speed is performed. When the leading end of the sheet catches up with the leading end of the toner image on the image bearing member that moves at the process speed, the sheet conveying speed by the registration rollers is reduced to the process speed to align the leading end of the toner image and the leading end of the sheet in the transfer position.
In the sheet conveying device in the past, the sheet fed from the paper feeding cassette to the registration rollers by the paper feeding roller is present in the paper feeding cassette and comes into contact with the paper feeding roller in a standby state in which the leading end of the sheet is in contact with the registration rollers. When the sheet conveying speed of the registration roller is reset to the process speed from the speed higher than the process speed, the sheet is still in contact with the paper feeding roller.
Therefore, after the sheet is fed to the registration rollers, driving to the paper feeding roller is disconnected and the paper feeding roller is idled by frictional contact with the sheet conveyed by the registration rollers to make it possible to convey the sheet. However, a load of sheet conveyance involved in the idling of the paper feeding roller is excessively applied to the registration rollers. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the power of a registration motor that drives the registration rollers.
However, when the sheet is conveyed by the registration rollers, because of the influence of a change in rigidity of the sheet due to the basis weight (thickness) of the sheet, an environment such as temperature and humidity, or the like, friction with a guide surface of a sheet conveyance guide increases, which becomes a load on sheet conveyance. This sheet conveyance load further increases according to an increase in the sheet conveying speed and causes a loss of synchronism of the registration motor and the conveying motors on the way.
If the speed of the registration acceleration is reduced to reduce the registration speed to the process speed immediately before transfer, the sheet conveyance load can be reduced. However, fluctuation in a load involved in the speed change occurs in the sheet and causes a blur and, in the case of a color image, causes color drift or the like.
On the other hand, in an image forming apparatus in which paper feeding cassettes are vertically arranged in plural stages, registration rollers are arranged on a sheet conveying path extending in an up to down direction and conveying rollers are arranged below the registration rollers to correspond to the paper feeding cassettes in the respective stages. A sheet in any one of the paper feeding cassettes is fed by the paper feeding roller to the conveying rollers corresponding thereto, conveyed to the registration rollers at conveying speed higher than process speed, and put on standby for restart for driving the registration rollers, which are temporarily stopped to drive sheet conveyance, again to perform sheet conveyance. In this case, depending on sheet length (sheet size) and a stage position of the paper feeding cassette, the sheet is nipped by at least the conveying rollers immediately below the registration rollers and waits for the restart of the registration rollers.
A driving mechanism for the conveying rollers and the paper feeding rollers includes a clutch mechanism. The driving mechanism turns off the clutch mechanism to thereby disconnect power transmission from driving motors to the conveying rollers and the paper feeding roller to allow the rollers to idle. In this case, even if it is attempted to convey the sheet to an upper transfer position with only the registration rollers according to a sudden change in speed such as the registration acceleration, stable sheet conveyance control is difficult because of the influence of the conveyance load and the like. Therefore, under the present situation, highly accurate positioning and conveyance of the sheet cannot be performed.


An X-ray fluorescence spectrometric system includes: a job execution unit configured to execute a job; a storage unit configured to store in advance a time required for each of operations in association with the each of the operations; a calculation unit configured to calculate, when the job is generated, a time to be taken until execution of the job is completed, for each job based on the time stored in the storage unit; and a control unit configured to newly store, when the job is executed, a time taken for the operation in the storage unit in association with the operation. The calculation unit is configured to further calculate, when the job is executed, the time to be taken until the execution of the job is completed, based on the time newly stored in the storage unit.

Among apparatus that require a certain amount of time for completing an instructed operation, there is an apparatus configured to measure a time to be taken until the operation is completed.
For example, in Patent Literature 1, there is disclosed an X-ray spectrometer configured to measure only a specific region of a sample by moving a stage on which a sample is placed, in which, when there are a plurality of moving paths, a path that shortens a measuring time is simulated.
In Patent Literature 2, there is disclosed a scanning electron microscope having a function of calculating a measuring time from a calculated appearance rate, measurement conditions, and a number of foreign substances or defects.
In Patent Literature 3, there is disclosed an automated chemical analyzer configured to display, when measurement conditions and an instruction to start measurement are input, a time required for the measurement, and a remaining time of the measurement, based on input data.
In Patent Literature 4, there is disclosed a measuring machine configured to automatically calculate a time to be taken until completion of measurement from given measurement conditions, and display the time.
In Patent Literature 5, there is disclosed an X-ray spectrometer including: a function of calculating a measuring time and a scheduled measurement end time based on a scanning mode, a scanning range, and other such input measurement conditions; and a display unit configured to display the scheduled measurement end time based on the calculated result.


A transmissive liquid crystal display apparatus includes a liquid crystal layer interposed between a first substrate and a second substrate. The first substrate includes gate lines, source lines and switching devices provided in a vicinity of intersectional portions of the gate lines and the source lines. The switching devices include gate electrodes connected to the gate lines, source electrodes connected to the source lines and drain electrodes connected to pixel electrodes for applying a voltage to the liquid crystal layer. An interlayer insulating film having high transparency is provided above the switching devices, the gate lines and the source lines. The interlayer insulating film has roughness on its surface. A height difference of the roughness is 50 nm or less. The pixel electrode formed of a transparent conductive material is provided on the interlayer insulating film.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a transmissive liquid crystal display apparatus with a wide viewing angle including a switching device such as a thin film transistor (hereinafter, referred to as a TFT).
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 9 is a circuit diagram showing a structure of a conventional transmissive liquid crystal display apparatus including an active matrix substrate.
Referring to FIG. 9, a plurality of pixel electrodes 1 are formed on the active matrix substrate in a matrix. TFTs 2 functioning as switching devices are connected to the pixel electrodes 1. Gate lines 3 (i.e., scanning lines for supplying scanning signals) are connected to gate electrodes of the TFTs 2. Gate signals input to the gate electrodes control so as to drive the TFTs 2. Source lines 4 (i.e., signal lines for supplying data signals) are connected to source electrodes of the TFTs 2, and data (display) signals are input to the pixel electrodes 1 via the TFTs 2 while the TFTs 2 are driven. The gate lines 3 and the source line 4 are running on the periphery of the pixels 1 arranged in a matrix and are orthogonally crossing each other. Furthermore, drain electrodes are connected to the pixel electrodes 1 and storage capacitors 5. Counter electrodes of the storage capacitors 5 are connected to common lines 6.
FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the TFT portion of the active matrix substrate in the conventional liquid crystal display apparatus.
Referring to FIG. 10, the gate electrode 12 connected to the gate line 3 of FIG. 9 is formed on a transparent insulating substrate 11. A gate insulating film 13 is formed so as to cover the gate electrode 12. Furthermore, a semiconductor layer 14 is formed on the gate insulating film 13 so as to overlap the gate electrode 12. A channel protective layer 15 is formed in the central portion of the semiconductor layer 14. An n.sup.+ Si layer to function as a source electrode 16a and a drain electrode 16b is formed so as to cover both end portions of the channel protective layer 15 and a part of the semiconductor layer 14 and to be divided by the channel protective layer 15. A metal layer 17a to function as a source line 4 of FIG. 9 is formed on one of the n.sup.+ Si layers, i.e., the source electrode 16a, while a metal layer 17b for connecting the drain electrode 16b and the pixel 1 is formed on the other n.sup.+ Si layer, i.e., the drain electrode 16b. Furthermore, an interlayer insulating film 18 is formed so as to cover the TFT 2, the gate line 3 and the source line 4.
A transparent conductive film to function as the pixel electrode 1 is formed on the interlayer insulating film 18. The transparent conductive film is connected to the metal layer 17b connected to the drain electrode 16b of the TFT 2 via a contact hole 19 penetrating the interlayer insulating film 18.
As described above, the interlayer insulating film 18 is formed between the gate line 3 and the source line 4 and the transparent conductive film to function as the pixel electrode 1. For this reason, the pixel electrode 1 can overlap the gate and source lines 3 and 4.
Conventionally, an inorganic film such as silicon nitride (SiN) of a thickness of about 500 nm is formed by a CVD method for the interlayer insulating film 18. Therefore, the pixel electrode 1 is generally formed with a step d of about 1 .mu.m or more due to the underlying structure.
Furthermore, in such a conventional liquid crystal display apparatus, the maximum viewing angle is about .+-.50.degree. to the right and left directions. As techniques for enlarging the viewing angle, a technique of dividing the pixel into multi-domains (pixel divisional alignment) or various other techniques are disclosed, for example in "Flat Panel Display, 1994" (pp.166) by Nikkei BP, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 7-36043 or the like.
Furthermore, in recent years, a large TV screen has been developed. In addition, a wider screen (i.e., horizontally wide TV screen) has been increasingly the trend. In a liquid crystal TV set, a product with a wide screen has been researched and developed.
FIG. 11 is a view quantatively showing the relationship between a conventional TV screen 120 with the ratio of the shorter side to the longer side of 3:4 and a wide screen 121 with the ratio of the shorter side to the longer side of 9:16. In the case where a viewer views the wide screen 121 at an angle, in order for the viewer to view the screen end A on the side farther from the viewer, the screen is required to have a wider viewing angle .theta..sub.1 than the viewing angle .theta..sub.2 of the conventional TV screen 120 (i.e., .theta..sub.1 >.theta..sub.2) . Herein, the viewing angle refers to a gradient angle with respect to the normal direction of the screen (i.e., substrate).
In the conventional liquid crystal display apparatus as described above, when the interlayer insulating film 18 is formed between the gate line 3 and source line 4 and the pixel electrode 1, the pixel electrode 1 can be formed so as to overlap the gate and source lines 3 and 4, thus improving an aperture ratio of the liquid crystal display apparatus and restricting unsatisfactory alignment of liquid crystal molecules. However, in the case where the pixel electrode 1 is overlapping the gate and source lines 3 and 4, a problem of an increase in capacitance between the gate and source lines 3 and 4 and the pixel electrode 1 is caused. In particular, an inorganic film such as silicon nitride film has a dielectric constant as high as 8, and is formed by a CVD method. As a result, the film has a thickness of about 500 nm. With such a thickness, the capacitance between the gate and source lines 3 and 4 and the pixel electrode 1 is increased, thus causing the following problems (1), (2) and (3). It is difficult to mass-produce an inorganic film such as silicon nitride film of a thickness of more than about 500 nm.
(1) In the case where the pixel electrode 1 overlaps the source line 4, the capacitance between the source line 4 and the pixel electrode 1 is increased, thereby raising a ratio of signal transmission. As a result, data signals stored in the pixel electrode 1 during a storage period are subjected to oscillation due to electric potentials of the data signals. Therefore, an effective voltage applied to the liquid crystal of the pixel fluctuates, so that vertical crosstalk in the vertical direction occurs, in particular, with respect to the adjacent pixel in the vertical direction in an actual display.
(2) In the case where the pixel electrode 1 overlaps the gate line 3 for driving the pixel, the capacitance between the gate line 3 and the pixel electrode 1 increases, thus increasing feed through of a voltage for writing in the pixel due to a switching signal for controlling the TFT 2.
(3) The dielectric constant of the interlayer insulating film 18 is as high as 8, and affected by the potential of the pixel electrode 1 or the counter electrode (not shown) formed on the counter substrate. In addition, the interlayer insulating film 18 is polarized by an electric field in the vicinity of the TFT in reliability tests such as light aging or the like. As a result, the switching characteristics of the TFT deteriorates, thus causing a problem in reliability such as unsatisfactory display.
Furthermore, in the vicinity of the step portion d, an alignment film (not shown) is not properly rubbed due to the surface state. Moreover, the interlayer insulating film 18 is relatively thin, and the dielectric constant is high. These two facts synergistically serve to generate a strong electric field, especially in the direction from the gate electrode 12 to the surface of the substrate so as to disturb a desired alignment of liquid crystal molecules on the periphery of the pixel.
Furthermore, in the vicinity of the contact hole 19, the alignment of the liquid crystal molecules is easily disturbed for a similar reason as described above resulted from the generation of a step. Therefore, a light-shielding film (not shown) for covering the unsatisfactory display portion is provided on the same substrate or the counter substrate (not shown). However, the provision of the light-shielding film lowers an aperture ratio, resulting in a dark screen. Thus, the viewing angle is limited because of the low aperture ratio and the provision of an unnecessary light-shielding film.
Furthermore, although the techniques such as a multi-domain system in order to improve the viewing angle are disclosed in the Publications described above or the like, they have the following problems:
1. Since the number of steps and the number of types of materials increases and the yield deteriorates, the cost increases. PA1 2. Since delicate divisional alignment control is performed in micro regions, reliability is generally low. PA1 3. Since light is dispersed due to divisional alignment or the like, luminance is lowered in a certain direction or the like, thus leading to a low contrast ratio. Namely, visibility deteriorates and the viewing angle is restricted.
As a result, the maximum viewing angle to the right and left directions is about 50.degree. in the current mass production level or development level. Thus, a TFT liquid crystal display apparatus having a wide viewing angle and an excellent visibility and capable of being produced at a low cost has not been mass-produced yet.
Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 11, the wide screen type liquid crystal TV has a low visibility at the end of the screen, thus being unable to provide a satisfactory display to a large number of people in a large area.

Transmissive liquid crystal display apparatus and method for producing the same


A protection device for traversing a guide member and method of making the like, the protection device includes a wheel configured to engage the guide member. In some embodiments, the protection embodiment includes a locker configured to engage a braking surface. The locker engagement mechanism configured to releasably engage the locker. In some embodiments, a centrifugal actuator operatively coupled to the wheel and configured to actuate the locker engagement mechanism to release the locker based on a threshold speed of the wheel. In an instance in which the wheel is rotating at or above the threshold speed of the wheel in a first direction, the centrifugal actuator is configured to actuate and rotate the locker engagement mechanism to release the locker and to allow the locker to rotate and engage the braking surface. A corresponding method of operation is also provided.

From recreation to survival devices, protection devices are instrumental in preserving the safety of users and devices when traversing uncertain conditions and heights. In order to operate effectively, protection devices must be able to freely travel along a guide member to allow freedom of movement, while also quickly arresting unwanted or excessive movement, such as during a fall. Current protection devices struggle to effectively change between free travel of the protection device and stoppage of the protection device, and are often restricted in their operation to certain orientations and certain directions of motion. Applicant has identified a number of deficiencies and problems associated with current sensors. Through applied effort, ingenuity, and innovation, many of these identified problems have been solved by the methods and apparatus of the present disclosure.

Brno-{hacek over (Z)}abov{hacek over (r)}esky


A system for controlling operation of a power tool. The system includes a handpiece having a power tool, a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag, and a wireless transceiver. The system also includes a power pack having an electric motor driving the power tool. The power pack also includes a wireless transceiver, an RFID reader, and non-transitory computer-readable storage media having computer-executable instructions for pairing the handpiece to the power pack. When executed by at least one processor, the computer-executable instructions cause the at least one processor to: interrogate the RFID tag with the RFID reader; receive an RFID signal from the RFID tag including identifying information for the handpiece; store the unique identifying information for the handpiece at the power pack; and, based on receipt of the unique identifying information, complete wireless pairing of the handpiece to the power pack.

Existing powered rotary knives are often used in the meat processing industry for dressing an animal carcass. The process of dressing a carcass normally involves the removal of meat and fat from, as well as cutting, bones. Powered rotary knives enable workers to perform this process with great efficiency.
However, existing powered rotary knives can be hazardous to operate and control. For example, existing drive control(s) are rudimentary and can lead to unsafe operating conditions. For another example, existing powered rotary knives are often exposed to unnecessary wear and tear due to design flaws, which may render them unsafe or prone to premature failure.
This background discussion is intended to provide information related to the present invention which is not necessarily prior art.

Systems and methods for connecting a wireless motor control system for handheld knives to a hand piece


A method of manufacturing an alternating phase shift mask can be carried out in a short amount of time. A 180° phase shift region is formed using a multi-step etching process, and then a 0° phase region is formed. Forming the phase shift regions in this sequence minimizes the number of rounds of photolithography that have to be carried out in the method.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the photolithography process used to manufacture semiconductor devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a phase shift mask of a photolithographic exposure apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
A highly integrated semiconductor device is manufactured by selectively exposing a photoresist layer formed on a wafer to light projected through a reticle. The reticle bears a fine pattern that is to be transferred to the photoresist layer.
A phase shift mask is a reticle that includes both a light blocking layer and a light transmitting layer. Conventional phase shift masks include alternating phase shift masks and attenuated phase shift masks. The alternating phase shift mask comprises a 0° phase region and a 180° phase region, the latter of which is formed by etching a quartz substrate to a predetermined depth. The attenuated phase shift mask also comprises a 0° phase region and a 180° phase region, which are constituted by a phase shift layer on a substrate.
A method of manufacturing a conventional alternating phase shift mask will now be described referring to FIGS. 1A through 1D. First, as shown in FIG. 1A, a blocking layer is formed on a quartz substrate 10. A photoresist pattern (not shown) is formed on the blocking layer using a photolithography process. A blocking layer pattern 15 is formed by patterning the blocking layer so as to have a shape corresponding to that of the photoresist pattern. The blocking layer pattern 15 defines a 0° phase region 'a' and a 180° phase region 'b'. The photoresist pattern is then removed. Next, another photoresist layer is formed on the quartz substrate 10, and the photoresist layer is exposed and developed so that a photoresist pattern 25 is formed. The photoresist pattern 25 exposes the 180° phase shift region 'b'.
As shown in FIG. 1B, the quartz substrate 10 exposed by the photoresist pattern 25 is etched to a depth less than a predetermined depth 'd', wherein 'd' is the depth at which the mask would effect a phase shift of 180°. The reason why the quartz substrate 10 is first etched at phase region 'b' shallower than depth 'd' is as follows. Particles can be generated on the surface of the quartz substrate 10 during a photolithography process or an etching process for forming the photoresist pattern 25. If the quartz substrate 10 were subjected to the etching process while the particles were present on the surface of the substrate 10, the portion of the quartz substrate 10 under the particles would not be etched because the particles would act as a mask.
Isotropic etching has been suggested as a way to overcome this potential problem. However, isotropic etching results in the extension of an etching region and thus is difficult to adapt for use in forming a phase shift mask having a very fine pattern. Accordingly, when forming a conventional phase shift mask, a multi-step etching method is performed in which the quartz substrate 10 is anisotropically etched throughout part of its thickness, particles on its surface are removed by a cleaning process, and then the quartz substrate 10 is etched again. That is, the quartz substrate 10 is etched to a predetermined depth using the photoresist pattern 25, the photoresist pattern 25 is removed using a well-known method, and the surface of the resultant structure of the quartz substrate 10 is cleaned to remove the particles.
Then, as shown in FIG. 1C, another photoresist pattern 25 is formed on the quartz substrate 10 by a photolithography process to thereby expose the 180° phase shift region 'b'. The quartz substrate 10, which has been already etched to a particular depth, is further etched at the 180° phase shift region 'b' using the second photoresist pattern 25 as a mask. The photolithography process, the etching process, and the cleaning process are repeated as many times as necessary until a trench 30 having the desired depth 'd' is formed at the 180° phase region 'b' of the quartz substrate 10, as shown in FIG. 1D.
Here, the predetermined depth 'd' of the trench 30, capable of shifting the phase of exposure light by 180°, is determined to satisfy the following mathematic formula 1:d=λ/2(n−1)
wherein λ denotes the wavelength of the exposure light and n denotes the refractive index of the quartz substrate 10. Accordingly, the predetermined depth 'd' of the trench 30 is dependent on the wavelength of light and the refractive index of the quartz substrate 10.
However, the multi-step etching method described above typically requires at least several rounds of the photolithography process, the etching process, and the cleaning process to form a 0° phase shift region 'a' and then a 180° phase shift region 'b' in a quartz substrate. Moreover, the photolithography process itself comprises a series of processes, i.e., coating, exposing, hardening and developing processes. At least one day is required to perform such a photolithography process just once. Accordingly, three to five days are required to manufacture a phase shift mask using the conventional multi-step etching method.

Method of manufacturing an alternating phase shift mask


A compound of formula (I)

Water and oil repellents, soil resists, and surfactants compounds generally are prepared from linear perfluorinated alcohols. These alcohols are expensive and are prepared through several step synthesis. These alcohols are either then reacted to make final products or further synthesized into intermediates prior to making final products. New starting materials are needed that do not utilize linear perfluorinated alcohols.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,531,700 teaches fluorinated solvents having benzene rings with a) perfluorinated pendent alkyl groups, b) alkyl, alkoxy, or oxyalkyl groups and c) optionally halogen pendent groups useful for the manufacture of organic electronic devices. These solvents are non-reactive.
Patent Application WO 2007/149449 teaches fluoroalkoxystyrenes prepared by contacting fluorinated olefin with a solution of hydroxystyrene. These fluoroalkoxystyrenes are useful in resins, elastomers, polymers or coatings.
What is needed are nonlinear compounds as starting materials and intermediates to produce compounds for water and oil repellents, soil resists, and surfactants compounds. The present invention meets this need.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Perfluoropolyvinyl modified aryl intermediates and monomers

Abstract: A compound of formula (I)

Abstract: wherein Rf is —CF3, —C2F5, or —CF2CFXCF3; X is —F, or —OC3F7; Y is —H, —Cl, or —Br; R is —OH, —(OCH2CH2)mOH, —(CH2)n(OCH2CH2)mOH, —O—C(O)—R1, —(CH2)nO—C(O)R1, —(OCH2CH2)mOC(O)—R1, —C(O)NHw(CH2CH2OH)2-w, —C≡N, —C≡CH; n is 1 to 10; m is 1 to 10; R1 is C1 to C10 alkyl; a is 1 to 5; b is 1 to 5; and w is 0, 1 or 2.


Request data is identified that describes a request of a second program by a first program intercepted by a first exit in the first program. Response data is identified that describes a response by the second program to the request as intercepted by a second exit in the first program. A virtual service configured to model operation of the second program is instantiated based on the request data and response data. In another aspect, a request by the first program to the second program is intercepted by the first exit and the request is redirected to the virtual service. A response is received as generated by the virtual service and the response is returned to the first program using the second exit.

The present disclosure relates in general to the field of computer development, and more specifically, to testing involving a constrained system that may not always be available for use during testing.
Modern software systems continue to evolve and become more sophisticated, with some systems and programs designed to interoperate with, consume data or services from, or otherwise depend on other programs or applications. However, in instances whether the other programs or applications are not under the control of the entity controlling the particular program or application or otherwise constrained, such other programs and applications may not be available to the entity when testing of the particular program or application is desired. For example, an airline may be reluctant to test a new reservation application or client against the airline's live production database in order to avoid negatively impacting (e.g., in terms of database record values or database response time) actual consumer transactions that will be taking place at the same time as testing. Similarly, in order to reduce costs, a financial institution may wish to minimize interactions between a new credit card application system and a partner service due to per-transaction fees, such as those that are charged for each credit check, charged by the partner service. In yet another example, the constrained service may still be in development and thus not yet available to interact with the application under test.


A portable memory device (1) includes a memory unit, a USB mating port (20) electrically connecting with the memory unit, a protective case (30) detachably mated with the USB mating port and a plastic waterproof member (32) secured in the case. The plastic waterproof member is pressed against a periphery (213) of the USB mating port to seal a gap between the USB mating port and the case. The USB mating port is protected in the case form water penetration. Moreover, the plastic waterproof member imposes a force rising from plastic deformation of the plastic waterproof member on the USB mating port. Therefore, the USB mating port and the case is firmly engaged with each other.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a portable memory device, and particularly to a portable memory device with a waterproof structure which can provide the memory device a good protection.
2. Description of Related Art
A kind of memory device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,926,544 B2 (the '544 patent) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,808,400 B2 (the '400 patent) is internally provided with memory unit for storing and transmitting data. The memory device is equipped with a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port playing role of plug and interference between the memory unit and a computer. The computer could read data stored in the memory unit through the USB port or could record necessary data on the memory unit. When the USB port detached from the computer, the memory device can be carried by a user to any other place or be connected to another computer. Therefore, the portable memory device is highly mobile and convenient for use.
Such memory device generally has a structure to protect the USB port from collision, damage, distortion or deformation, e.g. the cover, the spring and positioning structure in the '544 patent and the '400 patent. However, there is a problem that once the memory device is in a watery or wet condition or even be dropped in water by carelessness, the memory devices of the prior arts are susceptible to water leakage that lead to short-out and damage the circuits connected with the USB port, as the cover of the '544 patent is discontinuous with the USB port and the USB port of the '400 patent is still exposed to exterior in their protective position.
So, it is necessary to provide a memory device with waterproof structure to protect the device from water leakage in order to withstand a watery condition.

Portable memory device with waterproof structure


A cutter wheel for tire shearing having a unitary annular core with radially inward shoulders on both sides of the radially outward central portion of the core. Pie-piece shaped cutter segments are mounted atop the shoulders of each core with each cutter segment having a base and a blade atop the base, with cutter segments overlapping in a serrated fashion, beyond the central portion of the core. The central portion of the core is smooth, serving as a spacer between adjacent cutter segments. Each blade is split into two side-by-side blade segments, with the laterally outward blade segment experiencing greatest wear. The laterally inward blade segment mounted to a pie-piece shaped cutter segment by radial bolts, while the laterally outward blade segment is fastened to the laterally inward blade segment by axial bolts.

Tire shredding machines are employed to reduce tires, particularly automotive tires, to small pieces of rubber which can be reused in manufacturing a variety of products. Several different machines are used to reduce tires, but most are rotary shredders of the type shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,343,755 to Barclay and Diemunsch, incorporated by reference herein. In the first stage of tire reduction, a primary shredder is used to digest a whole tire and reduce the tire to oddly shaped pieces of rubber. From these oddly shaped pieces, rubber is subsequently reduced in secondary and tertiary shredders to finer and finer pieces of rubber until the rubber reaches the desired size, sometimes as fine as granular pellets or even small sawdust-like particles. However, the initial burden of tire reduction is placed on the primary shredder which must deal with the toughness and strength inherent in tire body construction.
In the early days of primary shredder construction, rotary shears were designed wherein a pair of counter-rotating, intermeshing, serrated cutting wheels, mounted on parallel rotating hubs or shafts, received a tire at a zone of intermeshing and proceeded to digest a tire by ripping the tire into strips which could pass between the wheels and be ejected after passage. The number of pairs of parallel cutting wheels on a single shaft or hub could vary, but usually more than six and less than twenty cutting wheels were placed on a single hub, with parallel wheels separated by spacers to allow intermeshing of another set of parallel wheels on another hub. A large number of parallel cutting wheels increases the size and number of tires which can be accepted into the machine for digestion.
Some strips of rubber would become jammed between adjacent cutting wheels during digestion and needed to be removed by a fixed tool, so that a clear zone of intermeshing would be presented to a tire upon rotation of the wheel. At the zone of intermeshing, a tire would encounter the outer periphery of counter-rotating cutting wheels. After continuous rotation for a period of time, the outer periphery of the cutting wheels would become worn, mainly at the outer periphery, by the toughness of tires and the wheel would need to be resurfaced. The problem of resurfacing cutting wheels has been addressed by several inventors. The above-mentioned '755 patent teaches that the outer peripheral contact region of a cutting wheel may be removed so that the entire cutting wheel need not be removed from its shaft for repair. Rather, by refinishing or replacing the outer contact region, a certain amount of modularity can be introduced which eases maintenance. The principle of modularity was extended by Bernhardt et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,318,231 wherein cutter wheels were provided with removable peripheral contact regions and adjacent wheels were laterally paired and joined on opposite sides of a spacer, in a sandwich construction. Now, each cutting wheel is actually a pair of wheels, separated by a spacer wheel, in relation to a shaft on which the wheels are mounted. This facilitates maintenance and assembly of both cutting surfaces and the wheels themselves. Paired cutting wheels are accurately spaced in relation to each other.
In summary, the prior art recognizes that wear in cutting wheels occuring at outer periperal surfaces contacting tires to be shred can be offset by removing and replacing or refinishing the outer wear surfaces, thereby obviating the need to remove an entire cutting wheel and facilitating maintenance. The prior art also recognizes that modularity may be employed not only by providing replaceable cutting surfaces, but also in wheel construction by pairing cutting wheels with an intermediate spacer wheel in a sandwich construction. An object of the invention was to facilitate maintenance in cutting wheels of rotary shearing apparatus by improving modular construction of cutting wheels.


A wireless charging mouse device, a wireless charging mouse, a lower shell of the wireless charging mouse, and a method for producing the lower shell are provided. The wireless charging mouse includes an upper shell, a lower shell, and an electronic module located between the upper shell and the lower shell. The lower shell includes an upper board, a lower board, and a wireless charging assembly located between the upper board and the lower board. A side surface of the upper board is fixed to a side surface of the lower board by gluing or melting. The upper board has a connection hole. The wireless charging assembly includes a circuit board and a wireless charging coil. A connection structure of the circuit board is exposed from the upper board by passing through the connection hole, so as to be electrically coupled to the electronic module.

In a manufacturing process of a conventional wireless charging mouse, a coil circuit board of the conventional wireless charging mouse (i.e., a circuit board used to control a coil) is embedded in a lower shell by plastic injection, so as to prevent the coil circuit board from occupying an internal space of the conventional wireless charging mouse. However, since the coil circuit board cannot withstand high temperature and high pressure, the coil circuit board often deforms or cracks during a plastic injection process. Therefore, a production yield of the conventional wireless charging mouse is inadequate, which results in an increased production cost.

Wireless charging mouse device, wireless charging mouse, lower shell of wireless charging mouse, and method for producing lower shell


A method for setting an apparatus, such as a printer, wherein a sensor is mounted to sense the position of a settable detection object during operation of the apparatus. The apparatus may be set as a function of the occurrence of an output from the sensor that is above or below a predetermined level at predetermined setting positions, as a function of the setting position that is close to the middle point of a range defined by adjacent positions at which the output level of the sensor rises above and falls below the predetermined level, or as a function of the position at which the highest output from the sensor is detected.

In a printer, for example, a setting means corresponding to each of the respective printer functions, such as a dip switch and the like, is provided on the front surface panel, and the setting of the lettering font, printing start position, etc. is carried out by adjusting the setting means.
In the above-described setting method, mounting space for providing the setting means is especially necessary, and the device must be enlarged to accommodate the setting means.

Method for setting an apparatus having a sensor


The present application provides methods and devices for determining an action or an action part, and generally relates to the field of wearable devices. A method disclosed herein comprises: in response to detecting a motion of a first part of a body of a user, acquiring, using a photoelectric sensor, target Doppler measurement information of the first part or a second part corresponding to the first part; determining target velocity related information corresponding to the target Doppler measurement information; and determining the first part or the action according to the target velocity related information and reference information, wherein the target velocity related information comprises target blood flow velocity information or target blood flow information. The methods and devices provide a new scheme for recognizing an action and/or an action part.

With popularization and development of electronic devices, present electronic devices are more and more intelligent, and recognition by the electronic devices of user actions is one of intelligent development directions thereof.
For example, some gaming devices can recognize users' simple gesture actions through an image recognition technology; some smart bracelets and other wearable devices can recognize whether a user is currently walking through an acceleration sensor, and can implement a step recording function.

Method and device for determining action or action part


The effective efficiency of a centrifugal compressor can be improved by achieving a uniform distribution of fluid velocity across the outlet end of a fluid passage of an axial diffuser for the centrifugal compressor and a high static pressure recovery ratio Cp in the axial diffuser passage. The cross section of each axial diffuser passage is configured such that a relatively high velocity fluid flow in an upstream part of the diffuser passage is directed toward a negative pressure side of a cross section thereof. It can be accomplished by directing a minor axis of a cross section of the diffuser passage substantially perpendicularly to a direction directed from a center of the cross section of the diffuser passage to the central axial line of an impeller or directing the minor axis toward the central axial line of the impeller.

The centrifugal compressor used in a gas turbine engine or a jet engine typically includes an axial diffuser. In an axial diffuser, a plurality of axial diffuser passages are provided around the impeller at a regular circumferential interval, and as the radial flow of the fluid (compressed air) expelled from the impeller flows through each of the axial diffuser passages, the fluid flow is directed into an axial flow which is substantially in parallel with the central axial line of the impeller, and the kinetic energy of the fluid flow is converted into pressure energy. See U.S. Pat. No. 6,280,139, for instance.
Also is known the radial diffuser which is used in a centrifugal compressor to convert the kinetic energy of the fluid expelled from the impeller into pressure energy by reducing the velocity of the fluid in the radial flow. See Japanese patent laid open publication No. 2002-98093, for instance.
Each diffuser passage of an axial diffuser may consist of a tube member. If the tube member is straight, there is no centrifugal force, and, consequently, there is no unevenness in the fluid flow. However, in reality, because each diffuser tube is highly curved so as to direct the direction of the fluid flow from the tangential direction of the impeller into the axial direction, a centrifugal force is produced, and some pressure gradient (in the cross section of the diffuser tube) is produced in the fluid flowing in the diffuser tube.
In the case of the conventional axial diffuser using diffuser passages each having an elliptic cross section, no consideration was made to balance the centrifugal force along the major axis of the elliptic cross section of each diffuser passage. For this reason, a pressure unevenness or gradient in the cross section is produced from the first bend of each diffuser passage. In particular, a low velocity region (low momentum flow at the boundary layer) builds up on the negative pressure side of the diffuser passage so that the fluid velocity tends to be lower on the negative pressure side of the downstream end of the diffuser passage. Conversely, the fluid velocity is higher on the positive pressure side of the downstream end of the diffuser passage. Therefore, a significant pressure gradient is produced between the positive pressure side and negative pressure side at the downstream end of the diffuser passage.
Furthermore, in the negative pressure side, owing to a centrifugal force (inertia force) produced in the bend of the passage, a part of the fluid flow may separate from the wall surface, and this may create vortices. As a result, a part of the kinetic energy of the fluid flow is dissipated as heat, and the vortices diminish the effective cross sectional area of the fluid passage by blocking the fluid flow. For these reasons, the fluid velocity may not be reduced as designed. Therefore, in a conventional axial diffuser, the static pressure recovery ratio Cp=(static pressure at diffuser outlet−static pressure at diffuser inlet)/(total pressure at diffuser inlet−static pressure at diffuser inlet) is not so high as desired, and this prevented the effective efficiency of a centrifugal compressor to be increased to a desired level.

Axial diffuser for a centrifugal compressor


A memory device for thermoelectric heat confinement and method for producing same. The memory device includes a plurality of phase-change memory cells, wherein each of the phase-change memory cells has a first electrode, a second electrode and a phase-change material. The first electrode and the phase-change material are arranged such that a surface normal of a dominating interface for a current flow between the first electrode and the phase-change material points on one side to the phase-change material of the phase-change memory cell and on an opposite side to a phase-change material of a neighboring phase-change memory cell. A method for producing a memory device for thermoelectric heat confinement is also provided.

A prominent example for programmable phase-change memory cells having a plurality of programmable levels or states is Resistive Random Access Memory ("RRAM"), particularly phase change memory ("PCM"). PCM is a non-volatile solid-state memory technology that exploits the reversible, thermally-assisted switching of specific chalcogenides between certain states of different electrical conductivity.
PCM is a promising and advanced emerging non-volatile memory technology mainly due to its excellent features including low latency, high endurance, long retention and high scalability. PCM can be considered a candidate for Flash replacement, embedded/hybrid memory and storage-class memory. Key requirements for competitiveness of PCM technology can be multi-level cell functionality, in particular for low cost per bit and high-speed read/write operations, in particular for high bandwidth and high endurance. Multilevel functionality, i.e. multiple bits per PCM cell, can be a way to increase storage capacity and thereby to reduce cost.
Multi-level PCM is based on storing multiple resistance levels between a lowest (SET) and a highest (RESET) resistance value. Multiple resistance levels or levels correspond to partial-amorphous and partial-crystalline phase distributions of the PCM cell. Phase transformation, i.e. memory programming, can be enabled by Joule heating. In this regard, Joule heating can be controlled by a programming current or voltage pulse. Storing multiple resistance levels in a PCM cell is a challenging task.
For example, in "Phase-Change Memory", it is described that the multiple states or levels in a PCM cell are created by varying the programming power, thus creating different crystalline and amorphous fractions within the cell. Further according to "Metal-oxide RRAM", in metal-oxide resistive memory devices, multiple states can correspond to variations in the gap between conductive oxygen-vacancy filaments and the electrodes.
In resistive memory, the fundamental storage unit (referred to generally herein as the "cell") can be set to a number of different states which exhibit different electrical resistance characteristics. Information is recorded by exploiting the different states to represent different data values. To read recorded data, cell-state is detected via measurements which exploit the differing resistance characteristics to differentiate between possible cell-states. A variety of semiconductor memory technologies employ these basic principles for data storage. Examples include oxide-based memory such as resistive RAM and memristor memory, ionic-transport-based memory, and PCM. The following will focus on PCM as a particularly promising technology for future non-volatile memory chips. It is to be understood however, that PCM is only an illustrative application for the invention to be described which can be similarly applied to other resistive memory technologies.
PCM exploits the reversible switching of certain chalcogenide materials between at least two states with different electrical resistance. In single-level cell ("SLC") PCM devices, each cell can be set to one of two states, crystalline and amorphous, by application of heat. Each SLC cell can thus store one bit of binary information. However, to satisfy market demand for ever-larger memory capacity and reduce cost per bit, storage of more than one bit per cell is required. To achieve this, it is necessary that a cell can be set to s states where s>2, and that these states can be distinguished on readback via the cell resistance characteristics. Multi-level cell ("MLC") operation has been proposed for PCM cells whereby each cell can be set to one of s>2 resistance levels, each corresponding to a different cell state. MLC operation is achieved by exploiting partially-amorphous states of the chalcogenide cell. Different cell states are set by varying the effective volume of the amorphous phase within the chalcogenide material. This in turn varies cell resistance.
To write data to a PCM cell, a voltage or current pulse is applied to the cell to heat the chalcogenide material to an appropriate temperature to induce the desired cell-state on cooling. By varying the amplitude of the voltage or current pulses, different cell-states can be achieved. Reading of PCM cells can be performed using the cell resistance to distinguish the different cell-states. The resistance measurement for a read operation is performed in the sub-threshold region of the current-versus-voltage ("IN") characteristic of the cell, i.e. in the region below the threshold switching voltage at which a change in cell-state can occur. The read measurement can be performed in a variety of ways, but all techniques rely fundamentally on either voltage biasing and current sensing, or current biasing and voltage sensing. In a simple implementation of the current-sensing approach, the cell is biased at a certain constant voltage level and the resulting cell current is sensed to provide a current-based metric for cell-state. U.S. Pat. No. 7,426,134 B2 discloses one example of a current-sensing technique in which the bias voltage can be set to successive higher levels. The resulting cell-current compared to successive reference levels, for detecting the different cell-states. U.S. Pat. No. 7,542,338 B2 discloses a similar technique in which the cell current is simultaneously compared with different reference levels. In the alternative, voltage-sensing approach, a constant current is passed through the cell and the voltage developed across the cell is sensed to provide a voltage-based metric for cell-state.
For example, during RESET operation, the phase-change material in a PCM cell is heated above its melting temperature which is typically around 900 K. During SET operation, a temperature of typically about 450 K needs to be reached.
As the technology nodes progress towards 20 nm and beyond, the distance between two neighboring PCM cells becomes very small and very steep temperature gradients need to be reached to write one PCM cell without disturbing the other PCM cell.
A multitude of conventional solutions exist to avoid thermal disturb such as more thermally resistive materials between the neighboring PCM cells or deflection layers for thermal heat. But none of the conventional solutions alone can be sufficient to solve the thermal disturb problem. Additionally, some of the conventional solutions suffer from a trade-off between heat deflection and heat generation. When a deflection heat pathway is provided to lower the temperature at the neighboring PCM cell, the temperature in the written PCM cell is also lower so that the power consumption increases disadvantageously.
US 2013/0258767 A1 describes a PCM cell. A PCM cell includes a phase change material; a reference electrical terminal disposed on first side of the phase change material; first and second electrical terminals disposed on a second side of the phase change material; the phase-change material configured to be reversibly transformable between an amorphous phase and a crystalline phase, in response to a phase-altering electrical signal applied to the phase-change material via the reference electrical terminal and at least one of the first and second electrical terminals; a resistance measurement unit configured to measure a respective electrical resistance between each of the first and second electrical terminals and the reference electrical terminal; and a mathematical operation unit configured to determine a mathematical relation between the respective electrical resistances measured between each of the electrical terminals and the reference electrical terminal.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,791,102 B2 describes a method to manufacture a PCM. The PCM can include a phase change material having a bottom portion, a lateral portion, and a top portion. The PCM can further include a first electrode material contacting the bottom portion and the lateral portion of the phase change material and a second electrode material contacting the top portion of the phase change material.
WO 2010/038216 A1 describes PCM cells and fabrication thereof. A PCM cell includes two electrodes; PCM material and a dielectric barrier. The dielectric barrier is arranged to provide electron tunneling, e.g. Fowler-Nordheim tunneling, to the PCM memory material. A contact made of PCM material can also be provided. The dielectric barrier is substantially uniform e.g. of substantially uniform thickness, e.g. ≧5 nm.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,558,213 B2 describes a vertical PCM cell. A vertical PCM cell has an active region of PCM material defined either by providing a contact extending only over part of the PCM material or an insulating layer exposing only part of the PCM material. There can be more than one active region per cell allowing more than one bit of data to be stored in each cell.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,624,236 B2 describes a PCM cell having vertical channel access transistor. A device includes a substrate having a first region and a second region. The first region includes a first field effect transistor having a horizontal channel region within the substrate, a gate overlying the horizontal channel region, and a first dielectric covering the gate of the first field effect transistor. The second region of the substrate includes a second field effect transistor comprising a first terminal extending through the first dielectric to contact the substrate, a second terminal overlying the first terminal and having a top surface, and a vertical channel region separating the first and second terminals. The second field effect transistor also includes a gate on the first dielectric and adjacent the vertical channel region, the gate having a top surface that is co-planar with the top surface of the second terminal.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,486,745 B2 describes multi-terminal phase change devices. Phase change devices, and particularly multi-terminal phase change devices, include first and second active terminals bridged together by a phase-change material whose conductivity can be modified in accordance with a control signal applied to a control electrode. This structure allows an application in which an electrical connection can be created between the two active terminals, with the control of the connection being effected using a separate terminal or terminals. Accordingly, the resistance of the heater element can be increased independently from the resistance of the path between the two active terminals. This allows the use of smaller heater elements thus requiring less current to create the same amount of Joule heating per unit area. The resistance of the heating element does not impact the total resistance of the phase change device. The programming control can be placed outside of the main signal path through the phase change device, reducing the impact of the associated capacitance and resistance of the device.
In "Enhanced Thermal Efficiency in Phase Change Memory Cell by Double GST Thermally Confined Structure", an enhanced thermal efficiency in PCM cell by double GST thermally confined structure is described.
Accordingly, it is an aspect of the present invention to provide an improved memory device including a plurality of PCM cells.

Memory device and method for thermoelectric heat confinement

International Business Machines Corporation


Described are methods of communicating network device information between network devices. A communication is established between a first network device and a second network device according to a link layer discovery protocol (LLDP). The method further comprises an LLDP advertisement message is output in the communication from the second network device to the first network device. The first network device determines whether the second network device processes fragmented packets by searching the LLDP advertisement message for a fragmentation time length value (TLV) field. The second network device outputs to the first network device a plurality of packet fragments in response to a determination that the LLDP advertisement message includes the fragmentation TLV field.

LLDP is a well-known neighbor discovery protocol, which allows Ethernet network devices to advertise topology information such as device configuration and identification details to neighboring devices. For example, an Ethernet blade switch can advertise the presence of its ports, major capabilities, and a current status to other LLDP stations in the same LAN. LLDP transmissions occur on ports at regular intervals or whenever there is a relevant change to their status. The switch can also receive LLDP information advertised from adjacent LLDP-capable network devices. The information is exchanged via a plurality of TLVs provided in an LLDP packet during transmission.
As data center technologies evolve, the number of TLVs in an LLDP packet has increased along with the amount of information contained in the TLVs. However, the maximum frame size for transmitting an LLDP packet across an Ethernet network is 1522 bytes. Thus, the number of TLVs transmitted in a given single LLDP instance is limited.

Fragmentation of link layer discovery protocol packets


A system to facilitate automatic data center assembly is described. The system includes a first enclosure, including a first set of components, each component including a component manager to perform a component function and a first enclosure manager, communicatively coupled to each component manager, to perform a discovery of each of the first set of components and discover one or more adjacent enclosures coupled to the enclosure via link cables. The system also includes a system manager to automatically discover the first enclosure via the first enclosure manager and discover each of the first set of plurality of components via an associated component manager.

Data centers house computer systems and associated components, such as storage systems. For instance, data centers may include redundant or backup components and infrastructure for power supply, data communications connections and various security devices. However, installation and setup of data centers requires significant planning, and is accomplished via manual setup of storage systems, manual configuration of shared storage on each server, and manual configuration of switches, which typically requires coordination of three different administrators (e.g., server, storage and networking).

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP


The present invention overcomes drawbacks whereby the supply of pressure oil to a hydraulic cylinder for operating a ground working device is temporarily cut, and operation of the ground working device is temporarily stopped when a control valve for the travel device is operated while a control valve for the ground working device is being operated. When control valves (V4, V5) for the travel devices are operated during operation of control valves (V6, V7, V8) for the ground working device, and a first flow channel switching valve (V12) is switched from an operating position (31) to a travel position (34), a second flow channel switching valve (V13) is switched from a non-feeding position (39) to a feeding position (40) before or at the same time as the first flow channel switching valve (V12).

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a backhoe hydraulic system in which a swivel base equipped with a ground working device is mounted so as to be able to swivel on a travel body about a vertically directed central axis.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional backhoe hydraulic systems in which a swivel base equipped with a hydraulically driven ground working device is mounted so as to be able to swivel on a travel body provided with a pair of hydraulically driven left and right travel devices about a vertically directed central axis include a system that is configured so that during a non-travel state, pressure oil from a first pump and a second pump is fed together to the ground working device, and the pressure oil from a third pump is fed to a swivel motor for swiveling the swivel base. During a travel state, the pressure oil from the first pump is fed to one of the left and right travel devices, the pressure oil from the second pump is independently fed to the other of the left and right travel devices, and the pressure oil from the third pump is fed to a hydraulic actuator of the ground working device (see JP 2006-161510A, for example).
This hydraulic system is provided with a first flow channel switching valve that is capable of switching between a work position in which pressure oil from the first pump and the second pump is fed together to a control valve for the ground working device, and a travel position in which the pressure oil from the first pump and the second pump is fed independently to a control valve for the left and right travel devices; and a second flow channel switching valve that is capable of switching between a non-feeding position in which the pressure oil from the third pump is not fed to the control valve for the ground working device, and a feeding position in which the pressure oil from the third pump is fed to the control valve for the ground working device.
In the hydraulic system, the second flow channel switching valve and the first flow channel switching valve are composed of pilot-operated switching valves that are switched by a pilot pressure, and are configured so that the pilot pressure is fed to a travel-independent valve and the flow channel switching valves when operation of the control valve for the travel device is detected, and the pilot pressure is fed to the flow channel switching valves when operation of the control valve for the ground working device is detected.
The first flow channel switching valve is also configured so as to by switched from the work position to the travel position by the pilot pressure that is created by the operation of the control valve for the travel device, and the second flow channel switching valve is configured so as to remain in the non-feeding position without being switched to the feeding position by the pilot pressure created by the operation of the control valve for the ground working device during the non-travel state, and to by switched to the feeding position by the pilot pressure that is the sum of the pilot pressure created by the operation of the control valve for the travel device, and the pilot pressure created by the operation of the control valve for the ground working device when the ground working device is in use, and the control valve for the travel device is operated.


A leader pin assembly for attachment to tape as a generic and space-efficient interface between tape and equipment which manipulates the tape, and a method for making the same. The leader pin assembly preferably includes a leader pin, an elastomer element, and a clip. The leader pin is barbell-shaped, having enlarged ends and at least one pair of flanges each spaced a distance from a respective enlarged end to define a pair of recesses and a center section of the leader pin. The center section of the leader pin is sized to permit tape to be wound around the center section, with the elastomer element surrounding the tape and with the clip snugly surrounding the elastomer element to keep the tape securely in place around the center section of the leader pin. The end surfaces of the leader pin may have an outward curve to ensure smooth movement across equipment surfaces during leader pin assembly manipulation. Also the edges of the leader pin may be radiused.

This invention relates to the field of tape and tape equipment, and, more particularly, to mechanical elements and assemblies for connecting tape to tape drive equipment, such as those used in magnetic tape storage systems employed in computer systems, audio/visual systems, and the like.
Several systems and methods exist for winding various types of tape. In computer and audio/visual systems, data storage systems are provided to read data from and/or write data to data storage media, such as magnetic tape. The data storage systems utilizing magnetic tape data storage media typically contain sophisticated data processing equipment and mechanical assemblies which usually include a drive unit for winding the tape. Current tape winding systems use one or more spindles around which tape is wound. To move tape in such systems, a drive unit turns a first spindle in a first direction, thereby winding the tape from a second spindle onto the first spindle. By using the drive unit to turn the second spindle in an opposite direction, the tape may be wound from the first spindle to the second spindle. For portability and tape storage purposes, it is often desirable to remove the tape from the system (hereinafter the xe2x80x9cmachinexe2x80x9d) which reads from and/or writes to the tape. Typically, the tape may either be housed entirely within a cassette which has at least two spindles (the tape being attached at each end to a separate spindle) or within a cartridge which has one spindle to which one end of the tape is attached.
In the latter design, the second end of the tape may be removed from the cartridge and drawn inside the machine which reads from and/or writes to the tape. Inside the machine, the second end of the tape is wound around a second spindle. When desired, the tape may be wound back inside the spindle within the cartridge and the cartridge may then be removed from the machine.
The latter (single-spindle) cartridge design has a significant advantage over cartridge designs employing two or more spindles. Specifically, cartridges having only one spindle are much more space efficient. For example, if the cartridge is square-shaped, tape wound within the single-spindle cartridge employs significantly more space within the cartridge than tape wound within multiple-spindle cartridges, where a great amount of cartridge space is left unused. However, since one end of tape within a single-spindle cartridge is commonly removed from the cartridge, drawn into the machine reading from or writing to the tape, and wound around a spindle within the machine, problems arise in the design of an element or assembly which permits the machine to xe2x80x9cgrabxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cpickxe2x80x9d and manipulate the tape end. A number of designs are well-known in the industry, but each brings with it one or more deficiencies. Each design performs the same basic function (i.e., provides an element or assembly to which a machine may attach in order to grab or xe2x80x9cpickxe2x80x9d the tape end from the cartridge, thereby allowing the machine to pull the tape end inside of the machine and secure the tape end to a spindle within the machine). For purposes of this discussion, the machine mechanism which xe2x80x9cpicksxe2x80x9d the tape end from the cartridge will hereinafter be called the xe2x80x9cpickerxe2x80x9d.
In on cartridge design, the tape end to be drawn inside the machine is secured to an element called a leader block. One example of this cartridge design is a cartridge made by IBM and designated model number 3480. When this cartridge is not being used, the leader block forms part of the cartridge wall itself (e.g., part of a perimeter wall or a corner of the cartridge). When installed within the machine which will read from or write to the cartridge tape, the machine inserts a picker into a hole within the leader block. The picker then pulls the leader block into the machine from its position on the cartridge. The tape is secured to the leader block by being wrapped about a pin which is snap fitted into a groove within the leader block. The pin is usually made of an elastomeric material which is slightly larger than the groove into which it fits so that the tape is firmly secured between the pin and the groove when the pin is snapped into place within the groove. The leader block shape of this cartridge design is also important in that once the leader block is fully drawn into the machine, one edge of the leader block forms an exterior surface of the spindle within the machine. Therefore, this leader block edge is curved to match the round exterior shape of the spindle.
A significant disadvantage of the leader block design is its size and shape. For a machine to read from or write to tape stored within a cartridge using a leader block tape connection, the machine must have a picker which is compatible with the rather unusual design, size, and shape of the leader block. Specifically, the picker must fit within the hole in the leader block, while the internal mechanism of the machine must be adapted to accept and secure the leader block (and its particular shape) within the machine. For the above-described leader block design, this means that the machine spindle must be designed to integrally house the leader block. These constraints dictate a relatively large leader block size and require fairly specific machine and spindle design parameters to allow the leader block to be manipulated, moved, and secured inside the machine. A relatively large leader block results in either a larger cartridge, a larger machine to read from and/or write to the tape, or both.
In another cartridge design, a tape splice is used rather than a leader block. Such a cartridge design is employed by Digital Linear Tape cartridges manufactured by Quantum Corporation. In this design, a piece of stiff and resilient connector tape (e.g., mylar) is secured to the end of the tape within the cartridge. The opposite end of the connector tape is formed to releasably attach to the machine picker, which is also a stiff and resilient piece of connector tape. The piece of connector tape secured to the tape within the cartridge may have a large hole in its free end which is xe2x80x9cgrabbedxe2x80x9d and pulled by a hook in the picker. The tape splice cartridge design addresses the problem inherent in the leader block tape connection design: the relatively large sized and unusually-shaped connection between the tape and the picker. In the connector tape cartridge design, the spliced mylar-to-tape connection may be wound around the machine spindle, with the tape being wound on the machine spindle over the mylar-to-tape connection.
However, the tape splice cartridge design has its own design deficiencies. For example, reliability problems exist in the design of the stiff and resilient connection tape used to connect the picker to the cartridge tape. The connection tape must be stiff enough to resist bending during the connecting procedure (when the machine connects the connection tape to the cartridge tape), but must be flexible enough to easily bend while being wound around a spindle. Therefore, a compromise must be made to either stiffen the connection tape (thereby making winding more difficult and increasing the chance of incorrectly-wound tape) to facilitate easier xe2x80x9cpickingxe2x80x9d or relax the connection tape (thereby making the picking procedure more difficult or unreliable). This compromise can result in a connection or winding which is undesirable. For example, incorrectly-wound tape may lead to tape damage and/or misfeeding of the tape in the cartridge or machine. Also, when a desired connection is not made and the machine attempts to wind the magnetic tape into the machine, the machine can xe2x80x9cswallowxe2x80x9d the picker (the disconnected connection tape). When the picker is thus xe2x80x9cswallowedxe2x80x9d into the machine, the machine usually must be serviced to extract the picker from the machine. Conversely, when a desired disconnection procedure fails, attempts to release the cartridge from the machine can cause damage to the tape, the cartridge, and/or the machine. In short, the compromise necessary to provide a connection tape which is both stiff enough to facilitate reliable connections and disconnections while being relaxed enough to be properly wound results in a less-than-optimal design.
The tape splice cartridge design has other undesirable features. For example, when the tape is wound around a spindle, the mylar-to-tape connection may cause the wound tape above the mylar-to-tape connection to be thicker than the other areas along the circumference of the wound tape (creating a xe2x80x9cbumpxe2x80x9d in the wound tape). This bump caused by the mylar-to-tape connection is amplified as more tape is wound on the spindle, and has the undesirable effect of creating a xe2x80x9conce aroundxe2x80x9d type of runout on the spindle which can distort a recorded signal on the tape. Another disadvantage of the tape splice cartridge design is the fact that during winding operations, the mylar-to-splice connection passes over the recording head(s) of the machine. This action exposes the recording heads to potential damage and/or excessive wear.
As described above, although designs exist for connecting the tape of a cartridge to the picker of a machine which reads from and/or writes to the tape, each design suffers from significant drawbacks, including inefficient connection size, connection elements which create difficulty in establishing compatibility between cartridges and machines, and connection elements which are not optimally designed for both winding and connecting operations. Therefore, a need exists for a tape-to-machine connection which is space efficient (is as small as possible), affords compatibility with a number of different machines into which a cartridge may be inserted (preferably without major design changes to the machines), and has a simple connection design for dependable connection and disconnection operations. The invention as described herein provides such a tape-to-machine connection.
A leader pin assembly and a method of making a leader pin assembly are disclosed for use in connecting tape with elements of a machine which manipulate the tape (e.g., move the tape, wind or unwind the tape from a spindle, etc.). In one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the leader pin assembly includes three parts: a leader pin with an elongated barbell shape and with at least one pair of flanges flanking a center section of the leader pin around which the tape is wrapped, an elastomer element which is fitted over the tape wrapped around the center section of the leader pin, and a clip fitted around the elastomer element to secure the elastomer element in a snug position around the tape and leader pin. In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the elastomer element and the clip are unitary, either constituting one element or being attached to one another. In other preferred embodiments of the present invention, the entire leader pin assembly is molded in place around the tape or the tape is attached to a surface of the leader pin assembly by a bonding material or other fastener.
The flanges and enlarged ends of the leader pin define boundaries for recesses which preferably are used by a picker to latch onto for manipulating the leader pin assembly (e.g., for extracting the leader pin and attached tape from a tape cartridge, for pulling the leader pin and attached tape into a machine which is to read from or write to the tape, etc.). The simple shape of the leader pin assembly permits the size of the assembly to be greatly reduced without greatly increasing the manufacturing cost of the assembly, thereby maximizing space efficiency of equipment (such as tape cartridges and tape drives) which stores and/or manipulates the tape and leader pin assembly. Also, the simple shape of the leader pin assembly results in a generic element and generic interface between tape and equipment which manipulates the tape.
The ends of the leader pin may have an outwardly-curved surface to facilitate smooth movement of the leader pin assembly through equipment which manipulates the leader pin assembly. Also, edges of the leader pin may be beveled to allow equipment (such as a picker which secures itself to the leader pin assembly for pin extraction from a tape cartridge) to more smoothly engage and manipulate the leader pin.

Tape leader pin assembly and method for making the same

International Business Machines Corporation