A scanner with a built-in microcontroller is provided for decreasing the delay of transmission. The scanner includes: an image-picking device for picking digital data of a plurality of image lines, a microcontroller electrically connected to the image-picking device for continuously detecting whether the image-picking device is ready to scan a second image line after a first image line is picked and send out a digital data which have been picked, and an interface device electrically connected to the image-picking device and a universal serial bus (USB) for receiving the digital data sent out by the image-picking device and transmitting the digital data to a data processing device through the USB.

The present invention relates to a scanner with a built-in microcontroller to decrease the delay of transmission.
A scanner has become a very popular peripheral equipment of the computer. Generally, a scanner is connected with a personal computer (PC) by using a printer port or an interface card now. Please refer to FIG. 1 which is a conventional scanner 11 connected with the PC 13 by the printer port 12. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a scanning process of the scanner 11 connected with the PC 13 through the printer port 12. When the PC 13 sends a scanning required signal for starting the scanner 11, a scanning process will be carried out. During the scanning process, the PC 13 is continuously detecting whether the scanner 11 is ready to scan the second image line after the first image line has been scanned. If the scanner 11 is not ready, the PC 13 will keep detecting until the scanner 11 is ready for scanning the next image line and sending out the scanning data to the PC 13.
Currently, various kinds of peripheral equipment of the computer are getting more and more, e.g. mouse, joystick, printer, and monitor, all of which have become indispensable and have their own interfaces. Therefore, the universal serial bus (USB) is developed for solving the problems of connection and usage. The USB is adapted to connect all kinds of peripheral equipment which is in conformity with the USB standards. Of course, the scanner can also be connected with the computer through the USB. Please refer to FIG. 3 which is a block diagram of the conventional scanner 31 which is in conformity with USB standards and is connected with the PC 33 by the USB 32. FIG. 4 is a timing diagram of the signal transmission of the scanner 31 connected with the PC 33 through the USB 32. Basically, the transmission way of the USB is to send all received signals at the time point of every frame. As shown in FIG. 4, the length of each frame is 10xe2x88x923s. When the PC 33 generates a scanning required signal at the time point A, however, the USB 32 does not send the scanning required signal to the scanner 31 immediately, but send it with other signals generated by other peripheral equipment, connected with the USB 32 in series, at time point of frame 1. However, depending on the priority of signals, the scanning required signal sometimes is delayed to be sent at the time point of the frame 2. If the scanner 31 is ready to scan a first line segment until the time point B, the response signal of the scanner 31 to the PC 33 through the USB 32 will be delayed to be sent at the time point of the frame 3. Then, the command signal of the scanner 31 for scanning a next image line and sending back the scanning data from the scanner 31 to the PC 33 will be delayed to be sent at the time point of the frame 4.
Because of the characteristic of the USB 32, the signal transmission will be delayed (as shown in FIG. 4). It brings about an increase in the scanning time and influences the efficiency. The main purpose of the present invention is to develop a more efficient scanner by using a built-in microcontroller to improve the drawbacks as discussed above.
An object of the present invention is to provide a scanner with a built-in microcontroller to decrease the delay of transmission. The scanner includes: an image-picking device for picking digital data of a plurality of image lines, a microcontroller electrically connected to the image-picking device for continuously detecting whether the image-picking device is ready to scan a second image line after a first image line is picked and send out digital data which have been picked, and an interface device of a USB electrically connected to the image-picking device and a universal serial bus (USB) for receiving the digital data sent out by the image-picking device and transmitting the digital data to a data processing device through the USB for further processes.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the image-picking device is a charge-coupled device (CCD).
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the data processing device is a personal computer (PC).
The present invention may best be understood through the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:


Disclosed is a dye-sensitized solar cell module and a method of manufacturing the same. More specifically a counter electrode has connection parts formed within the side surfaces of the transparent conductive substrates. Edges of the working electrode and the counter electrode are bonded with each other by a sealant along the outer peripheral except for at one or more portions of the edges to form an electrolyte injection port. An electrolyte is then injected through the electrolyte injection hole into a space between the working electrode and the counter electrode. The electrolyte injection hole is then sealed by a sealant.

(a) Technical Field
The present invention relates to a dye-sensitized solar cell module and a method of manufacturing the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to a dye-sensitized solar cell module, which improves the panel performance and efficiency by increasing the effective cell area, such as the area of photo-electrodes, with respect to the panel area in a constructed panel in comparison with the prior art, and a method of manufacturing the same.
(b) Background Art
In recent years, as global warming is becoming a serious problem, technologies for utilizing environmentally friendly energies have begun emerging. Among them, the most environmentally friendly field is the solar cell field which utilizes a new and renewable energy. Solar cells utilizes silicon solar cells, thin film solar cells (which use inorganic materials such as CIGS(Cu(InGa)Se2 (copper indium gallium selenide) and CdTe(cadmium telluride)), dye-sensitized solar cells, organic solar cells, and organic-inorganic hybrid solar cell.
Among these types solar cells, silicon solar cells have already been widely used commercially in various fields such as houses and industrial plants, but their price and installation costs are prohibitively expensive for use on products such as vehicles and machinery.
On the other hand, dye-sensitized solar cells are inexpensive compared to silicon solar cells and can achieve semi-transparent designs or other various designs. Such dye-sensitized solar cells may be applied not only to houses but also to building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) power generation systems like silicon solar cells, and may be applied to various fields including electronic industrial fields such as home appliances, portable electronic devices, and vehicles.
These dye sensitized solar cell systems typically include a system for generating electricity by using a photoelectric conversion mechanism. This photoelectric conversion mechanism is configured to absorb visible light from a Ru-based pigment adsorbed by a TiO2 electrode and then formed into a photocurrent.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a conventional dye-sensitized solar cell module. As illustrated, the dye-sensitized solar cell module 1 includes a working electrode 10 on which a photo-electrode 12 to a which a dye is adsorbed is stacked, a counter electrode 20 on which a catalytic electrode 22 is stacked, and an electrolyte 30 filled within a sealed space between the working electrode 10 and the counter electrode 20.
The exemplary dye-sensitized solar cell module 1 includes: a photo-electrode 12 (i.e., a semiconductor oxide thick film) such as a TiO2 electrode to which an Ru-based dye capable of absorbing light is adsorbed, the photo-electrode 12 being stacked on a transparent conductive substrate 11 of a working electrode 10; a catalytic electrode 22 formed using platinum (Pt) and stacked on a transparent conductive substrate 21 of a counter electrode 20, and an I−/I3−-based electrolyte 30 filled in a space between the working electrode 10 and the counter electrode 20 sealed by a sealant 31 with the working electrode 10 and the counter electrode 20 being bonded to each other.
A collector may be formed in an interior of the dye-sensitized solar cell module to acquire necessary electric power by applying the dye-sensitized solar cell module to applications, making it possible to effectively collect the photocurrent. Then, the overall efficiency of a dye-sensitized solar cell is influenced by the size of a collector and a photo-electrode in a working electrode when modules are manufactured through the same process. Accordingly, the structures, shapes, and dispositions of collectors affect the overall efficiency of the system. Thus a collector capable of collecting photocurrent is required in an application with a large surface area.
This collector may include collector cells surrounded by a protective film, and a collector bottom portion with which the collector cells are connected. That is, in a general dye-sensitized solar cell module having a collector, in the case of the working electrode, silver collector cells (not shown) surrounded by protective films between TiO2 photo-electrodes 12 are formed in a linear format on the transparent conductive substrate 11. Then, the collector cells extend to the collector bottom portion 13 stacked along a periphery of the transparent conductive substrate 11 and are integrally connected to each other.
Likewise, in the counter electrode 20 also, thin collector cells (not shown) surrounded by a protective films between the catalytic electrodes 22 are formed, and the collector cells extend to the collector bottom portion 23 stacked along a periphery of the transparent conductive substrate 21 and are integrally connected to each other.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, the collector bottom portions 13 and 23 are exposed to the outside of the module 10 in the electrodes 10 and 20, and act as electrode portions electrically connecting adjacent modules when a solar cell panel is constructed by using a plurality of solar cell modules 1.
Meanwhile, in the case of small home electronic appliances, a single dye-sensitized solar cell module is sufficient for application thereof. However, for a sunroof or a panorama roof of a vehicle, a house, etc., which requires a large area, a plurality of dye-sensitized solar cell modules should be connected in series or in parallel to each other so that they can be applied to a large area. Among them, since a window for a house has a window frame, a frame structure can be applied when a dye-sensitized solar cell module is installed within the window. However, it is impossible to apply the same frame structure as one would for a house to a structure, such as a sunroof or a panorama roof of a vehicle. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a new method for fixing a dye-sensitized solar cell module.
In the dye-sensitized solar cell module 1 as described above, a photo-electrode 12, a dye, an electrolyte 30, and a catalytic electrode 22 are disposed between transparent conductive substrates 11 and 12 of a working electrode 10 and a counter electrode 20. In manufacturing such a dye-sensitized solar cell module 1, as shown in FIG. 1, the working electrode 10 and the counter electrode 20 are first bonded to each other by a sealant 31, the electrolyte 30 is injected through an electrolyte injection port 24 formed on one side of the working electrode 10, and the electrolyte injection port 24 is sealed via a sealing glass, to complete the dye-sensitized solar cell module 1.
Once individually assembled, a plurality of such dye-sensitized solar cell modules 1 manufactured in the way described above are arranged in the form of a panel, and the electrode parts exposed outside of the modules are then connected to each other, so as to complete a solar cell panel.
FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a panel constructed using conventional dye-sensitized solar cell modules, which shows the connection between the modules. As shown, the collector bottom portions 13 and 23 are exposed outside of the dye-sensitized solar cell modules 1. When two adjacent modules are arranged in the form of a panel, the two modules 1 are assembled by making the exposed electrode portions of the working electrode 10 and the counter electrode 20 vertically engage with each other, so as to make the collector bottom portions 13 and 23 of the exposed electrode portions come into contact each other.
In order to connect the electrode portions of adjacent modules 1 with each other as described above, the electrode portions are often exposed on the outer surface of the modules. Further, the electrode portions should not be connected to each other when the outer peripheries of the working electrode 10 and the counter electrode 20 in the modules are aligned to exactly coincide with each other. Instead, the electrode portions should be connected to each other when the outer edge of the counter electrode 20 and the outer edge of the working electrode 10 are arranged at positions further outside of corresponding edges of opposite electrodes, respectively, as shown in FIG. 1.
In other words, the electrode portions are connected to each other where the right outer edge of the working electrode 10 is arranged at a position further outside of the right outer edge of the counter electrode 20 and the left outer edge of the counter electrode 20 is arranged at a position further outside of the left outer edge of the working electrode 10.
However, in the case of bonding two electrodes while preventing the two electrodes from completely overlapping on each other as described above, the exposed portions of the electrodes are fragile and impose restrictions on the design, so as to degrade the marketability.
More specifically, when constructing a solar cell panel 100 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 which use a plurality of solar cell modules 1, the larger the area occupied by the exposed portions of the electrodes in the entire panel area, the smaller the effective cell area, such as an area of photo-electrodes. Due to the restrictions imposed by the exposed electrode area on the effective cell area, such as the area of photo-electrodes within the entire panel area, there limitations related to increasing the panel performance and efficiency.
Further, the formation of the electrolyte injection port 24 at the counter electrode 20 in order to enable injection of electrolyte requires an additional processing step for formation of the injection port. In blocking the electrolyte injection port 24, it is necessary to use a sealing glass 25 and an adhesive agent, such as surlyn, which increases the manufacturing cost. In addition, even after the sealing glass 25 is fixed via an adhesive agent, the sealing glass 25 may be easily detached from the electrolyte injection port 24.
As a result, the conventional structure has safety problems associated with its design, such as electrolyte leakage, and the sealing glass 25 attached over the electrolyte injection port 24 on the outer surface of the counter electrode 20 may degrade the outer appearance, so as to degrade the performance and marketability of the system.

Dye-sensitized solar cell module and method of manufacturing the same


The present invention relates broadly to a floor jack and a multi-component trunnion assembly that transfers motion of a power unit to the lifting arm of the jack. The end block may include one or more trunnions that are coupled to the block. The trunnions may engage and be coupled to one or more connection plates coupled to the lifting arm of the jack. A hydraulic power unit, including at least one piston may be coupled to the trunnion block for lifting the lifting arm of the jack.

Floor jacks are used in repair shops to lift a vehicle from the ground. An operator positions the floor jack underneath a lift point and raises the vehicle at that point. Floor jacks can be powered by manual or automated means, and have become important to the automotive repair industry.
Shop floor jacks are required to withstand significant amounts of weight, such as that of a vehicle. In order to provide the strength and stability to support such weights, the internal components of the jack must be sturdy and capable of withstanding great forces, in multiple directions, during actuation of the lifting and releasing mechanism of the jack. Traditional floor jacks use a trunnion block, or end block, to transfer power and motion from a power unit (i.e., piston(s) and lift mechanisms) to the lifting arm of the jack. Traditional end blocks are unitary bodies with flanges or pins extending from the side of the end block. These end pins and the end block are formed as a unitary body, which creates a point of weakness in the structural integrity of the block, particularly when a large force or other stress is applied to the saddle or the lifting mechanism of the jack.


An electronically controlled transmission in which a single drive motor is used to drive a shift shaft, in which shift shock is reduced during continuous running. The transmission has a shift shaft, an actuator, a gear box and a control portion. The actuator causes the shift shaft to rotate. The gear box includes a gear shift mechanism, a clutch mechanism, and a crank case that houses the gear shift mechanism and the clutch mechanism. The gear shift mechanism is activated in association with rotation of the shift shaft. The clutch mechanism connects and disconnects transmission of power to the gear shift mechanism from the engine in association with rotation of the shift shaft. The control portion controls the actuator based on the temperature of the gear box.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a transmission for a straddle type vehicle and, in particular, relates to an electronically controlled transmission that uses an actuator to engage and disengage a clutch and to perform a shift operation of a gear box, and a control method for the transmission.
2. Description of Related Art
Manual transmissions typically have a clutch lever for engaging and disengaging a clutch, and a shift pedal for performing gear change. When a shift change is performed, the rider must operate both a clutch pedal and the shift pedal. As a result, there is demand for a transmission that allows a shift change to be performed more simply, and that is easier for the rider to use.
In light of this demand, a manual transmission has been proposed that allows both engagement and disengagement of a clutch and a gear change to be performed by foot operation of a shift pedal that is connected to a shift shaft (transmission shaft). Thus, the rider can perform a shift change by just operating the shift pedal. Further, the transmission has a relatively simple structure and low cost.
In order to improve ease of use for the rider still further, an electronically controlled transmission has also been proposed in which the shift shaft is driven by a drive motor. For example, JP-A-11-082709 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,085,607 propose an electronically controlled transmission in which a shift shaft is driven by a single drive motor. In this electronically controlled transmission, a shift change is performed just by a simple switch operation. Operations that require great proficiency, like partial clutch engagement, are not necessary. With this electronically controlled transmission, the shift shaft is driven by the single drive motor. As a result, the electronically controlled transmission is simple and has a low cost.
However, the inventors of the present invention have found that if a vehicle mounted with the electronically controlled transmission described in JP-A-11-082709 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,085,607 is run continuously, there is variation in the magnitude of the shift shock that occurs during shifting. More specifically, as the vehicle is continuously run, the shift shock becomes relatively large as compared to immediately after start up.
With a manual transmission having a foot-operated shift pedal, a rider who is highly proficient in the shift operation can sense variation in the magnitude of the shift shock during continuous running, and can rapidly adjust the shift pedal operation in accordance with this variation. As a result, the magnitude of the shift shock does not vary that significantly.
It is possible to reduce variation in the magnitude of the shift shock during continuous running even with an electronically controlled transmission. More particularly, the shift operation can be minutely adjusted in accordance with a plurality of sensors provided in the transmission. However, as described above, the key features of an electronically controlled transmission that has a shift shaft driven by a single drive motor are ease of use and simplicity. If a plurality of sensors is disposed in the transmission, the structure becomes complicated and simplicity is lost.

Transmission, straddle-type vehicle provided with the same, and control method for transmission


Techniques are presented to detect word line failures (such as word line to word line shorts, control gate to substrate shorts, broken word lines, and so on) in non-volatile memory arrays. A first simultaneous read of multiple word lines is performed, followed by a second simultaneous read of the same word lines, where the read conditions of the two reads are shifted by a margin. For example, one of the read could use a standard read voltage on the word lines, while the other read could shift these levels slightly higher. The results of the two reads can then be compared on a bit line by bit line basis, XOR-ing the results to determine is the set of word lines may include any defective members.

This application relates to the operation of re-programmable non-volatile memory systems such as semiconductor flash memory, and, more specifically, to handling and efficient managing of errors in memory operations.
Solid-state memory capable of nonvolatile storage of charge, particularly in the form of EEPROM and flash EEPROM packaged as a small form factor card, has recently become the storage of choice in a variety of mobile and handheld devices, notably information appliances and consumer electronics products. Unlike RAM (random access memory) that is also solid-state memory, flash memory is non-volatile, and retaining its stored data even after power is turned off. Also, unlike ROM (read only memory), flash memory is rewritable similar to a disk storage device. In spite of the higher cost, flash memory is increasingly being used in mass storage applications. Conventional mass storage, based on rotating magnetic medium such as hard drives and floppy disks, is unsuitable for the mobile and handheld environment. This is because disk drives tend to be bulky, are prone to mechanical failure and have high latency and high power requirements. These undesirable attributes make disk-based storage impractical in most mobile and portable applications. On the other hand, flash memory, both embedded and in the form of a removable card are ideally suited in the mobile and handheld environment because of its small size, low power consumption, high speed and high reliability features.
Flash EEPROM is similar to EEPROM (electrically erasable and programmable read-only memory) in that it is a non-volatile memory that can be erased and have new data written or "programmed" into their memory cells. Both utilize a floating (unconnected) conductive gate, in a field effect transistor structure, positioned over a channel region in a semiconductor substrate, between source and drain regions. A control gate is then provided over the floating gate. The threshold voltage characteristic of the transistor is controlled by the amount of charge that is retained on the floating gate. That is, for a given level of charge on the floating gate, there is a corresponding voltage (threshold) that must be applied to the control gate before the transistor is turned "on" to permit conduction between its source and drain regions. In particular, flash memory such as Flash EEPROM allows entire blocks of memory cells to be erased at the same time.
The floating gate can hold a range of charges and therefore can be programmed to any threshold voltage level within a threshold voltage window. The size of the threshold voltage window is delimited by the minimum and maximum threshold levels of the device, which in turn correspond to the range of the charges that can be programmed onto the floating gate. The threshold window generally depends on the memory device's characteristics, operating conditions and history. Each distinct, resolvable threshold voltage level range within the window may, in principle, be used to designate a definite memory state of the cell.
It is common in current commercial products for each storage element of a flash EEPROM array to store a single bit of data by operating in a binary mode, where two ranges of threshold levels of the storage element transistors are defined as storage levels. The threshold levels of transistors correspond to ranges of charge levels stored on their storage elements. In addition to shrinking the size of the memory arrays, the trend is to further increase the density of data storage of such memory arrays by storing more than one bit of data in each storage element transistor. This is accomplished by defining more than two threshold levels as storage states for each storage element transistor, four such states (2 bits of data per storage element) now being included in commercial products. More storage states, such as 16 states per storage element, are also being implemented. Each storage element memory transistor has a certain total range (window) of threshold voltages in which it may practically be operated, and that range is divided into the number of states defined for it plus margins between the states to allow for them to be clearly differentiated from one another. Obviously, the more bits a memory cell is configured to store, the smaller is the margin of error it has to operate in.
The transistor serving as a memory cell is typically programmed to a "programmed" state by one of two mechanisms. In "hot electron injection," a high voltage applied to the drain accelerates electrons across the substrate channel region. At the same time a high voltage applied to the control gate pulls the hot electrons through a thin gate dielectric onto the floating gate. In "tunneling injection," a high voltage is applied to the control gate relative to the substrate. In this way, electrons are pulled from the substrate to the intervening floating gate. While the term "program" has been used historically to describe writing to a memory by injecting electrons to an initially erased charge storage unit of the memory cell so as to alter the memory state, it has now been used interchangeable with more common terms such as "write" or "record."
The memory device may be erased by a number of mechanisms. For EEPROM, a memory cell is electrically erasable, by applying a high voltage to the substrate relative to the control gate so as to induce electrons in the floating gate to tunnel through a thin oxide to the substrate channel region (i.e., Fowler-Nordheim tunneling.) Typically, the EEPROM is erasable byte by byte. For flash EEPROM, the memory is electrically erasable either all at once or one or more minimum erasable blocks at a time, where a minimum erasable block may consist of one or more sectors and each sector may store 512 bytes or more of data.
The memory device typically comprises one or more memory chips that may be mounted on a card. Each memory chip comprises an array of memory cells supported by peripheral circuits such as decoders and erase, write and read circuits. The more sophisticated memory devices also come with a controller that performs intelligent and higher level memory operations and interfacing.
There are many commercially successful non-volatile solid-state memory devices being used today. These memory devices may be flash EEPROM or may employ other types of nonvolatile memory cells. Examples of flash memory and systems and methods of manufacturing them are given in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,070,032, 5,095,344, 5,315,541, 5,343,063, and 5,661,053, 5,313,421 and 6,222,762. In particular, flash memory devices with NAND string structures are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,570,315, 5,903,495, 6,046,935. Also nonvolatile memory devices are also manufactured from memory cells with a dielectric layer for storing charge. Instead of the conductive floating gate elements described earlier, a dielectric layer is used. Such memory devices utilizing dielectric storage element have been described by Eitan et al., "NROM: A Novel Localized Trapping, 2-Bit Nonvolatile Memory Cell," IEEE Electron Device Letters, vol. 21, no. 11, November 2000, pp. 543-545. An ONO dielectric layer extends across the channel between source and drain diffusions. The charge for one data bit is localized in the dielectric layer adjacent to the drain, and the charge for the other data bit is localized in the dielectric layer adjacent to the source. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,768,192 and 6,011,725 disclose a nonvolatile memory cell having a trapping dielectric sandwiched between two silicon dioxide layers. Multi-state data storage is implemented by separately reading the binary states of the spatially separated charge storage regions within the dielectric.
In order to improve read and program performance, multiple charge storage elements or memory transistors in an array are read or programmed in parallel. Thus, a "page" of memory elements are read or programmed together. In existing memory architectures, a row typically contains several interleaved pages or it may constitute one page. All memory elements of a page will be read or programmed together.
Errors in Written Data
In the types of memory systems described herein, as well as in others, including magnetic disc storage systems, the integrity of the data being stored is maintained by use of an error correction technique. Most commonly, an error correction code (ECC) is calculated for each sector or other unit of data that is being stored at one time, and that ECC is stored along with the data. The ECC is most commonly stored together with a unit group of user data from which the ECC has been calculated. The unit group of user data may be a sector or a multi-sector page. When this data is read from the memory, the ECC is used to determine the integrity of the user data being read. Erroneous bits of data within the unit group of data can often be corrected by use of the ECC.
The trend is to reduce the size of the memory systems in order to be able to put more memory cells in the system and to make the system as small as possible to fit in smaller host devices. Memory capacity is increased by a combination of higher integration of circuits and configuring each memory cell to store more bits of data. Both techniques require the memory to operate with increasing tighter margin of error. This in turn places more demand on the ECC to correct errors.
The ECC can be designed to correct a predetermined number of error bits. The more bits it has to correct, the more complex and computationally intensive will the ECC be. For quality assurance, conventional ECC is designed based on the expected worst-case cell error rate at the end of life of the memory device. Thus, they have to correct a maximum number of error bits up to the far tail end of a statistical population of error rate.
Major word line gross failures, such as word line to word line shorts, control gate short circuits, and broken word lines, have become significant in contributing to error rates as memory technology scales down. Identifying these failures is consequently of importance for memory to deliver low error rates. To increase memory integrity, detection of such failures can be done after each programming and more frequently at other times. When such detection is frequent, these can degrade system performance. Consequently, memory system performance would benefit from efficient, high performance detection.

Multi-word line erratic programming detection


A method and system for cutting hub bores in metal railroad wheels is disclosed. The system includes a lead and second torch for cutting the hub bores. In the method, the lead torch is moved to an initial position above the wheel. The lead torch is energized and moved to cut through a part of the wheel. The second torch is moved to an initial position above the wheel. The second torch is then energized and moved to cut through a part of the wheel. The entire hub bore is cut in the wheel. Additional torches may also be provided. A gantry system for supporting the lead and second torches is disclosed. The gantry system includes lead and second linear movement means arranged parallel to each other and a third linear movement means perpendicular to the lead and second linear movement means. The gantry system also includes a lead torch carriage means for supporting the lead torch and a second torch carriage means for supporting the second torch. The lead torch carriage means is connected to be movable by the lead linear movement means and the second torch carriage means is connected to be movable by the second third linear movement means. The lead and second linear movement means are supported by the third linear movement means and connected for independent movement along the third linear movement means. The hub-cutting system may include a position sensing means, a temperature sensing means, and a control means that allows the movement and speed of the lead torch and second torch to be adjusted based upon the sensed position and temperature of the wheel.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the manufacture of railroad wheels, and more particularly to the forming of bores in the hubs of railroad wheels through which axles may be received.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Steel railroad wheels have traditionally been made by casting the wheels. As part of the production of such cast steel railroad wheels, it has been necessary to form a bore in the central hub of the wheel so that the end of an axle may be inserted through the hub bore to mount the wheel on the axle. The hub bores have been formed through cutting with a torch followed by machining. Since the hub may be on the order of 6-8 inches in thickness, cutting the hub bore through this thickness of steel may take some time, and this operation typically comprises a bottleneck in the production of the wheels. Accordingly, it has been necessary to remove the wheels from the production conveying line for cutting the hub bores.
One prior art system for cutting the hub bores has used a rotating lift assembly to remove a wheel from a conveyor line and place the wheel at a hubcutting station. The railroad wheel is centered using opposed hydraulic cylinders and rotatable bearing rollers to force the railroad wheel into the desired position. The railroad wheel has a hollow steel pipe in the center of its hub. A torch assembly is then pivoted about a horizontal axis down into position over the railroad wheel. The torch assembly has a cutting torch attached to a rotatable mechanism. The lit cutting torch is positioned at the center of the railroad wheel hub with its flame traveling down the hollow steel pipe in the center of the railroad wheel hub. After the torch has pre-heated the underlying material, the torch begins cutting. The torch cuts through the railroad wheel hub in a radial direction to a pre-determined hub bore radius, and then moves around a circular path to cut the entire hub bore. When cutting is complete, the hub center should fall free from the torch-bored wheel. The torch assembly is pivoted up out of position and the railroad wheel is then placed back on the conveyor line by the rotating lift assembly, which places another railroad wheel in position at the torch cutting assembly mechanism.
The prior art hub cutting method and system has been deficient in several respects. The existing drive mechanism for the torch uses both a linear drive for the initial radial cut outward from the center of the wheel to a ring gear, and a circumferential drive that engages and drives the torch around the circumference of the ring gear to complete the cut. The drive train for both the linear and circumferential drives consists of a motor, gearbox and chain drive connected to the axis of motion. As the chain may wear and stretch over time, there may be problems with repeatably positioning the torch for the production of many wheels.
For the necessary rotary motion of the torch, the prior art has relied upon a rack and pinion arrangement connected to the chain drive and attached to the ring gear that must be lubricated. But in this environment, the hot railroad wheels may be on the order of 850 degrees F. at this point in the process. Radiant heat from the railroad wheels may tend to cause the lubricating grease to congeal, creating problems with the meshing of the gears. If the gears are not properly meshed, the torch may jump and gouge the railroad wheel, which may require scrapping the wheel if the gouge is deep enough.
In addition, the hub center does not always fall free from the railroad wheel after the hub cut is complete. It has sometimes been necessary for an operator to strike the hub center with a device such as a sledgehammer to free the hub center from the remainder of the wheel after cutting. Such a manual operation not only further slows down the manufacturing process but also may be hazardous.
In addition, with the present mechanical wheel centering device, as the rollers wear, the position of the rollers must generally be adjusted to keep the wheel in the exact center of the machine with respect to the torch. Otherwise, the hub bore cuts may be off-center, which may require the railroad wheel to be scrapped.

Method and system for cutting hub bores in railroad wheels


An orthopaedic implant insertion instrument including an insertion handle and a radiolucent aiming guide and method of using same. The insertion handle may be formed of steel and is used for inserting an orthopaedic implant, such as an intramedullary nail or bone plate, into a patient. The radiolucent aiming guide is used to properly locate and guide a drill and/or other insertion instruments for installing fixation elements, such as screws, pins, nails, bolts, blades, etc., through the orthopaedic implant and into the affected bone to secure the implant in position and facilitate healing. The aiming guide is substantially hollow and tubular and is preferably formed of a carbon fiber material.

Fractured or deformed long bones, e.g., femur, tibia, are typically repaired, reconstructed and/or healed using an elongated rod, often referred to as a "nail," which is inserted into the intramedullary canal of the bone. Once inserted, there is a need to stabilize bone segments or parts relative to the nail or rod to enhance the healing, repair and/or reconstruction process. To this end, intramedullary nails may have one or more transverse holes, which may be formed perpendicular to the long axis of the nail and/or at an angle relative to the long axis of the nail, for the passage of bone screws, nails, bolts, pins or other fixation elements that traverse the lateral cortex of the femur and may pass through the femoral neck and into the femoral head. Other fixation elements may pass through the nail and the shaft of the femur to prevent unwanted rotation or translation of the nail.
During such a surgical procedure, a surgeon will continually monitor the location of the implants within the bone by using a fluoroscope. Fluoroscopy allows the surgeon to see the locations of the femur, the nail in the femur, and any transverse fixation elements being installed. The surgeon is then able to aim a drill and to correctly insert the fixation elements, e.g., screws, into the nail holes at the desired femur locations.
Existing targeting devices for orthopedic implants are frequently described as being radio-transparent or radiolucent, however, they are sufficiently dense or thick-walled to cause scattering of the radiation being used. Frequently this is caused by the material being used, but is also caused by the configuration of the structure of the device. X-ray scattering compromises accuracy by detracting from the clarity of the operative site, which may make the operative procedure longer and more difficult.

Orthopedic implant insertion handle and aiming guide


A tri valve backflow preventer having parts and materials preferably consisting of steel nuts and bolts, ductile iron operating nuts, nitrile rubber O-rings, nitrile rubber gaskets, manganese bronze valve adjusting stems, valve wedge gates made of ductile iron encapsulated with EPDM rubber, and ductile iron valve bodies. Material and parts are constructed in accordance with ASTM standards and the requirements of the AWWAC-509 and AWWAC-504 for gate valves and butterfly valves. The tri valve backflow preventer is used with a temporary conventional backflow assembly between existing water main pipe and new/upgraded sections of water main pipe while they are under construction. It is left in place when the temporary backflow assembly is removed. Its use saves extra inspection hours, extra man hours, extra equipment hours, conserves large amounts of good water otherwise needed for flushing, and reduces the safety risk to the public during activation of new water lines.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of devices used to protect public drinking water during and after water main construction, specifically to a tri valve backflow prevention apparatus and a method of its use with a temporarily installed conventional backflow prevention assembly between existing water main pipe and a newly constructed, repaired, or upgraded section of water main pipe, to provide water needed at the construction site for pipe testing and other purposes. Its advantages relate to the temporary backflow prevention assembly being exclusively connected to it, and not to the water main pipe under construction, whereby when pressure and bacterial testing in the constructed pipe is successfully completed and the temporary assembly is removed after construction for use elsewhere, water is not drained from the constructed pipe, as in prior art methods of water main construction in common use today. Water draining into the construction hole not only compromises worker safety, it subjects the opened pipe to a risk of bacterial contamination, causes additional good drinking water to be used for flushing the constructed pipe to remove possible bacterial contamination and then to refill the constructed pipe prior to its use for delivery of drinking water to the public, and also causes a need for further pressure and bacterial testing. Thus, with present invention use, inspection and testing time of new/added sections of water main pipe are significantly reduced which translates into a reduced job cost, labor and material cost are also reduced as no sleeve installation is required between existing and new sections of water main pipe to replace the removed temporary backflow prevention assembly, and the time required to activate the constructed pipe for delivery of drinking water to the public is significantly reduced as one simply shuts off the two side valves of the present invention and removes the temporary backflow prevention assembly, leaving the new/repaired/upgraded pipe filled with good drinking water and ready for immediate water delivery as soon as one chooses to open the main valve body of the present invention using its easily accessible keyed valve stem. Since no breach ever occurs in or between the existing and constructed water main pipe after the present invention is installed and successful pressure and bacterial testing are initially accomplished, the new/repaired/upgraded water main pipe can immediately be used, whereas with currently known prior art methods, much additional labor and material expense is required to activate the constructed pipe, and a large amount of good drinking water is unnecessarily wasted for additional flushing and refilling of the constructed pipe after temporary backflow prevention assembly removal. Further, with present invention use, the two new sleeve joints created after temporary assembly removal in prior art construction are avoided, which otherwise increase the after construction failure risk of the water main pipe. Use of the present invention also eliminates the increased health risk posed to public drinking water as a result of opening the new/repaired/upgraded water main pipe midway during construction and after the constructed pipe has initially satisfied needed pressure and bacteria testing requirements. The present invention tri valve apparatus has a unitary structure that incorporates two side valve bodies and a main valve body together within a single housing. Only the two side valve bodies remain open during construction and provide the points of connection for both ends of a temporary backflow prevention assembly. The two side valves of the present invention are only shut and plugged after successful pressure and bacteria testing of the constructed pipe is achieved, with the main valve body of the present invention being thereafter opened via its easily accessible keyed valve stem to let good drinking water into the new/repaired/upgraded water main pipe for delivery to the public. Thus, the main valve of the present invention is directly connected between the existing and new/repaired/upgraded water main pipe at the outset of construction, and it remains in place even after the pipe construction is complete and the temporary assembly is removed from the side valve bodies, becoming a permanent part of the water main structure during its useful life and until it needs refurbishment or replacement.
2. Description of the Related Art
To protect public drinking water during the construction of new sections of water main pipe, and the upgrading of existing sections of water main pipe, a jumper system is commonly used. However, use of a jumper system has many disadvantages, including potentially adverse affects on worker safety and/or the safety of the drinking water to be delivered to the public via the new or repaired/upgraded sections of water main pipe. A jumper system involves the installation of one end of a temporary backflow prevention system using angled pipe fittings onto an existing water main valve and installation of the opposing end of the same temporary backflow prevention system to a section of new or repaired/upgraded water main pipe, also using angled pipe fittings. However, such an installation of a temporary backflow prevention system typically creates an approximate eight foot separation between the new/upgraded and existing sections of water main pipe that will ultimately need to be connected together after the temporary backflow prevention system is removed. However, before removal of the temporary backflow prevention system, installation of the new or upgraded section of water main pipe must be completed and it must successfully pass all pressure and bacterial testing requirements. The problems begin to occur when the temporary backflow prevention system is removed, as all of the water in the new or upgraded sections of water main pipe used for its testing is lost, and then the new or upgraded water main pipe needs to be refilled, re-flushed, and successfully pass additional pressure and bacterial contamination testing prior to being used for drinking water delivery. One important problem associated with the removal of the conventional temporary backflow prevention system just described is that the contractors performing the new main construction typically excavate back down to the whole area of the existing water main valve and the new or repaired/upgraded water main pipe, and then when the jumper system is removed, all of the water in the new or repaired/upgraded water main pipe that was used for its testing drains into the working hole. This causes the waste of hundreds of gallons of good clean drinking water, and further leaves the existing valve and new or upgraded water main pipe open and exposed to the possible entry of bacteria, a procedure that defeats the pre-testing step of chlorinating the inside of the new or repaired/upgraded sections of water main pipe to make them bacteria-free. Worker safety can also be compromised by the water drained into the excavation hole. Further disadvantages of the commonly used jumper system involve the tie in of the new or upgraded water main pipe, which is completed by use of a retrained ductile iron sleeve to connect the new or repaired/upgraded water main pipe to the existing water main shut-off valve, followed by flushing of the new/upgraded/repaired water main pipe with water to remove all of the air therein. The tie in takes extra inspection hours, extra man hours, extra equipment hours, extra material cost, wasted large amounts of good water, and even then there is no guarantee that the new water line is free of bacteria.
In contrast, the tri valve of the present invention is not removed and eliminates all of the above-mentioned problems. The main valve of the tri valve present invention is only opened after its two side valves used during construction are closed and plugged. Also, during use of the present invention tri valve, the existing water main pipe is sealed off at all times from bacteria intrusion. Further, the added cost of providing the present invention tri valve is minimal when compared to the total cost of prior art water main installations and/or upgrade that include extra man hours and equipment time needed for additional pipe flushing and inspection, the amount of good potable water wasted during jumper removal and the additional pipe flushing needed to remove air and possible bacterial contamination, and the safety risk posed to the drinking water provided for the public. No other apparatus or method is known that functions in the same manner or provides all of the advantages of the present invention.


The present invention is a thermally self-regulating nozzle for a snowmaking machine. The invention also relates to a system including the nozzle and method of snowmaking using the nozzle. The nozzle includes an outer housing made of a first material and a thermally separated inner housing, and a nozzle assembly attached to the outer housing by a member made of a second material having a thermal coefficient of expansion lower than the first material. The size of the nozzle outlet being dependent upon the expansion/contraction of the outer housing to accommodate more efficient snowmaking over a range of temperatures.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to snowmaking machines. More particularly, the present invention relates to a thermally self-regulating nozzle for a snowmaking machine that allows snowmaking more efficiently over a variety of temperatures. The invention also relates to a system including the above nozzle and method of snowmaking using the above nozzle.
2. Related Art
Heretofore, ski areas and snow parks have used a variety of snowmaking machines to produce snow where annual snowfall is insufficient to assure a sufficiently long operating season. Each machine, called guns, have disadvantages which the present invention aims to address.
One type of snowmaker is the air and water gun. While these guns are relatively light, cheap to manufacture, and, in the case of a portable model, easy to setup, they are very expensive to operate. The cause of their high operational expense is that in order to provide the required amount of air for one gun, e.g., 200-500 cubic feet per minute (cfm), they require upwards of 75 horsepower (hp) to run. Accordingly, the power consumption required to operate one of these guns is exorbitant. In an effort to reduce the required air consumption (e.g., to 50 cfm using 12.5 hp), users have raised the height of the guns. However, raising the height of the gun has required the users to permanently mount the guns in an area, thus reducing their overall versatility. Furthermore, permanent mounting places the user at the mercy of favorable wind direction to achieve the desirable spread of snow on the ground.
Another type of snowmaker are portable fan guns. These guns, while producing large quantities of snow, are very large and heavy. As a result of their weight, permanent mounting of them is usually provided. Otherwise, a snowcat is required to move them. Therefore, the versatility of these guns, e.g., use on steep or rugged terrain, is severely limited. Further, top of the line versions oftentimes include onboard computers that control water flow rate relative to air temperature, thus increasing their costs.
The main disadvantage of the fan type snowmaker system is its initial cost. For instance, enough guns to cover one slope, e.g., 20 guns, will cost close to half a million U.S. dollars. Further, if the user wants to move the guns, a snowcat and larger numbers of workers are required.
An overall disadvantage of the above related devices, is their inability to accommodate efficient snowmaking for a variety of different temperatures without expensive microprocessor controlled systems.
Accordingly, it is the aim of the present invention to provide an inexpensive, versatile and highly efficient snowmaking machine which cures the above deficiencies in the related art.

Self-regulating snowmaking nozzle, system and method


A pole mechanism that can be adjusted with one hand that can be used in trekking poles, tool handles, and other applications requiring the use of an adjustable-length elongated member.

1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to the field of adjustable-length poles, particularly those used in outdoor equipment, such as support poles for trekking.
2. Background
Many hikers, backpackers, and mountaineers use a single pole or a pair of poles for additional support while trekking. On uneven, steep, or slippery terrain, these poles can provide stability. In addition, these poles can assist in distributing a person's weight, thereby reducing the stress on the knees, hips, and ankles, as well as providing extra power by engaging the strength of the upper body.
As trekkers come in many shapes in sizes, so must their poles. To obtain the maximum benefit from the poles, it is important that the poles are sized properly to not only the person, but also adjustable to the terrain. For example, when trekking uphill a person may want the poles slightly shorter than normal, but if going downhill, he may want them slightly longer. In addition, a person may also want to conveniently store the poles when not in use, whether on the trail or in a closet or bag.
Several types of adjustable trekking poles presently exist to fill this need. Typically, these are multi-sectional poles that telescope out to the desired length and then lock into place with either a twisting mechanism or a spring-loaded pin. Although adjusting these poles is not terribly difficult, a person must stop on the trail and usually use two hands to make any necessary adjustments. This can be, at best, slightly inconvenient, or even possibly dangerous on hazardous terrain. When trekking in an environment with multiple ascents and descents, frequent pole adjustments can break the person's rhythm and create a nuisance. In cold weather, this operation could be further complicated by bulky gloves, which could prevent proper adjustment and securing of the pole lengths.
A mechanism providing easy, one-handed adjustment of a pole could also be useful in many other applications other than trekking poles. For example, a painter may need to quickly telescope out a painting device to reach a high ceiling, and then need a shorter handle for painting down low. Similarly, maintenance personnel could also benefit from having cleaning tools with variable-length handles that can be adjusted with one hand.
What is needed is a one-handed mechanism for easily and quickly adjusting the length of a trekking pole or other tool with for minimal disruption to a trekker's travel on the trail or a worker on the job.


A coefficient of a function that relates a measurement from a wafer to a parameter used in making the measurement (such as the power of a beam used in the measurement) is determined. The coefficient is used to evaluate the wafer (e.g. to accept or reject the wafer for further processing), and/or to control fabrication of another wafer. In one embodiment, the coefficient is used to control operation of a wafer processing unit (that may include, e.g. an ion implanter), or a heat treatment unit (such as a rapid thermal annealer).

In the processing of a semiconductor wafer to form integrated circuits, charged atoms or molecules are directly introduced into the wafer in a process called ion implantation. Ion implantation normally causes damage to the lattice structure of the wafer, and to remove the damage, the wafer is normally annealed at an elevated temperature, typically 600° C. to 1100° C. Prior to annealing, material properties at the surface of the wafer may be measured, specifically by using the damage caused by ion implantation.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,579,463 granted to Rosencwaig et al. (that is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety) describes a method for measuring a change in reflectance caused by a periodic change in temperature of a wafer's surface (see column 1, lines 7–16). Specifically, the method uses "thermal waves [that] are created by generating a periodic localized heating at a spot on the surface of a sample" (column 3, lines 54–56) with "a radiation probe beam . . . directed on a portion of the periodically heated area on the sample surface," and the method "measures the intensity variations of the reflected radiation probe beam resulting from the periodic heating" (column 3, lines 52–66).
As another example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,854,710 to Opsal et al. (also incorporated herein by reference in its entirety) describes a method wherein "the density variations of a diffusing electron-hole plasma are monitored to yield information about features in a semiconductor" (column 1, lines 61–63). Specifically, Opsal et al. state that "changes in the index of refraction, due to the variations in plasma density, can be detected by reflecting a probe beam off the surface of the sample within the area which has been excited" (column 2, lines 23–31) as described in "Picosecond Ellipsometry of Transient Electron-Hole Plasmas in Germanium," by D. H. Auston et al., Physical Review Letters, Vol. 32, No. 20, May 20, 1974.
Opsal et al. further state (in column 5, lines 25–31 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,854,710): "The radiation probe will undergo changes in both intensity and phase. In the preferred embodiment, the changes in intensity, caused by changes in reflectivity of the sample, are monitored using a photodetector. It is possible to detect changes in phase through interferometric techniques or by monitoring the periodic angular deflections of the probe beam."
A brochure entitled "TP-500: The next generation ion implant monitor" dated April, 1996 published by Therma-Wave, Inc., 1250 Reliance Way, Fremont, Calif. 94539, describes a measurement device TP-500 that requires "no post-implant processing" (column 1, lines 6–7, page 2) and that "measures lattice damage" (column 2, line 32, page 2). The TP-500 includes "[t]wo low-power lasers [that] provide a modulated reflectance signal that measures the subsurface damage to the silicon lattice created by implantation. As the dose increases, so does the damage and the strength of the TW signal. This non-contact technique has no harmful effect on production wafers" (columns 1 and 2 on page 2). According to the brochure, TP-500 can also be used after annealing, specifically to "optimize . . . system for annealing uniformity and assure good repeatability" (see bottom of column 2, on page 4).
U.S. Pat. No. 5,978,074 discloses focusing a probe beam onto a sample surface within an area periodically excited by an intensity modulated generation beam. The power of the reflected probe beam is measured by a photodetector, and the modulated optical reflectivity of the sample is derived. Measurements are taken at a plurality of pump beam modulation frequencies. In addition, measurements are taken as the lateral separation between the pump and probe beam spots on the sample surface is varied.
At column 3, lines 23–30, U.S. Pat. No. 5,978,074 states that "in the prior art, the modulation range was typically in the 100 KHz to 1 MHz range. Some experiments utilized modulation frequency as high as 10 MHz. In the subject device, it has been found useful to take measurements with modulation frequencies up to 100 MHz range. At these high frequencies, the thermal wavelengths are very short, enabling information to be obtained for thin metal layers on a sample, on the order of 100 angstroms."
At column 8, lines 22–27, U.S. Pat. No. 5,978,074 further states "Once all measurements at various spacings and modulation frequencies have been taken and stored, the processor will attempt to characterize the sample. Various types of modeling algorithms can ve used depending on the complexity of the sample. Optimization routines which use iterative processes such as least square fitting routines are typically employed."
Abruptness of a junction in a semiconductor wafer can be measured by Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS) in which a wafer is milled away using an ion beam, and the removed material is analyzed. Alternatively, abruptness of a junction can also be determined from electrical characteristics of transistors or other test structures on a completely fabricated integrated circuit (IC) device, having contacts.

Use of coefficient of a power curve to evaluate a semiconductor wafer


A fastener assembly for engagement with an aperture in an article including a fastener having at least a shank, a head at a first end of the shank and a resilient retaining member along the shank for releasably retaining the fastener to the article after insertion of at least a portion of the retaining member within the aperture, and an engagement member for compressing the retaining member prior to insertion within the aperture and contact of the retaining member with the article, and for preventing compression of the retaining member by the article about the aperture.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to fasteners and more particularly to a push-in panel fastener assembly which includes retaining members to resiliently retain the fastener within panel apertures so as to connect two or more panels together and provides an engagement member for compression of the retaining members before installation of the fastener within the panel apertures so as to prevent contact between the panel and the retaining members and reduce or eliminate damage to the retaining members from the panel.
2. Description of the Related Art
Panel fasteners are typically utilized in automobile assembly operations so as to hold two or more panels together or to connect another article to a panel by inserting the fastener within an aperture formed in the panels or panel. To resiliently retain such fasteners wtihin the panel aperture, the fasteners include some type of resilient retaining member along a shank portion of the fastener, such as one or more outwardly extending legs, a plurality of barbs or similar structures.
Such fasteners, however, typically rely on the panel to compress the resilient retaining members upon insertion of the shank within the panel aperture. Since the panels are typically formed from metal, the sharp edges about the panel aperture shear and/or tear the retaining members during insertion. This results in high installation forces as well as deformation of the fastener which not only can cause lower retention forces and failure of the fastener, but can prevent its removal and/or reinstallation especially if a plastic fastener is utilized.
It therefore would be desirable to provide a fastener assembly for resilient retention within an aperture of a panel or panels which includes retaining members that are compressed by another portion of the fastener assembly, rather than the panel, prior to insertion within the panel aperture so as to thereby eliminate damage to the fastener from the panel, reduce insertion forces and failure, and enable removal and reinstallation of the fastener.

Fastener assembly with compression member


To realize a transistor of normally-off type having a high mobility and a high breakdown voltage. A compound semiconductor layer is formed over a substrate, has both a concentration of p-type impurities and a concentration of n-type impurities less than 1×1016/cm3, and includes a group III nitride compound. A well is a p-type impurity layer and formed in the compound semiconductor layer. A source region is formed within the well and is an n-type impurity layer. A low-concentration n-type region is formed in the compound semiconductor layer and is linked to the well. A drain region is formed in the compound semiconductor layer and is located on a side opposite to the well via the low-concentration n-type region. The drain region is an n-type impurity layer.

The present invention relates to a semiconductor device, and for example, to a technology applicable to a semiconductor device having a transistor using a compound semiconductor layer.
In the field of power semiconductor, the demand for an increase in breakdown voltage and a reduction in resistance is rising. The degree of difficulty in device design of an element using a silicon substrate is increasing because of the adoption or the like of a complicated structure called super junction in order to achieve performance exceeding the physical limit.
In contrast to this, in recent years, development of the field effect transistor using a group III nitride semiconductor has been in progress. Such a transistor includes the HEMT (High Electron Mobility Transistor) using the AlGaN/GaN-based material and the MOSFET (Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor) using the Ga-based material. For example, in the transistor having the AlGaN/GaN heterojunction structure, two-dimensional electron gas is generated at the interface due to polarization by the piezo effect. The two-dimensional electron gas has high electron mobility and a high-carrier density and is capable of giving a low-on resistance and high-speed switching characteristics to the transistor.
In the case where a transistor is used as an element for power control, the transistor is required to have a low resistance and a high breakdown voltage between drain and gate. Furthermore, the transistor using the two-dimensional electron gas is commonly a transistor of normally-on type. In order to reduce power consumption of the transistor, it is preferable to form the transistor into a normally-off type.
In contrast to this, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2009-246292 (Patent Literature 1) describes that it is possible to give both a high mobility and a high breakdown voltage to the GaN-FET by using the electron transit layer using the two-dimensional electron gas as an electric field relaxation layer. Furthermore, Patent Literature 1 describes that the transistor is formed into the normally-off type by separating the electron transit layer by the recess formed so as to reach the electron transit layer. However, in the structure of Patent Literature 1, the threshold voltage and the channel resistance vary considerably depending on the depth of the recess. Furthermore, due to the damage caused by the recess processing, the mobility in the channel part reduces and the channel resistance increases. Because of this, it is difficult to simultaneously achieve a normally-off type, a high mobility, and a high breakdown voltage in the GaN-FET as a whole.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2011-187623 (Patent Literature 2) describes formation of the electric field relaxation layer by introducing n-type impurities into the p-type GaN substrate without using the two-dimensional electron gas. In detail, Patent Literature 2 describes that the electric field relaxation layer having high mobility and a high breakdown voltage is obtained by setting the sheet carrier concentration of the electric field relaxation layer to 1×1015 cm−3 or more and 5×1017 cm−3 or less.

Semiconductor device with group-III nitride compound semiconductor layer on substrate for transistor


A lamp comprising a light source (18) and a reflector (26), wherein the reflector is of non-circular cross-section perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the lamp and comprises several panels (20). Each panel has an undulating surface (22) that diffuses the light and so provides a relatively uniform level of illumination. The reflector panels may be concave and preferably form a hexagonal or square section reflector that is closed by a transparent cover (24). The lamp is provided for use as a recessed ceiling light and is secured by a circlip (44) and a sprung bracket mount (30). Also disclosed is a lamp with a non-circular section reflector formed from concave reflector panels.

The present invention relates to lamps and light fittings and buildings incorporating such lamps. The invention relates in particular to lamps for downlighters such as dichroic lamps and 12V or mains electricity lamps.
A known lamp for a downlighter has a light source and a reflector for reflecting light emitting from the light source. The reflector has a square or hexagonal section when viewed along a longitudinal axis of the lamp. The reflector includes a series of reflection panels, four panels in the case of a lamp with a square section and six panels in the case of a lamp with a hexagonal section. Each reflection panel is totally planar, having a totally planar front surface. The light pattern projected from such lamps is of substantially varying luminosity across a surface on to which light is projected from such lamps. This is undesirable in many applications.

Lamp reflector having a plurality of reflecting elements


An inference apparatus predicts the class of a new instance whose class is unknown or generates a rule which is common to an instance set. In the inference apparatus, an instance memory section stores the instance set which each include attribute--value and class. The data type of the attribute--value is discrete type or continuous type. An instance expression section converts the attribute--value of discrete type to a first data expression and the attribute--value of continuous type to a second data expression. A parameter calculation section generates a linear function of each class in which the attribute--value is a variable and calculates a coefficient of each variable in the linear function by assigning one of the first data expression and the second data expression to the variables. A prediction section assigns the attribute--value of the new instance to the variable of the linear function of each class and predicts the class of the new instance by comparing function values among all linear functions of each class. A rule generation section determines coefficients of an orthogonal function by orthogonal expansion of each variable in the linear function, converts each coefficient of the orthogonal function to the first data expression and calculates a logical proposition as the rule from the orthogonal function including the coefficients of the first data expression.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an inference apparatus and method for predicting a class of a new instance whose class is unknown, or for generating a rule which is common to an instance set.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, there is a practice in various technological areas of creating an inference system in order to output a solution for a user's question. For example, in medical terminology there is a practice to diagnose a patient's disease, by use of an "expert system" instead of a doctor. For example, a doctor inputs the condition of the patient to the expert system and the expert system predicts the name of the disease according to medical knowledge. In this case, the expert system previously stores rules based on the knowledge, such as if-then rules, and provides guidance to the solution by using the rules.
To form rules, the user previously inputs an instance set (plural instances) to the expert system and the expert system generates rules from the instance set. In short, it is important for the inference system to generate correct rules from the instance set and to correctly predict the answer to the question according to the rules.
As one method to predict the answer for a question by using the instance set, statistical multiple regression analysis is well known. In multiple regression analysis, a regression equation which represents the kind of instance set is determined and a value of the new instance (question) is assigned to a variable of the regression equation to predict the answer of the new instance. FIG. 1 shows one example of the instance set to generate a regression equation. In FIG. 1, one instance is comprised of attributes (person's stature, weight) and class (health condition). According to a relation between stature and weight, class "O" is marked if the person is in normal health condition and class "X" is marked if the person is in abnormal health condition. FIG. 2 shows a graph of weight vs stature on which is plotted cross points relating stature and weight, and the regression equation which represents the tendency of the group of cross points. If the value of stature and weight of a patient is assigned as a variable of the regression equation "f(X)+ax=by=c", it is decided whether the patient is in normal health condition or not. However, in the multiple regression analysis, it is difficult to generate rules from the regression equation. Furthermore, the attribute-value is comprised of a continuous value only, though a discrete value is also necessary for the attribute. Therefore, it is insufficient to acquire knowledge for the inference system.
As a method to classify the new instance, discriminant analysis is well known. FIG. 3 shows a graph on which normal points "O" and abnormal points "X" representing relations between stature and weight are plotted, as well as the decision standard which discriminates "O" and "X" on the graph. However, in the discriminant analysis, a specialist must determine the decision standard by observing the marked point on the graph. Therefore, the decision standard includes the specialist's subjectivity and it is sometimes incorrect.
On the other hand, in the field of machine learning, a decision tree is determined by the instance set and the answer for a new instance (question) is predicted according to the decision tree ("Induction of Decision Trees" Machine Learning 1, pp 81-106, 1986). FIG. 4 shows the instance set to determine the decision tree. In FIG. 4, one instance is comprised of attributes (weather, wind, humidity of every day) and class (for example, the day is suitable for fishing or not). FIG. 5 is the decision tree which represents the relation between the attributes and class shown in FIG. 4. In FIG. 5, if the weather is rain, the day (today) is not suitable for fishing. If the weather is fine and the wind is strong, the day is not suitable for fishing. If the weather is fine and the wind is weak, the day is suitable for fishing. If the weather is cloudy and the humidity is low, the day is suitable for fishing. If the weather is cloudy, the humidity is high and the wind is weak, the day is suitable for fishing. If the weather is cloudy, the humidity is high and the wind is strong, the day is not suitable for fishing.
If the number of attributes is large, the shape of the decision tree is more complicated. Therefore, it is difficult for a user to extract the relation between attributes from the decision tree. Furthermore, the attribute-value is comprised of discrete values only, though continuous values may also be necessary for attributes. In short, it is difficult for the inference system to generate correct rules as knowledge from the decision tree.

Inference apparatus and method for processing instances using linear functions of each class


Inhibition of CXCR4 can inhibit tumor growth and metastasis during certain therapeutic windows. Disclosed are novel methods for treating and preventing cancer in a subject related to administration of CXCR4 inhibitors during a therapeutic window following treatment with another anti-tumor therapy.

In the U.S. alone, cancer affects approximately 11.7 million adults and children, and this year, more than 1.5 million new cases will be diagnosed (American Cancer Society. Cancer Facts & Figures 2011. Atlanta: American Cancer Society; 2011). Over 500,000 Americans are expected to die from cancer in 2011, more than 1,300 people per day.
Currently, cancer therapy involves surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiation treatment or eradicate cancerous cells in a patient (see, for example, Stockdale, 1998, "Principles of Cancer Patient Management", in Scientific American: Medicine, vol. 3, Rubenstein and Federman, eds., Chapter 12, Section IV). All of these approaches pose significant drawbacks for the patient. Surgery, for example, can be contraindicated due to the health of the patient or can be unacceptable to the patient. Additionally, surgery might not completely remove the neoplastic tissue. Radiation therapy is effective only when the irradiated cancerous tissue exhibits a higher sensitivity to radiation than normal tissue, and radiation therapy can also often elicit serious side effects. (Id.) With respect to chemotherapy, there are a variety of chemotherapeutic agents available for treatment of neoplastic disease. However, despite the availability of a variety of chemotherapeutic agents, chemotherapy has many drawbacks (see, for example, Stockdale, 1998, "Principles Of Cancer Patient Management" in Scientific American Medicine, vol. 3, Rubenstein and Federman, eds., ch. 12, sect. 10). Almost all chemotherapeutic agents are toxic, and chemotherapy can cause significant, and often dangerous, side effects, including severe nausea, bone marrow depression, immunosuppression, etc. Additionally, many tumor cells are resistant or develop resistance to chemotherapeutic agents through multi-drug resistance.
The development of novel or improved therapies focuses on preventing angiogenesis, growth or regrowth and metastasis of tumors as these are key processes that must be halted in order to successfully treat or cure a cancer. These processes can be promoted by bone marrow-derived cells (BMDCs), e.g. myelomonocytes and macrophages which have migrated into the tumor or the surrounding tissue. Recruitment of BMDCs to a tumor can be triggered by certain chemotherapeutics, vascular disruption treatments, or radiation therapy (Shaked Y, Ciarrocchi A, Franco M, et al. Science 2006; 313:1785-7 Shaked Y, Henke E, Roodhart J M, et al, Cancer Cell 2008; 14:263-73). One mechanism believed to drive recruitment of BMDCs to tumors is the CXCR4-CXCL12 signal pathway. CXCR4 is the receptor for CXCL12 and is suspected of controlling cancer cell migration and metastasis as well as BDMC infiltration into tissues14.
An increased understanding of the kinetics and mechanisms of the CXCR4-CXCL12 pathway and its promotion of BMDC infiltration of tumors will enable more effective therapies, improved combination therapy strategies, and allow lower and fewer doses of anti-cancer treatments without compromising efficacy, thereby avoiding the detrimental side effects of chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

Anti-CXCR4 as a sensitizer to cancer therapeutics


Methods and systems for defining and distributing network data collection rule sets and for filtering messages using the rule sets are disclosed. Message-based filter criteria are automatically deduced from CDR-based filter criteria and downloaded to site collectors. The site collectors implement rule changes on-the-fly using a table-driven system. The message-based rule sets downloaded to the site collectors are supersets of the messages required by multiple different network monitoring applications. As a result, non-redundant, multi-application data streams are sent across the service provider's internal network, resulting in efficient bandwidth utilization.

In network data collection systems, such as telecommunications data collection systems, signaling messages of interest are filtered and distributed to external applications, such as billing applications, fraud detection applications, etc., for further processing. Many of these applications require common information from received signaling messages. However, conventional network data collection systems require a separate message or call detail record (CDR) feed for each application from the data collection location, across the service provider's network, to the data processing location, even when parameters or messages required by various applications are common. Sending duplicates of message parameters in different feeds for different applications wastes bandwidth in the network in which the network data collection system operates. In some instances, this network is the same network used to provide internal communications services, such as corporate intranet services and email. Accordingly, this wasting of bandwidth can adversely affect communications in a telecommunications service provider's internal network.
Another problem related to network data collection is defining and distributing data collection filters to the machines that actually filter the messages. In conventional network data collection systems, filter definition is static, meaning that new filter criteria for a given application must be created by a skilled programmer, compiled, and downloaded to the individual filtering elements. Network data collection service is disrupted in order for the new filter criteria to be installed. For billing applications, disrupting network data collection service can be costly for a service provider. In addition, if the newly compiled filter criteria do not work properly the first time, the process of modifying the source code, recompiling the code, and downloading the compiled code to the filter elements must be repeated. This process further increases the cost of making changes to filter criteria.
Yet another problem associated with conventional network data collection systems is defining filtering rule sets. Defining filtering rule sets at the message or parameter level can be tedious in light of the number of different kinds of messages required by a given application and the number of parameters in each message type. Thus, manually creating rule sets at the message or parameter level is labor intensive and subject to human error.
Accordingly, in light of these difficulties associated with conventional network data collection systems, there exists a long felt need for improved methods and systems for defining and distributing network data collection rule sets and for filtering messages using the rule sets.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Methods and systems for defining and distributing data collection rule sets and for filtering messages using same


A method of preparing a modified-metal surface. The method includes preparing a solution of a phosphorous-based acid in a solvent; immersing a strip of the metal work piece into the solution of the phosphorous-based acid; immersing a strip of a reference metal into the solution of the phosphorous-based acid; supplying a voltage for a duration of time to prepare a phosphorous acid-modified metal work piece; removing the phosphorous acid-modified metal work piece; cleaning and drying the phosphorous acid-modified metal work piece; applying a chitosan solution to the surface in order to attach chitosan/modified chitosan to the phosphorous acid based modified surface; prepare the modified-metal surface; and cleaning and drying the modified-metal surface.

Phosphonic acids are the gold standard for surface modification of metallic substrates. Phosphates, phosphonates and phosphinates form strong hydrolytically stable bonds with metallic surfaces by bonding to the oxide layer which exists on said surfaces. The oxide layer can either be the native oxide layer that forms spontaneously in air or an oxide layer formed by a process such as anodization
Conventionally1-9, phosphonic acids are attached to metals by forming a chemisorbed layer and driving chemical attachment of said layer to the metal surface. The chemisorbed layer is formed by soaking or spraying the phosphonic acid on the metal surface. Chemical attachment is generally achieved by application of heat. The heating step is, conventionally, carried out at around 130° C. for 18 to 36 hours. The heating may be reduced to about 4 hours by baking at 170° C. Alternatively, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,126,210, anodization (under aqueous conditions) may be used to attach short water soluble phosphonic acids to aluminum. However, the process described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,126,210 is limited to phosphonic acids having carbon chain lengths no longer than three carbons, because phosphonic acids with chain lengths longer than three carbons are typically insoluble in water.
Metallic surfaces bonded to a phosphonic acid overlayer may be used to add antibacterial properties for use in, for example, antimicrobial medical devices, including, but not limited to, orthopedic implants.
In this specification where a document, act or item of knowledge is referred to or discussed, this reference or discussion is not an admission that the document, act or item of knowledge or any combination thereof was at the priority date, publicly available, known to the public, part of common general knowledge, or otherwise constitutes prior art under the applicable statutory provisions; or is known to be relevant to an attempt to solve any problem with which this specification is concerned.
While certain aspects of conventional technologies have been discussed to facilitate disclosure of the invention, the inventors of this application in no way disclaim these technical aspects, and it is contemplated that the claimed invention may encompass or include one or more of the conventional technical aspects discussed herein.

Electrochemical attachment of phosphonic acids to metallic substrates and antimicrobial medical devices containing same


Core-coil devices operate by electromagnetic induction and include inductors, transformers, and electromagnets. Cooled core-coil devices include a magnetic core having a channel through it, and a coil wound around the core. Cooled core-coil devices additionally include a coolant loop that carries ferrofluid coolant through the channel and forms a loop with the channel that extends outside the core. Ferrofluid coolant circulates in the loop without a pump due to a thermo-magnetic response to the device's thermal and magnetic field gradients and thereby cools the core while simultaneously adding to the device's inductance.

The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it may be described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present technology.
Core-coil electronic devices, such as transformers, inductors, etc. are widely used to control and modify the electronic power flows (i.e. circuits). Such devices can be subject to undesirable heating during operation. Liquid coolants can be used to remove excess heat from inside the cores of such devices, but implementation of coolant channels also undesirably diminishes the inductance of the device.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide improved designs and methods of cooling a core-coil device with minimal inductance loss.

Cooling magnetic cores with ferrofluid and magnetic cores so cooled

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc.


An improved battery refill system for filling and maintaining a number of interconnected battery cells at a predetermined level with liquid provided by an external liquid supply. The refill system includes a number of refill valves, each associated with a single battery cell, and a main supply valve which connects the battery cells to the liquid supply. Tubing is provided for connecting the battery cells in a chain or serial relationship. The tubing is fabricated from a plymeric material which, over an operating temperature range of between about -20.degree. F. and 200.degree. F., is substantially free of plasticizer bleed. The tubing is also sufficiently conformable and resilient over its service temperature range so as to remain in leak-tight engagement on both the barbed fittings and the compression fittings found in conventional battery watering systems.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,048,557, 5,090,442, and 4,527,593 are each incorporated herein by reference into this disclosure.
The present invention relates generally to a battery refill system used for filling battery cells to a predetermined level and for automatically monitoring and maintaining the battery cells at that level. More particularly, the present invention defines the material parameters of tubing which has found a particularly advantageous use within the battery refill system. This tubing may be used with any of the inventions, and particularly the refill valves, disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,048,557 and 5,090,442.
It is standard practice in the field of industrial battery watering to use a flexible polyvinyl chlorine ("PVC") thermoplastic tubing to interconnect automatic shut-off valves (such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,048,557 and 5,090,442) which are mounted on each cell of a battery to be filled within a battery watering system. The watering system is intended to last the life of the battery (five years or longer). A common water supply feeds water to each cell through the thermoplastic tubing.
It has been widely observed that the thermoplastic tubing mounted on such battery cells tends to discolor, soften, and tactify with age. It was assumed that the softening was generally insignificant and that the discoloration and tactification were due to acid fumes and electrolyte migration occurring during the battery charging cycle. However, these thermoplastic tubing characteristics were not perceived as problems which would affect the reliability of the watering system, so long as no leakage occurred within the tubing. While it was felt that acid fumes and electrolyte migration might cause refill valves to lock in an open or closed position, the mechanism by which this occurred was not completely understood. In fact, it was previously understood that it was the evaporation of the fluid used to fill the battery cells which left a sticky residue between the main valve and seat, such as might create a premature shut-off condition (see U.S. Pat. No. 5,048,557).
A primary reason automatic watering systems are not more widely used is their susceptibility to apparent random failure due to valve contamination. It has been assumed that the specific source of the contamination is either sticky residue from the inside of the battery cells migrating into the valves, or contaminants carried by the water supply into the valve by the thermoplastic tubing.
It is now understood that PVC thermoplastic tubing deteriorates in a fashion which is particularly damaging to the refill valves used in a battery watering system. Specifically, it has been experimentally determined that the tactification found to occur within the thermoplastic tubing after a relatively short period of service on the top of the battery is not simply acid residue collecting on the tubing surface; rather, it is caused-by a separation of the plasticizer found within such tubing from the plastic resin. This plasticizer "bleeding" allows the plasticizer to collect as a liquid on both the inside and the outside of the tubing. Further, it has been found that this plasticizer is immiscible in water, but migrates under the shear stress of the flowing water into the battery cell refill valves. This sticky plasticizer coats critical valve members and can cause malfunctions.


A rule storing unit stores a set of rules each defining facts and a relation between the facts, and weights representing importance levels of the rules. An input data storing unit stores input data. A query storing unit stores a query. An importance level calculating unit calculates an importance level of each fact type of the facts defined by the rules. A fact data generating unit generates, for each fact type, fact data in which true/false is observed as a fact by a number corresponding to the importance level of the fact type, from the input data. A fact data storing unit stores the fact data. An inference performing unit performs probabilistic inference of a result of the query by using the fact data, the rules, and the weights. An output unit outputs a result of the inference.

An inference system is an information processing system that uses facts and rules describing the relations between the facts to derive facts that are not explicitly shown as knowledge. The following techniques have been proposed as techniques relating to such an inference system.
For example, Patent Document 1 describes an inference system that uses a set of weighted rules and observed fact data to calculate the probability of a fact that is not explicitly shown as knowledge.
Further, Non-Patent Document 1 describes a feature extractor that uses open source software called DeepDive to extract structured fact data that can be used in an inference system from unstructured data such as text. Non-Patent Document 1 also describes an inference system that uses the fact data extracted by the feature extractor and a set of weighted rules to calculate the probability of a fact that is not explicitly shown as knowledge.
Further, Patent Document 2 describes a fuzzy inference device that performs an inference operation for each inference rule on an input and generates a definitive value output from each inference output. The fuzzy inference device includes a means for performing an inference operation for each inference rule, a means for setting, for each inference rule, an absolute weight coefficient specific to each rule and a relative weight value between rules, and a means for correcting an inference output by the absolute and relative weight coefficients.
Further, Patent Document 3 describes that in active learning, learning data is randomly resampled to generate partial data. Learning data is data in which its label (class or function value) is set, and corresponds to fact data.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. JP-A 2013-008221
Patent Document 2: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. JP-A H2-244331 (1990)
Patent Document 3: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. JP-A 2005-107743
Non-Patent Document 1: Jaeho Shin, Sen Wu, Feiran Wang, Christopher De Sa, Ce Zhang, and Christopher Re, "Incremental Knowledge Base Construction Using DeepDive" Proceedings of the VLDB Endowment (PVLDB), 2015
In general, in an inference system, when fact data becomes large, the amount of calculation for inference increases, and a time for calculation required for inference tends to increase exponentially.
Then, in order to shorten a time for calculation required for inference, the amount of fact data used for inference may be reduced as described in Patent Document 3. However, when the amount of fact data used for inference is randomly reduced, the accuracy of inference largely decreases.