An imaging modality, in particular a mobile CT system, comprises an imaging system for imaging an object to be examined. The imaging modality is also provided with an image guided surgery system which includes a position measuring system for measuring positions within the object and a data processor for deriving a transformation between positions within the object and the corresponding positions in the image. The position measuring device is also arranged to measure the position of the imaging system and the data processor is arranged to derive the transformation from the position and/or orientation of the imaging system. The position measuring system is notably an optical position measuring system which is arranged to measure the position of the gantry of the CT system. The data processor is arranged to derive the transformation from the measured position of the gantry. A highly accurate result is obtained when a calibration is carried out which links the position of the CT gantry to the position of the scanning plane.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an imaging modality, including an imaging system for forming an image of an object to be examined, and an image guided surgery system, including: a position measuring system for measuring positions within the object, and a data processor for deriving a transformation between positions in the image of the object and corresponding positions within the object. The invention also relates to a method of forming an image of an object to be examined by means of an imaging system wherein a position and/or orientation in the object to be examined is measured. The invention further relates to a method of determining the position of a slice in an imaging system which forms slice images of an examination zone.
2. Description of Related Art
Imaging systems of this kind, capable of forming a slice image of an examination zone for medical purposes, are, for example X-ray computer tomography apparatus, MR apparatus or ultrasound apparatus. Since recently systems of this kind are also used for image guided surgery in order to reproduce or track surgical instruments during an intervention in the body of a patient. The exact position of the surgical instruments can then be determined by means of a position measuring system which measures the position of markers, for example light-emitting diodes (LEDs), provided on the instruments.
An imaging modality of this kind is particularly suitable for use in conjunction with image guided surgery. The image guided surgery system is used to show a position and/or orientation of a surgical instrument in an operating zone within the body of the patient to a user, such as a surgeon, during a surgical intervention. For these applications the object to be examined is a patient to be examined. The patient is examined notably so as to enable a surgical operation to be carried out as well as possible. Such a surgical operation is, for example a (radiological) intervention during which a surgical instrument is introduced into the body of the patient. The surgical instrument introduced into the body of the patient can be used to examine or treat the patient. For the introduction of the surgical instrument use is made of images made before and/or during the operation or intervention, for example X-ray images, computer tomography images or magnetic resonance images. The image guided surgery system includes the position measuring system for measuring the position and/or orientation of the surgical instrument. The image guided surgery system also includes the data processor which is provided with a computer for deriving corresponding positions in a relevant image from the measured positions of the surgical instrument. During the operation the position measuring system measures the position and/or orientation of the surgical instrument relative to the patient and the computer calculates the position and/or orientation corresponding to the measured position and/or orientation of the surgical instrument in such a previously made image. Said previously made image is displayed on a monitor, the actual position and/or orientation of the surgical instrument also being shown therein. The surgeon can observe the image on the monitor so as to see the position of the surgical instrument in the operating zone without having a direct view thereof. For example, the surgeon can observe the image on the monitor so as to determine how to move the surgical instrument in the operating zone without high risk of unnecessary damaging of tissues and notably without risk of damaging vital parts.
An image guided surgery system of this kind is employed, for example in neurosurgery to show the surgeon the exact position of the surgical instrument in the brain during a brain operation.
The imaging modality includes an imaging system. In case the imaging modality is formed by a computer tomography device, the imaging system includes an X-ray source and a detector system. The X-ray source and the detector system are arranged in a number of orientations relative to a patient to be examined in order to acquire a plurality of density profiles. Such density profiles represent the X-ray absorption in the patient to be examined in the respective orientations of the X-ray source and the detector system. One or more images of cross-sections of the patient to be examined are derived from the density profiles. In case the imaging modality is formed by a magnetic resonance device, the imaging system includes receiving coils for receiving magnetic resonance signals. The magnetic resonance signals are generated by spin polarization of nuclei in the patient by means of magnetic fields, followed by excitation of the nuclei. The decay of the nucleus from the excited state is accompanied by the emission of RF magnetic resonance signals. The signal levels of said magnetic resonance signals represent densities of notably protons in the patient to be examined. One or more images of cross-sections of the patient to be examined are derived from the magnetic resonance signals.
An imaging modality used in conjunction with an image guided surgery system is known from European patent application EP 0 600 610.
The known imaging modality includes an ultrasonic position measuring system. Such a position measuring system measures the actual position and/or orientation of a surgical instrument, notably an indicator pen. Furthermore, the patient to be examined is provided with markers which are screwed into the skull of the patient. The imaging modality also reproduces the markers in the image of the patient as formed by the image pick-up system. The position measuring system measures the positions of the markers. The transformation which converts the positions in the co-ordinate system relative to the patient into corresponding positions in the co-ordinate system in the image is derived from the measured positions of the markers and the positions of the images of the markers in the image of the patient. This transformation enables the corresponding position and/or orientation in the image to be derived from the actually measured position and/or orientation of the surgical instrument. The position and/or orientation of the surgical instrument can be reproduced in a rendition of the image of the patient. For example, a rendition of this kind is the image on the monitor showing the image of the patient together with the current position and/or orientation of the surgical instrument.
It is a drawback of the known imaging modality that it is necessary to provide the patient with markers which are screwed into the skull. Providing the markers is a time-consuming operation which is also quite painful to the patient.
It is an object of the invention to provide an imaging modality which is suitable for use in conjunction with image guided surgery and does not necessitate the use of separate markers in or on the patient.
This object is achieved by means of an imaging modality according to the invention which is characterized in that the position measuring system is also arranged to measure the position and/or orientation of the imaging system, and that the data processor is also arranged to derive the transformation from the measured position and/or orientation of the imaging system.
The location of the region being imaged by the imaging modality is directly linked to the actual position and/or orientation of the imaging system. Furthermore, the image formed by the imaging system is also determined by the adjustment of the imaging system. It has been found that it is possible to derive the transformation between positions in the imaged region and in the image from the position and/or orientation of the imaging system with different adjustments of the imaging system. It is then no longer necessary to use images of separate markers. The adjustment of the imaging system concerns, for example the projection direction and the magnification with which the image is formed. The imaged region contains the part of the object to be examined which is imaged, for example the patient to be examined. The position and/or orientation of the imaging system are measured by means of the position measuring system, for example by picking up images thereof from different directions by means of a camera unit. From the images of the imaging system as picked up by the camera unit, notably from the image signals representing these images of the imaging system, there can be derived the position and/or orientation of the imaging system and hence the region in space which is imaged by the imaging system. From the position of the imaging system of a computer tomography device there can notably be derived the position of the scanning plane at which an image of a cross-section of the patient to be examined is formed by means of the computer tomography device. When the imaging modality is a computer tomography device, the scanning plane is the region in space which is imaged by the imaging system. The transformation which transforms positions in the object into corresponding positions in the image of the object formed by means of the imaging modality can be derived from the measured position and/or orientation of the imaging system and of the object to be examined, notably the patient to be examined or treated. Subsequently, on the basis of this transformation from the measured position and/or orientation of the surgical instrument the corresponding position and/or orientation in the image is calculated. This calculated current position and/or orientation of the surgical instrument is reproduced in the image so that in the image the surgeon can see where exactly the surgical instrument is situated in the patient to be examined and/or treated.
These and other aspects of the invention will be described in detail with reference to the following embodiments.
Preferably, the position measuring system also measures the position and/or orientation of the patient. It is thus achieved that the transformation derived from the measured positions of the patient and of the imaging system accurately takes into account the relative positions of the patient and the imaging system. It is notably possible to take into account motions of the patient, relative to the imaging system and after the images of the patient have been made, in order to derive the transformation.
In a further embodiment of the invention, the object to be examined, for example the patient to be examined, is in a fixed, predetermined position and/or orientation relative to the position measuring system. As a result, it is not necessary to measure the position and/or orientation of the object separately. The position and/or orientation of the patient to be examined relative to the imaging system follows unambiguously from the position and/or orientation of the imaging system measured by means of the position measuring system and the relative positions of the position measuring system and the patient to be examined.
The part of the patient to be imaged thus follows from the measured position and/or orientation of the imaging system and the fixed geometric relationship between the-patient to be examined and the position measuring system or the measured position and/or orientation of the patient to be examined; from the relative position and/or orientation of the patient to be examined and the imaging system it can also be derived how said part will be imaged, for example the projection direction and the magnification of the image.
The fixed geometric relationship is preferably established between the patient to be examined and the position pick-up unit of the position measuring system. The position pick-up unit concerns the part of the position measuring system which actually picks up the information as regards the position and/or orientation to be measured. For example, the position pick-up unit is the camera unit whereby images of the imaging system are formed from different directions. The position and/or orientation of the imaging system are derived from these images. The position measuring system measures the position and/or orientation to be measured, for example of the imaging system, relative to the position pick-up unit. Consequently, it suffices when a fixed geometric relationship exists between the patient to be examined and the position pick-up unit, it being irrelevant where other parts of the position measuring system, for example the data processor, are situated relative to the patient to be examined. The data processor, for example, derives the position and/or orientation of the imaging system from signals representing the information picked up by means of the position pick-up unit. The position pick-up unit is preferably mounted on or attached to the object carrier, like a patient table or examination table accommodating the patient to be examined during the examination or the surgical intervention. The fixed geometric relationship between the position pick-up unit and the patient to be examined is thus achieved.
The position and/or orientation of a frame on which the imaging system is mounted can be readily measured. Furthermore, an unambiguous relationship exists between the imaging system and the frame, so that the position and/or orientation of the frame also represents the position and/or orientation of the imaging system. It is notably attractive to provide the frame with one or more radiation sources, such as lamps, LEDs or IREDS. The position and/or orientation of said radiation sources can be very readily picked up by a camera unit, comprising CCD sensors, by picking up images of the radiation sources from different directions. In many cases the frame has enough space for mounting the radiation sources without giving rise to problems. Furthermore, the radiation sources mounted on the frame can be readily observed by the camera unit, because it never or only rarely occurs that the frame, and hence the radiation sources, are shielded from the camera unit. Moreover, it has been found that it is not very important where exactly the camera unit is arranged, because the radiation sources can be observed by the camera unit from most positions.
In a further embodiment of an imaging modality according to the invention, the position pick-up unit, such as the camera unit, is mounted on or attached to the imaging system. For example, the camera unit is mounted on the frame of the imaging system. The position and/or orientation of the imaging system can be determined by picking up the position and/or orientation of a beacon relative to the imaging system by means of the position pick-up unit. This beacon is arranged in a predetermined position and/or orientation within the range of the position pick-up unit. The position pick-up unit then picks up the position and/or orientation of the beacon relative to the imaging system. The beacon also has a predetermined relative position and/or orientation with respect to the object to be examined, for example the patient to be examined or treated, or the relative positions of the beacon and the object to be examined are measured separately. The data processor can readily derive the position and/or orientation of the imaging system with respect to the patient to be examined from the picked up relative position and/or orientation of the beacon and relative positions of the beacon and the object to be examined. For example, the beacon includes one or more radiation sources, such as lamps, LEDs or IREDS, which are arranged in a fixed position and/or orientation at some distance from the imaging system. The position pick-up unit is, for example the camera unit which is sensitive to the radiation emitted by the radiation source. The camera unit is preferably mounted on the imaging system or on the frame of the imaging system in such a manner that the position pick-up unit can suitably pick up the beacon in practically all feasible positions and/or orientations of the imaging system.
In practice the transformation between positions in the image and positions in/on the patient can be particularly accurately derived by calibrating the imaging modality according to the invention. During this calibration, the geometric relationship between the frame, notably the IREDs provided on the housing of the frame, and the region being imaged, such as the scanning plane of the computer tomography device, is accurately derived. A calibration phantom is used for this purpose. The calibration phantom includes imaging elements which can be imaged by means of the imaging system and pick-up elements whose positions can be measured by means of the position measuring system. Furthermore, a fixed geometric relationship exists between pairs of imaging elements and pick-up elements. For example, the imaging elements are X-ray absorbing rods and the pick-up elements are formed by radiation sources such as IREDs or LEDs provided on the X-ray absorbing rods. For example, one IRED is mounted at one end of one of the X-ray absorbing rods. In order to calibrate the imaging modality, an image of the calibration phantom is formed by means of the imaging system, the imaging elements thus being imaged. The region being imaged, notably the scanning plane, can be derived from the positions of the images of the imaging elements. For example, the X-ray absorbing rods converge towards one another and the calibration phantom is positioned in such a manner that the X-ray absorbing rods converge towards one another in a direction transversely of the scanning plane. The situation of the scanning plane can thus be readily derived from the positions of the X-ray absorbing rods and from the spacing of the images of the X-ray absorbing rods in the image of the calibration phantom. Furthermore, the position measuring system measures the positions of the pick-up elements, such as the IREDs at the ends of the X-ray absorbing rods. Because a fixed geometric relationship exists between the former and the pick-up elements, the positions of the imaging elements can be readily derived from the measured positions of the pick-up elements. For example, the positions of the X-ray absorbing rods can be readily derived from the measured positions of the IREDs at the ends of the X-ray absorbing rods. Moreover, the position measuring system measures the position of the imaging system, for example the positions of the IREDs on the housing of the frame. Finally, this calibration determines the relationship between the measured positions of the imaging system, notably the IREDs on the frame, and the region being imaged in the relevant measured position of the imaging system, notably the scanning plane of the computer tomography device. Once the relationship between the measured position and the region being imaged has been calibrated, for the determination of the position of the scanning plane it suffices to measure the position of the imaging system so as to determine the position of the region imaged, for example the scanning plane. The calibration phantom is no longer required after the calibration, so that it is removed from the imaging modality. Preferably, the imaging modality is calibrated anew prior to the beginning of a surgical operation such as a radiological intervention. However, it has been found that accurate and reliable results are also achieved when the imaging modality is calibrated less often, for example once a day or even only once a week.
The method according to the invention is characterized in that a position and/or orientation of the imaging system is measured. Using this method it is not necessary to provide separate markers in or on the patient.
In order to enable planning of such an intervention, but also to enable determination of the position of an instrument during such an intervention, it is necessary to form slice images of the examination zone whose position in space must be accurately known or must be adapted to the position of the instrument.
It is an also object of the present invention to provide a method in which the position of the slice image can be determined in a simple manner. This object is achieved by means of a method of the kind set forth which includes the following steps:
measurement of the position of the imaging system by means of a position measuring system,
calculation of the position of the slice from the measured position and from stored calibration data which corresponds to the position of the slice relative to the imaging system.
According to the invention, the position of the slice is not directly measured but only the position of the imaging system (for example, the gantry in the case of a computer tomography apparatus). The position of the slice is calculated from this measured position and from previously determined, stored calibration data which corresponds to the position of the slice relative to the imaging system. When the position of the slice relative to the imaging system is constant and known, for example on the basis of the construction data of the imaging system, the calibration data can be very simply indicated.
Generally speaking, however, the stability of an imaging system is not sufficient to ensure a defined position of the slice relative to the imaging system throughout its service life. Therefore, the calibration data must be repeatedly acquired, for example at intervals of weeks, days or even hours. In a further version of the invention which is suitable for these purposes and which can be used also if the position of the slice relative to the imaging system is even unknown, a calibration phantom is required in which the image elements are configured in such a manner that it is suitably reproduced in the slice image and that its position is defined by the position of the slice relative to the phantom. The calibration phantom is provided with markers which act as the pick-up elements, i.e. the positions of the markers can be measured by the position measuring system. Such a phantom for a computer tomography apparatus is described per se in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,872,829. Analysis of the slice image thus yields the position of the slice in relation to the phantom. The position of the slice relative to the position measuring system or the imaging system can then be calculated by measurement of the position of the phantom and the imaging system.
It would in principle be possible to measure the position of the imaging system or the phantom, for example by means of a video camera system which acts as a position measuring system and derives the position of the imaging system or the phantom from one or more images by automatic image analysis. Position measurement using a phantom with attached markers however, is simpler and also more accurate.
The markers may then be formed, for example by miniature coils which electromagnetically co-operate with the position measuring system or markers which can be detected by means of ultrasound. Preferably, however, in a further embodiment of the invention optically active markers as are used. Instead of the xe2x80x9cactivexe2x80x9d optical markers, use can be made of xe2x80x9cpassivexe2x80x9d markers, for example spherical reflectors which reflect the light originating from an (infrared) illumination system to the optical position measuring system. Passive optical markers of this kind need not be supplied with power.
As has already been mentioned, the need for accurately determining the position of the slice reproduced by a slice image also exists in MR apparatus or in ultrasound apparatus. Particularly advantageous, however, is the application in an X-ray tomography apparatus, which apparatus is also referred to hereinafter as CT scanner. The embodiment is intended for a CT scanner comprising a tiltable gantry includes storage of calibration data for a number of tilt angles, the calibration data for the relevant tilt angle being later used. A further embodiment utilizes the knowledge of the position of the imaged slice in order to guide the imaging system automatically to a given reference position which may be preset, for example, by the position of an instrument provided with markers. The displacement of the gantry relative to the examination zone can then also be performed by displacing the table on which the patient to be examined is accommodated relative to the gantry.
The invention also includes a device whereby the method according to the invention can be performed in an imaging system the device including a position measuring system for measuring the position of the imaging system and means for calculating the position of the slice from the measured position and from stored calibration data, which corresponds to the position of the slice relative to the imaging system. This device enables execution of the method also in the case of imaging systems whose construction data is not known, for example systems manufactured by other manufacturers. The invention also includes the use of such a device in an imaging system.

Imaging modality for image guided surgery


The specification describes a plastic cavity package design for high power transistor packages in which the leadframe is formed of a composite of materials. This allows the portions of the leadframe that require strength to be formed of a high strength material, e.g. steel, while the paddle portion of the leadframe is formed of a high thermal conductivity material, e.g. copper. This composite leadframe optimizes thermal and mechanical performance at low cost. In the preferred embodiment the leadframe is provided with a center cutout, where the die is attached. A copper insert is assembled in the cutout. The copper insert provides an effective heat sink, while the remainder of the leadframe provides the desired mechanical strength.

(Portions of the technical material contained in this section may not be prior art.)
A common element in packaging electronic IC devices is a plastic housing. In the most typical IC plastic package, electronic components are assembled on a metal leadframe and a polymer is molded over the assembly to encapsulate the device and portions of the leadframe. The leadframe serves not only to support the electronic components, but has metal tabs that extend from the overmolded plastic and provide a means to electrically connect to the encapsulated electronic components.
Recent modifications of the molded plastic IC package include an air cavity design wherein the housing for the package is plastic, but is pre-molded over a lead frame before the IC device is assembled into the package. This design offers the advantage that the IC chip is not exposed to the rigors and heat of the overmolding step used to produce the plastic encapsulated (overmolded) package. In this design the IC device environment may be an air cavity, or the cavity may be filled after the IC chip is die and wire bonded. The cavity filling may be any polymer, including polymers that cure at low temperatures. The choice of filling material is wider than the choices available in the case of overmolded plastic packages, since the choice is independent of the material used for the pre-molded plastic housing. For example, the material is often chosen for low loss at RF frequencies so that less power is dissipated in the packaging material. Thus in a pre-molded plastic cavity package, the IC chip may still be polymer encapsulated, but the heat required for a typical overmolding step may be avoided.
Leadframes of the prior art typically are square or rectangular and have a center paddle to which the semiconductor chip is die bonded. Leadframes are typically stamped from copper or copper alloy sheets. (In the following discussion, use of the term copper is intended by inference to include copper alloys). The leads that provide electrical interconnection extend from the sides of the paddle, often along two opposing edges of the leadframe. The number of leads may vary widely. Common RF power devices, for example, RFLDMOS devices, may have only a few leads, one per side for each transistor. Traditionally the power RF transistor packages have been fabricated from ceramic and powder metal composites that provide the strength needed for the bolt down flange. These packages are expensive.
Whereas the use of copper as the leadframe material offers the advantage of high electrical and thermal conductivity, there are device applications where a copper leadframe is not suitable. For example, in some IC device package designs, the leadframe has a large paddle, to which the IC die is attached, and further comprises tabs extending from the sides of the paddle. The tabs on two opposing sides serve as electrical connectors. The tabs on the other two opposing sides serve as hold-down members that allow the IC package to be attached to a support structure. This type of package is commonly used for RF power devices, such as LDMOS transistors, that have only one, or a few, leads per side. If copper is used as the leadframe material for this type of package, the copper has to be made much thicker in order to match the strength of the leadframe in the ceramic/metal package that the plastic package replaces.
Thus both the tab leads and the hold-down members may require a material with more strength than standard copper leadframes provide. Accordingly, the leadframe material in these devices should be a stronger metal. Steel is favored from a cost standpoint. It is recognized that the comparatively low electrical conductivity of steel is of limited consequence in a leadframe where the paddle is not a conductor member. However, the lower thermal conductivity of steel compared with copper is significant in a power transistor device. A major issue in the design and performance of power transistors is heat dissipation. The steel paddle may not afford an effective heat sink for some power transistors.

Leadframe designs for integrated circuit plastic packages


A thinner composition used in a washing process for manufacturing semiconductor devices includes at least ethyl lactate (EL) and ethyl-3-ethoxy propionate (EEP), and preferably, additionally includes Gamma-butyrolactone. The thinner composition has high volatility and low viscosity as well as a sufficient solubility rate for rinsing photoresist on the wafer when spraying the thinner through nozzles. Photoresist at the edge or backside of a wafer can be effectively removed at a sufficiently rapid rate, so that the yield of the semiconductor devices is enhanced. In addition, any remaining photoresist attached to the surface can be completely removed to enable the reuse of the wafer, with resulting economic benefits.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invents relates to a thinner composition for washing a photoresist in a process for manufacturing semiconductors. More specifically, the present invention relates to a thinner solvent composition for washing a photoresist in a process for manufacturing semiconductors, which can be used to remove the unnecessary or excess photoresist on the edge portion and the backside of the wafer, for the photoresist layer used as a mask.
2. Description of the Related Art
Among the stages in the process for manufacturing semiconductor devices, photolithography is one of the most important. The photolithography stage generally comprises coating a photoresist on a wafer, optically transferring the previously designed pattern, and properly etching the wafer according to the transferred pattern.
More specifically, the photolithography stage can be largely divided into the following steps:
1) a coating step where the photoresist is uniformly coated on the surface of the wafer; PA1 2) a soft baking step where the solvent is evaporated from the coated photoresist to intimately attach the photoresist to the surface of the wafer; PA1 3) a light-exposure step where the wafer is exposed to light, which is reductively projecting the circuit pattern on the mask repeatedly and sequentially by the use of a light source such as ultra-violet, to thereby transfer the circuit pattern onto the wafer; PA1 4) a developing step where selected portions of the photoresist, having different physical properties such as solubility caused by light sensitivity from the light-exposure step, are removed; PA1 5) a hard baking step for further adhering the photoresist, which remained on the wafer after the developing step, to the wafer; PA1 6) an etching step where predetermined portions of the wafers are etched in order to impart electric properties depending on the pattern developed on the wafer; PA1 7) a peeling step where the unneeded photoresist is removed.
In addition, the photolithography process requires another step where the excess photoresist coated on the edge or backside of the wafer is removed, after the soft baking step (2). Otherwise, if the photoresist remains on the edge or backside of the wafer, a variety of defects may occur in subsequent semiconductor processing steps, such as etching or ion injection, so that the overall yield of the semiconductor devices may be lowered.
According to the conventional art, in order to remove the photoresist existing on the edge or backside of the wafer, spraying nozzles are provided on the top and bottom of the wafer edge portion so that a thinner organic solvent composition is sprayed on the edge or backside of the wafer through the nozzles.
The present invention relates to an improved thinner solvent composition. The elements which determine the performance of the thinner include solubility rate, volatility and viscosity.
The solubility rate of a thinner determines how effectively the thinner can dissolve and remove the photoresist. It is obvious that the desired solubility rate depends on the object of using the thinner.
As to volatility, the thinner should be easily evaporated after removing the photoresist so that the thinner does not remain on the surface of the wafer. If a low volatility thinner remains on the surface of the wafer, the thinner itself would act as a polluting source in various processes, particularly the etching process, thereby lowering the yield of the semiconductor device. However, if the volatility is too high, the thinner would evaporate during handling causing contamination problems in the clean room.
The proper viscosity is also an essential property to facilitate the spraying of thinner through the nozzles. If the viscosity is too high, an excessively high spraying pressure would be required to spray the thinner through the nozzles. If viscosity is too low, the spray focus would deteriorate because the thinner could not be concentrated or focused on the contact position of the wafer after exiting the spray nozzles.
Particularly, in the case of edge rinsing, the thinner must have the proper solubility rate in order to ensure a smooth wafer cross section after treatment. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, if the solubility rate is too low, a so-called tailing condition occurs. This flow of partially solubilized photoresist or tail 3, occurs while rinsing the photoresist 2 that had been coated on the wafer 1.
On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 3 through 5, if the solubility rate is too high, an erosion portion 4 of the photoresist 2, a so-called photoresist attack, may occur while rinsing the photoresist 2 which had been coated on the wafer 1. Both tailing and photoresist attack directly cause wafer inferiorities, thereby lowering the yield of the semiconductor devices.
If the volatility is too low, the thinner may remain at the edge portion of the wafers, particularly at the flat zone used in the alignment of the wafers after spin drying. Then, the remaining thinner would build-up again on the photoresist of the wafers after the developing step to make a lump of the photoresist at the flat zone portion, directly causing a lowering of the yield of semiconductor devices from the wafers. On the other hand, if the volatility is too high, the thinner would evaporate before completely removing the photoresist so that the cleaning efficiency of the photoresist would be lowered.
Conventional thinners, such as ethyleneglycol monoethylether acetate (ECA), n-butyl acetate (n-BA), propyleneglycol monomethylether acetate (PGMEA) and ethyl lactate (EL), or the like, have been used.
In the case of ethyleneglycol monoethylether acetate and n-butyl acetate, although the solubility rate is good, the volatility and inflammability are too high and they are toxic to humans when inhaled or contacted on the skin. In particular, the toxicity of ethyleneglycol monoethylether acetate may cause leukopenia and miscarriage of an embryo.
The solubility rate is too low to give a sufficient rinse effect in the case of propyleneglycol monomethylether acetate or ethyl lactate.
A rinse treating method using a rinse solvent comprising an ether compound represented by the general formula of R.sup.1 --O--(--CHR.sup.2 --CH.sub.2 --O--).sub.n --H has been disclosed in Korean Patent Publication No. 90-5345, which is incorporated herein by reference. According to the Publication, the rinse solvent has no toxicity. The rinse solvent may be used to remove and peel off the photoresist layer by completely depositing the wafer on which the photoresist had been coated in the solvent. However, the rinse solvent may not be used to remove (i.e., partially remove the photoresist from the edge and backside portions of the wafer) the photoresist by spraying the solvent through the nozzles.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a thinner having the proper solubility rate for certain photoresists, with proper volatility and viscosity, but without being toxic to humans.

Thinner composition for washing a photoresist in a process for preparing semiconductors


A method of installing a grid for an acoustical ceiling to an existing ceiling, which eliminates the need for time-consuming manipulation of a fastener nut, makes use of a toggle fastener having a shaft with a stop collar at one end, with a spring loaded wing toggle at the other end, and a firestop element slidable along the shaft between the stop collar and the wing toggle, which is biased towards the wing toggle by a spring that is located on the shaft between the firestop element and the stop collar. The method comprises forming a hole in the existing ceiling; inserting the toggle fastener into the hole from the first side of the existing ceiling, until the wing toggle passes through the hole and reopens, with the firestop element remaining pressed against the existing ceiling by the spring to provide a positive closure of the hole in the existing ceiling; and affixing the grid for an acoustical ceiling to the toggle fastener. The firestop element may be a flat washer or a self-centering conically shaped washer.

In remodelling of older offices, a frequent improvement is the addition of an acoustical tile ceiling or "drop ceiling." Such acoustical tile ceilings typically involve a grid or framework which is hung from the existing ceiling, and into which are placed acoustical ceiling tiles.
The grid or framework is typically hung from the existing ceiling using a toggle bolt of the type illustrated as toggle bolt 100 in FIG. 1. Toggle fastener 100 typically consists of a bolt 102 onto which is mounted a nut 104 and a washer 106, and a spring-loaded wing toggle 108. The correct method of installing such toggle bolts 100 is to drill a hole in the existing ceiling and to insert the fastener 100 into the hole, causing toggle wings 110 to be compressed against the bolt 102, until the wing toggle 108 exits the other side of the existing ceiling, whereupon the wings 110 expand preventing the toggle fastener 100 from being pulled back through the hole.
It is to be appreciated that prior to insertion of the toggle bolt 100 into the hole, that it is often necessary to back the nut 104 away from the toggle 108 to provide clearance for the wings 110 to be folded back in order to insert the toggle through the hole. This can add significantly to the time needed to install the toggle.
After the toggle wings 110 are opened, in the correct method of installation, the nut 104 and washer 106 are advanced until tight against the ceiling. It is typically a fire code requirement that such washers 106 be advanced until flush against the ceiling to block the open channel, formed by making the ceiling hole, into the open plenum above the existing ceiling, to minimize risk of a fire spreading upwardly through a building. In addition, it is desirable to tighten the nut and washer to insure that the toggle bolt 100 is tightly secured to the ceiling.
The new acoustical ceiling grid is then hung by a wire element passed through the opening 112 in the end of bolt 102 and which is twisted around the gridwork.
While the method using the prior art toggle fastener 100 is effective to hang an acoustical ceiling gridwork, it is time consuming. In particular, the steps of backing the nut 104 away from the toggle 108 and then advancing the nut 104 to correctly install the washer as an effective firestop require significant amounts of time, especially when it is considered that building code requirements typically require use of at least 16 such fasteners per each 10 foot by 10 foot square area of ceiling, such that hundreds of such fasteners will be required for a commercial construction project. It is to be appreciated that the thickness of the existing ceiling may be greater than expected and significant time may be spent in backing off and adavancing the nut.
A potentially dangerous problem also arises with the method of installing acoustical ceilings using such prior art fasteners 100. In particular, to save time (and cost), installers frequently do not completely tighten the nut 104 and washer 106 against the drywall ceiling panel, thereby leaving an open passageway between the two sides of the existing ceiling, which as noted above, is a fire code violation. An incomplete firestop also can arise if the mounted toggle bolt is not properly centered in the hole in the ceiling, as the washer in the conventional toggle fastener will typically be sized to cover a standard hole size, but if the axis of the fastener 102 is offset from the center of the hole, the washer is typically too small to cover the entire hole. This problem can arise both through incorrect initial installation, or vibration, or because the toggle bolt is bumped or wiggled, as such mechanical impact can cause the toggle bolt 100 to change position so that the washer is no longer centered on the hole. It is to be appreciated that in construction projects such impacts can occur easily though being bumped with ladders or scaffolding, or other ways.
An example of a device which avoids some of the problems of previous designs is U.S. Pat. No. 4,286,497 to Shamar which discloses a toggle fastener with a plastic ratchet assembly for quickly tightening the toggle and washer against a panel. In the Shamar device, the ratchet assembly consists of two plastic strips attached to the spring-loaded toggle. The strips pass through slots in a plastic washer and include ratchet ridges. The slots in the plastic washer are designed to allow the washer to slide over the strips in the direction of the toggle. To install the Shamar device, the toggle is compressed and inserted into a blind hole. The strips are inserted into the washer and the ends are pulled apart thereby sliding the washer toward the panel and toggle, and securing the fastener to the panel. A means to hang a drop ceiling, such as a bolt, may then be threaded through the center of the plastic washer.
While the Shamar device does decrease the time and effort necessary to tighten a fastener, the design does not meet building and fire codes which prohibit the use of plastic fasteners. Moreover, the amount by which the Shamar device may be tightened is limited by the amount of tension that the installer can generate in the strips and by the amount of tension that the strips may withstand. Also, the Shamar device as well as the prior art device of FIG. 1 do not provide for any self-centering or resiliency once tightened. Any substantial movement of the above described fasteners would cause permanent loss of rigidity and would likely damage either the fastener, the panel, or both, and/or create a passage for fire.
Another example of a prior device is U.S. Pat. No. 4,600,344 to Sutenbach which discloses a push-on plastic wing-nut fastener. This device also decreases the assembly and installation time as compared to conventional toggle fasteners, however as above, building and fire codes would likely not permit its use in general construction and its rigidity and resiliency is limited.
What is desired therefor is a method of mounting a grid for an acoustical ceiling to an existing ceiling which requires a minimum amount of assembly and installation time, which provides a nearly fool-proof fire stop to insure compliance with applicable building and fire codes, and which is rigid once installed yet allows for some resilient deflection that does not cause the firestop washer to be displaced so that the ceiling hole leaves an open passageway for fire.

Method of installing acoustical ceiling grid


A sensor, preferably for magnetic rotary or linear sensor systems which include a scale arranged at a given distance from the sensor. The sensor has at least one magnetic field-sensitive GMR sensor element, which is arranged in a housing. The housing additionally includes at least one magnetic field source each associated to the at least one GMR sensor element. The at least one GMR sensor element is firmly cast into an associated slot in the housing. On at least one side of the slot, a projection protrudes into the interior of the housing, flush with a side wall of the slot, which also includes mounting recesses for accommodating the magnetic field source.

Such magnetic field-sensitive sensors are known already. Such sensors for measuring lengths and angles are described in DE 32 40 794 C2 and in DE 39 26 328 A1. It is known from DE 38 29 390 A1 to use these magnetic field-sensitive sensors for measuring rotational speed.
As is known for instance from DE 296 14 974 U1, two sinusoidal signal tracks phase-shifted by 90° and a reference signal track exhibiting a single pulse are required for a sensor system.
So-called GMR sensors (i.e. Giant Magnetoresistive Sensors) have been used for quite some time as sensor elements. This technology is useful for highly integrative measurements of speed and position of objects. The high sensitivity of the sensor allows comparatively large distances between the measurement object and the sensor element.
The sensor composed of two Wheatstone bridges responds to field gradients in the sensor surface. The two bridges are adapted to the tooth structure such that two sinusoidal periods shifted by 90° are issued as output signals.
For scanning ferromagnetic tooth structures, the sensor requires a supporting magnet. In the most simple case, the supporting magnet is attached to the back of the sensor element. For difference measurement, the geometry of the individual bridge resistors is designed for one tooth spacing each. The tooth structure modulates the magnetic field of the supporting magnets by densifying or extending the magnetic field lines. This modulated field strength is converted by the sensor into a proportional electrical signal. The maximum output voltage of the sensor depends on the magnetic field strength of the permanent magnet, the distance between the sensor element and the measurement object, and the structure of the measurement object.
In DE 20 2005 011 361.1, a sensor has already been described, in which two GMR sensor elements were used. For optimizing the zero signal course, either the magnetic field source, the GMR sensor elements and/or the housing were tilted by a predetermined angle with respect to the reference plane of the scale at a given distance. Practice has shown that the adjustment of the respective tilt angle during production of the sensor is quite expensive.


A separable door hinge for motor vehicle doors, including two hinge halves having each a gudgeon and attachable, respectively, to one of two parts of a door assembly, a door and a door pillar, a hinge pin for pivotally connecting the two hinge halves with each other and rotatably supported in the gudgeon of one of the two hinge halves with a running fit by a bearing sleeve formed of a maintenance-free bearing material, and form-lockingly secured in the gudgeon of another of the two hinge halves without a possibility of rotation relative to this hinge halves, and a receptacle, which forms an extension of a gudgeon bore of the gudgeon of the another hinge half for receiving at least a front, when viewed in an insertion direction, end portion of the hinge pin.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a separable door hinge for motor vehicle doors and including two hinge halves having each at least one gudgeon and attachable, respectively, to one of two parts of a door assembly, a door and a door pillar, and a hinge pin for pivotally connecting the two hinge halves with each other, with the hinge pin being rotatably supported in the at least one gudgeon of one of the two hinge halves with a running fit by a bearing sleeve formed of a maintenance-free bearing material, and with the hinge pin being form-lockingly secured in the at least one gudgeon of another of the two hinge halves without a possibility of rotation relative to another of the two hinge halves.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the course of manufacturing of a motor vehicle in a contemporary plant, motor vehicles doors are mounted on a vehicle body for their adjustment and varnishing, then during further assembly of the motor vehicle, the doors are taken off, and finally, after being fitted with handles and the like, they are again mounted on the motor vehicle. The initial mounting of a motor vehicle door on the vehicle body provides for proper fitting of the door in the vehicle body and enables to simultaneously varnish the vehicle body together with the door, which insures uniform painting of both the vehicle body and the door. However, this sequence presupposes that the doors are mounted on the vehicle body in their initially adjusted position. Therefore, in order to be able to mount the doors on the vehicle body, during the second mounting, in the initially adjusted or fitted position without any problem, different measures are undertaken. This is achieved, at least in part, by selecting appropriate door hinges.
A suitable door hinge for this purpose has separable hinge halves which are separated from each other during lifting of the door off the vehicle body by withdrawal of the hinge pin, so that one hinge half remains in one of the parts of a door assembly, the door and the door pillar, and another hinge half remains in another part of the door assembly. However, the use of this door hinge presents certain difficulties, in particular during the second mounting of the door on the vehicle body. One of the difficulties consists in that it is rather difficult to align the gudgeon of the door hinge half with the gudgeon of the door pillar door half. Another difficulty consists in that it is difficult to again insert the hinge pin in both gudgeons in its initially aligned position. However, the insertion of the hinge pin in both gudgeons in its initial exact position is absolutely necessary. This is because the hinge half, in which the hinge pin extends with a running fit, has usually a bearing sleeve formed of a maintenance-free bearing material located in its gudgeon bore, and the bearing material is usually relatively soft, so that even with a small tilting of the hinge pin, the bearing sleeve can be damaged and this can make the bearing sleeve useless.
These difficulties are particularly noticeable in door hinges in which the hinge half, in which the hinge pin is located without the possibility of rotation relative to this hinge half, is formed of a sheet metal. The gudgeon of such a hinge half has a small height and does not provide an adequate guidance for the hinge pin during its insertion. With such door hinges, it is further particularly important that the withdrawal and insertion forces applied to the hinge pin be as equal as possible. For insuring the exact aligned position of the hinge pin during its reinsertion, care should be taken that the hinge pin, during its first insertion, performed a certain embossing of the gudgeon. While different door hinges for motor vehicles are essentially identical, except, of course, manufacturing tolerances, it is still important that during the second mounting of the door, the original hinge pin be used.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a separable door hinge of the type described above and, in particular, a separable door hinge one hinge half of which is formed as a sheet metal stamped part and which is formed as a pre-assembled unit with a hinge pin that cannot be lost.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a separable door hinge of the above-described type in which exact guidance and retaining of the hinge pin is insured in each of its positions, namely, in separation and connection positions, which insure that the same forces are applied to the hinge pin during both the withdrawal of the hinge pin and the insertion of the hinge pin.

Separable door hinge for motor vehicle doors


Acquired mask data of a defect portion is sent to a simulated repair circuit 300 to be simulated. The simulation of the acquired mask data 204 is returned to the mask inspection results 205 and thereafter sent to a wafer transfer simulator 400 along with a reference image at the corresponding portion. A wafer transfer image estimated by the wafer transfer simulator 400 is sent to a comparing circuit 301. When it is determined that there is a defect in the comparing circuit 301, the coordinates and the wafer transfer image which is a basis for the defect determination are stored as transfer image inspection results 206. The mask inspection results 205 and the transfer image inspection result 206 are then sent to the review device 500.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a defect estimation device and method used to estimate defects of a pattern formed on an object to be inspected such as a mask, and an inspection system and inspection method used to detect defects of a pattern formed on an object to be inspected.
2. Background Art
In recent years, as the levels of integration and capacity of large scale integrated circuits (LSIs) have increased, there has been a need to continue to reduce the width of the circuit patterns of semiconductor devices. Semiconductor devices are manufactured by a reduced projection exposure apparatus called a "stepper" using original artwork patterns with a circuit pattern formed thereon, these are called masks or reticles (hereinafter referred to collectively as masks). Specifically, a pattern on a mask is transferred to the wafer by exposure to light, thereby forming circuits on to a wafer. Masks used to transfer such fine circuit patterns to the wafer are manufactured by electron beam writing apparatuses, which can write micropatterns. Further, effort has been made to develop a laser beam writing apparatus, which uses a laser beam for writing. It should be noted that electron beam apparatuses are also used to directly write a circuit pattern on a wafer.
Incidentally, since the cost to manufacture LSIs is very high, an increase in yield is required to make the manufacturing economically feasible. Meanwhile, recent representative logic devices require a pattern having a line width of several ten nano-meters. Major factors that reduce the yield include a mask containing a pattern defect and a variation in conditions of the exposure transfer. In the prior art, with the miniaturization of an LSI pattern dimension to be formed on a semiconductor wafer, mask dimensional accuracy has been improved, by the variation margin of process terms and conditions having been absorbed. Therefore, in the mask inspection, the dimension of the pattern defect is miniaturized, and a positional error of an extremely small pattern is required to be inspected. Therefore, high inspection accuracy is required of inspection systems for detecting defects of masks used in LSI manufacture.
One of the factors that allow miniaturization of a mask pattern is the application of Resolution Enhancement Technology (herein after referred to as RET). In the RET technique, an auxiliary pattern referred to as an assist pattern is disposed on the side of a main pattern, whereby the formability of the main pattern is improved. Although the auxiliary pattern is not part of a transfer image, light energy entering a region of the main pattern is secured by the provision of the auxiliary pattern. In a mask inspection device, such a defect of the assist pattern can also be detected.
There are two known mask defect detecting methods: the die-to-die inspection method and the die-to-database inspection method. The die-to-die inspection method is used when the mask to be inspected has thereon a plurality of identical chip patterns, or a plurality of chip patterns each including an identical pattern segment. In this method, these identical chip patterns or identical pattern segments, which are to be printed to the wafer, are compared to each other. This method permits accurate inspection using a relatively simple system configuration, since patterns on the same mask are directly compared to each other. However, this method cannot detect a defect common to both compared patterns. In the die-to-database inspection method, on the other hand, an actual pattern on a mask is compared to reference data generated from the design pattern data that was used to manufacture the mask. Thus, this method allows exact comparison of the pattern with the design pattern data, although the required system size is large since the method requires a processing system for generating a reference image. There is no choice but to use this inspection method when the mask to be inspected has only one chip pattern to be transferred to the wafer.
In die-to-die inspection, light is emitted from a light source, and the mask to be inspected is irradiated with this light through an optical system. The mask is mounted on a table, and this table is moved so that the emitted beam of light scans the surface of the mask. Light transmitted through or reflected from the mask reaches an image sensor, thereby forming an image thereon. The optical image thus formed on the image sensor is sent to a comparing unit as measurement data. The comparing unit compares the measurement data with reference data in accordance with an appropriate algorithm, and if they are not identical, the mask is determined to have a defect (see Patent Document 1).
In the prior art inspection device, when it is determined that there is a defect, the optical image used as a basis for the determination and the corresponding reference image are stored in the inspection device along with the coordinates of these images. When the inspection of one mask is completed, an operator visually confirms a pattern at a defect portion utilizing an optical observation system in the inspection device. Then, the necessity of repair is determined. After a defect to be repaired is discovered the mask and the information required for the repair are sent to a repair device. The information required for the repair is a cut-out portion of pattern data for use in the recognition of coordinates in the mask, discrimination between extrusion and intrusion defects, discrimination whether to remove a light-shielding film or deposit a pattern at a portion to be repaired by the repair device.
As described above, in the prior art inspection device, a mask pattern image obtained by imaging an optical image by an image sensor is determined to be correct. However, with the recent miniaturization of a device pattern on a mask, it is difficult to distinguish a difference between a shape defect of a pattern and a potentially existing shape error of a pattern. Incidentally, defects associated with micropatterns include not only shape defects typified by pattern edge roughness, but also pattern linewidth errors and pattern displacement errors, which are becoming more and more significant due to the miniaturization of device patterns. Therefore, there has been a strong need to accurately control the dimensions of patterns, thus increasing the difficulty of manufacturing masks. As a result, there has been a loss in the yield of masks that meet the required specifications, thereby raising mask manufacturing cost. Further, the required accuracy of a linewidth or pattern of a mask increases, whereby determination as to whether or not there is a defect is difficult if the only comparison is between generated reference data based on design pattern data and a pattern image taken by an inspection device.
In order to address this problem, a defect evaluating method has been proposed which uses a simulation. This method simulates the image which would be printed from the mask to a wafer by the photolithography apparatus and determines whether or not the pattern on the mask is defective by inspecting the simulated image. Non-Patent Document 1 shows a method of capturing an inspected mask image by a CCD (Charge Coupled Device), using a high-resolution optical system and a method of obtaining a wafer aerial image by using a low-resolution optical system (see, FIG. 1). In the former method, the mask image of the inspected pattern and the reference pattern is acquired by the high-resolution optical system. A wafer transfer image is estimated from the mask image through the process of FIG. 2. Thereafter, the wafer transfer images are compared with each other and defect determination is performed. Meanwhile, in the latter method, the wafer transfer image is directly collected by an optical wafer transfer device. In these methods, an image to be transferred onto a wafer is predicted, and the defect determination is performed based on the image. The latter method is also described in Non-Patent Document 2 (see, FIG. 3 and the bottom of page 3).
When a plurality of fractures and taper shaped defects occur in an assist pattern corresponding to a certain part of the main pattern on a mask, the shape of the main pattern in an estimated wafer transfer image should be in such a state that a dimensional error such as constriction of the line width occurs. That is to say, according to a determination method based on a transfer image, it can be predicted that the shape defect of a mask makes the transfer image incorrect. However, in this case, there is a problem that it cannot be indicated which of the defect portions in the assist pattern, that is, which of a plurality of fracture portions causes the constriction of the line width in the main pattern, or which combination of the plurality of fracture portions causes the constriction of the line width in the main pattern.
Patent Document 2 discloses a method for simulating a lithographic design comprised of a number of polygons arranged in a predetermined configuration. Specifically, referring to FIG. 4 of this publication, an aerial image is generated using a bitmap image available from the polygon design database (box 126), and resist modeling or simulation is performed using this aerial image (box 128). FIG. 7 shows a technique of estimating a wafer pattern aerial image by simulation of an image from a mask inspection device. This technique indicates whether a wafer aerial image or a wafer image, obtained through a wafer generation process such as reaction of photoresist by light exposure, is correct.
Further, Patent Document 3 states as follows: "In any mask inspection system, the important decision to make is whether a given defect will 'print' on the underlying photoresist in a lithography process under specified conditions. If a mask defect does not print or have other effect on the lithography process, then the mask with the defect can still be used to provide acceptable lithography results. Therefore, one can avoid the expense in time and cost of repairing and/or replacing masks whose defects do not print."
Patent Document 3 discloses a method of acquiring a defect area image including an image of a portion of a mask and generating a simulated image. This simulated image includes a simulation of an image which would be printed on the wafer.
As described above, according to the prior art inspection device, an estimated transfer image that would be transferred to the wafer including defects acquired by the inspection device can be generated. However, in the prior art there is no inspection device which can indicate the level of influence that a defect will have on the wafer. Furthermore, there is no inspection device that can determine whether the repair of a specific pattern error or repair of a combination of pattern errors in the wafer transfer image will result in an acceptable transfer image to the wafer. For example, when a pattern is formed on the wafer using an exposure light source having a directivity in irradiation intensity, a irradiation direction and a mask pattern that have been optimized, a minute pattern can be transferred onto the wafer in combination with the exposure light. Estimation is then required to determine which portion of the wafer transfer image is affected by the mask shape defect using accurate simulation including a light source.
[Patent Document 1] Japanese laid-open Patent publication No. 2008-112178
[Patent Document 2] Japanese laid-open Patent publication No. 2009-105430
[Patent Document 3] Published Japanese translation of PCT application No. 2001-516898
[Non-Patent Document 1] Carl Hess et al. (KLA-Tencor Corporation), A Novel Approach: High Resolution Inspection with a Wafer Plane Defect Detection. Prof of SPIE Vol. 7028, 70281F
[Non-Patent Document 2] Dan Ros et al. (MP-Mask Technology Center) Qualification of Aerial Image 193 nm Inspection Tool for All Masks and All Process Steps, Proc of SPIE Vol. 7028, 70282Q (2008)
[Non-Patent Document 3] (H. H. Hopkins, On the di_raction theory of optical images, In Proc. Royal Soc. Series A., volume 217 No. 1131, pages 408-432, 1953).
[Non-Patent Document 4] (N. B. Cobb, A. Zakhor, M. Reihani, F. Jahansooz, and V. N. Raghavan: Proc. SPIE 3051 (1997) 458).
[Non-Patent Document 5] (M. Osawa, T. Yao, H. Aoyama, K. Ogino, H. Hoshino, Y. Machida, S. Asai, and H. Arimoto, J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B21 (2003) 2806).
[Non-Patent Document 6] N. B Cobb, (Fast Optical and Process Proximity Correction Algorithms for Integrated Circuit Manufacturing) A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor Of Philosophy in Engineering: Electrical Engineering and Computer Science in the Graduate Division of the University of California in Berkeley, Spring 1988 can be referred to.
The present invention has been conceived in view of the above problem. Therefore, an object of this invention is to provide a defect estimation device and a defect estimation method, which can estimate a defect or a plurality of defects on a mask, the influence of the defect on a wafer, and the degree of improvement by repair.
Further, an object of this invention is to provide an inspection device which estimates a defect on a mask, the influence of the defect on a wafer and the degree of improvement by repair, thereby indicating the level of influence of the mask defect itself on the wafer and the portion of the pattern on the mask to be repaired for eliminating a detected defect.
Furthermore, another object of this invention is to provide an inspection device and an inspection method, which can facilitate defect determination processing for a mask and can perform defect determination processing and estimate a defect or a plurality of defects on a mask and the resultant influence on a wafer image.
Other challenges and advantages of the present invention are apparent from the following description.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Defect estimation device and method and inspection system and method


Systems and methods are disclosed for protecting privacy in an application software (app) by detecting application repacking; detecting application tainting, including: detecting descrying information leakage; detecting vulnerability espial; and detecting a privacy leak.

Smartphones have become ubiquitous, and as mobile users continue to rely on apps for personalized services or business mobility, app are increasingly entrusted with more and more private and sensitive information. Meanwhile, a large number of apps without functional dependency on user data also use (monetize on) user privacy to varying degrees, ranging from typically benign cases like targeted advertising to ill-intended ones like identity thefts. As a result, mobile users on one hand are largely in favor of personalized services, but on the other hand, become more and more concerned about apps abusing their data. This issue is worsened by the current lack of tools or methods that can inform users of potentially harmful privacy leaks in their apps without distracting or confusing users with apps' legitimate privacy disclosures.
Mainstream smartphone OSs, such as Android and iOS, provide basic protection on user sensitive information, such as the permission system, which enforces coarse-grained and static access control on sensitive resources as per users' explicit consent. However, success of such systems largely relies on users' common awareness of, and sometimes deep understanding on, the privacy impacts of apps' advertised features, which often turns out to be unrealistic to assume in practice. Moreover, these systems offer little clues and help to users when soliciting their consent.
Serious concerns have been raised about stealthy disclosures of private user data in smartphone apps, and recent research efforts in mobile security have studied various types of detection of privacy disclosures. Existing approaches are not effective in informing users and security analysts about potential privacy leakage threats. This is because these methods largely fail to: 1) provide highly accurate and inclusive detection of privacy disclosures; 2) filter out the legitimate privacy disclosures that usually dominate the detection results and in turn obscure the true threats. Most existing works only focus on privacy discharge detection. Those approaches can tell you App X has sent your privacy sensitive data Z to location Y. However, many apps have to use user privacy data for their important features. For example, you have to send your GPS location to Google Maps.
The growth of smartphone application (i.e., app) markets have been truly astonishing, as reflected in the ever increasing user population and the constantly enriching offering of apps that virtually satisfy all forms of digital needs of the users. As apps are used for more and more private and privileged tasks by the users, concerns are also rising about the consequences of failure to protect or respect user's privacy (i.e., transferring it to remote entities or publicizing it). As a result, many approaches have been proposed to automatically uncover privacy disclosures in Android Apps, falling into two major categories: static control and data flow analysis, and dynamic data flow tracking.
Although previous works successfully revealed the pervasiveness of privacy disclosures in apps and made significant progress towards the automatic detection of privacy disclosures, two major shortcomings remain to be addressed: (1) relatively low coverage of data-flows; (2) incapability of judging the legitimacy of detected flows. The first shortcoming prevents current data-flow analysis from identifying complex data-flows, such as conditional or joint flows, which are frequently seen in Android apps. Conditional flows are unique to Android apps and caused by generic system APIs that can access a variety of data sources and sinks, including sensitive ones (e.g., contacts and sensitive content providers), which are determined solely by the runtime parameters (e.g., URIs and flags). Joint flows consist of two or more sub-flows, implicitly connected outside of app code (e.g., inside database, file system, or OS), which may form a channel at runtime and disclose private data. The second shortcoming often results in inflated detection results containing too many false alerts (e.g., benign or functional privacy disclosures). These alerts usually do not represent violations of user privacy, and therefore, distract or even overwhelm human users and analysts when interpreting detection results. Our study shows that more than 67% app privacy disclosures found using conventional methods are in fact legitimate (i.e., necessary to apps' core functionalities). For example, navigation apps need to report user's current location to remote servers for up-to-date maps and real-time road conditions. From now on, we use the term privacy disclosure to generally describe apps' actions that propagate private data to external entities. We reserve the term privacy leak only for describing a privacy disclosure that cannot be intuitively justified by the app's intended functionaries.

Duleak: a scalable app engine for high-impact privacy leaks


A device for assembling a reflection bowl of an intelligent LED headlamp, including a first feeding device, a second feeding device and a third feeding device. The first feeding device is configured to lead a heat sink base out. The second feeding device is configured to lead the reflection bowl out to an outlet of the first feeding device and assemble the reflection bowl with the heat sink base. The third feeding device is configured to feed a LED lamp bead to the outlet of the first feeding device and assemble the LED lamp bead with the heat sink base.

In the actual application, a lens is generally arranged outside a LED bead of a vehicle lamp cap to enhance the brightness of the LED lamp cap and achieve the light-condensing effect, so as to allow for a higher penetrability. In the actual assembling process, a LED lamp bead is fixedly arranged on a heat sink base through a reflection bowl. The heat sink base is provided with a groove for accommodating the LED lamp bead. The reflection bowl is fixedly arranged on the heat sink base through screws. A lead wire of the LED lamp bead passes through a through hole on the heat sink base. After the installation of the LED lamp cap and the heat sink base, the heat sink base is introduced into a LED lamp tube of the LED lamp cap to realize the connection between the heat sink base and the LED lamp tube. An end of the LED lamp tube is provided with a lens to form the LED lamp cap. The LED lamp cap can be installed in the vehicle headlight for actual use. Nevertheless, the assembly of the LED lamp cap is usually performed manually, resulting in a poor assembling efficiency. Moreover, after the lead wire of the LED lamp bead passes through the through hole on the heat sink base B, the LED lamp bead C tends to be separated from the lead wire when the lead wire is drawn by an external force, resulting in the scrap of the LED lamp cap.

Device for installing reflection bowl of LED headlamp

Hefei Wisdom Bridge Information Technology Co., Ltd.


A method and apparatus for combining a three-dimensional (3D) model with a plurality of two-dimensional (2D) images by adjusting degrees of transparency of the plurality of 2D images. The method includes: obtaining a plurality of 2D images; arranging the plurality of 2D images in a 3D space based on predetermined criteria; obtaining spatial coordinates of each of the plurality of 2D images arranged in the 3D space; generating a 3D model of the plurality of 2D images arranged in the 3D space based on the spatial coordinates; changing attribute information of the plurality of 2D images arranged in the 3D space; and displaying the 3D model and the plurality of 2D images whose attribute information is changed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for combining two-dimensional (2D) images with a three-dimensional (3D) model, and more particularly, to a method and apparatus for displaying a plurality of 2D images and a 3D model by adjusting degrees of transparency of the 2D images.
2. Description of the Related Art
Ultrasound diagnostic devices transmit an ultrasound signal to a predetermined portion in the interior of a subject's body from a surface of the subject's body and obtain an image of blood flow or a cross-section of a soft tissue by using information of the ultrasound signal reflected from the predetermined portion.
Ultrasound diagnostic devices have advantages in that they have a small design and low costs and may display images in real time. Also, since ultrasound diagnostic devices have high safety because they have no risk of X-ray radiation, ultrasound diagnostic devices are widely used along with other image diagnostic devices such as X-ray diagnostic devices, computerized tomography (CT) scanners, magnetic resonance imaging devices, and nuclear medicine diagnostic devices.
If ultrasound diagnostic devices may generate a three-dimensional (3D) model by using a plurality of two-dimensional (2D) images and display both the 3D model and the 2D images, a structure, an operation, and so on of a subject may be able to be easily determined.

Method and apparatus for combining plurality of 2D images with 3D model


The invention is a baseball-type cap with a closable opening that extends down the crown seam at the back of the cap. The opening is held closed by means of snaps attached to the overlapping portions of material at the seam edges, and is opened by separating the snaps. The opening extends from the top center of the cap to the rear vent, but does not intersect the adjustment strap opening. This maintains the ability of the cap to be adjusted to fit different head sizes. A wearer can open the closure, allowing a ponytail to extend through it with the cap in place on the wearer's head. The cap functions as normal with the opening snapped shut.

Longer hair which is tied, braided, or otherwise secured in one or more elongated extensions or "tails" to the back of the head, has long been popular among both women and men. Generally, such hair is pulled together toward the upper back of the scalp, above the location of the rear portion of the band of a hat, cap or other piece of head wear, if such is worn.
The result is that the gathering of the hair near the scalp, which by its nature forms a protruding bundle at that point, must be stuffed under the head wear, with the remainder of the hair extending outwardly and downwardly below the rear edge or band of the head wear. Alternatively, the wearer may bunch up the hair on the top of the wearer's head, and then place the head wear on the head. This is uncomfortable, and the accumulated hair interferes with the placement of the head wear on the wearer's head. With closely fitting caps (e.g., billed or visored "baseball" style caps, etc.) such a configuration can be uncomfortable for the wearer of the headgear. Passing the hair through the opening above the usual adjustment band of such caps provides little additional comfort, as it is generally still too low for optimum positioning relative to the gathered hair at the upper back of the scalp. In cases where hats or caps have a specific, non-adjustable size, there is no such rear opening, which further exacerbates the situation.
Some examples of innovative head wear items to accommodate the hair of the wearer are disclosed by the following patents. Fish et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 3,041,628, discloses a vented cap with a permanent opening at the rear.
Holt, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,218, describes a removable cover for an opening between the adjustment strap and the head cover.
Leopold, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,170,509, shows a cap with a rear opening for a ponytail and a hair band fastened at the rear opening.
Kronenberger shows a cap with a rear opening that is adjustable in diameter to accept various sized ponytails in U.S. Pat. No. 5,321,854.
Stevenson et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,145, disclose a cap with a hole at the top of the crown for accepting a ponytail. The hole has a removable closure that stores inside the cap. A similar cap with one or two holes in the crown for the wearer's ponytail(s) is disclosed by Higgins in U.S. Pat. No. 5,511,249.
Murray, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,517,695, discloses a cap adjustment strap-covering device with various decorative attachments. A protective helmet with a hair entraining aperture is disclosed by Ryan in U.S. Pat. No. 5,535,454.
Revson, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,539,929, discloses a cap with a sealable storage pocket at the rear, adjacent the adjustment strap opening.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,598,585 Stroup describes a headband with a ponytail holder, the headband having U-shaped ends that fasten around the ponytail.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,644,799 by Armenta et al. shows a cap with a hole in the rear for accepting a ponytail of the wearer. The hole has a covering that contains a number of slots that are sized to allow passage of the ponytail through the covering, yet grip the hair to hold the cap in place. The slots radiate from a central point in the covering.
Accordingly, an unmet need is seen for a head wear which provides a neat and attractive passage at the upper back portion of the item, for the passage of the hair of a longer hairstyle there through. The head wear should also be usable and attractive for the wearer who does not have an accumulation of long hair at the back of the head. Kronenberger, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,321,854, and Armenta et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 5,644,799, have provided extensive discussions of this topic. The content of these two patents are incorporated herein by reference.


A piezoelectric device includes an element substrate having a piezoelectric element and an electrically conductive pattern connected to the piezoelectric element, a supporting layer arranged within the periphery of the piezoelectric element, a cover extending so as to provide a groove inside the external periphery of the element substrate, the groove ranging over the entire external periphery of the element substrate by removing a portion of the cover and/or supporting layer inside the external periphery of the element substrate after the cover is arranged on the supporting layer, an insulating reinforcing material that entirely covers portions of the element substrate ranging from the cover to the periphery of a principal surface of the element substrate, and an electrically conductive member electrically connected to the electrically conductive pattern so as to pass through the cover and the reinforcing material.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to piezoelectric devices, and in particular relates to a piezoelectric device having piezoelectric elements using a piezoelectric substrate and a piezoelectric thin film, such as a resonator and a filter.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, a chip-size package (CSP) has been developed in which a piezoelectric device, such as a surface acoustic wave filter (SAW filter) including a piezoelectric substrate and a bulk-acoustic-wave filter (BAW filter) including a piezoelectric thin film, is miniaturized to an element chip size.
For example, a piezoelectric device 2 shown in FIG. 5 includes a piezoelectric substrate 3 having piezoelectric elements including IDTs (interdigital transducers, interdigital electrodes) 4a and an electrically conductive pattern, such as pads 4b, provided on one principal surface 3a of the piezoelectric substrate 3, a cover 6 covering the one principal surface 3a with a support layer 5 therebetween, and external electrodes 7 which are exposed outside the cover 6. The piezoelectric device 2 is mounted in a face down orientation at a predetermined position of a wiring pattern 1a of a circuit board 1 (see Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. H11-251866, for example).
The piezoelectric device 2 disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. H11-251866 electrically connects the external electrodes 7 to the pads 4b by forming holes in the cover 6 so as to be embedded with the external electrodes 7 by electrolytic plating or evaporation. Accordingly, since the vibratory space around the IDT 4a cannot be sufficiently sealed, it has been necessary to seal the piezoelectric device 2 by covering it with a reinforcing resin 9 with a buffer resin 8 therebetween after mounting the piezoelectric device 2 on the circuit board 1.


A method for fabricating a piezoelectric transducer includes depositing a layer of a piezoelectric material on a base using a depositor and applying an electric field to the layer of deposited piezoelectric material in defined locations using an electrode to sinter and pole the deposited piezoelectric material at those defined locations to form a layer of the piezoelectric transducer in a selected shape and with a selected dipole direction.

Acoustic sensors and fluid sensors may be used in boreholes or wellbores drilled into geologic subsurface formations for various applications such as in the hydrocarbon recovery industry. For example, acoustic sensors may be used to characterize downhole tubulars and their bonding, while fluid sensors may be used measure properties of downhole fluids such as viscosity. Enhanced performance and sensitivity of these devices are needed to improve their usefulness. Unfortunately, diamond cutting and other manufacturing techniques in the prior art can limit the final performance of these devices. For example, laser and optical micro-machining can leave many micro-cracks and micro-fractures in a sensor compromising its reliability and performance. In addition, a sensor may need to have a complex piezocomposite configuration or shape and may need mechanical features for mounting purposes and these configurations and mechanical features can be difficult to achieve with conventional manufacturing methods. Hence, it would be well received by the hydrocarbon production industry if new manufacturing techniques were developed to fabricate acoustic transducers and fluid sensors that have improved performance and sensitivity.

Method for manufacturing piezoelectric instrumentation devices with 3D structures using additive manufacturing


Described herein is an aqueous composition including particles coated with at least one non-amphoteric, quaternizable polymer which is water soluble at 20° C., and at least one dispersing component, where the dispersing component includes a dispersing agent selected from an amphiphilic graft polymer based on water-soluble polyalkylene oxides (A) as a graft base and side chains formed by polymerization of a vinyl ester component (B), the polymer having an average of ≤1 graft site per 50 alkylene oxide units and a mean molar mass Mw of from 3000 to 100 000.

The coating of active ingredients, like for instance pesticides, with non-amphoteric, quaternizable polymers that are water soluble at 20° C. has been described in WO 2016/062880 A2. This approach allows the preparation of aqueous suspensions in which the active ingredient particles despite being often poorly soluble in such aqueous formulations show relatively homogenous formulation, rather reduced agglomeration and improved storage stability when compared with the naked particles lacking such additional polymeric coating.
However, it would be desirable to further stabilize the particles coated with at least one non-amphoteric, quaternizable polymer which is water soluble at 20° C. in order to even further improve stability characteristics of the coated particles with respect to less agglomeration of the particles, even higher homogeneity of the formulation and more controlled release of the active ingredient. The prolonged stability of the corresponding suspension concentrates also has high importance. In addition, when used in the field of pest control, one important property of the coated particles with their core of active ingredient is improved build-in rain fastness.
Accordingly, there is still the need to further improve the compositions comprising particles coated with at least one non-amphoteric, quaternizable polymer which is water soluble at 20° C. as disclosed in WO 2016/062880 A2.

Stabilization of particles coated with non-amphoteric, quaternizable and water-soluble polymers using a dispersing component


Techniques for control of fluid delivery from a fluid reservoir by a medical infusion pump are described. Setting of at least one electronically-controllable pumping parameter is determined by the use of one or more mechanical keys. The mechanical key actuates one or more electronic switches of a mechanical key receptacle coupled to the medical infusion pump. The electronic switches are coupled to the medical infusion pump to control the at least one electronically-controllable pumping parameter. Keys can be differently configured to actuate different switches corresponding to particular settings and can include display indicia showing the particular parameter value set by the key.

Certain medical treatments include dispensing of a medication to a patient over an extended interval of time, known as infusion therapy. For example, insulin, HIV drugs, pain medication, nutrients, antibiotics, and anti-cancer treatments are just a few examples of medications which are sometimes used in infusion therapy. In general, infusion therapy includes the moving of an appropriate amount of medication from a fluid reservoir into the patient in a controlled manner.
A number of different pumps suitable for use in infusion therapy are known. For ambulatory patients, a portable infusion pump results in less disruption to the patient's lifestyle and is therefore often preferred. Portable infusion pumps present several design challenges.
One important aspect of infusion therapy is ensuring that the proper amount of medication is delivered to the patient. It is sometimes necessary to be able to adjust the flow rate provided by the infusion pump, since the flow rate required may depend on the medication and the patient. It is also desirable that the cost of a portable infusion pump is kept low.
Programmable infusion pumps are known, which allow the setting of parameters such as flow rate and the like to be set by way of various controls. Controls (e.g., knobs, buttons, etc.) and indicators (e.g., lights, displays, etc.) provided to enable such programming adds undesirable cost to the infusion pump. Additionally, some controls can be difficult or cumbersome to operate.
Many drugs are infused at only a few defined rates and in a few defined volumes. Hence, one known solution is to provide a family of portable infusion pumps, each of which only operates at a single rate/volume setting. Although the individual devices are easy to use and relatively inexpensive, it is necessary to stock several different units to accommodate different prescriptions, which can be inconvenient.
Fixed settings do not work well with some therapies, such as so-called patient controlled analgesia (PCA). In PCA, typically three pump parameter settings are programmed: base flow rate, bolus amount and bolus lockout time. The base flow rate is a regularly delivered amount of medication. The bolus amount is an addition to the base flow rate which is delivered on demand of the patient. A lockout interval limits how frequently the bolus amount is actually administered.
In PCA it is desirable that programming of the pump can only be performed by the physician or assistant, otherwise a patient access can defeat the lockout interval. Known techniques for limiting access include physical covers which mechanically lock in place to prevent access to the controls, and electronic programming systems which require the pump to be placed on a special programming base for settings to be changed. Both approaches are cumbersome and add cost to the pump.

Method and apparatus for presetting device operating levels with display


An ALD method includes exposing a substrate to a first precursor including a plurality of different ligands, chemisorbing a precursor monolayer on the substrate, and reacting a second precursor with the precursor monolayer to yield a product monolayer. A surface reactive ligand exhibits a chemisorption affinity that exceeds the chemisorption affinity exhibited by a gas reactive ligand. Another deposition method includes exposing a substrate to a precursor containing an amino and/or imino ligand and a halide ligand and depositing a layer. The precursor exhibits a volatility that exceeds the volatility with a halide ligand taking the place of each amino and/or imino ligand. The precursor exhibits a thermal stability that exceeds the thermal stability with an amino and/or imino ligand taking the place of each halide ligand. The layer may exhibit less halogen content than with a halide ligand taking the place of each amino and/or imino ligand.

Atomic layer deposition (ALD) is recognized as a deposition technique that forms high quality materials with minimal defects and tight statistical process control. Even so, new deposition precursors and methods are sought that may be particularly suited to ALD. ALD of metal, metal oxide, and metal nitride films is typically accomplished with known organometallic precursors known as homoleptic compounds. Such compounds include a complex of a metal cation with multiple identical ligands. Common examples include Ti(NMe2)4, TiCl4, Hf(NMe2)4, HfCl4, WF6, and others, where Me represents CH3. Given the uniform chemical properties exhibited among the ligands of homoleptic compounds, the functionality of such precursors may be easily determined and matched with a desired deposition process.
A wide variety of heteroleptic compounds has recently been identified, such as in U.S. Pat. No. 6,632,279 issued to Ritala, U.S. Pat. No. 6,548,424 issued to Putkonen, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,552,209 issued to Lei. Such references, as well as others, identify numerous anionic and neutral ligands that may be used in organometallic precursors. However, given the large number of possible combinations of the numerous ligands and metal cations, truly myriad possible precursors have been identified. Little or no knowledge exists regarding any basis for selection of heteroleptic compounds as opposed to homoleptic compounds. Since different ligands exhibiting different chemical properties may exist in a heteroleptic compound, clearly the functionality of heteroleptic compounds cannot be easily matched to a desired deposition process, as is done with homoleptic compounds. Instead, differing and/or conflicting functionalities of heteroleptic compound ligands might introduce undesired deposited material defects and process complications into otherwise low defect, highly controllable ALD processes. Accordingly, a need exists for ALD methods matched to specified functionalities uniquely achievable with heteroleptic precursors.
Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) constitutes a well-developed technology, but further improvements continue to be made. Heteroleptic compounds may also have application in CVD methods and a desire exists to identify compounds that may be more advantageous in CVD compared to conventional homoleptic compounds.

Deposition methods using heteroleptic precursors


This invention relates to a D-amino acid oxidase of the genus Rhodosporidium and a gene encoding it.

D-amino acid oxidase ("DAO") is a flavoprotein known to be able to convert cephalosporin C ("Ceph C") to .alpha.-ketoadipyl cephalosporanic acid (".alpha.-ketoadipyl 7-ACA), hydrogen peroxide, and ammonia. .alpha.-ketoadipyl 7-ACA, upon reaction with hydrogen peroxide, can be further transformed into glutaryl-7-aminocephalosporanic acid ("GL-7-ACA"). Since GL-7-ACA is a starting material for the production of cephem antibiotics, DAO is of great industrial interest.
Besides the production of .alpha.-keto acids (Tosa et al., Agric Biol Chem 1974! 38, 1529-1536), DAO has been used in the resolution of racemic mixtures of amino acids (Tu et al., Separation Sci 1972! 7, 403-408) and analytical determination of amino acids (Guilbault et al., Anal Chim Acta 1971! 56, 285-290). DAO can be found in various microorganisms, insects and animals.

Food Industry Research and Development Institute