Methods and apparatus are described for automatically determining correction factors for an electrical device to compensate for variations in the device as a result of mechanical and/or environmental influences, using a "three cable" method. A primary cable is used to conduct signals between electrical devices, for example a probe antenna and an antenna under test ("AUT") in an antenna test range. The primary cable is subjected to mechanical and/or environmental influences such as cable flexing and temperature changes. A first secondary cable and a second secondary cable are provided alongside the primary cable, and are subjected to similar environmental influences. A switching network connects the primary cable, the first secondary cable, and the second secondary cable in combinations to form three cable pairs during a calibration mode. A computing system determines insertion factors associated with the primary cable at a first time and a second time, using transfer functions associated with the cable pairs. A correction factor is determined using the insertion factors associated with the primary cable at the first time and the second time. The correction factor is applied to data transmitted via the primary cable during use of the primary cable in an antenna measurement mode, to compensate or adjust for the mechanical and/or environmental influences upon the primary cable.

Electrical cables are typically used to pass signals between antennas and test equipment in an antenna test range or test room. An electrical cable that passes a signal between two separate locations is subject to mechanical and/or environmental influences such as temperature, motion, pressure, humidity, and deformation, etc. that affect the electrical characteristics of the cable. The accuracy of measurements of the electrical parameters of signals carried by a cable is undesirably affected by such environmental influences on the cable. Inaccurate measurements of cable signals result in inaccurate conclusions about devices connected to the cables. Such environmental influences degrade the accuracy of measurement data acquired via the measurement cable unless the measurement error induced by the cable variation is minimized prior to the measurement data acquisition or the measurement error is eliminated by post-processing of the measurement data.
For example, a planar near-field measurement system conducts precise measurements of the characteristics of an antenna-under-test ("AUT") by moving a probe antenna along an x-y plane located approximately parallel to the wavefront of the AUT to conduct a series of discrete measurements of the AUT. Similarly, a spherical near-field measurement system conducts antenna measurements by moving the AUT in both azimuth and elevation to scan the fixed probe antenna. For either implementation, a near-field measurement system utilizes a moving antenna to conduct antenna measurement operations. In general, the moving antenna is connected to stationary measurement instrumentation by at least one measurement cable, for example, a test signal cable. However, the motion of the moving antenna disrupts the phase and amplitude stability of the test signal cable by flexing the test signal cable. Similarly, changes in the ambient temperature of the test signal cable corrupt the accuracy of a test signal carried by the cable.
Measurement errors induced by environmental influences on the test signal cable cause post-processing errors during the transformation of the near-field measurement data to far-field data and, consequently, introduce errors for the measurement of the characteristics of the AUT. In particular, these errors degrade the accuracy of the measurement of low sidelobe levels for the AUT because sidelobe measurements require extremely accurate phase measurements.
A variety of methods have been proposed to reduce the measurement errors attributable to cable variations. Typically, cable variation errors are minimized for measurement systems, specifically near-field measurement systems, by carefully selecting the type of cable carrying a measurement signal such as the test signal. For example, a flexible coaxial cable, such as a polyetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) cable, is preferred for the test signal cable. This nearly phase stable cable is typically routed along the structure that supports the moving antenna. Careful routing controls the bending radius of the cable and ensures a stable cable location as a function of moving antenna position. The placement of the flexible cable along the support structure requires careful attention to avoid placing the cable in a state of tension or compression at any point along the cable path of motion for the moving antenna.
Nevertheless, the use of a PTFE cable as the test signal cable for a near-field measurement system is complicated by the requirement for a complex mechanical structure to control cable flexure. Furthermore, the effective cable lifespan for a nearly phase stable cable is limited by the flexing of the cable occurring during the movement of the moving antenna.
Other approaches for minimizing the cable variations associated with a test signal cable include the use of semirigid coaxial cable that is typically supported by a set of articulated support arms which are connected to the moving probe antenna in a planar near-field measurement system. A rotary joint having a known phase stability characteristic is typically used to bridge the joint at each articulated arm. Alternatively, flexible coaxial cable jumpers or a loop of thin diameter semirigid cable have been utilized to bridge the joints and provide a continuous signal path between the moving antenna and the measurement instrumentation. Likewise, a combination of semirigid coaxial cable and rotary joints also is utilized to bridge the moving components associated with a turntable that supports and rotates the AUT in a spherical near-field measurement system.
A semirigid cable remains fixed relative to the motion of the moving antenna, thereby minimizing any motion-induced errors in the test signal path. However, typical semirigid cables have a relatively high temperature coefficient of approximately 80 parts per million per degree (ppm/degree) Centigrade, rendering them susceptible to temperature induced errors. For precise measurements, semirigid cables have been found to exhibit less than optimum phase stability during changes in the ambient temperature upon the cable.
It is expected that fiber optic cables will be used in the future to transmit test signals between the instrumentation and the moving antenna. However, fiber optic cable based systems are still in the development stage. At present, the phase stability of fiber optic cables varies widely, and is similar to that of PFTE cables. Consequently, the performance of fiber optic cables does not offer a sufficient advantage over PFTE cable to justify the additional expense of the fiber optic transmitters and receivers required for a fiber optic implementation of a test signal cable.
Measurement errors induced by cable variation during antenna system and network system measurements, including near-field measurements, also can be directly measured and thereby provide data useful in compensating for such errors. One technique for the measurement of phase error induced by cable variation is described in "Planar Near-Field Measurements" by A. Newell of the National Institute of Standards (NIST), pages 34-35, dated June 1985. The Newell technique introduces a calibration signal at a first end of a test signal cable and inserts a significant mismatch by use of a stub tuner at the other end of the test signal cable. The mismatch generates a signal reflection of the calibration signal; the reflection returns to the first end of the cable and is measured by a microwave bridge. The microwave bridge compares the calibration signal to the reflection signal to determine phase errors influenced by environmental effects.
An alternative method for correcting phase errors caused by the flexing of a test signal cable is described in "A New Method for Correcting Phase Errors Caused by Flexing of Cables in Antenna Measurements", by J. Tuovinen, A. Lehto, and A. Raisanen, IEEE Trans. Antennas and Propagation, Vol. 39, No. 6, June 1991, pages 859-861. Similar to the Newell technique, the measurement system measures the phase of a signal passing twice the length of a flexible cable by injecting a calibration signal at one end of the test signal cable and measuring a reflection signal generated by a mismatch at the other end of the cable. A short-circuited directional coupler is used to provide the mismatch while also providing a proper match for the moving antenna connected at the other end of the cable. Scattering parameters, the input reflection coefficient, and other parameters are measured by a network analyzer to determine the phase change. The phase error determined in this manner is then removed from the antenna measurement data associated with the AUT by post processing of the measurement data.
Both the Newell and Tuovinen measurement schemes rely upon the measurement of a reflection signal to determine the phase errors for a cable in question. However, it is well known that signal reflections other than the desired reflection signal are generated by other discontinuities in a cable. Consequently, the measurement of the reflection signal also includes the measurement of spurious return signals that corrupt the measurement of the desired reflection signal. Furthermore, the desired reflection signal, which is produced by reflecting the calibration signal from a mismatch located at the far end of the cable, is greatly attenuated for a long cable length because the signal traverses the cable twice (down to the mismatch and back) prior to measurement, effectively providing a two-way signal path. For the Tuovinen measurement technique, the presence of a leakage signal, introduced by the directional coupler as a result of the insufficiently high directivity of the directional coupler, further complicates an accurate measurement of the desired reflection because the leakage signal may have a larger amplitude than the attenuated reflection signal for a long cable length. In addition, the Newell and Tuovinen measurement techniques are limited to the measurement of phase errors, and not amplitude errors, induced by environmental influences upon an electrical cable.
To accurately compensate antenna measurement data acquired via the test signal cable, the Newell and Tuovinen techniques require measurements to determine the phase error induced by environmental influences upon the test signal cable. However, the rate of cable variation may exceed the rate of calibration data acquisition associated with the measurements of the phase error by the use of conventional instrumentation. Accordingly, it would be beneficial to automate the measurements of the phase error by the use of a controllable measurement instrument and to increase the speed of calibration data acquisition.
New measurement receivers having multiple measurement channels are now available that perform automatic measurements and computations at a significantly higher data acquisition and processing rate than available from other currently available conventional systems. In particular, the Model 1795 microwave receiver marketed by Scientific Atlanta, Inc., assignee of the present invention, provides the automatic measurement of both phase and amplitude data from the test signal cable to increase the measurement acquisition speed for the calibration measurements. Such an automated microwave receiver leads to the requirement for a method to determine the errors induced by cable variation in a manner that takes complete advantage of the automated measurement and processing capabilities of the Scientific Atlanta 1795 receiver.
Accordingly, there is a need for measurement methods that permit the errors induced by environmental influences upon an electrical device to be measured in a one-way transmission path without introducing the spurious reflection signal or leakage signal difficulties resulting from use of a two-way signal path. In addition, there is a need for a method of determining such errors to permit the systematic calibration of measurements acquired from the electrical device. There is also a need for a system for automatically determining errors induced by environmental influences upon an electrical device, such as an electrical cable, and for providing a correction factor to enable the correction of measurement data acquired from the electrical device. In particular, there is a need for a system for automatically determining errors induced by cable flexure, changes of ambient temperature, and other environmental influences upon an electrical cable.
Furthermore, there is a need for a system that provides a correction factor that can be automatically applied to measurement data acquired from an electrical cable and thereby enable the correction of cable variations for such measurement data. There is also a need for automatically determining errors attributable to cable flexure, changes of ambient temperature, and other mechanical and/or environmental influences upon an electrical cable and, furthermore, for providing a correction factor to correct measurement data acquired by the electrical cable without a priori knowledge concerning the electrical characteristics of the electrical cable. There is also a general need for automatically determining and compensating for errors induced by deforming mechanical perturbations or influences such as bending, twisting, flexing, linear motion, or rotary motion, and by environmental perturbations or influences such as temperature, humidity, and fluid pressure variations, upon an electrical cable that connects a measurement instrument to a remotely located sensor.
Finally, there is a need for more rapidly determining errors induced by environmental influences upon an electrical cable utilized to carry a test signal between a moving antenna and measurement instrumentation located within a near-field antenna measurement range and, furthermore, for calculating a correction factor to provide for corrected measurements of an AUT.

Methods and apparatus for correction of cable variations


A wafer test assembly includes multiple probe head substrates arranged like tiles with connectors attached to one side and probes supported on the opposing side. In one embodiment, flexible cable connectors directly connect the connectors on the probe head tile to a test head, while in another embodiment the flexible cables connect the probe head tile to a PCB providing horizontal routing to test head connectors. In one embodiment, leveling pins provide a simplified support structure connecting to a retaining element attached to the tiles to provide for applying a push-pull leveling force. A test head connector interface frame enables rearrangement of connectors between the test head and the probe card to provide for both full wafer contact or partial wafer contact. The test head connectors are rearranged by being slidable on rails, and unpluggable using pins, enabling movement over a range of positions.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates in general to a configuration of a test system for testing integrated circuits (ICs) on a wafer. More particularly, the present invention relates to the configuration of components of a probe card used in the wafer test system.
2. Related Art
When building semiconductor wafer contactor test systems, a major obstacle is the resource restrictions of a wafer tester. The tester typically does not have enough resources or test channels to test all Devices Under Test (DUT) on a wafer. Because of the variety of numbers of DUTs on wafers, a given tester will likely be used both as a full wafer contact probe type interface, and an interface which contacts a portion of the wafer, referred to as a partial wafer probe.
With an increased number of test channels, as well as increased size of wafers and the number of DUTs on a wafer, it becomes more desirable to modify the probe card for connecting the tester to a wafer to enable testing more ICs at one time in a low cost efficient manner. Larger probe cards are desired with more probes to connect to and test more DUTs at one time. Even with smaller sized wafers, it was desirable for probe cards to support more probes so that all DUTs on a wafer can be tested with less touch downs of the probe card. The added probes on a probe card, however, result in more complex routing of electrical lines, and more complex systems for alignment of the probe card relative to a wafer being tested.
FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a test system using a probe card for testing DUTs on a semiconductor wafer. The test system includes a test controller 4 connected by a communication cable 6 to a test head 8. The test system further includes a prober 10 made up of a stage 12 for mounting a wafer 14 being tested, the stage 12 being movable to contact the wafer 14 with probes 16 on a probe card 18. The prober 10 includes the probe card 18 supporting probes 16 which contact DUTs formed on the wafer 14.
In the test system, test data is generated by the test controller 4 and transmitted through the communication cable 6, test head 8, probe card 18, probes 16 and ultimately to DUTs on the wafer 14. Test results are then provided from DUTs on the wafer back through the probe card 18 to the test head 8 for transmission back to the test controller 4. Once testing is complete, the wafer is diced up to separate the DUTs.
Test data provided from the test controller 4 is divided into the individual tester channels provided through the cable 6 and separated in the test head 8 so that each channel is carried to a separate one of the probes 16. The channels from the test head 8 are linked by connectors 24 to the probe card 18. The probe card 18 then links each channel to a separate one of the probes 16.
FIG. 2 shows a cross sectional view of components of the probe card 18. The probe card 18 is configured to provide both electrical pathways and mechanical support for the spring probes 16 that will directly contact the wafer. The probe card electrical pathways are provided through a printed circuit board (PCB) 30, an interposer 32, and a space transformer 34. Test data from the test head 8 is provided through pogo pins or zero insertion force (ZIF) connectors 24 typically connected around the periphery of the PCB 30. Channel transmission lines 40 distribute signals from the tester interface connectors (pogo or ZIF) 24 horizontally in the PCB 30 to contact pads on the PCB 30 to match the routing pitch of pads on the space transformer 34. The interposer 32 includes a substrate 42 with spring probe electrical contacts 44 disposed on both sides. The interposer 32 electrically connects individual pads on the PCB 30 to pads forming a land grid array (LGA) on the space transformer 34. The LGA pad connections are typically arranged in a regular multi-row pattern. Transmission lines 46 in a substrate 45 of the space transformer 34 distribute or "space transform" signal lines from the LGA to spring probes 16 configured in an array. The space transformer substrate 45 is typically constructed from either multi-layered ceramic or organic based laminates. The space transformer substrate 45 with embedded circuitry, probes and LGA is referred to as a probe head.
Mechanical support for the electrical components is provided by a back plate 50, bracket (Probe Head Bracket) 52, frame (Probe Head Stiffener Frame) 54, leaf springs 56, and leveling pins 62. The back plate 50 is provided on one side of the PCB 30, while the bracket 52 is provided on the other side and attached by screws 59. The leaf springs 56 are attached by screws 58 to the bracket 52. The leaf springs 56 extend to movably hold the frame 54 within the interior walls of the bracket 52. The frame 54 then includes horizontal extensions 60 for supporting the space transformer 34 within its interior walls. The frame 54 surrounds the probe head and maintains a close tolerance to the bracket 52 such that lateral motion is limited.
Leveling pins 62 complete the mechanical support for the electrical elements and provide for leveling of the space transformer 34. The leveling pins 62 are adjusted so that brass spheres 66 provide a point contact with the space transformer 34. The spheres 66 contact outside the periphery of the LGA of the space transformer 34 to maintain isolation from electrical components. Leveling of the substrate is accomplished by precise adjustment of these spheres through the use of advancing screws 62, referred to as the leveling pins. Leveling pins 62 are adjustable to level the space transformer 34 and assure all the probes 16 will make contact with a wafer. The leveling pins 62 are screwed through supports 65 in the back plate 50. Motion of the leveling pin screws 62 is opposed by leaf springs 56 so that spheres 66 are kept in contact with the space transformer 34. The leaf springs 56 are designed to be much stronger than the interposer 32, so that raising and lowering the leveling screws 62 is opposed by the leaf springs 56 and the springs 42 and 44 of the interposer 32 serve only to assure electrical contact is maintained between the space transformer 34 as it moves relative to the PCB.
FIG. 3 shows an exploded assembly view of components of the probe card of FIG. 2. FIG. 3 shows attachment of the back plate 50, PCB 30, and bracket 52 using two screws 59. Four leveling screws 62, are provided through the back plate 50 and PCB 30 to contact four spheres 66 near the corners of the space transformer substrate 34. The frame 54 is provided directly over the space transformer substrate 34, the frame 54 fitting inside the bracket 52. The leaf springs 56 are attached by screws 58 to the bracket 52. Two screws 58 are shown for reference, although additional screws 58 (not shown) are provided around the entire periphery to attach the leaf springs.
FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of the opposing side of PCB 30 illustrating the arrangement of connectors 24 around its periphery. In FIG. 3, the connectors 24 of the PCB 30 are facing down and not shown. In typical probe cards, the connectors 24 (typically zero insertion force (ZIF) connectors) provide connections located around the periphery of the probe card, and are configured to mate with connectors that are typically arranged in a similar fashion on the test head. Although illustrated as flexible cable ZIF connectors, other connector types may be used, such as pogo pins, non-ZIF flexible cable connectors, conductive elastomer bumps, stamped and formed spring elements, etc.

Mechanically reconfigurable vertical tester interface for IC probing


An electrical box bracket includes features allowing it to engage multiple surfaces of a stud. The bracket has a front face for mounting an electrical box and a plaster ring, and a far-side tab bent backwards from the front face for making contact with a drywall behind the bracket. The front face has one or more arms that fit over the front face of a metal stud to which the bracket is to be attached. The front face also has one or more flanges projecting rearward from the same opposite sides of the front face, with stud-lock tabs for engaging a side surface or edge of a side flange of a stud. The bracket has legs that extend from the far-side tab, where the legs are foldable by an end-user to engage side surfaces of the metal stud at different distances from the far-side tab.

Technical Field of the Invention
The invention is in the field of electrical box mountings, such as brackets.
Description of the Related Art
Electrical box brackets have been used to mount electrical boxes and other devices to studs or other building structures. Improvements in mountings are desirable to deal with problems in current electrical box brackets, some of which are discussed below.


A composition of matter having the formula ##STR1## wherein R.sub.1 -R.sub.14, M, l, m, and n are defined herein and which have application as MRI contrasting agents.

The use of contrast agents in diagnostic medicine is rapidly growing. In X-ray diagnostics, for example, increased contrast of internal organs, such as the kidneys, the urinary tract, the digestive tract, the vascular system of the heart (angiography), and so forth is obtained by administering a contrast agent which is substantially radiopaque. In conventional proton MRI diagnostics, increased contrast of internal organs and tissues may be obtained by administering compositions containing paramagnetic metal species which increase the relaxation rate of surrounding protons. In ultrasound diagnostics, improved contrast is obtained by administering compositions having acoustic impedances different than that of blood or other tissues.
The recently developed technique of MRI encompasses the detection of certain atomic nuclei utilizing magnetic fields and radio-frequency radiation. It is similar in some respects to X-ray computed tomography (CT) in providing a cross-sectional display of the body organ anatomy with excellent resolution of soft tissue detail. As currently used, the images produced constitute a map of the proton density distribution, the relaxation times, or both, in organs and tissues. The technique of MRI is advantageously non-invasive as it avoids the use of ionizing radiation.
While the phenomenon of NMR was discovered in 1945, it is only recently that it has found application as a means of mapping the internal structure of the body as a result of the original suggestion of Lauterbur (Nature, 242, 190-191 1973!). The fundamental lack of any known hazard associated with the level of magnetic and radio-frequency fields that are employed renders it possible to make repeated scans on vulnerable individuals. In addition to standard scan planes (axial, coronal, and sagittal), oblique scan planes can also be selected.
With an MRI experiment, the nuclei under study in a sample (e.g. protons) are irradiated with the appropriate radio-frequency (RF) energy in a highly uniform magnetic field. These nuclei, as they relax, subsequently emit RF at a sharp resonance frequency. The resonance frequency of the nuclei depends on the applied magnetic field.
According to known principles, nuclei with appropriate spin when placed in an applied
According to known principles, nuclei with appropriate spin when placed in an applied magnetic field (B, expressed generally in units of gauss or Tesla 10.sup.4 gauss!) align in the direction of the field. In the case of protons, these nuclei precess at a frequency, f, of 42.6 MHz, at a field strength of 1 Tesla. At this frequency, an RF pulse of radiation will excite the nuclei and can be considered to tip the net magnetization of the field direction, the extent of this rotation being determined by the pulse duration and energy. After the RF pulse, the nuclei "relax" or return to equilibrium with the magnetic field, emitting radiation at the resonant frequency. The decay of the emitted radiation characterized by two relaxation times, i.e., T.sub.1, the spin-lattice relaxation time or longitudinal relaxation time, that is, the time taken by the nuclei to return to equilibrium along the direction the externally applied magnetic field, and T.sub.2, the spin-spin relaxation time associated with the dephasing of the initially coherent precession of individual proton spins. These relaxation times have been established for various fluids, organs and tissues in different species of mammals.
In MRI, scanning planes and slice thicknesses can be selected. This selection permits high quality transverse, coronal and sagittal images to be obtained directly, The absence of any moving parts in MRI equipment promotes high reliability. It is believed that MRI has a greater potential than CT for the selective examination of tissue characteristics in view of the fact that in CT, X-ray attenuation coefficients alone determine image contrast, whereas at least five separate variables (T.sub.1, T.sub.2, proton density pulse sequence and flow) may contribute to the MRI signal.
By reason of its sensitivity to subtle physiochemical differences between organs and/or tissues, it is believed that MRI may be capable of differentiating different tissue types in detecting diseases which induce physiochemical changes that may not be detected by X-ray or CT which are only sensitive to differences in the electron density of tissue.
As noted above two of the principal imaging parameters are the relaxation times, T.sub.1 and T.sub.2. For protons (or other appropriate nuclei), these relaxation times are influenced by the environment of the nuclei, (e.g., viscosity, temperature, and the like). These two relaxation phenomena are essentially mechanisms whereby the initially imparted radio-frequency energy is dissipated to the surrounding environment. The rate of this energy loss or relaxation can be influenced by certain other nuclei which are paramagnetic. Chemical compounds incorporating these paramagnetic nuclei may substantially alter the T.sub.1 and T.sub.2 values for nearby protons. The extent of the paramagnetic effect of a given chemical compound is a function of the environment.
In general, paramagnetic species such as ions of elements with atomic numbers of 21 to 29, 42 to 44 and 58 to 70 have been found effective as MRI contrasting agents. Examples of suitable ions include chromium(III), manganese(II), manganese(III), iron(II), iron(III), cobalt(II), nickel(II), copper(II), praseodymium(III), neodymium(III), samarium(III), and ytterbium(III). Because of their very strong magnetic moments, gadolinium(III), terbium(III), dysprosium(III), holmium(III) and erbium(III) are preferred. Gadolinium(III) ions have been particularly preferred as MRI contrasting agents.
Typically, paramagnetic ions have been administered in the form of complexes with organic complexing agents. Such complexes provide the paramagnetic ions in a soluble, non-toxic form, and facilitate their rapid clearance from the body following the imaging procedure. Gries et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,647,447, disclose complexes of various paramagnetic ions with conventional aminocarboxylic acid complexing agents. A preferred complex disclosed by Gried et al. is the complex of gadolinium(aII) with dietlhylenetriamine-pentaacetic acid ("DTPA"). Paramagnetic ions, such as gadolinium(III), have been found to form strong complexes with DTPA, ethylenediamine-tetraacetic acid ("EDTA"), and with tetraazacyclododecane -N,N',N",N"'-tetraacetic acid ("DOTA").
These complexes do not dissociate substantially in physiological aqueous fluids. The gadolinium complex of DTPA has a net charge of -2, whereas the gadolinium complex of EDTA or DOTA has a net charge of -1, and both are generally administered as soluble salts. Typical salts are sodium and N-methylglucamine. The administration of salt is attended by certain disadvantages. These salts can raise the in vivo ion concentration and cause localized disturbances in osmolality, which in turn, can lead to edema and other undesirable reactions.
Efforts have been made to design new ionic and neutral paramagnetic metals complexes which avoid or minimize the above mentioned disadvantages. In general, this goal can be achieved by converting one or more of the free carboxylic acid groups of the complexing agents to neutral, non-ionizable groups. For example, S.C. Quay, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,687,658 and 4,687,659, discloses alkylester and alkylamide derivatives, respectively, of DTPA complexes. Similarly, published Dean et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,826,673 discloses mono- and polyhydroxy-alkylamide derivatives of DTPA and their use as complexing agents for paramagnetic ions. It can also be achieved by covalent attachment of organic cations of the complexing agent in such a manner that the sum of positive and negative charges in the resulting metal complex is zero.
The nature of additional substituents in the complexing agent can have a significant impact on tissue specificity. Hydrophilic complexes tend to concentrate in the interstitial fluids, whereas lipophilic complexes tend to associate with cells. Thus, differences in hydrophilicity can lead to different applications of the compounds. See, for example, Weinmann et al. AJR, 142, 679 (March 1984) and Brasch, et al. AJR, 142, 625 (March 1984).
Finally, toxicity of paramagnetic metal complexes is greatly affected by the nature of the complexing agents. In vivo release of free metal ions from the complex is a major cause of toxicity. Four principal factors are important in the design of chelates for making paramagnetic metal complexes that are highly stable in vivo and less toxic. The first three factors are thermodynamic in nature whereas the fourth involves chelate kinetics. The first factor is the thermodynamic stability constant of the metal-ligand. The thermodynamic stability constant indicates the affinity that the totally unprotonated ligand has for a metal. The second factor is the conditional stability constant which takes into account the pH and is important when considering stability under physiological pH. The selectivity of the ligand for the paramagnetic metal over other endogenous metal ions such as zinc, iron, magnesium and calcium is the third factor. In addition to the three thermodynamic considerations, complexes with structural features that make in vivo transmetallation reactions much slower than their clearance rates would be predicted to have low toxicities. Therefore, in vivo reaction kinetics are a major factor in the design of stable complexes. See, for example, Caheris et al., Magnetic Resonance Imaging, 8:467 (1990) and Oksendal, et al., JMRI, 3:157 (1993).
A need continues to exist for new and structurally diverse compounds for use as imaging agents. There is a further need to develop highly stable complexes with good relaxivity and osmolar characteristics.
Thus, there is always a need for new and more effective agents requiring lower dosage use, lower toxicity, higher resolution and more organ/disease specificity.

Tripodal paramagnetic contrast agents for MR imaging


Speakers (e.g. “loudspeakers”) from different manufactures may have differing characteristics. In order to improve audio performance, an audio system may customize audio settings based on characteristics of an attached speaker. Described is a technique for determining speaker characteristics by sending a signal through a filter of the attached speaker. The signal may be a probing signal that produces no audible effect from the speaker. The signal may progress through one or more frequency ranges and an impedance signature may be measured. When the signal progresses through a frequency range, the impedance may be measured and a speaker model type and/or characteristics or condition of the speaker may be determined based on the measured impedance.

Media devices such as audio/video receivers are often connected to separate speaker systems. Components in these devices often include a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) and an amplifier to process audio/video and drive speakers. When pairing speakers to the media device, users are usually not limited to a particular speaker manufacturer and may choose speakers from a selection of varying quality and characteristics. Each speaker model may have particular strengths and weaknesses which may be optimized by properly tuning DSP settings. Determining these settings often requires an elaborate process of entering information into the media device or manually adjusting settings. Without completing this inconvenient process, optimal sound reproduction may not be achieved.

Impedance sensing for speaker characteristic information


A laser processing device capable of recognizing a failure of pulsed laser beam irradiation during a process of pulsed laser beam irradiation and taking appropriate measures. A first judgment section and a second judgment section monitor respectively whether a pulsed laser beam is actually irradiated by an oscillation of a laser oscillator at the timing when a pulse signal is output from a pulse signal output section and whether the pulse signal output section outputs the pulse signal as setting to the laser oscillator at the timing when the pulse signal is output based on the preset pulse number. When there is a failure of the pulsed laser beam irradiation during the processing, the occurrence of failure is recognized and it can be recognized whether the failure is caused by a laser beam irradiating unit or a controller including the pulse signal output section.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a laser processing device for processing a workpiece by irradiating a workpiece such as a semiconductor wafer with a pulsed laser beam.
2. Related Art
A wafer on which a plurality of devices such as IC and LSI are formed while being partitioned by predetermined division lines is divided into individual devices by a dicing device or a laser processing device to be used for electronic instruments such as mobile phone and a personal computer.
The thickness of wafer is set to be thin, such as about 100 μm to 50 μm, so as to achieve reduction in size and weight of an electronic device while a via hole (through hole) is perforated and provided on the rear surface of a bonding pad of device (for example, refer to JP-A-2003-163323). In the technology in JP-A-2003-163323, a fine via hole is formed by a drill, which is poor in productivity. Consequently, a technology of perforating and providing a via hole on the rear surface of the bonding pad of the device by a laser processing device has been devised and a patent application thereof is filed by the applicant of the invention as seen in JP-A-2006-247674 (corresponding to US 20060201920)
There are some laser processing devices for removing a low-dielectric-constant insulating film (Low-k film) laminated on predetermined division lines by irradiating the predetermined division lines of wafer with a laser beam, forming division grooves, and forming affected layers inside the predetermined division lines by irradiating the wafer with a laser beam having a wavelength with optical transparency (for example, refer to JP-A-2003-320466; JP-A-6-120334; JP-A-2002-192367), as well as perforating and providing the via hole.
However, in the case of perforating and providing a via hole by irradiating with a laser beam, although the position of laser beam irradiation is controlled by an X-Y-axis coordinate value to irradiate with a pulsed laser beam at a predetermined number, the laser beam is not sufficiently irradiated to leave the part that does not function as a via hole.
Also in the case of removing a low-dielectric-constant insulating film (Low-k film) by laser beam irradiation or forming division grooves and affected layers, the low-dielectric-constant insulating film is not properly removed due to discontinuous pulsed laser beam irradiation or a wafer is not property divided due to intermittent formation of the division grooves or the affected layers.
Such problems arise in the case where a laser beam irradiating unit does not irradiate with a pulsed laser beam at a preset pulse number actually or in the case where energy of pulsed laser beam per pulse is not uniform. In the conventional technique, the failure of laser processing device is recognized by checking the processed wafer to sacrifice the wafer, which is not economical.


The apparatus comprises the syntax checking section that checks the syntax of a device model according to a check table showing the relation between the syntax of the device model showing electrical characteristics of a semiconductor device and an amendment when deviating from the syntax. The syntax error amendment creating section corrects the device model according to a corresponding amendment when a description deviating from the syntax is checked by the syntax checking section.

Recently, each of many electronic makers receives a semiconductor device and a device model obtained by modeling the semiconductor device from a semiconductor vendor and performs circuit design and transmission simulation of a printed circuit board to be mounted on an electronic device. Moreover, though a spice model and an IBIS (Input/output Buffer Information Specification) model are publicly known as device models, the latter IBIS model is mainstream.
Therefore, most electronic makers respectively perform circuit design and transmission simulation of a printed circuit board using a semiconductor device according to an IBIS model received from a semiconductor vendor. However, when checking by a semiconductor vendor is not strict, an IBIS model in which many errors are included in description syntax or various parameters is supplied to an electronic maker. Therefore, a problem occurs that a trouble occurs in a printed circuit board concerned serving as an actual model even if there is no problem in circuit design and transmission simulation. Therefore, unit and a method for effectively solving the above problem have been earnestly desired so far.
The spice model serving as a device model is used to show circuit operations to a designer by simulating the circuit operations by a computer without forming an actual circuit on a printed circuit board and show a process parameter or configuration of a circuit. Therefore, when supplying the spice model to an electronic maker, the process parameter and configuration of a circuit included in the company secret of a semiconductor vendor is opened to the public and thereby, a state undesirable for the semiconductor vendor occurs.
However, the IBIS model shows input/output characteristics of a semiconductor device, in which the package characteristic, V/I (voltage/current) characteristic, and switching characteristic of the semiconductor device are described in the form of a table.
Therefore, when supplying the IBIS model to an electronic maker, advantages are obtained that the process parameter and configuration of a circuit included in the company secret of a semiconductor vendor are not opened to the public and moreover, the information necessary for circuit design and transmission simulation is obtained by an electronic maker side. Therefore, the IBIS model is conventionally mainstream as a device model to be supplied to an electronic maker from a semiconductor vendor.
FIG. 29 and FIG. 30 are illustrations showing an IBIS file F0 showing the IBIS model. As shown in FIG. 29 and FIG. 30, the IBIS file F0 is constituted of header data and part data. Moreover, the part data includes pin model data.
The header data includes the data for the file name, date, and version and the like about the IBIS file F0. Specifically, in the case of the header data shown in FIG. 29, the version of an IBIS is described in [IBIS Ver] and comment characters are described in [Comment Char]. The file name of the IBIS file F0 is described in [File Name] and the revision level of the IBIS file F0 is described in [File Rev]. The creation date of the IBIS file F0 is described in [Date].
The creation source of the IBIS file F0 is described in [Source] and notes about the IBIS file F0 are described in [Notes]. The information about disclaimer of right is described in [Disclaimer] and the information about copyright is described in [Copyright].
Moreover, in the case of the part data shown in FIG. 29, the formal type name of the semiconductor device concerned is described in [Component] and the information about the manufacturer of the semiconductor device concerned is described in [Manufacturer]. Values such as the RLC (resistance value, inductance, and capacitance) of the default of the package section of a semiconductor device are described in [Package] and the information about relating of an I/O model with an external pin and a signal name is described in [Pin].
Moreover, in the case of the pin model data, the definition of a pin model is described in [Model]. The definition starts with [Model] and is described up to the next [Model] (not shown) or [End] (refer to FIG. 30). The information about the model type of a pin is described in [Model_type] and the information about electrical polarities (Non-Inverting or Inverting) is described in [Polarity].
The information for designating active high or active low (Active-High or Active-Low) is described in [Enable]. The upper limit of an input low-level voltage is described in [Vinl] and the lower limit of an input high-level voltage is described in [Vinh]. A measurement reference voltage value for measuring the propagation delay and output switching time of a semiconductor device is described in [Vmeas].
The circuit configuration information (capacitance value, resistance value, and voltage value) for measuring the propagation delay and output switching time of a semiconductor device is described in [Cref], [Rref], and [Vref]. The capacitance value of a silicon die is described in [C_comp]. The operating temperature of a semiconductor device is described in [Temperature Range]. The supply voltage value for measuring [Pullup] and [Power clamp] (refer to FIG. 30) to be described later is described in [Voltage range].
The V/I (voltage/current) characteristic of a pulled-down output buffer is described in [Pulldown] shown in FIG. 30 and the V/I (voltage/current) characteristic of a pulled-up output buffer is described in [Pullup]. The V/I characteristic of a grounded clamp diode is described in [GND_clamp]. The V/I characteristic of a clamp diode connected to a power supply is described in [Power_clamp].
The rise time (dV/dt_r) and fall time (dV/dt_f) of an output pin voltage are described in [Ramp]. dV is equal to 20 to 80% of the amplitude of an output pin voltage dt denotes the time consumed for 20 to 80%. [End] is described in the end of the IBIS file concerned.
A semiconductor vendor converts the spice model to the IBIS model by using a conversion tool and supplies the IBIS file F0 corresponding to the IBIS model to an electronic maker. The electronic maker executes circuit design and transmission simulation by using the IBIS file F0.
As described above, an IBIS model including trouble information may be conventionally supplied to an electronic maker due to erroneous setting of or insufficient checking by a conversion tool when converting a spice model to an IBIS model.
In this case, because an electronic maker executes circuit design and transmission simulation by using an IBIS model including trouble information, a critical problem occurs that a trouble occurs in a printed circuit board serving as an actual model.
In this case, to solve the above problem, it is considered that the electronic maker checks the trouble of the IBIS model and corrects the trouble information. However, an advanced user skill well-versed in an IBIS model is requested for the checking and correction of the trouble information.
Therefore, in the case of an electronic maker insufficient in the number of talents having the user skill, it is substantially difficult to perform checking and correction of trouble information and the maker cannot find a trouble until a trouble occurs in a printed circuit board serving as an actual model and then it cannot be helped to take a post-action that the maker requests a semiconductor vendor to specify and correct a defective section of an IBIS model. Therefore, it is conventionally difficult to completely correspond to the needs of designing a printed circuit board in a short period.

Method of and apparatus for automatically correcting device model, and computer product


A headerless pulse generator for an implantable tissue stimulator, such as a pacemaker, defibrillator or nerve stimulator, wherein the pulse generator has a significantly reduced size. The pulse generator is provided with a feed-through that couples directly to the terminal end of a lead. A connector of the terminal end of the lead, connects several conductors of the lead to the pulse generator without the need for a header assembly. The feed-through and connector are keyed to ensure proper orientation and, together, provide a means for locking the connector to the feed-through without the need for set screws.

I. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a device for providing electrical stimulation to a patient's body and more particularly to an implantable pulse generator having a headerless design, to thereby significantly reduce the size of the pulse generator. The feed-throughs of the pulse generator are coupled directly to the terminal end of a lead by a connector, thereby connecting several conductors of the lead to the internal circuitry of the pulse generator without the need for a header assembly. The feed-throughs and associated connector are keyed to one another to ensure proper orientation of the mating contacts, and together, provide a means for locking the connector to the feed-throughs without the need for set screws used in conventional prior art systems.
II. Discussion of the Related Art
Various cardiac rhythm management devices capable of pacing or defibrillating a patient's heart comprise a pulse generator having an electronic circuit and power supply contained within a metal housing, commonly referred to as "the can". A lead, capable of transmitting a therapeutic electrical signal generated by the pulse generator to the heart, is coupled to the pulse generator. A receptacle referred to as a "header" is commonly provided for plugging the lead into the device and electrically coupling the lead to the electronic circuit within the can. Representative examples of such devices appear in U.S. Pat. No. 5,545,188, issued to Bradshaw et al. (hereinafter the '188 device) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,934,366, issued to Truex et al. (hereinafter the '366 device). Bradshaw et al. describes a metal housing 10 having a header assembly 14 attached thereto. The header comprises a conductive receptacle embedded in an insulating epoxy and is that portion of the '188 device having connector sockets into which the leads are inserted. The header is attached to the can, wherein conductive wires electrically couple contacts within the socket receptacle of the header to the electronic circuit contained within the can. The conductive wires extend through a hermetic seal insulating member positioned in an opening in the can. The header assembly adds to the overall size and weight of the implanted device.
Treux et al. provides for an implantable medical device having a receptacle assembly formed within the housing of the implantable device. The '366 receptacle assembly includes an elongated barrel divided lengthwise by a plurality of conductive portions separated by insulators. Although the need for a separate molded plastic header assembly has been eliminated, the size and construction of the elongated barrel assembly necessitates an increase in the overall size of the housing of the implantable device.
Over the years, the receptacles located in the header of implantable cardiac rhythm management pulse generators and the terminal connector end of a corresponding lead have been standardized by the International Standards Organization (ISO). In the standard connector and receptacle arrangement, an elongated terminal socket or receptacle is formed in a header portion of the pulse generator and an elongated connector adapted to be received in the socket is formed on the terminal end of the lead.
When a separate header containing the elongated receptacle is attached to the pulse generator, the header and elongated lead connector, together, typically require connector blocks, retaining washers, anchor brackets, anchor pins, and other components necessary to electrically couple the lead to the electronic circuit of the implantable device. Elimination of these components may reduce the overall cost to produce the implantable cardiac rhythm management device and will further reduce its overall size and weight.
During the implantation of a cardiac rhythm management device incorporating ISO accepted pulse generator and leads, the physician must tighten at least one set screw to lock the terminal end of the lead within the receptacle formed in the header. The tightening of set screws requires additional time, extending the overall time in surgery. Also, a threaded bore for receiving the set screw may be stripped if the set screw is over tightened, making it necessary to implant a replacement. Further, during implantation, the physician must create a subcutaneous pocket sufficiently large to accept the pulse generator can or housing, its header, and the terminal end of the lead. These additional surgical steps increase the length of time in surgery and overall cost of implanting the device.
Further, the leads currently used with these standard pulse generators typically have one or more terminal pins associated with each conductor contained within the lead. If more than one conductor and terminal pin are present, the terminal pins include a yoke section between them. When implanting the pulse generator and lead within a patient, the subcutaneous pocket formed by the physician must be made large enough to contain the terminal pins of the lead and the yoke. The elimination of a plurality of pins would further reduce the size of the subcutaneous pocket required to contain the pulse generator and the terminal end of the lead, thereby increasing patient comfort. Also, the elimination of the lead's terminal pins would reduce the total amount of lead ablation when replacing the pulse generator.
Hence, there is a need for a pulse generator and associated lead that may be electrically interconnected without increasing the required overall size of the implanted device. Also there is a need for a pulse generator and associated lead that may be interconnected without requiring a header portion, and wherein the lead has only one terminal connection. The present invention addresses these needs.

Implantable device having a quick connect mechanism for leads


An asynchronous FIFO buffer communicates data between an input clock domain and a relatively slow output clock domain. The input clock frequency is not an even multiple of the output clock frequency, so the data transfer is asynchronous. The FIFO buffer includes a collection of input registers, a shift register, and some clock-comparison and write logic that controls the flow of data into, out of, and between these registers. The input data is loaded into the input registers in synchronization with the input clock. The clock-comparison and write logic compares the input and output clock signals and moves the data from the input registers to the shift register at an address value that may vary based on the result of the comparison of the input and output clock signals, skipping write cycles as necessary to avoid shifting data into the shift register faster than the data is shifted out.

Digital logic circuits must sometimes coordinate operations across a synchronization boundary between two different clock domains operating at different clock speeds. In particular, a first-in-first-out (FIFO) memory is sometimes used to transfer data, commands and/or other information between the two different clock domains. Data is stored into the FIFO memory in a "write" clock domain at a write clock speed and read from the FIFO memory in a "read" clock domain at a read clock speed.
A FIFO memory write pointer, typically a register, is maintained in the write clock domain to point to the FIFO memory location in which data can be stored into the FIFO memory. A FIFO memory read pointer, also typically a register, is maintained in the read clock domain to point to the FIFO memory location from which data can be read from the FIFO memory. The FIFO memory read pointer and the FIFO memory write pointer are compared to each other to generate status information for the FIFO memory. Typically, the status information includes an "empty" signal, which indicates that all FIFO memory locations are empty, or no valid data is present (ss). A "full" (No room for additional information) signal indicates that all FIFO memory locations are full, or contain valid data. The empty signal is used to determine whether valid (ss)data can currently be read from the FIFO memory. The full signal is used to determine whether new (ss)data can currently be added to the FIFO memory.
Using the full and empty signals, a synchronization mechanism is implemented in the FIFO memory to prevent "overrun" and "underrun" conditions when writing to and reading from the FIFO memory. An overrun condition occurs when data is added to a FIFO memory location and overwrites previous data that has not yet been read from that FIFO memory location. An underrun condition occurs when data is read from a FIFO memory location before valid data has been stored into that FIFO memory location. The FIFO memory operations are typically synchronized by passing "handshaking" signals between the write clock domain and the read clock domain to request, acknowledge and reject data operations on the FIFO memory.
Pointer management and handshaking are complex functions that may be difficult to accomplish using standard cells. Moreover, handshaking can introduce latency, slowing data translation. There is therefore a need for an asynchronous FIFO design that can be made from standard cells, and that is consequently easily scalable between processes, and that simplifies pointer management.

Systems and method for transferring data asynchronously between clock domains


An exemplary elevator system includes a controller that is configured to determine a condition of at least one elevator system component. A message transceiver is coupled with the controller. The message transceiver is configured to send a notification message to a remotely located mobile station that includes an indication of the condition determined by the controller. The message transceiver is configured to receive a response message from the remotely located mobile station that indicates how the controller can address the determined condition.

Elevator systems typically require periodic maintenance, repair or both. Routine maintenance typically occurs on a scheduled basis. The type of elevator system and the components that are installed typically dictate the maintenance schedule. The actual need for maintenance, however, is typically dictated by use of the elevator system. Preset maintenance schedules, therefore, can result in maintenance being performed before it is necessary. This introduces additional cost and takes up the time of elevator mechanics who might otherwise perform other services on other systems.
For purposes of repairing an elevator system a mechanic typically has to visit the installation, diagnose the situation and take any corrective action that may be required.
There have been advances in remote elevator monitoring including communications between elevator systems and central control facilities that are located remotely from the installation of the elevator system. In most instances, however, there still is a need for dispatching a mechanic to the elevator system to perform the required repair or adjustment.

Elevator system with messaging for automated maintenance


Embodiments of this disclosure include methods in which spurs generated by the drifting of an oscillation frequency of an oscillation signal provided by a free-running oscillator may be minimized and/or eliminated from an output signal of a phase locked loop (PLL). Methods include minimizing the mixing gain between the oscillation signal and a power signal provided to the PLL. The oscillation signal and the power signal may be mixed in a phase frequency detector (PFD) included in the PLL. The minimizing of the mixing gain for the PFD also minimizes the degrading effect that the spurs have on the overall performance of the communications device. The mixing gain may be minimized by minimizing the impedance provided at nodes included in the PFD where the oscillation signal and the power signal mix. The mixing gain may also be minimized by maximizing the power supply rejection ratio for the PFD.

Field of Disclosure
The present disclosure relates generally to a phase locked loop (PLL) and specifically to spur suppression in a free running oscillator for the cellular phone.
Related Art
Cellular phones have evolved from large devices that were only capable of analog voice communications to comparatively smaller devices that are capable of digital voice communications and digital data communications, such as Short Message Service (SMS) for text messaging, email, packet switching for access to the Internet, gaming, Bluetooth, and Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) to provide some examples. In addition to these capabilities, the cellular phones of today have additional non-communication related capabilities, such as a camera with video recording, an MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3 (MP3) player, and software applications such as a calendar and a phone book, to provide some examples. Even in light of these capabilities, manufacturers of cellular phones are placing even more capabilities into cellular phones and making these more powerful cellular phones smaller.
At the heart of each cellular phone lies a phase locked-loop (PLL) to generate various electronic signals within the cellular phone. For example, the PLL is responsible for providing various clocking signals within the cellular phone. As another example, the PLL is responsible for providing various electronic signals for transmission and/or reception of data. Some cellular phones also include a free running oscillator, such as a crystal for example, that is external to the PLL. The free running oscillator provides an oscillation signal having an oscillation frequency to the input of the PLL. The oscillation frequency is not fixed, rather, the oscillation frequency may vary or drift over various conditions, such as temperature or time to provide some examples.
Conventionally, the oscillation signal, or an integer or fractional multiple of, may be used as a reference signal by the PLL. The PLL adjusts its output such that its output is related, in either frequency and/or phase, to the oscillation signal. However, as the oscillation signal provided drifts, so does the output of the PLL. This drifting may generate spurs that degrade the performance of the cellular phone.
The present disclosure will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, like reference numbers generally indicate identical, functionally similar, and/or structurally similar elements. The drawing in which an element first appears is indicated by the leftmost digit(s) in the reference number.

Method for suppression of spurs from a free running oscillator in frequency division duplex (FDD) and time division duplex (TDD) wireless systems


A vehicle differential assembly may include a differential housing rotatable about an axis, a first output assembly, a pinion gear, and a first coupling assembly. The first output assembly may include a first side gear and a first output member. The first side gear may be disposed within the differential housing and may be rotatable about the axis. The first output member may be coupled to the first side gear for rotation therewith. The first coupling assembly may be engaged with the first output assembly and may include a coupling mechanism and a biasing member. The coupling mechanism may extend through an opening in the first output member and may be displaceable relative to the differential housing in a direction generally parallel to the axis. The biasing member may be engaged with the coupling mechanism and may urge the first output assembly into frictional engagement with the differential housing.

The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Differential assemblies provide for speed differentiation between a pair of driven wheels. Typically, a differential assembly includes a differential housing rotatably driven about an axis by a ring gear that is fixed thereto. The differential assembly may include mated pairs of side gears and pinion gears rotatably supported within the differential housing. Output shafts extend within the differential housing. Each output shaft includes an end fixed for rotation with one of the side gears.
Limited slip differential assemblies operate to provide at least some output torque to each output shaft regardless of the coefficient of friction between the driven wheels and the ground. At least one limited slip differential assembly includes a side gear frictionally engaged with the differential housing. The frictional engagement may be provided by a spring applying a predetermined engagement force. The predetermined engagement force is not adjustable.

Differential assembly with preload adjustment mechanism


Tachykinin peptide isolated and purified from the posterior salivary gland of the mollusk Octopus vulgaris. The tachykinin peptide provides a new approach for developing medicaments and pesticides through studies on the structural activity correlation at the molecular level, is characterized by:    (1) number of amino acid residues is 12;    (2) N terminal of the peptide is Lys;    (3) an amino acid sequence of 5 amino acids from C-terminal is represented by the following amino acid sequence:    Phe-Xaa-Gly-Leu-Met (SEQ ID NO: 6),(wherein, Xaa is Val, lie, Phe or Tyr), especially following amino acid sequences are provided:    Lys-Pro-Pro-Ser-Ser-Ser-Glu-Phe-Val-Gly-Leu-Met (SEQ ID NO: 1),    Lys-Pro-Pro-Ser-Ser-Ser-Glu-Phe-Ile-Gly-Leu-Met (SEQ ID NO: 2).

Eledoisin, which is isolated from an acetone extract of the posterior gland of the ocean Eledone moschata and E. aldrovandi and having a strong antihypertensive activity against a dog, is a physiologically active neuropeptide consisting of 11 amino acid residues (Erspamer, V., et al., Experientia, 18, 58, 1962). It has been obvious that the eledoisin shows a constricting activity of the ileum of a guinea pig other than an antihypertensive activity and also shows a specific action such as acceleration of salivary secretion of dog administered by intravenous injection.
Thereafter, the peptide having the same activities has been isolated from a skin of frog and this has been named physalaemin (Erspamer, V., et al. Experientia, 20, 489, 1964).
Such peptides were named tachykinin (tachy(=fast)kinin, something to contract quickly) against bradykinin (brady (=gradually)kinin, something to move gradually) because they have constricting activity against the ileum of a guinea pig quickly. Further, the chemical structure of substance P has been clarified based on the chemical structure of such peptides.
Though peptides classified into the tachykinin have been isolated thereafter one after another from the Amphibian class (Yasuhara, T., et al., Biomed. Res., 2, 613, 1981) and the Avian class (Conlon, J. M., et al., Regulatory Peptides, 20, 171, 1988), sialokinin only has been found out from a mosquito which has mediated yellow fever other than eledoisin from a invertebrate animal (Champagne, D. E. & Ribeiro. J. M.: Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA, 91, 138, 1994).
At present, tachykinin has a common amino acid sequence represented by the following formula in the C-terminal of a peptide:
Phe-Xaa-Gly-Leu-Met-NH2 (SEQ ID NO: 6)
wherein, Xaa is aromatic amino acid (e.g., Phe, Tyr) and branched amino acid (e.g., Val, Ile). Tachykinin is used herein as a generic term of a physiologically active peptide indicating an intestine constricting activity, a hypotensive activity, a saliva secretion accelerating activity and the like. In such kinds of tachykinin, there are included aforementioned substance P, eledoisin, physalamine, neurokinin A, neurokinin B, kassinin and the like (SEIBUTUGAKU-JITEN (Ver. 4). Iwanami Shoten, 1997).
In this way, it has been expected to employ the tachykinin peptide as a basic chemical compound for developing a new medicine. In particular, since it has been considered that substance P has taken part in transmitting a pain as a transmitting substance of a primary sensory nerve, it has been expected and researched to develop as analgesics. Further, it has been expected to use practically a chemical reagent for elucidating an information processing mechanism in a nerve system of higher animals.
By the way, it is said that the posterior salivary gland of octopuses are venom gland since some of the salivary gland may include toxic substances such as tetrodotoxin known as fugu poison, and cephalotoxin that is a glycoprotein having an effect of numbing Crustaceans other than aforementioned eledoisin. Further, it has been known that they might include a biogenic amine group such as octopamine, serotonin, tyramine, noradrenaline, histamine, and acetylcholine and they might include an enzymatic group such as a proteolytic enzyme and hyaluronidase (Boucaud-Camou, E. & Boucher-Rodoni, R. 1983. Feeding and digestion in Cephalopods. In "The mollusca", (Saleuddin, A. S. M. & Wilbur, K. M.), Academic press and New York). It, however, has not been reported that the tachykinin peptide other than eledoisin has been found. Further, though it has been discovered that eledoisin shows smooth muscle constricting activity, angiectatic activity, and antihypertensive activity to the mammals, it has not been discovered that eledoisin has a role to the octopus.
In this way, it is required to find out the tachykinin peptides from greater number of animal species, in order to obtain information which is useful for development of the medicines and for solving an information processing mechanism in a nerve system of higher animals based on research and the like of a structure-activity relationship by elucidating a species specificity of the peptides and a role of each of animal species about the tachykinin peptides.
Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide the novel tachykinin peptide capable of being used as a chemical reagent for elucidating an information processing mechanism in a nerve system of higher animals and as a basic chemical compound in developing the medicines and the pesticides by finding out the novel tachykinin peptides, making clear the structure thereof, and further elucidating the physiologically activities thereof.
Further, the object of the present invention is to provide a method for producing the tachykinin peptide by identifying the precursor polypeptide of such tachykinin peptide and gene encoding thereof.

Tachykinin peptides, precursor peptides thereof and genes encoding the same


On the transmitting side, a decision is made as to whether to add pilot symbols which are separate from basic pilot symbols, to frames, based on the propagation path state, and when symbols are added, control symbols comprising information relating to the additional pilot symbols are generated, and frames comprising basic pilot symbols, control symbols, additional pilot symbols, and data symbols are assembled and transmitted. On the receiving side, control symbols included in the received frames are demodulated, and a judgment is made as to whether additional pilot symbols are included in the received frames based on the control symbol information, and if additional pilot symbols are included, the additional pilot symbols are used to estimate the propagation path, and the propagation path estimation value is used to demodulate data symbols.

This invention relates to a wireless communication system and wireless communication method, and in particular relates to a wireless communication system and wireless communication method for transmitting and receiving frames comprising basic pilot symbols used for propagation path estimation, control symbols which convey control information necessary for data channel demodulation, and data symbols which convey information bits.
In order to increase the efficiency of data packet transmission in packet transmission for cellular mobile communication, adaptive modulation/demodulation control, adaptive spreading factor control, transmission power control, HARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat reQuest) control, scheduling control, and other types of adaptive wireless link control are employed. These types of control are performed using a control channel which is transmitted with the data channel; the transmitting station uses the control channel to notify the receiving station of the wireless link parameters being used in the data channel. For example, in the case of adaptive modulation/demodulation control, the control channel transmits the data channel modulation method (QPSK, 16QAM, or similar) and the coding rate. In the case of adaptive spreading factor control, the control channel transmits the spreading factor and spreading code, or the number of symbol repetitions and other information. In HARQ control, the control channel transmits the packet numbers transmitted over the data channel, the number of retransmissions, and other information. In the case of scheduling control, user IDs and other information is transmitted using the control channel.
FIG. 22 shows a frame configuration of the prior art, used in packet transmission for cellular mobile communication. One frame comprises basic pilot symbols SP, control symbols SC, and data symbols SD. In a downlink in which a base station performs transmission, the basic pilot symbols SP may be regarded as common pilot signals. Basic pilot symbols SP are employed for propagation path estimation which is necessary for demodulation of control channel and data channel signals. In the data channel, adaptive wireless link control is employed to execute control of the modulation method, coding rate, spreading factor, transmission power, and similar. These control parameters are conveyed by means of control symbols SC.
In adaptive wireless link control, control is executed to improve the data channel communication quality of a user experiencing poor communication quality at the edge of a cell, or to switch to a transmission method in which errors do not occur in an environment with poor communication quality, or similar. FIG. 23 is an example of a case in which transmission power control is performed for a user experiencing poor communication quality, at a cell edge or similar. As indicated in FIG. 23, in downlink communication control is executed so that the basic pilot symbol power is held constant, while the control symbol and data symbol transmission power is increased. In this way, in the example of FIG. 23, through transmission power control of the control channel and data channel, control is executed to improve communication quality; but adaptive control of basic pilot symbols is not performed. Hence ordinarily, in downlink communications, somewhat higher transmission power is allocated to the basic pilot symbols. However, at a cell edge there is the effect of interference from other cells, and so there is a tendency for channel estimation precision based on the pilot symbols to be degraded due to interference from other cells.
FIG. 24 is an example of a case in which adaptive spreading control is performed for a user at a cell edge or similar, experiencing poor communication quality. In this example, by increasing the number of repetitions of data symbols, the S/N of data channel is improved. Thus in the example of FIG. 24 also, control is executed to improve communication quality by controlling the number of symbol repetitions in the data channel, but adaptive control to improve the S/N of pilot symbols is not performed.
In this way, in conventional packet transmission methods the communication quality in the data channel between a user terminal at a cell edge or similar with poor communication quality and a base station is ensured through adaptive wireless link control, but there have existed no mechanisms for performing adaptive control of the pilot symbols, which greatly affect demodulation characteristics. Hence the estimation precision of channel estimation values used in data demodulation has not been improved, and so there has been the problem of a limit to improvement of the demodulation characteristics of the data channel.
In a first technology of the prior art, prescribed control symbols, such as for example the TFCI (Transport Format Combination Indicator) control symbols stipulated by 3GPP standards, are used as pilot symbols in addition to regular pilot symbols (see for example JP 2003-32146 A). By means of this first technology of the prior art, as a result of an increased number of symbols used as pilot symbols, the channel estimation precision can be improved.
As a second technology of the prior art, in a LAN format having a preamble portion and a payload portion, pilot symbols are inserted into the payload portion as well as into the preamble portion (see for example JP 2003-536288 A or WO01/059950 based upon PCT/US01/03778).
However, in the first technology of the prior art, the insertion of additional pilot symbols is not performed adaptively. And in the first technology of the prior art, the properties particular to the 3GPP standard are utilized, so that general application to channel estimation for wireless communication is not possible.
The second technology of the prior art is not a method of adaptive insertion of additional pilot symbols, but of always inserting pilot symbols into the preamble portion and into the payload portion, so that there is the problem that the number of pilot symbols increases and transmission efficiency is reduced.

Wireless communication system and wireless communication method


A liquid supply system adapted to be mounted in a carriage unit having a first liquid introduction portion and a second liquid introduction portion is proposed. The liquid supply system comprises two liquid supply units each having liquid supply portion adapted to liquid to the first and second liquid introduction portions, respectively. The two liquid supply units are adapted to be attached to and detached from the carriage unit. The liquid supply system further comprises a holder unit adapted to be attached to and detached from the carriage unit and adapted to fix the two liquid supply units to the carriage unit. The two liquid supply units are located between the holder unit and the carriage unit.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to liquid supply systems equipped with liquid supply units that supply liquid to liquid ejection apparatuses.
2. Related Art
Printers are widely used as a kind of liquid ejection apparatuses, and ink cartridges are used as liquid supply units for the printers. Hitherto, with a printer that prints using ink of a plurality of colors, independent ink cartridges are prepared for respective ink colors and are independently attached to and detached from the printer. However, in the case of using independent ink cartridges for the respective ink colors, if the number of ink colors increases, the structure of a cartridge attaching portion becomes complicated as a result of enabling many ink cartridges to be attached, which is disadvantageous for a size reduction of the printer. In addition, the operation of replacing the ink cartridges takes time and effort.
A printer has been proposed to which an integrated ink cartridge that contains ink of a plurality of colors is attached to perform. For example, JP-A-2008-74100 discloses an ink tank (ink cartridge) in which the inside of a housing thereof is partitioned into a plurality of ink containing portions and an ink supply port is provided in each ink containing portion. The ink tank has a plurality of lock portions, and is attached to the printer by engaging these lock portions with lock portions on the printer side.
With an integrated ink cartridge such as the one disclosed in JP-A-2008-74100, time and effort in the operation of replacing the ink cartridge can be reduced since a plurality of ink cartridges are integrated. Furthermore, an integrated ink cartridge is more space-saving than a plurality of ink cartridges are, and allows the configuration of a cartridge attaching portion to be simplified. Accordingly, an integrated ink cartridge is advantageous for a size reduction of a printer.
However, although an integrated ink cartridge is advantageous in terms of a size reduction and time and effort in replacement, an entire ink cartridge needs to be replaced if the remaining amount of ink of only one of the plurality of ink colors becomes small. Accordingly, a problem arises in that the ink is wasted. For this reason, there has been a demand for an ink cartridge that is advantageous for a size reduction and time and effort in replacement and with less waste of ink. This problem is not limited to ink cartridges for printers, but is also a problem shared by liquid supply systems for other kinds of liquid ejection apparatuses.


An improved device for use in a cavity-wall construction includes a water-permeable body yielding a first-average opening size that is large enough to permit water to pass therethrough, but small enough to substantially prevent mortar and other debris from passing therethrough. The device includes a water-permeable material likewise adapted to permit water to pass therethrough, but also forms a barrier to insects which are of an effective size that is much smaller than the first-average opening size.

The present invention found its origin in so-called masonry cavity-wall constructions. Masonry cavity walls have inner and outer vertical walls. The inner wall may be constructed from wood, with an inner surface of drywall, structural clay tile, vertical stacks of mortared bricks, or a shear concrete surface, as examples. The outer wall is generally constructed from vertical stacks of bricks that are held together by mortar. A space, or cavity, exists between the two walls, and the cavity may be partially filled with insulation. The space defining the cavity wall may be anywhere between 2 to 4.5 inches, as an example.
Typically, water may collect in the cavity between the inner and outer wall. To drain water within the masonry cavity wall, weep holes are commonly placed along the base of the outer wall. The weep holes allow water to pass from the cavity to drain outside the wall structure.
During construction of a masonry cavity wall, excess mortar and other debris can and does fall between the inner and outer wall. When the bricks are stacked during the erection of the outer wall, for example, mortar droppings are squeezed into the space between the walls. The excess mortar, as well as other debris, may drop to the base of the cavity and block the weep holes.
To prevent mortar or debris of any significant size from reaching and thus blocking a given weep hole, devices have been designed that can rest on the base of the wall cavity to cover and protect the weep holes, for instance. Such are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,230,189 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,343,661, as examples. As a further measure, a weep-vent wick may be placed within a weep hole itself to facilitate water removal. By preventing mortar and other debris from entering and thus blocking the weep holes, the devices facilitate the free flow of moisture from the cavity to the building exterior.
Although the mortar-net and weep-vent devices may prevent mortar and other debris from blocking the weep holes, such devices may be ineffective in preventing insects of an effective size from passing through the cavity-wall construction and thus entering the building. This may be an issue in particular for buildings such as hospitals and restaurants.

Cavity-wall construction with insect barrier


Provided is a carbon nanotube composite electrode having carbon nanotubes which are firmly fixed to an electrode substrate so as to utilize the characteristics of the carbon nanotubes, and having the intrinsic electrode characteristics of carbon nanotubes. The carbon nanotube composite electrode has a surface layer containing a porous oxide material and carbon nanotubes on the surface of the electrode substrate, wherein the carbon nanotubes are generated from the porous oxide material, and at least some of the carbon nanotubes are electrically connected to the electrode substrate. The carbon nanotube composite electrode is firmly fixed to the electrode substrate, and has the intrinsic electrode characteristics of carbon nanotubes, and thus may preferably be used in applications for electrodes and the like in various electronic devices such as electrochemical sensors and batteries.

A carbon nanotube is a tubular substance having a diameter of about 0.4 nm to several tens of nanometers obtained by rolling one layer of graphene sheet (a layer made of a six-membered carbon ring) into a cylinder. The carbon nanotubes are attracting people's attention as an excellent nanomaterial having thermal and chemical stability, mechanical strength, electron conductivity, thermal conductivity, and spectral characteristics that extend up to a near infrared region.
Among the carbon nanotubes (which may hereafter be referred to as "CNT"), there are a single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) made of only one layer of the graphene sheet, a double-walled carbon nanotube (DWCNT) made of two layers of the graphene sheets, and a multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) made of two or more layers of the graphene sheets.
As an application example of carbon nanotubes, a carbon nanotube composite electrode (CNT composite electrode) in which the carbon nanotubes are fixed onto an electrode substrate is being developed.
For example, Japanese Patent Document 1 (JP-2008-64724 A) discloses a CNT composite electrode provided with CNTs that are grown from a metal catalyst fixed onto an electrode substrate.
By this method, the CNTs are formed directly on the electrode substrate, so that the electron movement between the CNTs and the electrode is easy, and the CNT composite electrode can be used as a highly sensitive sensor. On the other hand, the bonding force between the CNTs and the electrode is insufficient, so that the CNTs are liable to drop off. In particular, when it is necessary that the CNT composite electrode is immersed in water for application as a sensor or the like, there is a problem in that the CNTs are easily desorbed.
Japanese Patent Document 2 (JP-2005-332612 A) discloses a method for manufacturing a CNT composite electrode in which CNTs are immobilized by depositing on an electrode substrate a mixture of fine particles containing a major component of the electrode substrate and CNTs and heating the resultant in oxygen-free atmosphere to turn the fine particles into a coating film.
In this CNT composite electrode, the CNTs are fixed while being interposed between the fine particles containing the major component of the electrode substrate, so that the CNTs are firmly fixed onto the electrode. However, at the time of fixing, the CNT wall surface is damaged by the fine particles containing the major component of the electrode substrate, so that the intrinsic characteristics of the CNTs cannot be sufficiently obtained. Also, this method has a disadvantage in that the amount of CNTs that can be fixed per unit electrode area cannot be made so large.

Carbon nanotube composite electrode and method for manufacturing the same

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY CORPORATION KUMAMOTO UNIVERSITY


A system and method for reducing noise in a seismic vibratory source is disclosed. The method includes generating an initial pilot signal for the seismic vibratory source, receiving a source signature based on the initial pilot signal, estimating a noise component of the source signature based on the source signature and the initial pilot signal, generating an anti-noise correction for the initial pilot signal based on the noise component of the source signature, and computing a modified pilot signal based on the initial pilot signal and the anti-noise correction.

In the oil and gas industry, seismic exploration techniques are commonly used to aid in locating subsurface deposits of hydrocarbons and other useful minerals. Seismic exploration, whether on land or at sea, is a method of detecting geologic structures below the surface of the earth by analyzing seismic energy that has interacted with the geologic structures. Generally, a seismic vibratory source imparts a force at the surface of the earth. The resulting mechanical stress propagates according to the elastic properties of the subsurface, and is at least partially reflected by subsurface seismic reflectors (interfaces between geologic structures that have different acoustic impedances). Seismic receivers, placed at or near the earth's surface, within bodies of water, or below the earth's surface in wellbores, record the ground motion or fluid pressure resulting from the reflection. The recordings are processed to generate information about the location and physical properties of the subsurface geologic structures that reflected the seismic energy.
Various types of sources have been employed to impart seismic energy into the earth, but most fall into one of two general categories: impulsive or vibratory. An impulsive source, such as an explosive or airgun, generates a short, high-amplitude force, injecting a large amount of energy into the ground in a brief time. Recordings generated using impulsive sources generally have a high signal-to-noise ratio, which facilitates subsequent processing. However, the use of impulsive sources can present safety or environmental concerns.
By contrast, a vibratory seismic vibratory source generates a lower-amplitude force over a longer period of time. The resulting recordings generally have a lower signal-to-noise ratio than those generated with impulsive sources. Furthermore, because the imparted force typically extends over a time much longer than the interval between reflections, the recorded data generally contains multiple overlapping reflections. However, subsequent processing can correlate the recorded data with the sweep reference signal to collapse the data to produce a correlated shot gather that resembles a shot gather acquired using an impulsive source.
Vibratory sources can take a number of different forms. For example, recent land surveys have often employed servo-controlled hydraulic "shaker units" mounted on trucks. Marine vibratory sources used in the recent past include a towed bell-shaped housing, with an acoustic piston in its open end driven by a hydraulic system similar to the land-based shaker units. However, alternative designs have been used, and the term "vibratory source" is intended to encompass any seismic vibrator, whether used on dry land or at sea.
Vibratory sources also permit some control over the characteristics of the imparted force. For example, to facilitate data collection, subsequent data processing, or both, it is often desirable to impart a force with energy at one or more desired frequencies, and to vary those frequencies over time. Such a controlled force is typically referred to as a "sweep." The difference between the highest and lowest frequencies contained in the sweep is known as the "frequency range" of the sweep, and the length of time over which the source generates the sweep is known as the "sweep time." Many different forms of sweep may be useful in a seismic survey. For example, a sweep may include a single sinusoid at a fundamental frequency that starts low and varies monotonically upward (an "upsweep") or a fundamental frequency that starts high and varies monotonically downward (a "downsweep"). Such sweeps may be linear, with the fundamental frequency changing at a fixed rate over the entire sweep time. Sweeps may also be nonlinear, for example a quadratic or logarithmic sweep. Alternatively, a sweep may include an unvarying fundamental frequency, a mixture of multiple frequencies, an exotic signal such as a pseudo-random sequence, or any other desired signal.
Vibratory sources are generally controlled by a sweep generator. In most cases, the sweep generator outputs a pilot signal that is the same as the sweep reference signal, which is delivered to the source controller as an input. The source controller in combination with the vibrator actuator operates as a closed-loop feedback control system. Ideally, the source would generate a duplicate of the pilot signal as the force imparted into the earth. However, for a variety of reasons, the force actually generated by a vibratory source may differ from the pilot signal and consequently may differ from the sweep reference signal that is used as the correlation operator. For example, machinery associated with the source may introduce noise—undesired energy not present in the pilot signal. Noise may also result from characteristics of the earth, such as the mechanical impedance of the ground, from variations in the location, bad coupling due to operation on uneven surfaces or orientation of the source, or from other factors. Even though the vibrator control is a closed-loop feedback system, the closed loop bandwidth of the controllers in common use today may be insufficient to mitigate this noise. To facilitate subsequent data processing, and thus ultimately to aid in the detection of subsurface geologic structures, it is desirable to reduce or eliminate noise introduced into the sweep generated by a seismic vibratory source.

Systems and methods for reducing noise in a seismic vibratory source


Provided is a toner recycling device for an image forming apparatus, including a waste toner conveying screw which conveys waste toner collected out of a surface of a photosensitive drum to one side; a toner recycling means which is connected with the waste toner conveying screw to be rotated by rotation of waste toner conveying screw, filters a foreign substance out of the waste toner conveyed by the waste toner conveying screw, supplies the recycled toner from which the foreign substance is removed toward a developing unit, and discharges the foreign substance filtered out of the waste toner to an outside of a drum unit; and a collecting case which is integrally formed with the drum unit at one side of the drum unit to collect the foreign substance filtered by the toner recycling means, wherein the foreign substance like paper dust contained in the waste toner is filtered, and then the recycled toner is supplied again toward the developing unit, thus it is possible to prevent the quality of a printed image from being degraded.

An image forming apparatus such as a copy machine, a printer and a multifunction printer is classified into an ink-jet type, an electro-photographic type and a thermal transfer type according to an image forming method. In the electro-photographic image forming apparatus, an image is formed on a printing medium through a series of processes such as charging, exposing, developing, transferring and fixing.
A conventional electro-photographic image forming apparatus includes a cartridge assembly in which a drum unit and a developing unit are integrally formed, wherein the drum unit has a photosensitive drum, a charging roller, transfer roller so on, and the developing unit accommodates a developer therein and has a developing roller and a supply roller.
Here, the cartridge assembly has the developer comprised of toner and carrier for a printing operation. The developer should be replenished or replaced due to consumption of the toner by the printing operation.
Formerly, the replenishment or replacement of the developer was performed by collecting and discharging a waste developer, i.e., waste toner and waste carrier at the same time and then replenishing a new developer. However, in such a developer replenishing or replacing method, a large amount of the developer is abandoned, and a waste developer receiving part is required separately.
In Japanese Patent Publication No. 1993-66659 (Patent document 1), there is disclosed an image forming apparatus in which the toner is collected and reused in consideration of a conventional developer consumption. Patent document 1 discloses a process cartridge in which a waste toner tank is integrally installed at a photosensitive drum, and a discharging system for collecting the waste toner in the waste toner tank into a developing machine is installed.
Meanwhile, in Japanese Patent Publication No. 2001-194908 (Patent document 2), there is disclosed an image forming apparatus in which the toner is collected and reused, and a supply amount of the carrier is controlled.
However, in case of the patent documents, the collected toner contains a foreign substance or paper dust generated from printing paper, and the paper dust or the foreign substance contained in the waste toner is introduced into the developing machine, while the waste toner is recycled, and has a bad influence on image quality. Therefore, there is a problem in that a life space of a cartridge having a waste toner recycling structure is shortened.

Toner recycling device for image forming apparatus