Apparatus and methods are described, such as for obtaining information indicative of a formation resistivity using an electromagnetic formation evaluation tool apparatus. For example, the electromagnetic formation evaluation tool apparatus includes exciter electrodes configured to transmit and receive a formation current. A first exciter electrode may be insulated from a conductive apparatus housing and a second exciter electrode may be coupled to the conductive apparatus housing. Monitor electrodes may be insulated from the conductive apparatus housing. A receiver circuit may be coupled to the monitor electrodes and configured to measure a voltage differential between the monitor electrodes. A power amplifier circuit may be coupled to the first exciter electrode and the conductive apparatus housing and configured to generate the formation current wherein the conductive apparatus housing provides a return path to the power amplifier circuit for the formation current.

Various techniques may be used to evaluate geological formations. For example, laterolog tools can use current and monitor electrodes to provide resistivity logging for a variety of relatively shallower or relatively deeper radial depths of investigation. In a laterolog tool, focusing of an injected current may be established using hardware or software techniques, or a combination of both hardware and software techniques.
Certain measurement scenarios may still be problematic for laterolog tool measurements. For example, since both the excitation source and the measurement sensors reside within the same tool, direct cross-coupling exciter-to-sensors (e.g., cross-talk) can limit the tool's sensitivity to a desired formation measurement.

Electromagnetic formation evaluation tool apparatus and method


The present disclosure provides a method for determining a paging area, an access network node and a core network node. The method for use in the access network node includes: acquiring indication information indicating the allocation of the paging area for a UE; determining the paging area for the UE in accordance with the indication information; and notifying the UE of the paging area.

As shown in FIG. 1, architecture of a Next-Generation (NextGen) network mainly consists of User Equipment (UEs), Radio Access Network (RAN) nodes and a NextGen core network. The NextGen core network includes control plane (CP) functions and user plane (UP) functions. Each UE is connected to the CP functions via an NG1 interface. Each RAN node is connected to the CP functions via an NG2 interface and to the UP functions via an NG3 interface. The CP functions are connected to the UP functions via an NG4 interface and to an application service function (AF) via an NG5 interface, and the UP functions are connected to a data network (DN) via an NG6 interface.
A new mobility state, i.e., a radio resource control (RRC)_inactive_connected state, has been introduced into Technical Report (TR) 23.799. When the UE is in this state, the connection to the UE via the NG2 and NG3 interfaces is still maintained, although an RRC connection to the UE has been released by the RAN node.
In this state, the UE is transparent to the core network, i.e., the core network still considers that the UE is always in the connected state, so downlink signaling or data may arrive at the RAN node. At this time, it is necessary for the RAN node to page the UE.
As shown in FIG. 2, as defined in the TR 23.799, a method for determining an RAN level paging area includes the following steps.
Step 1: at the UE, information about an area where the UE is expected to reside for a long time period is carried in a service request message.
Step 2: the NG core network determines an intended area in accordance with an UE's expectation, UE's subscription and a network configuration, and in the use of a UP, negotiates with an RAN for an area where the UE is allowed to reside for a long time period in the RRC_inactive_connected state. Then, the NG core network determines the negotiated area as Long Connected Allowed Area, and notifies it to the UE.
Step 3: the UE enters an RRC inactive mode.
Step 4: when the UE has moved beyond the Long Connected Allowed Area, the UE notifies the NG core network to update or delete the Long Connected. Allowed Area.
It should be appreciated that, in the related art, when the UE has moved beyond a current RAN level paging area, it is impossible to update or reallocate the paging area, so the network communication may be adversely affected.

Method for determining paging area, access network node and core network node

CHINA ACADEMY OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY


A bone anchoring device includes a receiving part having a central axis, two legs defining a recess for receiving a rod, and a head receiving portion that is at least partially expandable and having an opening for inserting and pivotably holding a head of a bone anchoring element therein, and a locking ring mountable around the head receiving portion in an axial direction while a rotational orientation of the locking ring relative to the receiving part remains constant. When the locking ring is around the head receiving portion, the locking ring is rotatable around the central axis from a first rotational orientation to a second rotational orientation where a compressive force exerted by the locking ring on the head receiving portion is greater than at the first rotational orientation.

The invention relates to a polyaxial bone anchoring device and a system including a polyaxial bone anchoring device and an instrument for use with the device. More specifically, the bone anchoring device includes a receiving part for coupling a rod to a bone anchoring element and a locking ring for locking a head of the bone anchoring element and for releasing the locking, for example via the instrument.

Polyaxial bone anchoring device and system including an instrument and a polyaxial bone anchoring device


The present invention provides electrosurgical needles, needle systems, and methods for their use which will allow the surgeon to target a tumor's blood supply. Generally, the invention facilities targeting the bloodflow of the tumor by incorporating a doppler ultrasound transducer into the needle or needle sheath. Preferably, the surgeon will also be able to control the temperature of the needle using an integral temperature sensor to effect maximum transfer of the RF energy into the tissue, thereby maximizing the volume of tissue destroyed. Furthermore, when used (for example) in the treatment of uterine fibroids, the present invention will reduce damage to the serosa by monitoring the uterine surface temperature during myolysis through a temperature sensor integrated into the sheath holding the myolysis needle.

Benign leiomyomata (uterine fibroids) are common tumors which affect more than 25% of all women at some time during the reproductive years. Many women wish to have fibroid-related symptoms such as bleeding and pain treated without resort to hysterectomy. Pharmacologic therapy alone is of limited utility due to side-effects associated with long-term use. Hysteroscopic resection using the loop or vaporizing resectoscope is appropriate for those tumors which protrude into the uterine cavity--so called submucous myomas. Surgical myomectormy (removal of the fibroid) is often used for tumors which are thought to be the cause of infertility. However, this approach usually requires a laparotomy and is often associated with adhesion formation between the uterus, bowel and other adjacent structures. These adhesions can be the cause of chronic pain in some patients.
Needle myolysis is a promising technique whereby a laparoscope is used to introduce one or more needles into a fibroid tumor under visual control. Bipolar Radio Frequency ("RF") current is then delivered between two adjacent needles, or unipolar current between a single needle and a distant dispersive electrode affixed to the thigh or back. The aim of needle myolysis is to coagulate a significant volume of the tumor and thereby cause it to shrink substantially. The traditional technique is to make multiple passes through different areas of the tumor using the coagulating needle to destroy many cylindrical cores of abnormal tissue. However, the desirability of multiple passes is mitigated by the risk of adhesion formation, which is thought to increase with increasing amounts of injured uterine serosa, and by the operative time and skill required.
Recently, Goldrath and others have demonstrated that tumor shrinkage can be preferentially induced by destroying the tumor's blood supply, which is generally located on the periphery, rather than by targeting the bulk of the fibroid. Physicians acting on this observation use the needles to ring the tumor with cores of coagulation. This technique still calls for multiple tumor passes and, in the end, the operator remains uncertain as to the status of the tumor's blood supply.
Another problem with needle myolysis is the variability in generated lesion sizes created by the electrocautery generator. Electrosurgical lesions are created when radiofrequency current flows through tissue, resistively heating it to the point of cell death. It has been demonstrated in the RF catheter ablation literature and elsewhere that maximum energy transfer occurs when the electrode tissue interface temperature remains below 100.degree. C. Temperatures in excess of 100.degree. C. cause intracellular water to boil, desiccating tissue and reducing the electrical and thermal conductivity of the surrounding tissue. Under such conditions, the impedance seen by the ESU increases and current flow falls (since most ESUs are constant voltage sources). Since the electrocautery electrode itself acts as a passive heat sink, the highest tissue temperature is usually found at some depth from the tissue-electrode interface. Therefore, under ideal circumstances the coagulating electrode temperature would be maintained at some level below the critical 100.degree. C. temperature (e.g., 80.degree. C.).
Today, the surgeon must set ESU power levels based upon heuristics. However, the amount of energy required to maintain the tissue-electrode interface at the desired temperature will vary depending upon a number of factors, including the size of the coagulating needle, the blood flow in the surrounding tissue, etc. Excessive temperatures at the uterine serosa can be expected to increase the incidence of adhesion formation; this can lead to chronic pain in some patients.
To overcome the above limitations, it would be desirable to provide improved needle myolysis systems and methods to facilitate the accurate, controlled targeting of a tumor's blood supply. It would further be desirable if such an apparatus could provide feedback regarding the temperature at the tissue-electrode interface, and particularly the temperature of nearby tissues.

Needle myolysis system for uterine fibriods


Provided is a polymerization liquid for electropolymerization, which uses a solvent that is mainly composed of water, which is greatly increased in the amount of a monomer contained therein, and which is capable of quickly forming a conductive polymer layer having high conductivity and heat resistance, A polymerization liquid for electropolymerization of the present invention contains: a solvent that is composed of 100-80% by mass of water and 0-20% by mass of an organic solvent; at least one monomer having a pi-conjugated double bond; at least one supporting electrolyte; and at least two nonionic surfactants. The at least two nonionic surfactants are composed of at least one acetylenol surfactant and at least one water-soluble nonionic surfactant other than the acetylenol surfactant. Due to the combination of the two nonionic surfactants, the amount of the monomer emulsified with the solvent can be greatly increased.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a polymerization liquid for electrolytic polymerization that can rapidly produce a conductive polymer layer with high conductivity and heat resistance. The present invention also relates to a conductive polymer film and a solid electrolytic capacitor which are obtained from the polymerization liquid.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conductive polymer obtained from polymerization of a monomer with a π-conjugated double bond such as thiophene, aniline and pyrrole is highly conductive and suitable for various electrochemical purposes, and has been applied to various fields such as a solid electrolytic capacitor as well as a polymer battery, an antistatic film, an indicating element, a sensor, and an electrode material. For example, the conductive polymer is suitably used in a solid electrolytic capacitor that contains a positive electrode in which an oxide film as a dielectric is provided on the surface of a valve metal foil such as aluminum, tantalum or niobium and a conductive polymer layer that contacts the oxide film and functions as a true negative electrode.
These conductive polymers can be obtained by an electrolytic polymerization method or a chemical polymerization method (for example, see Patent Document 1 (JP H1-313521 A)), and by the electrolytic polymerization method, whereby a conductive polymer film with excellent mechanical strength is formed on an electrode from a small quantity of monomer in a short period of time. The conductive polymer formed on the electrode is used in a form where it is separated from the electrode or in a form where it is kept placed on the electrode.
A polymerization liquid for electrolytic polymerization that is used to obtain these conductive polymers generally contains a monomer with π-conjugated double bond, a supporting electrode, and a solvent to dissolve them. The solvent of the polymerization liquid is suitably selected based on a consideration of the solubility of a monomer or other factors.
For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method to obtain a conductive polymer by electrolytic polymerization of a 3,4-disubstituted thiophene such as 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (hereinafter 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene is referred to as "EDOT" and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) is referred to as "PEDOT"), and in working examples, acetonitrile is used as a solvent of a polymerization liquid. Patent Document 2 (JP S61-239617 A) discloses a method to obtain a conductive polymer by electrolytic polymerization of an aniline substituted by an alkyl group or an alkoxyl group, and in working examples, water is used as a solvent of the polymerization liquid.
Patent Document 3 (JP H3-18009 A) discloses that electrolytic polymerization using polymerization liquid containing non-substituted pyrrole as a monomer and p-toluenesulfonate as a supporting electrolyte forms a conductive polymer layer of a solid electrolytic capacitor, and in working examples, acetonitrile or water is used as a solvent of the polymerization liquid. Patent Document 4 (JP H2-58818 A) discloses that electrolytic polymerization using a polymerization liquid containing an organic solvent, a monomer such as pyrrole, thiophene or azulene, and an alkyl-substituted ammonium borodisalicylate as a supporting electrolyte forms a conductive polymer layer of a solid electrolytic capacitor. Patent Document 4 also states that a polymerized film with a problem in terms of thermal stability is obtained from a polymerization liquid where ammonium borodisalicylate with low solubility against organic solvent is used as a supporting electrolyte and a solvent in which water is added to an organic solvent is used.
As can be understood from these patent documents, both water and an organic solvent can be suitably selected and used as a solvent of a polymerization liquid for electrolytic polymerization. However, compared with usage of water solvent, usage of organic solvent generally increases the environmental burden and is economically disadvantageous. Further, many organic solvents are hazardous to humans, and in the case of electrolytic polymerization using a combustible solvent, it is necessary to take preventive measures against fire caused by an electric spark. Because the aniline derivative and non-substituted pyrrole specified in Patent Document 2 and Patent Document 3 have comparatively high solubility in water, water can be used as a solvent for polymerization of these monomers, but for polymerization of a monomer that is insoluble or slightly soluble such as the thiophene derivative mentioned in Patent Document 1, there was no other option but to use an organic solvent.
Therefore, also in the case of polymerization of a monomer that is insoluble or slightly soluble in water, a polymerization liquid has been considered in which an anion surfactant or a nonionic surfactant is used and the monomer is emulsified with water, in order to use water as a solvent having a small environmental burden and excellent economic efficiency.
For example, Patent Document 5 (JP 2000-269087 A) reports electrolytic polymerization using an aqueous polymerization liquid where a thiophene derivative such as EDOT is emulsified by an alkylnaphthalenesulfonate surfactant. Because an alkylnaphthalenesulfonate anion that is taken in a conductive polymer layer as a dopant is bulky, de-doping is inhibited, and a conductive polymer layer that is stable at a high temperature in high humidity is obtained. Also, Non-Patent Document 1 (Synthetic Met. (2009), 159 (5-6), 406-414) reports electrolytic polymerization using an aqueous polymerization liquid in which EDOT and sodium polystyrene sulfonate as an anionic surfactant are dissolved. By the action of sodium polystyrene sulfonate, solubility of EDOT in water is increased, EDOT becomes easily oxidizable, and a uniform film is formed on a Pt electrode.
There is no problem if an anion produced by an anion surfactant is used as a dopant of a conductive polymer, but a problem occurs if other anions are intended to be a dopant for the conductive polymer. If an anion surfactant and a supporting electrolyte from which a dopant is produced in a polymerization liquid are used concurrently, the anion surfactant inhibits the anion of the supporting electrolyte from being taken in the conductive polymer layer as a dopant, and the characteristics of the conductive polymer layer obtained such as conductivity and heat resistance are affected.
The applicants reported in Patent Document 6 (WO2011/108254A1) and Patent Document 7 (WO2011/108255A1) as well as in PCT/JP2012/55284 and PCT/JP2012/55285, which were not published at the time of this application, that electrolytic polymerization using an aqueous polymerization fluid containing borodisalicylic salt and bis(pentafluoroethanesulfonyl) imidate as a supporting electrolyte produces a conductive polymer with more excellent heat resistance compared with electrolytic polymerization using a polymerization liquid containing alkylnaphthalenesulfonate and polystyrene sulfonate, which produce a dopant that is bulky and has difficulty causing de-doping. Patent Document 4 states that a polymerized film with a problem in terms of thermal stability is obtained from a polymerization liquid where a solvent in which water is added to an organic solvent is used, but by using the suitable supporting electrolyte, a conductive polymer layer with excellent thermal stability can be obtained from the aqueous polymerization fluid. However, if this preferable supporting electrolyte and an anion surfactant are used concurrently in a polymerization liquid, it becomes difficult for the anion of the suitable supporting electrolyte to be taken into the conductive polymer layer as a dopant, so the heat resistance of the conductive polymer layer is lowered.
On the other hand, if a polymerization liquid containing a supporting electrolyte and a nonionic surfactant is used, the nonionic surfactant is not taken into a conductive polymer layer as a dopant and the taking-in of the anion of the supporting electrolyte into the conductive polymer as a dopant is not inhibited by the nonionic surfactant, because the nonionic surfactant is not ionized. Patent Document 8 (JP H2-235321 A) takes note of this point and discloses a manufacturing method of a solid electrolytic capacitor using a polymerization liquid containing a nonionic surfactant. By using a polymerization liquid in which a monomer for a conductive polymer, an anion as a dopant, and a nonionic surfactant such as polyethylene glycol, polyethylene glycol alkyl ethers, polyethylene glycol fatty acid esters or fatty acid monoglycerides are dissolved and electrolyzing by using an anode foil on which a dielectric oxide film is formed as an anode, a flat and smooth conductive polymer layer that closely contacts the dielectric oxide film is obtained.
Also, Patent Document 9 (JP 2008-37975 A) discloses a method to manufacture a conductive polymer by using a polymerization liquid, which contains a monomer for a conductive polymer, a supporting electrolyte, and a nonionic surfactant selected from compounds having a polyoxyalkylene group such as a (poly)styryl phenol-type polyoxyalkylene compound, a (poly)styryl phenol-formaldehyde condensate-type polyoxyalkylene compound or a (poly)alkyl-substituted phenol-formaldehyde condensate-type polyoxyalkylene compound, in an electrolytic polymerization reaction. By using a specific range of nonionic surfactant with a polyoxyalkylene group, a polymerization liquid with excellent stability is obtained, and a conductive polymer film with excellent evenness and conductivity is obtained. Patent Document 10 (JP 2008-118060 A) discloses a method to obtain a solid electrolytic layer of a solid electrolytic capacitor by electrolytic polymerization using a polymerization liquid containing a monomer for a conductive polymer, an aromatic sulfonate ion as a dopant, and the same nonionic surfactant as is disclosed in Patent Document 9. By using the polymerization liquid, a solid electrolytic capacitor with an even, dense, solid electrolytic layer, which has low equivalent series resistance (ESR) and leakage current, is obtained.

Polymerization liquid, conductive polymer film obtained from polymerization liquid, and solid electrolytic capacitor


A support sock having a support structure integrally knit therewith. The sock has a toe area, an ankle area, and an intermediate area for covering a wearer's instep, ball and sole. The integrally knit support structure has an arch wrap defining at least a portion of the intermediate area. The integrally knit support also includes an upper and/or lower support band for assisting in the arch wrap. The upper support band bridges between the proximal end of the arch wrap and the ankle area. The lower support band extends from the distal end of the arch wrap.

There are a number of over-the-counter arch supports and supportive insoles available for providing or improving support for the arches of the feet.
Custom-made orthotics are also available, although they are much more expensive.
Alternatively, the provision of arch support can also be done by wrapping a separate elastic bandage around the foot. Wrapping of the bandage, however, may prove uncomfortable if wrapped too tightly, or not so effective if wrapped too loosely. There may also be an element of discomfort in that the wearer's existing footwear may not have enough room to accommodate an additional thickness of the bandage.
As a more accessible and convenient option, attempts have been made to attach or incorporate arch support bands or pads into socks. Being one of the basic commodities of everyday life, socks provide a convenient framework into which support means can be incorporated, by way of sewing or knitting. Despite the inherent convenience, socks with an integrally formed arch bands or pads have some drawbacks in that they do not necessarily deliver sufficient or adequate level of support.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to provide socks with improved support.


Disclosed are fluidics devices and assemblies allowing for fluid flow between a plurality of wells. The fluidics devices and assemblies that are provided mimic in vivo tissue environments by allowing for initially segregated tissue cultures that can then be linked through fluid flow to measure integrated tissue response. The devices and assemblies provide a pumpless system using surface tension, gravity, and channel geometries. By linking human tissue functional systems to better simulate in vivo feedback and response signals between the tissues, the need for testing in animals can be minimized.

It is estimated to cost on the order of $1 B dollars to bring a drug candidate to market and the pharmaceutical industry is enhancing its chances of success by investing in human pre-clinical research. This money has driven the absorption, distribution, metabolism, elimination, and toxicology (ADMET) market in human-based products to a $5 billion dollar annual industry. The current technology for testing drug candidates is based on homogeneous culture techniques and animal models. Thus, there is an unmet need for biotool devices capable of linking human tissue functional systems to better simulate in vivo feedback and response signals between tissues and to minimize testing in animals.
Accordingly, such biotool devices and assemblies are provided in the present disclosure.

Fluidics device allowing fluid flow between a plurality of wells


An enhancement-mode device comprises: a substrate, an epitaxial multilayer structure formed on the substrate, and a gate region formed on the epitaxial multilayer structure, where the epitaxial multilayer structure sequentially comprises from the substrate: a nucleation layer, a buffer layer, a heterojunction structure layer, a second gallium nitride layer, a nitride transition layer and a dielectric layer, where the heterojunction structure layer comprises a gallium nitride channel layer and a barrier layer which has a sandwich structure, and a middle layer of the sandwich structure is a first gallium nitride layer; and the gate region comprises a gate metal layer and a p-type nitride layer located under the gate metal layer, wherein the p-type nitride layer is embedded into the epitaxial multilayer structure, a bottom of the p-type nitride layer is in contact with the first gallium nitride layer of the sandwich structure.

Gallium nitride, which is a semiconductor material, has become a research focus at present because of its features such as a wide band gap, a high saturation drift velocity of electron, a high breakdown field strength and a good thermal conductivity. In terms of electronic devices, gallium nitride is more preferable for manufacturing devices at high-temperature, high-frequency, high-voltage and high-power as compared with silicon and gallium arsenide. Thus, the electronic device based on gallium nitride has a good prospect.
Since a two-dimensional electron gas is formed in the AlGaN/GaN heterojunction structure, a High Electron Mobility Transistor (HEMT) generally made by AlGaN/GaN heterojunction is naturally a depletion device. It is not straightforward to achieve an enhancement-mode device using AlGaN/GaN hetero-structures. However, the depletion-mode device has its limitation in many applications. For example, an enhancement-mode (normally-off) switching device is needed in the application of the power switching device due to safety requirements. The research of enhancement-mode gallium nitride switching devices has important significance, because it has a great potential in high-frequency, power switching, digital circuit applications and the like.
It is necessary to find a method for reducing the carrier concentration in the channel under the gate electrode in the case that the gate voltage is zero, to achieve the enhancement-mode gallium nitride switching device. A first method is to provide an etching structure under the gate electrode and reduce locally the thickness of an aluminum gallium nitride layer under the gate electrode, to control or minimize the concentration of two-dimensional electron gas under the gate electrode. As shown in FIG. 1, a buffer layer 1, a gallium nitride layer 2 and an aluminum gallium nitride layer 3 are sequentially located on a substrate 10; and a gate electrode 4, a source electrode 5 and a drain electrode 6 are located on the aluminum gallium nitride layer 3. The aluminum gallium nitride layer under the gate electrode 4 is etched locally, and thus the thickness of the aluminum gallium nitride layer in a gate region is reduced. A second method is to form a p-type nitride under the gate electrode, Fermi level in the AlGaN/GaN hetero-structure is pulled up by the p-type nitride (Al) GaN to form a depletion region, and thus the enhancement-mode device is achieved. A portion of a p-type nitride 7 under a gate electrode 4′ is retained selectively, as shown in FIG. 2.
However, these two methods have some disadvantages. In the first method, the threshold voltage is generally in the range of 0V to 1V, which does not reach the applied threshold voltage of 3V to 5V. To achieve a higher threshold voltage, it is needed to provide an additional dielectric layer, such as an aluminium oxide layer formed by atomic layer deposition. But, it is an issue how to control the interface states between the dielectric layer and the AlGaN surface. In the second method, it is necessary to remove the planar p-type GaN over the AlGaN barrier layer. It is difficult to achieve the precise control of the etching depth. Furthermore, defects due to etching and the residual magnesium atom from the p-type aluminum gallium nitride may lead to severe current collapse. In addition, the concentration of the two-dimensional electron gas in the AlGaN/GaN heterojunction is limited since the hole concentration is low (in general, the hole concentration of the p-type gallium nitride is not larger than 1E18/cm3). If the electron concentration of the two-dimensional electron gas is too high to be depleted, the enhancement-mode device can not be achieved. Therefore, the composition of aluminum in the AlGaN/GaN heterojunction of the enhancement-mode device is generally less than 20%, for example, about 15%.

Enhanced device and manufacturing method therefor


In an OFDM receiving apparatus for receiving a signal that has undergone Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) and applying FFT processing to the receive signal to demodulate transmit data, an OFDM symbol comprising a fixed number of items of sample data is extracted from a receive signal, a position at which FFT processing of the OFDM symbol starts is shifted based upon the state of multipath and FFT processing is executed from the position to which the shift has been made. For example, a channel estimation value is obtained from result of FFT processing of known data contained in the receive signal, a multipath delay profile is obtained by applying FFT processing to this channel estimation value, and the position at which the FFT processing begins is decided based upon the position of a path for which power is maximized among the delay profiles.

This invention relates to an OFDM receiving method and an OFDM receiving apparatus. More particularly, the invention relates to an OFDM receiving method and OFDM receiving apparatus for receiving a signal multiplexed according to Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) and applying FFT processing to the receive signal to demodulate transmit data.
Multicarrier modulation schemes have become the focus of attention as next-generation mobile communication schemes. Using multicarrier modulation not only makes it possible to implement wideband, high-speed data transmission but also enables the effects of frequency-selective fading to be mitigated by narrowing the band of each subcarrier. Further, using orthogonal frequency division multiplexing not only makes it possible to raise the efficiency of frequency utilization but also enables the effects of inter-symbol interference to be eliminated by providing a guard interval for every OFDM symbol.
(a) of FIG. 12 is a diagram useful in describing a multicarrier transmission scheme. A serial/parallel converter 1 converts serial data to parallel data and inputs the parallel data to orthogonal modulators 3a to 3d via low-pass filters 2a to 2d, respectively. In the Figure, the conversion is to parallel data comprising four symbols. Each symbol includes an in-phase component and a quadrature component. The orthogonal modulators 3a to 3d subject each of the symbols to orthogonal modulation by subcarriers having frequencies f1 to f4 illustrated in (b) of FIG. 12, a combiner 4 combines the orthogonally modulated signals and a transmitter (not shown) up-converts the combined signal to a high-frequency signal and then transmits the high-frequency signal. With the multicarrier transmission scheme, the frequencies are arranged, as shown at (b), in such a manner that the spectrums will not overlap in order to satisfy the orthogonality of the subcarriers.
In orthogonal frequency division multiplexing, frequency spacing is arranged so as to null the correlation between a modulation band signal transmitted by an nth subcarrier of a multicarrier transmission and a modulation band signal transmitted by an (n+1)th subcarrier. (a) of FIG. 13 is a diagram of the structure of a transmitting apparatus that relies upon the orthogonal frequency division multiplexing scheme. A serial/parallel converter 5 converts serial data to parallel data comprising a plurality of symbols (I+jQ, which is a complex number). An IDFT (Inverse Discrete Fourier Transform) 6, which is for the purpose of transmitting the symbols as subcarriers having a frequency spacing shown in (b) of FIG. 13, applies an inverse discrete Fourier transform to the frequency data to effect a conversion to time data, and inputs the real and imaginary parts to an orthogonal modulator 8 through low-pass filters 7a, 7b. The orthogonal modulator 8 subjects the input data to orthogonal modulation, and a transmitter (not shown) up-converts the modulated signal to a high-frequency signal. In accordance with orthogonal frequency division multiplexing, a frequency placement of the kind shown in (b) of FIG. 13 becomes possible, thereby enabling an improvement in the efficiency with which frequency is utilized.
In recent years, there has been extensive research in multicarrier CDMA schemes (MC-CDMA) and application thereof to next-generation wideband mobile communications is being studied. With MC-CDMA, partitioning into a plurality of subcarriers is achieved by serial-to-parallel conversion of transmit data and spreading of orthogonal codes in the frequency domain. Owing to frequency-selective fading, subcarriers distanced by their frequency spacing experience independent fading on an individual basis. Accordingly, by causing code-spread subcarrier signals to be distributed along the frequency axis by frequency interleaving, a despread signal can acquire frequency-diversity gain.
An orthogonal frequency/code division multiple access (OFDM/CDMA) scheme, which is a combination of OFDM and MC-CDMA, also is being studied. This is a scheme in which a signal, which has been divided into subcarriers by MC-CDMA, is subjected to orthogonal frequency multiplexing to raise the efficiency of frequency utilization.
A CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) scheme multiplies transmit data having a bit cycle Ts by spreading codes C1 to CN of chip frequency Tc using a multiplier 9, as shown in FIG. 14, modulates the result of multiplication and transmits the modulated signal. Owing to such multiplication, a 2/Ts narrow-band signal NM can be spread-spectrum modulated to a 2/Tc wideband signal DS and transmitted, as shown in FIG. 15. Here Ts/Tc is the spreading ratio and, in the illustrated example, is the code length N of the spreading code. In accordance with this CDMA transmission scheme, an advantage acquired is that an interference signal can be reduced to 1/N.
According to the principles of multicarrier CDMA, N-number of items of copy data are created from a single item of transmit data D, as shown in FIG. 16, the items of copy data are multiplied individually by respective ones of codes C1 to CN, which are spreading codes (orthogonal codes), using multipliers 91 to 9N, respectively, and products DC1 to DCN undergo multicarrier transmission by N-number of subcarriers of frequencies f1 to fN illustrated in (a) of FIG. 17. The foregoing relates to a case where a single item of symbol data undergoes multicarrier transmission. In actuality, however, as will be described later, transmit data is converted to parallel data of M symbols, the M-number of symbols are subjected to the processing shown in FIG. 16, and all results of M×N multiplications undergo multicarrier transmission using M×N subcarriers of frequencies f1 to fNM. Further, orthogonal frequency/code division multiple access can be achieved by using subcarriers having the frequency placement shown in (b) of FIG. 17.
FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating the structure on the transmitting side of MC-CDMA (the structure of a base station). A data modulator 11 modulates transmit data of a user and converts it to a complex baseband signal (symbol) having an in-phase component and a quadrature component. A time multiplexer 12 time-multiplexes the pilot of the complex symbol to the front of the transmit data. A serial/parallel converter 13 converts the input data to parallel data of M symbols, and each symbol is input to a spreader 14 upon being branched into N paths. The spreader 14 has M-number of multipliers 141 to 14M. The multipliers 141 to 14M multiply the branched symbols individually by codes C1, C2, . . . , CN constituting orthogonal codes and output the resulting signals. As a result, subcarrier signals S1 to SMN for multicarrier transmission by N×M subcarriers are output from the spreader 14. That is, the spreader 14 multiplies the symbols of every parallel sequence by the orthogonal codes, thereby performing spreading in the frequency direction. Though codes (Walsh codes) C1, C2, . . . , CN that differ for every user are indicated as the orthogonal codes used in spreading, in actuality channel identification codes (Gold codes) G1 to GMN are further multiplied by the signals S1 to SMN.
A code multiplexer 15 code-multiplexes the subcarrier signals generated as set forth above and the subcarriers of other users generated through a similar method. That is, for every subcarrier, the code multiplexer 15 combines the subcarrier signals of a plurality of users conforming to the subcarriers and outputs the result. A frequency interleaver 16 rearranges the code-multiplexed subcarriers by frequency interleaving, thereby distributing the subcarrier signals along the frequency axis, in order to obtain frequency-diversity gain. An IFFT (Inverse Fast Fourier Transform) unit 17 applies an IFT (Inverse Fourier Transform) to the subcarrier signals that enter in parallel, thereby effecting a conversion to an OFDM signal (a real-part signal and an imaginary-part signal) on the time axis. A guard-interval insertion unit 18 inserts a guard interval into the OFDM signal, an orthogonal modulator applies orthogonal modulation to the OFDM signal into which the guard interval has been inserted, and a radio transmitter 20 up-converts the signal to a radio frequency, applies high-frequency amplification and transmits the resulting signal from an antenna.
The total number of subcarriers is (spreading ratio N)×(number M of parallel sequences). Further, since fading that differs from subcarrier to subcarrier is sustained on the propagation path, a pilot is time-multiplexed onto all subcarriers and it is so arranged that fading compensation can be performed subcarrier by subcarrier on the receiving side. The time-multiplexed pilot is a common pilot that all users employ in channel estimation.
FIG. 19 is a diagram useful in describing a serial-to-parallel conversion. Here a common pilot P has been time-multiplexed to the front of one frame of transmit data. It should be noted that the common pilot P can be dispersed within a frame, as will be described later. If the common pilot per frame is, e.g., 4×M symbols and the transmit data is 28×M symbols, then M symbols of the pilot will be output from the serial/parallel converter 13 as parallel data the first four times, and thereafter M symbols of the transmit data will be output from the serial/parallel converter 13 as parallel data 28 times. As a result, in the period of one frame the pilot can be time-multiplexed into all subcarriers and transmitted. By using this pilot on the receiving side, channel estimation is performed on a per-subcarrier basis and channel compensation (fading compensation) becomes possible.
FIG. 20 is a diagram useful in describing insertion of a guard interval. If an IFFT output signal conforming to M×N subcarrier samples (=1 OFDM symbol) is taken as one unit, then guard-interval insertion signifies copying the tail-end portion of this symbol to the leading-end portion thereof. Inserting a guard interval GI makes it possible to eliminate the effects of inter-symbol interference ascribable to multipath.
FIG. 21 is a diagram showing structure on the receiving side of MC-CDMA. A radio receiver 21 subjects a received multicarrier signal to frequency conversion processing, and an orthogonal demodulator subjects the receive signal to orthogonal demodulation processing. A timing-synchronization/guard-interval removal unit 23 establishes receive-signal timing synchronization, removes the guard interval GI from the receive signal and inputs the result to an FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) unit 24. The FFT unit 24 executes FFT processing and converts the signal in the time domain to N×M-number of subcarrier signals (subcarrier samples) at an FFT window timing. A frequency deinterleaver 25 rearranges the subcarrier signals in an order opposite that on the transmitting side and outputs the signals in the order of the subcarrier frequencies.
After deinterleaving is carried out, a fading compensator 26 performs channel estimation on a per-subcarrier basis using the pilot time-multiplexed on the transmitting side and applies fading compensation. In the Figure, a channel estimation unit 26a1 is illustrated only in regard to one subcarrier. However, such a channel estimation unit is provided for every subcarrier. That is, the channel estimation unit 26a1 estimates the influence exp(jφ) of fading on phase using the pilot signal, and a multiplier 26b1 multiplies the subcarrier signal of the transmit symbol by exp(−jφ) to compensate for fading.
A despreader 27 has M-number of multipliers 271 to 27M. The multiplier 271 multiplies N-number of subcarriers individually by codes C1, C2, . . . , CN constituting orthogonal codes (Walsh codes) assigned to users and outputs the results. The other multipliers also execute similar processing. As a result, the fading-compensated signals are despread by spreading codes assigned to each of the users, and signals of desired users are extracted from the code-multiplexed signals by despreading. It should be noted that in actuality, the channel identification codes (Gold codes) are multiplied before the Walsh codes.
Combiners 281 to 28M each add the N-number of results of multiplication that are output from respective ones of the multipliers 271 to 27M, thereby creating parallel data comprising M-number of symbols. A parallel/serial converter 29 converts this parallel data to serial data, and a data demodulator 30 demodulates the transmit data.
FIG. 22 is a diagram for describing the operation of the channel estimation unit. Here four pilot symbols (four OFDM pilot symbols) are multiplexed upon being dispersed within one frame composed of 32 OFDM symbols. Since one pilot symbol is composed of subcarrier samples equivalent to the number of subcarriers (M×N, e.g., 1024), subcarrier-by-subcarrier channel (amplitude characteristic and phase characteristic) estimation becomes possible by monitoring the FFT output at the pilot-receive timing on the receiving side. More specifically, to perform channel estimation, four sets of eight subcarrier samples in the frequency direction are gathered in the time direction to construct one group by a total of 32 subcarrier samples, as indicated at PG1 in FIG. 22, the average value of FFT outputs in this group is adopted as the channel value (amplitude and phase of the receive pilot signal) of the subcarrier at the center, and this channel value is compared with the known channel value (known amplitude and phase of the pilot signal), whereby the channel of this subcarrier is estimated. To obtain the channel estimation value of the next subcarrier, four sets of eight subcarrier samples shifted by one subcarrier in the frequency direction are gathered in the time direction to construct one group by a total of 32 subcarrier samples, as indicated at PG2, and the channel estimation value is similarly calculated using the average value in the group PG2. The reason for obtaining the channel value by averaging as set forth above is that since each symbol contains noise, the effects of such noise are eliminated by averaging to improve the S/N ratio. If subcarriers are very close in terms of frequency, the channel values are almost the same and therefore no problems are caused by averaging.
FIG. 23 is a diagram useful in describing FFT window timing in case of two paths (two waves), where A represents a direct wave and B a delayed wave (reflected wave). If the FFT window is decided to have a width Wa of one OFDM measured from the leading end of an OFDM symbol D1 of the direct wave, then the OFDM symbol D1 of the direct wave will merely overlap a guard interval GI1 and part of the D1 symbol of the delayed wave in the FFT window width Wa. As a result, there are no effects from inter-symbol interference (ISI) ascribable to multipath delayed waves. However, if the FFT window is decided to have a width Wb of one OFDM measured from the leading end of an OFDM symbol D1 of the delayed wave, then there will be overlap between part of the D1 symbol of the delayed wave and a guard interval GI2 of a D2 symbol of the direct wave, as a result of which the effects of inter-symbol interference ISI are sustained. The FFT window should be decided in such a manner that there will be no effects from inter-symbol interference ISI. If the FFT window is decided so as to be Wa in FIG. 23, inter-symbol interference ISI will not be received unless the largest delayed wave is delayed in excess of the duration of the guard interval GI.
If a Fourier transform of function ƒ(t) is expressed by F[ƒ(t)], a Fourier transform of a time-delay function ƒ(t−t0) will be exp(−2πjft0)F[ƒ(t)]. If we consider that exp(−2πjft0)=cos 2πft0−j sin 2πft0 holds, then the Fourier transform of the time-delay function ƒ(t−t0) will rotate in accordance with a change in frequency. For example, a Fourier transform of an impulse δ(t) at time t=0 is 1 (=a constant) at any frequency, as shown in (a) of FIG. 24. However, a Fourier transform of δ(t−t0) rotates in accordance with frequency in such a manner that the projection upon the I-jQ complex plane describes a unit circle, as shown in (b) of FIG. 24.
Thus, in a case where the receive power of a direct wave is high and that of a delayed wave is low, as shown in FIG. 25, the average value of the FFT becomes large and the amplitude of rotation small if the FFT operation is preformed upon deciding the FFT window using the OFDM symbol of the direct wave as a reference. Thus, since the fluctuation portion is small, a correct channel value can be obtained and the channel estimated correctly by averaging 32 subcarrier samples. In addition, there is no inter-symbol interference ISI.
However, in a case where the receive power of a direct wave is low and that of a delayed wave is high, as shown in FIG. 26, the average value of the FFT becomes small and the amplitude of rotation large if the FFT operation is preformed upon deciding the FFT window using the OFDM symbol of the direct wave as a reference. Thus, when the fluctuation portion becomes large, the channel value obtained by averaging 32 subcarrier samples includes an error and the channel cannot be estimated correctly.


A method for controlling a screen display system in vehicles is provided, including a setting element or actuator that can be arbitrarily operated, and information that can be displayed on a screen according to the setting of the setting element. According to the invention, the amount of image information contained in the image information is set by using the setting element. The method graphical displays a hierarchical menu structure consisting of menus, submenus, functions and/or a functional value. The assignment of different menu items to the amounts of image information assigned to the settings of the setting element ensues according to the frequency with which the respective menu item has been selected during preceding operations.

The invention relates to a method for controlling a screen display system in motor vehicles with an actuator that can be arbitrarily operated, and with information that can be displayed on a screen depending upon the setting of the actuator. The amount of image information contained in the image information is adjusted using the actuator. Such a method is disclosed in an earlier, non-published patent application DE 101 51 282.1.
Controlling image information menu-like with an actuator is known from DE 38 36 555 A1.
With the menu structure consisting hierarchically of menu, submenu and functions and/or function value, the individual menu item is selected using the actuator and allocated image information is reproduced on a screen. The actuator is, moreover, primarily used for navigation through the menu structure. The reproduced image information arises as a result of the respectively selected nodal (menu) points of the functional (menu) hierarchy.
It is achieved with the patent application DE 101 51 282.1 mentioned above that the reproducible information is more strongly adapted to the information needs of the motor vehicle user. For this, the amount of image information contained in the image information is adjustably configured using the actuator. This, moreover, results in various levels of the amount of information with, in particular, that each amount of image information is a sub-quantity of each larger amount of image information.
Here, moreover, exists the difficulty of appropriately selecting the menu items to be displayed or not to be displayed and allocated to the respective positions of the actuator. A more theoretical possibility of controlling the amount of information consists of shielding the unused branches of the menu structure so that the menu structure is simplified and the user only finds the actually desired functions. Removing parts of the menu structure, however, can confuse and impair orientation within the menu.
The allocation of the individual menu items to the various amount levels of information is also especially difficult because different users have different user habits and each user goes through a learning curve in terms of knowledge of the system.
The invention is based upon the objective of creating a method of the type mentioned above that undertakes a correspondingly appropriate selection of the amount of information to be represented in connection with a hierarchically built menu structure as it is known, for example, from DE 38 36 555 A1.
The invention accomplishes this by providing a method for controlling a screen information system in motor vehicles with an actuator that can be operated as desired, and with image information displayable on a screen as a function of the setting of the actuator. The amount of image information contained in the image information is set using the actuator. A hierarchical menu structure is applied to the graphic representation, consisting of menus, submenus, functions and/or function value. Different menu items are allocated in relation to the amount of image information allocated to the settings of the actuator as a function of the frequency with which the respective menu item was selected during previous operating cases.
The method depicts the use habits of the user. Information on the menu items or menu branches are successively hidden in accordance with the use needs of the user. The necessity of requiring the respective menu item is derived from the frequency with which the user has selected it in preceding operating cases.
The computer unit that is, in any case, present for representing the menu structure records the user inputs and evaluates them statistically. In this way, the "information paths" entered upon by the user (that is, the paths pursued within the menu structure) are recorded and weighted according to use frequency. The paths less used, or not used at all, can in addition be characterized graphically, for example, in that they are represented with a lower contrast. The user can now "dim" his/her menu structure, thus reducing the amount of information represented, with the actuator. For example, if the actuator is a rotary switch with latched positions known from DE 38 36 555 A1, the menu items assessed as the weakest (that is, the menu items selected most seldom or not at all) are hidden by rotating the actuator. By further rotation, the next category, etc. up to only even very frequently used menu items/functions are displayed.
This process can be reversed at any time in that the actuator is rotated in the other direction and in this way brings the hidden menu points back into prominence. In the event that the system was never used or only used for a very short time, there exists the possibility of using a standard profile for the sequence for "dimming" the amount of information. This profile can, for example, be ascertained as a function of a particular country so that regional habits can be taken into consideration. Thus, there is a good initial basis that can be adapted to the user in the further course of use.
For implementing the described menu system, the statistical recording of selection frequencies in necessary. Statistics are compiled for each menu item, documenting how frequently or how regularly it is selected by the user.
Various resolution possibilities are offered for compiling these statistics. It can be advantageous to distinguish between the actual functions (thus, for example, playing a radio station) and navigation, thus finding the menu path to these functions (for example the menu item, "all stations"). Functions must be upgraded in the statistical evaluation when they are used over a long period of time (for example, when the radio station is listened to for more than 5 minutes). For functions that are used only temporarily during navigation (that is when running through the menu pathways) this does not mean much. Here, an upgrade can take place, for example, when the function was in fact selected.
Menu items can correspondingly also be downgraded. If, for example a radio station is not selected or is only selected for a very short time when changing stations, downgrading takes place.
The menu (items) statistics determinative for allocating individual menu items to the positions of the actuator are stored as a function of the motor vehicle key. This way, it is possible to use the statistics not only as a function of the user for the selection of the menu item to be selected, but to maintain them also individually by user in that each new case of use is entered into the individual statistics of each use. The precondition for this is that each user only uses "his/her" key.
These statistics can also be used outside the motor vehicle. It would be possible to ascertain the actual frequency of use of functions and thereby the acceptance with the customer: How frequently, for example, does the user return to the average use 2, or how frequently does a change to the AM station take place? Are specified radio stations used, or rather perhaps is the list of available radio stations reproduced by the radio itself?
It is possible with the method described to represent the really important functions for the individual person out of a large variety of functions in a drastically simplified menu structure. This structure is, on the one hand, more easily comprehensible and can, on the other hand, be operated more rapidly. Regional characteristics in use habits can be compensated for without difficulty. This results overall in a gain in driving safety and operating comfort.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Method for controlling a screen display system in motor vehicles

Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft


The embodiment provides a semiconductor MP wafer process including processing a plurality of MP wafers in a lot or batch with a first process step. The plurality of the MP wafers is split into an MP wafer group-1 and an MP wafer group-2. At least one of the MP wafers of the MP wafer group-1 is processed with a second process step-1 and at least one of the MP wafers of the MP wafer group-2 is processed with a second process step-2 to form different device components on the MP wafers of the MP wafer group-1 and group-2, respectively. At least one of the MP wafers of the MP wafer group-1 is processed with a third process step-3 and at least one of the MP wafers of the MP wafer group-2 is processed with a third process step-4 to form a substantially same device component on the MP wafers.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor multi-project or multi-product (MP) wafer process, and in particular, to a semiconductor MP wafer process with lower non-recurring engineering (NRE) prototyping or production manufacturing costs, a shorter cycle-time and more flexible semiconductor manufacturing or IC product service.
2. Description of the Related Art
As semiconductor technology scaling down and increasing in complexity, the NRE of new mask sets and wafers required to fabricate devices has been increasing significantly in complexity, number, and overall cost. For those fabless IC companies, the financial barrier of semiconductor IP/Lib design, IC prototyping or even small volume production becomes prohibitively higher for coming nano-meter (nm) scale technologies. One solution of easing the NRE costs offered by semiconductor foundry suppliers is to provide a multi-project wafer with a mask-shuttle. Using a mask-shuttle multi-project wafer service, the foundry provider can share the initial NRE cost over multiple fabless customers, depending on number of shuttle seats required for their IC design prototyping purposes.
Having mask-shuttle services, IC designs or IP/Lib (macro) function unit are submitted for semiconductor design verification using either open (i.e., non-proprietary) or vendor proprietary IP/Library. IC designs are pooled into a common mask set and in a prototyping wafer lot. Then, semiconductor wafers run through the fabrication process at semiconductor foundry. The finished semiconductor chips (packaged or unpackaged) are returned to those foundry customers or users who submitted their IC designs or IP/Lib (macro) functional units for making the multi-project wafer.
The semiconductor IC industry has experienced rapid growth for decades. Technological advances in IC materials, process and design have produced generations of ICs where each generation has smaller and more complex circuits than the previous generation. However, these advances have increased the complexity of processing and fabricating ICs. Furthermore, while the IC industry has been getting matured, the various operations needed to produce an IC may be performed at different locations by a single company or by different companies that specialize in a particular area. For example, IC foundry fabricating processes that use a mask shuttle can create multi-project wafers for a single or multiple customers.
FIG. 8 illustrates a conventional multi-project wafer mask set incorporated with multiple process nodes. The mask set 800 includes a first layer mask 802, a second layer mask 804, a third layer mask 806, a fifth layer mask 812, a sixth layer mask 814, and a eighth layer mask 820 that are multiple technology node mask (MTM). The mask set 800 further includes a fourth layer mask 808 and 810, a seventh layer mask 816 and 818. The masks 802, 804, 806, 812, 814 and 820 are single technology node mask (STM). The mask set MTMs (808, 816) and (810, 812) each include a first and second pattern associated with a different technology node respectively (for instance, 65 nm and 90 nm technology nodes). The fourth layer mask 808 and the seventh layer mask mask 816 are STMs and include the first pattern (e.g. 65 nm technology node) and the fourth layer mask 810 and the seventh layer mask mask 818 are STMs and include the second pattern (e.g. 90 nm technology node). The mask set 800 is used to fabricate a device including the first pattern, and a device including the second pattern.

Semiconductor multi-project or multi-product wafer process


A panel element for use as a roof tile or other building element, e.g. on a vertical surface, is molded in one piece and includes upper, lower and left and right marginal edge regions. To facilitate securing the panel in place, the upper edge region may include fastening apertures. The lower marginal edge region of each panel is secured to the upper edge region of another panel in a lower row of panels. For this purpose, interlocking formations are provided in the upper and lower marginal edge regions, with the locking formation in the upper marginal edge region being below the nail apertures. This locking formation can serve both to prevent water travelling up to the nail apertures and as a locking formation. Support ribs under the panels can provide both uniform support from an underlying planar surface, and can also form the locking formations. The panel can be molded in any suitable material to simulate a variety of known tiles or other building elements.

At the present time, most domestic roof s in North America are roofed or covered with shingles. Other roofing materials are known, such as wooden shakes and rigid tiles. Wooden shakes offer greater durability, but are relatively expensive and time consuming to lay. A variety of rigid tiles are gaining some popularity. For domestic use these are usually clay tiles. For industrial use they may be formed of concrete or other materials. Such rigid tiles will often be moulded with various ridges around their peripheries to prevent water leaking between adjacent tiles. However, such tiles are heavy and relatively expensive.
More recently a variety of synthetic roof and wall coverings have become known in the art. For example, there are panels formed of elongated thermoplastic panel elements that are nailed to the wall or roof support surface in horizontal courses or rows in partially overlapping relation to each other so as to provide a substantially water resistant, protective layer over the support surface. Such panels are usually identically moulded, and typically are formed with a plurality of rows of simulated building elements, such as shake shingles. In such panels, the individual building elements of each row commonly are moulded in laterally spaced relation with a separating groove therebetween. While it is desirable that the panels facilitate drainage of rain water and the like to which they are exposed in the outside environment, heretofore this has presented problems, since water can be drawn inwardly between overlapping marginal edge portions of adjacent panels and enter the space beneath the panels, either through nail holes or about the peripheral edges of the panels and become trapped and accumulate under the panels. Water movement can be caused by various factors, such as capillary action and pressure differences caused by wind. Such water movement worsens during high wind and storm conditions. Not only does the trapped moisture under the panels increase the possibility for leakage and damage to the wall or roof, but upon freezing, the expanding moisture tends to lift the overlapping edge portions further breaking the protective barrier between the panels and the support surface. When efforts have been made to prevent such capillary seepage between panels, they often have been ineffective, or have complicated the construction and cost of the panel, or have impeded the natural drainage of water from the panels.
A further difficulty with available building elements or tiles is that in practice they are difficult to assemble on the support surface.
To function properly as seals, the fit between overlapping panels must necessarily be exact and there is little or no flexibility to allow for inaccuracies in installation. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,072,562 (Dec. 17, 1991) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,076,037 (Dec. 31, 1991) to Crick et al, assigned to Nailite International, the wall covering disclosed consists of an interlocking means which defines primary and secondary seals between the upper marginal edge region of the panel in one course and the overlapping lower marginal edge region of the panel in the course immediately above. This includes a top panel with a downturned lower peripheral lip which bears against the face of a ledge of the underlying panel thus establishing a primary seal; the underlying panel has an upper peripheral edge in the form of an upwardly turned sealing lip which can be positioned to engage with the underside of the lower marginal edge portion of the overlapping panel and establish a secondary seal. Between the two sealing means are provided additional water barrier means, namely a plurality of parallel barrier ridges in vertically spaced relation to one another which are integrally formed on the upper marginal region of each panel, and a pair of uninterrupted upstanding nail aperture guard ridges extending outwardly and which are integrally formed on the upper marginal panel.
In the commercial embodiment of the patents to Nailite, as known to the applicants interlocking means is provided consisting of an upper marginal edge region of a lower panel which is engaged by a plurality of downward-directed hooks which form part of the lower peripheral edge region of an upper panel in the course immediately above. The hook is adapted to engage the lower panel by insertion between the support surface and the upper portion of the upper marginal edge region of the lower panel, the upper portion being located above the nail aperture. The hook thus tends to pull the upper portion of the lower panel away from the support surface, and weaken the contact between the support surface and the lower panel, as well as to provide an area where water could gather between the support surface and the lower panel. Neither parallel barrier ridges nor nail guard aperture ridges are provided as disclosed in the patents. Further the additional seal provided by engagement of the lower peripheral lip of one panel with a ledge below the nail apertures of a panel below is omitted.
While such known panels are provided in large sizes to make installation easier, they are of relatively flimsy construction and include little support underneath. Consequently walking on the tiles would cause repeated flexing of the tile, and possibly could eventually crack the tile.
It is an object of the present invention to provide wall and roof tile panels which are adapted for easy alignment and mounting through simple interlocking means, such that successive courses of panels can be quickly and easily mounted on the support surface. It is also desirable that any interlocking arrangement should not interfere with the mounting provided by an upper row of nail apertures and further preferably includes any additional water barrier.
Such tiles should be capable of being moulded simply and economically in a plastic or synthetic material, and should be configured to provide good support any person walking on them.

Panel element for forming a continuous covering on a building


A floor member includes a floor plate extending in a length direction along a front-rear direction of a cab. The floor plate includes front-left corner portion, front-right corner portion, rear-left corner portion, and rear-right corner portion; a first vertical beam member; a second vertical beam member; and a plurality of support members which support the first vertical beam member, the second vertical beam member, and the floor plate in respective regions including a region where the front-left corner portion and a first front end overlap each other, a region where the rear-left corner portion and a first rear end overlap each other, a region where the front-right corner portion and a second front end overlap each other, and a region where the rear-right corner portion and a second rear end overlap each other.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a floor member including a floor portion of a cab provided in a working machine, and a working machine provided with the floor member.
Description of the Background Art
Conventionally, there is known a construction machine provided with a lower traveling body, an upper slewing body including a slewing frame slewably mounted on the lower traveling body, and a cab loaded on the slewing frame and to be operated by an operator (see e.g. Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2006-56325). In the construction machine, the cab includes a rectangular floor plate extending in a front-rear direction of the cab, a cab box loaded on the floor plate, and four mount members directly attached to the back surface of the floor plate in such a manner as to respectively overlap the four corner portions of the floor plate. The floor plate and the cab box are supported on the slewing frame of the upper slewing body via the four mount members.
The cab of the construction machine further includes a pair of left and right reinforcement members joined to the back surface of the floor plate in order to prevent vibrations by flexure of the floor plate. Each of the reinforcement members extends in the length direction along the front-rear direction of the cab, but is disposed in a region between each two mount members located on the front side and on the rear side in the length direction so as to avoid interference with the mount members attached to the corner portions of the floor plate. Specifically, each of the reinforcement members is disposed at a lengthwise middle portion of the floor plate. Each of the reinforcement members is aligned with the corresponding two mount members located on the front side and on the rear side of the floor plate in the length direction, but is distanced away from the corresponding two mount members.
In the construction machine, the floor plate has a rectangular shape extending in a front-rear direction of the cab, and the four corner portions of the floor plate are supported on the slewing frame via the mount members. In this configuration, the lengthwise middle portion of the floor plate may be flexed when a heavy load is loaded on the lengthwise middle portion of the floor plate. In order to prevent such a flexure, there is proposed an idea of increasing the thickness of the floor plate or increasing the thickness of the reinforcement members disposed at the middle portion of the floor plate. However, this may unavoidably increase the entire weight and cost of the floor plate and of the reinforcement members.

KOBELCO CONSTRUCTION MACHINERY CO., LTD.


A coated article is provided that may be used as a vehicle windshield, insulating glass (IG) window unit, or the like. An ion beam is used during at least part of forming an infrared (IR) reflecting layer(s) of such a coated article. Advantageously, this has been found to improve sheet resistance (Rs) properties, solar control properties, and/or durability of the coated article. Other layers may also be ion beam treated in certain example embodiments.

Coated articles are known in the art for use in window applications such as insulating glass (IG) window units, vehicle windows, and/or the like. Example non-limiting low-emissivity (low-E) coatings are illustrated and/or described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,723,211; 6,576,349; 6,447,891; 6,461,731; 3,682,528; 5,514,476; 5,425,861; and 2003/0150711, the disclosures of which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference.
In certain situations, designers of coated articles with low-E coatings often strive for a combination of high visible transmission, substantially neutral color, low emissivity (or emittance), low sheet resistance (Rs), and good durability. High visible transmission for example may permit coated articles to be more desirable in applications such as vehicle windshields or the like, whereas low-emissivity (low-E) and low sheet resistance (Rs) characteristics permit such coated articles to block significant amounts of IR radiation so as to reduce for example undesirable heating of vehicle or building interiors. It is often difficult to obtain high visible transmission and adequate solar control properties such as good IR blockage, combined with good durability (chemical and/or mechanical durability) because materials used to improve durability often cause undesirable drops in visible transmission and/or undesirable color shifts of the product upon heat treatment.
Low-E coatings typically include one or more IR reflecting layers. An IR reflecting layer is typically metallic or mostly metallic, and is often of a material such as silver (Ag), gold (Au), or the like. The silver or gold may be doped with other materials in certain instances. The purpose of the IR reflecting layer(s) is to block significant amounts of IR radiation, thereby preventing the same from undesirably heating up vehicle and/or building interiors which the coated article is protecting.
Generally speaking, the lower the electrical resistance (sheet resistance Rs and/or bulk resistance) of an IR reflecting layer, the better the IR reflecting characteristics thereof. However, it has heretofore been difficult to reduce resistance properties (and thus improve IR reflecting characteristics) of an IR reflecting layer without adversely affecting optical characteristics of a coated article (e.g., visible transmission, color, etc.) and/or durability of a coated article. For instances, significant changes in the thickness of an IR reflecting layer alone may affect resistance, but at the same time will adversely affect durability and/or optical characteristics of the coating.
In view of the above, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that there exists a need in the art for a technique for reducing resistance characteristics of an IR reflecting layer(s) thereby improving IR reflecting characteristics thereof and thus solar control properties of a coated article, without significantly adversely affecting durability and/or optical characteristics of the coated article. There also exists a need in the art for a method of making such a coated article.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method of making coated article having low-E coating with ion beam treated and/or formed IR reflecting layer


Techniques are disclosed for determining a target language for a communication session and configuring a language mode of an input method editor (IME) to the target language. An example methodology implementing the techniques includes, by a computing device, detecting a communication to a recipient via a software application running on the computing device, determining a target language for the communication, and configuring a language mode of an input method editor to the target language. The target language may be determined based on an attribute or attributes of the recipient of the communication. In some cases, the target language may be determined based on an attribute or attributes of a contents of a prior communication.

Due, at least in part, to the increasing reliance on cloud-based services and platforms, organizations, such as companies, enterprises, governments, and agencies, are implementing digital workspace solutions. These digital workplace solutions provide an integrated technology framework designed to deliver and manage applications, data, and desktop delivery. For example, through the digital workspace, employees are able to access their applications and data in real-time from any location.


A pointing device having a laser in a handheld housing is disclosed. The laser generates a light beam that exits the housing. A beam steering assembly causes the light beam to move relative to the housing. The pointer includes a housing orientation sensor that measures the orientation of the housing. A controller operates the beam steering assembly to compensate for changes in the housing orientation. Embodiments based on housing orientation sensors constructed from a gyroscope and a camera are described. In addition to stabilizing the light beam location, embodiments in which the beam steering assembly also causes the light beam to execute a fixed pattern can also be constructed.

Individuals are often faced with making a presentation to a large audience. It has become common to utilize a projector to project images of text and the like on a large screen that is viewable by the audience. The screen is often too large, or at a distance that is too far from the lecturer, to allow the lecturer to point to a particular area on the display with a physical device such as a long rod. This problem has been overcome by utilizing inexpensive hand held laser-based pointers that project a spot of light on the screen.
These devices utilize semiconductor lasers that are powered from an internal battery and have dimensions similar to that of an ordinary pencil. The laser pointer has the advantage of being able to project a spot on a screen located far from the lecturer. In fact, such pointers are also used for pointing out stars and other objects in the sky, as the beam can be seen as it is reflected off of dust or water droplets in the atmosphere. Unfortunately, small movements of the lecturer's hand translate into large movements of the light spot on the screen because the relatively large distance between the screen and the lecturer amplifies any shaking or other rotational movement of the hand. Hence, the point of light tends to move around the correct area on the screen. Such movement is distracting to the audience.
Laser pointers are also used to emphasize text or other areas of a display. For example, a lecturer can emphasize a particular word on a screen by rapidly moving the light spot back and forth under the word to underline the word. The lecturer may also circle a word by moving her hand such that the spot executes a circle on the screen. Such techniques require practice on the part of the lecturer to execute, and hence, are not easily executed by the occasional user. In addition, these higher functions can result in fatigue of the lecturer's hand muscles, since the beam must be moved with sufficient speed to give the impression of a stationary illumination pattern.


A method for transmitting Coordinated Multipoint transmission/reception (CoMP) coordinated group information and an Evolved NodeB (eNB) thereof are provided in the present invention. The method includes: the eNB sends the CoMP coordinated group information of the CoMP coordinated group to which the local service cell belongs, and/or the CoMP coordinated group information of the CoMP coordinated group to which the neighboring cell of the local service cell belongs to other eNBs via the X2 interface message. The eNB is configured with an X2 interface unit and a storage unit. The present invention can improve the CoMP transmission handover success rate of the network and improve the network performance.

The long term evolution (LTE) network consists of Evolved Node B (eNB) in the evolved universal mobile telecommunication system terrestrial radio access network (E-UTRAN) and Evolved Packet Core (EPC), and the network is flat. Wherein, the E-UTRAN comprises an eNB set connecting with the EPC via the S1 interface, and eNBs are connected with each other by X2, and the abovementioned S1 and X2 are logic interfaces.
One EPC might manage one or more eNBs, and one eNB can be controlled by several EPCs, and one eNB might manage one or more cells. The long-term evolution advance (LTE-A) system is evolved from the LTE system, and the network architecture of the LTE-A is the same as that of the LTE. New technologies such as relay, spectrum aggregation and coordinated multipoint transmission/reception (CoMP) are applied to the LTE-A to improve the system performance.
With the proposal of the LTE-A, more and more attention is paid to the cell average spectrum efficiency and the cell edge spectrum efficiency by people. Comparatively, the cell edge spectrum efficiency gains most attention, this is mainly because that the LTE-A system is a frequency division system whose uplink and downlink take the orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) or its transformation as the basic multiple access multiplexing method, which is different from the conventional wireless communication system which takes the code division multiple access (CDMA) as the basic multiple access multiplexing method, and the LTE-A system has no processing gain, and there is nearly no interference issue since it is totally orthogonal frequency division within the cell, at the cell edge, however, the interference processing is relatively tough. Since the distances from users at the cell edge to the antennas in multiple adjacent cells are little different, it is most susceptible to interference, which affects the system performance. If different antennae in multiple cells can be utilized to simultaneously provide service for the users at the cell edge, not only the inter-cell interference can be avoided, but also the multiple antennae can be fully utilized to increase spatial dimension information, so that the capacity and performance of system are significantly improved. Therefore using the transmitting antennae in multiple cells to achieve relatively high capacity and reliable transmission of wireless links at the cell edge becomes a research emphasis.
When using different antennae in multiple cells to simultaneously provide service for the users at the cell edge, since there is a coordination relationship among the multiple cells (for example, it needs to decide what kind of resources are assigned to which users at what time), meanwhile, since the antennae in multiple cells serve one or more users at the same time, this transmission method is called Coordinated Multipoint Transmission/Reception (CoMP). The CoMP can obviously implement the inter-cell interference coordination and also achieve the reliable transmission of the wireless links or increase the capacity at the cell edge.
The original purpose of introducing the CoMP is to solve the problem of inter-cell interference in the OFDM system and to increase the UE throughput at the cell edge, for example, several eNBs coordinate to remove the interchannel interference (ICI), and even to change the interference signal into the expected signal. With further research, it finds out that applying the CoMP in the LTE-A can increase the data transmission speed, cell edge throughput, and/or system throughput, thus most companies have a very optimistic view of the CoMP technology.
Coordination among multiple eNBs can increase the cell edge throughput and the average cell throughput to a very large extent, it needs, however, very high backhaul capacity for sharing data/channel state information (CSI) among multiple eNBs, and the implementation is very complicated. In order to reduce the complexity, a limited number of eNBs/cells should be considered to coordinate to serve a special UE. Therefore, a problem related to the CoMP is how to select the coordinated cell cluster (simplified as CoMP coordinated group) to maximize the cell throughput, with acceptable scheduling complexity and the backhaul capacity. At present, the existing methods can be divided into the following three kinds:
(1) Network static CoMP coordinated group;
(2) UE dynamically selects the CoMP coordinated group;
(3) Mixed-mode CoMP coordinated group.
Wherein, for the mixed-mode CoMP coordinated group, the cell set providing service for a certain UE is one subset of one relatively large fixed cluster rather than the whole network.
The handover in the coordinated multipoint environment can be divided into the following three kinds:
(1) Handover within the coordinated group: the UE belongs to the same coordinated group before/after the handover, and the same coordinated group serves the UE before/after the handover.
(2) Handover between the coordinated groups: the UE belongs to the same coordinated group before/after the handover, but a part of nodes in the original coordinated group cannot cover the UE after the handover so that they cannot serve the UE coordinately, therefore, it needs to select a new coordinated group.
(3) Handover outside the coordinated groups: the service cell after the handover does not belong to the original coordinated group, and it needs to select a new coordinated group.
As shown in FIG. 1, according to the abovementioned three kinds of handover, the UE switching from location A to location B belongs to the first kind of handover; switching from location A to location C belongs to the second kind of handover; and switching from location A to location D belongs to the third kind of handover.
The CoMP coordinated group information is very useful information for selecting a suitable target handover cell during the handover in the coordinated multipoint environment. However, the network management system can be conventionally used to configure the CoMP coordinated group information for its managed eNBs and to send the CoMP coordinated group information to the eNBs, and this method for configuring the CoMP coordinated group information lacks flexibility and cannot adjust in real time according to the network condition.

Method for transmitting coordinated multipoint transmission/reception coordinated group messages and an evolved NodeB thereof