A liquid discharge head is arranged in a manner that in the cross-section of a discharge port in a liquid discharge direction, the discharge port includes at least one projection that is convex inside the discharge port; a first area, for holding a liquid surface connecting a pillar-shaped liquid that is elongated outside the discharge port; and second areas where a fluid resistance is lower than that in the first area so as to pull the liquid in the discharge port in a direction opposite to the liquid discharge direction. The first area is formed in the direction in which the projection is convex, and the second areas are formed on both sides of the projection.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid discharge head that performs recording by discharging liquid droplets onto a medium, a liquid discharge apparatus, a head cartridge and a liquid discharge method.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a system for discharging a liquid such as ink, a liquid discharge system (ink jet recording system) has been developed, and as a discharge energy generating element, used for discharging liquid droplets, a method that uses a heat generating element (a heater) is available.
FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a general discharge process, for a bubble jet (BJ) discharge system, that employs a conventional ink jet head for preventing bubbles from communicating with the atmosphere. It should be noted that, for convenience sake, in this case a liquid portion that is externally ejected through an orifice plate, wherein a discharge port is formed, is called discharged liquid, and liquid remaining within the discharge port is called flow path liquid, in order to distinguish between these liquid portions.
First, in a state (a) of FIG. 10, a film boiling phenomenon is produced at the surface of the heater by electrifying the heater ((b) of FIG. 10). Through energy generated by this film boiling, liquid is forced outward, from the surface of the orifice plate in which the discharge port is formed ((c) of FIG. 10). At this time, impelled by the inertial force of the energy generated by the film boiling, the liquid near the heater is moved, as a bubble, away from the heater. Since the interface status of the bubble and the liquid is altered by this movement of the liquid, gas near the heater behaves as though it were growing. However, the state, at this time, is insulated from the heat produced by the heater, and heat is not transmitted to the bubble, so that as the bubble grows, the pressure of the gas is reduced. Furthermore, the inertial force also increases the quantity of the liquid that is discharged. When the inertial force of this liquid finally becomes proportional to a recovery force that accompanies the reduction in the pressure of the gas, growth of the bubble is halted, and a maximum bubble state is achieved ((d) of FIG. 10). Since the gas portion in the maximum bubble state is under a pressure sufficiently lower than the atmosphere, thereafter, the bubble begins to disappear, and the liquid in the surrounding area is rapidly drawn into the space once occupied by the bubble ((e) of FIG. 10). In accordance with the movement of the flow path liquid that accompanies the disappearance of the bubble, a force that draws the liquid near the discharge port towards the heater is also exerted. Since the velocity vector of this force is in the direction opposite to that of the velocity vector for the flying, discharged liquid, liquid having the shape of a pillar (a liquid pillar) is formed between a spherical portion, which serves as the main droplet, and a flow path liquid, and is stretched. As a result, the liquid pillar portion becomes elongated ((f) of FIG. 10). And when some time has elapsed following the disappearance of the bubble, the discharged liquid, which can no longer maintain the liquid pillar state, is separated by breaking away, countering the viscosity of the liquid, and becomes a separate liquid droplet ((g) of FIG. 10). At the time of this scattering that produces the liquid droplet, a tiny mist is formed. Finally, the flying liquid droplet is further separated, forming a main droplet and a sub-droplet (a satellite), in accordance with a velocity difference between the two and the surface tension of the liquid ((h) of FIG. 10). Since the satellite is flying to the rear of the main droplet, when it is attached to the paper surface the landing position is shifted away from that of the main droplet. This results in the degradation of the image quality.
FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram showing a general discharge process performed by a bubble through jet (BTJ) discharge system, employing a conventional ink jet head, whereby bubbles communicate with the atmosphere. The height of a flow path is formed lower than that of the BJ discharge system in FIG. 10. An explanation will not be given for the same portion as that for the BJ discharge system in FIG. 10. While referring to a bubble disappearance process ((e) to (g) of FIG. 12), the way in which a meniscus is pulled inside a discharge port differs between a location at the front, in an ink flow path, and at the rear, in the ink flow path, so that the meniscus becomes asymmetrical ((f) of FIG. 12). Therefore, when a discharged droplet is separated from the meniscus, the rear tail end portion of the discharged droplet is bent ((g) of FIG. 10). Thus, a satellite generated at the bent tail portion would fly along a trajectory shifted away from that of a main droplet, and land at a position separate from that of the main droplet.
Recently, for an ink jet printer for which a high definition image, such as that for photographic output, is requested, it is preferable that the formation of satellites that cause image quality to be deteriorated be reduced to the extent possible. Relative to a process for reducing the formation of satellites, as described, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-235874, it is known that the length of the tail (the ink tail) of a flying liquid droplet is reduced. It is further disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-235874 that the interval between discharge ports is locally reduced to increase the meniscus force, and the fluctuation of the liquid surface at a discharge port is reduced by the meniscus force and shortens the tail of a flying liquid droplet.

Liquid discharge method, liquid discharge head and liquid discharge apparatus


In view of the foregoing, an embodiment herein provides an automatic processing unit for car storing and retrieving system for the multilevel park system. Specifically, the automatic processing car storing and retrieving system includes an integrated central car handling unit and microcontroller unit, wherein said integrated central car handling unit comprises at least one collection-delivery rack to carry the car; at least one up-down platform to move the car vertically; and at least one wheeled platforms to move the car in a circular movement. Further, the collection-delivery rack of integrated central car handling unit can move simultaneously in circular and vertical direction. Further, a method for storing and retrieving the car by using the integrated central car handling unit is also provided.

Presently, car industry is growing rapidly at an average rate of 10 percent. In order to accommodate the large volume of vehicles, infrastructure of the cities such as road, flyovers, car parking and other facilities needs to be improved in the city. Lack of enough parking spaces near shopping centers, hospital, theater, railway station, airport etc., encourages the tendency to park car on the road side illegally which aggravate the traffic menace. Lots of money gets wasted in case of a theft or damage of vehicle when it parked unattended on the road side. Parking a car in busy parking lot in cities is a nightmare for senior citizens.
Conventionally, a multilevel car parking system is one of the options to decongest roads and solve parking problems associated with the above and to maximize the car parking capacity by utilizing vertical space, rather than expand horizontally. According to this method, driving ramps are provided to drive the vehicle to each level of parking. It is found that the ramp eat up much parking area that no increase in parking capacity is possible. Further, this system requires lot of space for maneuvering of cars while parking and retrieving. Moreover, the car has to move slowly due to sloppy ramps and to search for vacant parking bay, thereby resulting in burning lots of fuel and polluting the air. In addition, lots of time to be spend to find a vacant space and to park the car in available space. The car in the driving path should stop when somebody wants to take a car out from parked slot. In this scenario, height of each level should be much higher than the car height to accommodate the movement of passenger and driver. This system has an associated amount of overhead that must be accommodated such as pathways, lighting and air ventilation system for passengers and drivers, and security personnel to avoid theft.
Recently, automatic multilevel parking systems are developed and adopted to overcome the problem associated with conventional multilevel parking systems. In general, this system consists of pallets in which the cars are parked at entry point. The pallet along with car is then placed on a slider powered by electrical motor and moves horizontally to nearest lift mechanism. Then the slider transfers the pallet with car to the lift and the lift moves vertically to take the pallet to the desired level. Further the pallet is again transferred to another slider which takes the pallet to a designated spot and transfers the car to a desired slot. It has been observed that the process consumes a lot of time to transfer the cars between slider to lift, lift to slider and finally to slot. This leads to longer waiting time for a driver to store/retrieve a vehicle to/from the parking bay. And also in each level, this system requires motor powered sliders and guiding rails for sliders moving horizontally. This complicated system needs much man power for maintenance and initial cost will be high.
There therefore exists a need in the art to provide for an automatic multilevel parking system that not only reduces the time to park a vehicle but also to have low maintenance and cost effective system.

Automatic multiprocessing car storing and retrieving system for multilevel car park


Systems and methods are provided for opportunistic load balancing across one or more communication links supported by one or more base stations. As part of the opportunistic load balancing process, a load balancer may measure a performance metric and an idle capacity metric for the one or more communication links. In some embodiments, the load balancer may directionally measure the performance metric and the idle capacity metric. Based on the measured metrics, the load balancer may determine a candidate base station for a network socket. The load balancer may then establish the network socket with the candidate base station. As a result, the load balancer may help alleviate network congestion.

Some networks support communications between vehicles and base stations external to the vehicle. At any point in time, a vehicle may be able to communicate with multiple base stations via the network. However, the performance of communication links between vehicles and base stations vary over time. By load balancing to route traffic over communication links with superior performance, the quality of connections supported by the communication links may be improved.
However, the performance of communications is highly variable. By the time the vehicle balances traffic over previously-determined superior communication links, the performance of those communication links may have degraded. In some scenarios, by the time traffic is routed, these communication links may no longer exhibit superior performance. Accordingly, there is a need to develop improved load balancing techniques that better account for the variability in communication link performance to reduce network congestion

Opportunistic balancing in multiple links


A pixel driving circuit includes a current controlling module, an outputting module and a time length controlling module including a comparator, a first energy storage element, an offset voltage writing sub-circuit, and first and second output sub-circuits. First terminal of first energy storage element is connected with first input terminal of comparator and second terminal with the first output sub-circuit. The second output sub-circuit is connected with second input terminal of comparator. The offset voltage writing sub-circuit writes an offset voltage of comparator to the first energy storage element. One of the first and second output sub-circuits outputs time signal and the other outputs reference voltage signal. The comparator outputs comparison signal according to the time signal and the reference voltage signal. The current controlling module outputs current signal. The outputting module turns on responsive to the comparison signal and controls current of light-emitting unit according to the current signal.

Along with development of economy, display devices are applied more and more widely in the lives of people.
A display device includes a plurality of light-emitting units and pixel driving circuits connected with the plurality of light-emitting units one to one. The pixel driving circuit includes a switching transistor and a comparator. The switching transistor is capable of transmitting a current signal to a light-emitting unit upon turning on so as to drive the light-emitting unit to emit light. The comparator is configured to control the switching transistor to turn on and off. However, the light-emitting units in the display device have display brightness with poor uniformity.

Display devices, pixel driving circuits and methods of driving the same

Beijing BOE Display Technology Co., Ltd.


A display device for a fluid filler gun head includes a carrying body and a frame attached to an upper surface of the carrying body, defining a display portion for removable display placards. The carrying body can be removable from the gun head or can be an integral part of the gun head itself. A housing is defined in the carrying body for holding one or more replaceable rolls of coupons, and a rotating device, is provided for rotating the coupon rolls and dispensing one or more coupons through a slot in the carrying body. A controller can be provided to control operation of the rotating device, based on information received from an external source, to dispense one or more selected coupons. The information can be a type of fluid being dispensed, a particular product displayed on the display placard, or the like. The dispensed coupons preferably are selected to match the information received by the controller. Alternatively, the coupon dispensers can be attached directly to a display card, removably attachable to a standard filler gun display device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a display device for a fluid filler gun. More particularly, the present invention relates to a display device for a filler gun head that includes a coupon dispenser.
2. Description of the Related Art
Filler gun display devices are known. A saddle or carrying body, usually made of pliable or rigid synthetic material, slides in place over a gun head of a fluid filler gun used with a fluid pump, e.g., a gasoline pump, oil pump, water pump, or the like, provided at an automobile service station. The carrying body typically includes a display surface where replaceable display placards can be mounted. The display placards can be used to label the type of gasoline or other fluid dispensed by the particular gun head. The display placard also can be used to advertise products or services for sale at the service station or another location, or for any other desired advertising purpose. The carrying body can be removable from the gun head, or may be an integral part of the gun head itself.
Unfortunately, the display placard itself does not always provide sufficient inducement to the consumer to purchase the products or services being advertised on the display device. It would be commercially advantageous to provide the consumer with an additional inducement, such as one or more discount coupons, to encourage the consumer to purchase goods and services. It could be particularly advantageous if such coupons could be tied to the particular product being advertised on the display device, or to the particular fluid being dispensed by the filler gun, and if the coupons could be provided to the consumer simultaneously with the consumer's use of the filler gun.

Fluid filler gun display device including a coupon dispenser


The present invention relates to compounds of Formula I below and their tautomers or pharmaceutically acceptable salts, compositions and methods of uses thereof:

Tryptophan is metabolized in mammals via the kynurenine pathway to yield three neuroactive substances, 3-hydroxykynurenine, kynurenic acid and quinolinic acid. Kynurenic acid has neuroprotective activities in vivo while 3-hydroxykynurenine and quinolinic acid are neurotoxic. Studies have shown that 3-hydroxykynurenine and quinolinic acid are causative or contribute to delayed neurological damages and are associated with a variety of human diseases including neurodegenerative disorders and psychiatric diseases. Pharmacological intervention aimed at blocking 3-hydroxykynurenine and quinolinic acid synthesis and/or increasing kynurenic acid formation have been attempted in treatment of neurological diseases and their peripheral indications, such as diabetes.
Kynurenine-3-monooxygenase (KMO) is an enzyme in the tryptophan degradation pathway that catalyzes the conversion of kynurenine into 3-hydroxykynurenine which is a precursor of the neurotoxin quinolinic acid. Therefore, compounds which act as inhibitors of KMO are of particular interest since they block the metabolism toward quinolinic acid and at the same time, increase the formation of neuroprotective metabolite kynurenic acid.
Inhibitors of KMO have been known in the art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,877,193 describes N-(4-arylthiazol-2-yl)-sulfonamide derivatives for treating neurodegenerative disorders resulting from an activation of the immune system.
There remains a need for compounds that are effective inhibitors of KMO and can be used in treating neurodegenerative disorders. Compounds that inhibit KMO and can thus be used to treat and prevent KMO-associated disorders including neurodegenerative disorders are provided herein.

Small molecule inhibitors of kynurenine-3-monooxygenase

The J. David Gladstone Institutes, A Testamentary Trust Established Under The Will Of J. David Gladstone


A circuit board injector/ejector device for use with a circuit board to be accommodated in a rack housed in an enclosure comprises a body adapted to be secured to a front plate secured to the circuit board and a lever pivotally mounted on the body. The device is adapted to assist in providing the force necessary to effect a multiplicity of pin and socket connections at the rear of the circuit board when the circuit board is introduced into a rack and to assist in providing the force necessary to effect disconnection of the multiplicity of pin and socket connections at the rear of the circuit board when the circuit board is withdrawn from the rack. The lever has passing therethrough a fixing screw which, when the multiplicity of pin and socket connections at the rear of the circuit board have been made and withdrawal of the circuit board from the rack is prevented by co-operating surfaces of the lever and an adjacent elongate member of the rack, is adapted to screw into a tapped hole in the body to prevent pivotal movement of the lever.

This invention relates to cabinets, cases and other enclosures in which electrical and/or electronic apparatus is mounted on racks, trays or other supports housed in the enclosure. The invention is particularly concerned with enclosures of this kind in which circuit boards are accommodated in racks which are housed in the enclosure and which generally comprise a plurality of mutually spaced pairs of opposed guide rails into any pair of which opposed edges of a circuit board can be slid from the front of the rack, as the circuit board is slid fully home one or more than one edge connector mounted on the circuit board at or near its rear edge effecting electrical connection with a connector or connectors directly or indirectly carried by a backplane at the rear of the enclosure.
With a view to facilitating insertion of a circuit board into, and withdrawal of a circuit board from, a pair of opposed guide rails of the rack, it is the general practice to secure to the front edge of the circuit board, i.e. the trailing edge of the board as it is slid into the rails, a substantially rectangular flat plate, hereinafter referred to as the front plate, which serves as a handle. Neighbouring edges of the front plates of adjacent circuit board when slid fully home in their pairs of guide rails will lie close together so that when circuit boards are accommodated in all the pairs of guide rails of the rack, the front plates of the boards together present a substantially flat surface at the front of the enclosure.
When a circuit board has been slid fully home in its pair of guide rails, it is also the general practice to detachably secure the board in position and this is usually effected by means of fixing screws which pass through opposite ends of the front plate of the board and screw into tapped holes in opposed elongate members which extend transversely across the front of the enclosure adjacent the front ends of the pairs of guide rails. Each elongate member is customarily an extrudate of metal or metal alloy and, for reasons of ease of manufacture and cost, generally the tapped holes for reception of the fixing screws of the front plates of the circuit boards are formed in and mutually spaced along the length of a strip of metal or metal alloy which is separately formed with respect to each extrudate and which is removably housed in a pair of opposed grooves in said extrudate.
Where the edge connector or edge connectors at the rear edge of a circuit board effect a multiplicity of pin and socket connections with a connector or connectors of a backplane, a substantial force is necessary both to effect these connections and, when required, to disconnect the edge connector or connectors from the connector or connectors of the backplane and there have been many proposals to provide, near each end of the front edge of a circuit board or of a front plate secured thereto, a lever which is directly or indirectly pivotably secured to the circuit board and which, when pivoted in one direction co-operates with a "push-in" surface on the adjacent elongate member extending transversely across the front of the enclosure to assist in providing the force necessary to effect said multiplicity of pin and socket connections at the rear of the circuit board and, when said connections are made, will not permit withdrawal of the circuit board unless the lever is pivoted in the opposite direction and which, when the lever is pivoted in the opposite direction co-operates with a "push-out" surface on said adjacent elongate member to assist in providing the force necessary to disconnect said edge connector or connectors from the connector or connectors of the backplane.
It is an object of the present invention to provide, for use with a circuit board to be accommodated in a rack housed in an enclosure and to be electrically connected to a backplane at the rear thereof, an improved device for assisting in insertion of a circuit board in, and extraction of a circuit board from, said enclosure, said improved device hereinafter, for convenience, being referred to as "a circuit board injector/ejector device".
According to the invention, the improved circuit board injector/ejector device comprises a body adapted to be secured to a circuit board or to a front plate secured thereto and a lever pivotally mounted on said body, which lever, when pivoted in one direction, has a surface adapted to co-operate with a "push-in" surface on an adjacent elongate member extending transversely across the front of the rack to assist in providing the force necessary to effect a multiplicity of pin and socket connections at the rear of the circuit board to which the device is directly or indirectly secured, and has at least one surface which, when said connections have been made, is adapted to co-operate with a surface on said adjacent elongate member to prevent withdrawal of the circuit board from the rack unless the lever is pivoted in the opposite direction and which lever, when pivoted in said opposite direction, has another surface adapted to co-operate with a "push-out" surface on said adjacent elongate member to assist in providing the force necessary to effect disconnection of said multiplicity of pin and socket connections at the rear of the circuit board, wherein the lever has passing therethrough a fixing screw which, when the multiplicity of pin and socket connections at the rear of the circuit board have been made and withdrawal of the circuit board from the rack is prevented by said co-operating surfaces of the lever and adjacent elongate member, is adapted to screw into a tapped hole in the body of the device or in the front plate of the circuit board to prevent pivotal movement of the lever.
By providing for clamping of the lever of the improved circuit board injector/ejector device when the multiplicity of pin and socket connections at the rear of the circuit board to which the device is directly or indirectly secured have been made, the requirement to secure each end of the front plate of the circuit board to the adjacent transversely extending elongate member by a fixing screw which screws into a tapped hole in a separately formed strip removably accommodated in the adjacent elongate member is avoided. As a consequence, it is unnecessary to provide, in each adjacent elongate member, a separately formed strip having a plurality of tapped holes mutually spaced along its length, thereby representing a substantial savings in cost. Moreover, since such separately formed strips with tapped holes are rendered superfluous by the improved circuit board injector/ejector device of the present invention, the improved device is especially suitable for use in conjunction with the improved elongate member which has mutually spaced along its length guides for reception of locating pins protruding from the rear faces of face plates of circuit boards and which is the subject of co-pending patent application Ser. No: 07/987,804 filed on the same day as the present application.
The invention also includes a circuit board for accommodating in a rack housed in an enclosure and for effecting electrical connection to a backplane at the rear of the enclosure, which circuit board comprises at least one edge connector mounted on the circuit board at or near its rear edge for effecting a multiplicity of pin and socket electrical connections with a connector directly or indirectly carried by a backplane at the rear of the enclosure, a substantially rectangular front plate secured to the front edge of the circuit board and, at or near each end of the front plate, an improved circuit board injector/ejector device as hereinbefore described.

Circuit board injector/ejector device for a circuit board enclosure


A terminal apparatus and a communication method thereof, where the terminal apparatus receives, from a base station, signals based on a mode which is selected either a first mode to be capable of applying a phase rotation difference to signals between adjacent subcarriers at least in a transmitting antenna or a second mode not to be capable of applying the phase rotation difference; and transmits a Channel Quality Indicator (CQI) depending on the mode selected.

Recently, in multicarrier transmission systems, user scheduling methods for arranging multiple blocks along frequency axes and time axes have been provided. Regions that are secured when users perform communications and that are defined by frequency axes and time axes are referred to as assignment slots, and blocks forming the basis of assignment blocks, i.e. regions defined by prescribed frequency bands and prescribed time domains, are referred to as chunks.
In this connection, in transmission via broadcast/multicast channels and control channels, blocks that are broadened in frequency axes are assigned so as to get frequency diversity effects, thus making it difficult to cause errors in received signals even when received power is low; and in transmission of unicast signals via one-to-one communications between radio transmitters and radio receivers, blocks that are broadened in frequency axes are assigned so as to get multiuser diversity effects.
FIGS. 31 and 32 are drawings showing the relationships of signals, which are transmitted from radio transmitters to radio receivers, with reference to time (vertical axis) and frequency (horizontal axis). Transmission times t1 to t5 are set to the time axis. The transmission times t1 to t5 are identical to each other in time length. In addition, transmission frequencies f1 to f4 are set to the frequency axis. All the transmission frequencies f1 to f4 have the same frequency band of Fc. Thus, twenty chunks K1 to K20 are set by way of the transmission times t1 to t5 and the transmission frequencies f1 to f4.
By use of the chunks K1 to K20 shown in FIG. 31, as shown in FIG. 31, for example, four chunks K1 to K4 are coupled in the frequency axis and are equally divided into three regions along the time axis, thus setting communication slots S1 to S3, each of which has a time length of t1/3 and a frequency band of 4×f1. The assignment slot S1 is assigned to a first user; the assignment slot S2 is assigned to a second user; and the assignment slot S3 is assigned to a third user. Thus, it is possible for the first to third users to obtain frequency diversity effects.
The chunk K5 is assigned to a fourth user as an assignment slot S4. The chunks K6 and K7 are coupled to form an assignment slot S5, which is assigned to a fifth user. The chunk K8 is assigned to a sixth user as a slot S6. Thus, it is possible for the fourth to sixth users to obtain multiuser diversity effects.
The chunks K9 and K11 are coupled to form an assignment slot S7, which is assigned to a seventh user. The chunks K10 and K12 are coupled and then equally divided into three regions so as to set communication slots S8 to S10, each of which has a time length of t3/3 and a frequency band of 2×f2. The assignment slot S8 is assigned to an eighth user; the assignment slot S9 is assigned to a ninth user; and the assignment slot S10 is assigned to a tenth user. Thus, it is possible for the seventh to tenth users to obtain frequency diversity effects.
The chunk K13 is assigned to an eleventh user as an assignment slot S11. The chunk K14 is assigned to a twelfth user as an assignment slot S12. The chunks K15 and K16 are coupled so as to form an assignment slot S13, which is assigned to a thirteenth user. Thus, it is possible for the eleventh to thirteenth users to obtain multiuser diversity effects.
In addition, the chunks K17 and K19 are coupled so as to form an assignment slot S14, which is assigned to a fourteenth user. The chunks K18 and K20 are coupled and then equally divided into three regions so as to form communication slots S15 to S17, each of which has a time length of t5/3 and a frequency band of 2×f2. The assignment slot S15 is assigned to a fifteenth user; the assignment slot S16 is assigned to a sixteenth user; and the assignment slot S17 is assigned to a seventeenth user. Thus, it is possible for the fourteenth to seventeenth users to obtain frequency diversity effects.    Non-Patent Document 1: 3GPP document, R1-050249, "Downlink Multiple Access Scheme for Evolved UTRA", [retrieved on Aug. 17, 2005], Internet (URL: ftp://ftp.3gpp.org/TSG_RAN/WG1_RL1/TSGR1—40bis/Docs/R1-050249.zip)    Non-Patent Document 2: 3GPP document, R1-050590, "Physical Channel and Multiplexing in Evolved UTRA Downlink", [retrieved on Aug. 17, 2005], Internet (URL: ftp://ftp.3gpp.org/TSG_RAN/WG1 RL1/R1_Ad_Hocs/LTE_AH_June-05/Docs/R1-050590.zip)

Multi-mode phase rotation apparatus that transmits CQI depending on the mode used


A thin film transistor (TFT) substrate includes: a substrate; a plurality of scan lines, disposed on the substrate; a plurality of data lines, disposed across the scan lines; a scan line insulting layer disposed between the scan lines and the data lines; a plurality of thin film transistors, each of thin film transistors disposed on an intersection of each scan line and each data line; a data line insulting layer, disposed on a top surface of the scan line insulting layer and used to cover the data lines; and a common electrode, disposed on the data line insulting layer, and comprising a plurality of positioning through holes, wherein the positioning through holes expose the data line insulting layer, and are located right above the data lines.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention is related to a thin film transistor (TFT) substrate and a method of repairing the same, and particularly, to a TFT substrate and a method for repairing a TFT substrate with IPS (In Plane Switching) wide viewing angle technology and a TFT substrate with FFS (Fringe Field Switching) technology.
2. Related Art
Usually, LCD (Liquid crystal display) panels include a TFT substrate, a color filter substrate, and an LC layer sandwiched between the two substrates. With a voltage applied, the liquid crystal molecules therebetween may twist to allow light passing or not so as to display images. However, the twisted nematic mode for controlling liquid crystal molecules is adopted by the conventional LC panels, which has a problem of narrow viewing angle. That is, the images displayed by the LCD panel with the twisted nematic mode have different qualities from different view angles.
Therefore, the technologies of IPS (In Plane Switching) wide viewing angle and FES (Fringe Field Switching) are used to solve the problem of narrow viewing angle for the convention LCD panels. For example, in the FFS technology, the common electrodes (Vcom) formed on a transparent conductive layer is disposed above the pixel electrodes, so that the efficiency of fringe field can be improved, the aperture rate can be increased, and the light leakage can be reduced.
In addition, for sake of stability of the common electrodes, the common electrodes are designed as a net (the top, bottom, left, and right are connected in serial); however, if particles or photo-resists are remained above the data line during the formation process of the data line insulting layer or the common electrode, the common electrode and the data line may have a short circuit problem, which leads to a poor image quality, but the FFS technology has no solution for such a problem.
Therefore, a TFT substrate and a method for repairing the TFT substrate are requested if a short problem is generated in the common electrodes and the date lines.

TFT substrate and method of repairing the same


An improved stuttering treatment program provides for a multi dimensional diagnostic procedure for identifying the problems associated with stuttering. A simultaneous attitude modification phase and a speech fluency enhancing techniques phase define a supervised, hands-on exercise portion of the program which is intended to advance the level of speech of a stutter afflicted person to speech fluency. Upon completion of attitude modification and speech fluency enhancing exercises, which raises the patient to speech fluency, a self-discipline phase of the program is provided where the patient supervises himself during speech exercising, monitors and analyzes exercise effect and reports his analysis to speech professionals. The self-supervised exercise is up-dated and communicated to the patient, for preventive maintenance of speech fluency.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to treatment or therapy of speech disorders. In particular, the present invention is a fully integrative therapy program for relief of the speech disorder of stuttering.
2. Prior Art
Stuttering is a communicative disorder which has a negative impact on a person's ability to make verbal communication with other person or persons, with physiological negative side effects impacted on the person affected with the stuttering condition. Side effects from the inability to make, what is considered, normal verbal communication, effect the afflicted person psychologically and physically. The mental condition of a person afflicted with stuttering is often expressed socially, in different negative impacts according to the then current environment. The afflicted person may have one negative social impact in a family environment, a different, negative social impact with friends, away from the family environment and a third, totally different negative social impact in an environment with strangers. Side effects of stuttering are not limited to the afflicted person but often have a negative effect on persons listening to a person who stutters.
Conditions that cause stuttering vary greatly. Some conditions may be physical, some may be psychological, with a combination of both conditions often occurring. The physical condition may be a physical deformation or the inability to use physical elements properly or negative habits. Negative habits usually are developed early in life and are usually difficult to overcome. The struggle for fluent speech communication is evident in both children and adults. Therapy that should be individual and personal is often individual but not personal.
Prior treatment programs to overcome stuttering have been limited by addressing the problem of stuttering only, or in conjunction with the emotional aspect of the individual afflicted with stuttering. The behavior aspect has been treated by correction and repetition while the emotional aspect has been treated through a psychoanalytical approach and/or medication, which often has its own negative side effects. The bending and changing of early developed habits is a difficult challenge and once the habit is overcome reversion to the old habit is easy for the person, when the pressure of corrective action is removed.
Treatment for overcoming the problem of stuttering may be found, in a limited approach, in the prior art. The U.S. Pat. No. 5,289,521 issued to Coleman et al in February 1994, teaches a computer network system for treating a plurality of verbally handicapped persons, remotely, during the same period of time. A local interface to a central computer system is provided so that a speech therapist and/or a verbally handicapped person can communicate with a central speech development computer. Speech exercise selection may be made remotely. This impersonal system addresses only a fraction of the problems attendant speech disorders and/or defects. The U.S. Pat. No. 4,020,567 issued to Webster in May 1977, teaches a method of speech therapy for persons who stutter. The method taught is limited to monitoring response adequacy and repetitive syllable formulation. This therapy is used to overcome the problem of stuttering. However, this teaching addresses only the physical and vocal problems attendant the speech disorder of stuttering. The U.S. Pat. No. 4,012,852 issued to Journot et al in March 1977, teaches the limited use of an electronic scoring apparatus which times, scores and displays both time and score to a person engaged in speech correction exercises. The U.S. Pat. No. 5,647,834 issued to Ron in July 1997, teaches a biofeedback speech correction system which is essentially a speech-training system. The voice of a speaker is monitored and, from the spoken words, the emotional state of the speaker is determined. A biofeedback system coupled to the speaker, alters one or more physiological variable characteristics of the emotional state of the speaker, generating speech correction. This teaching does not address correction of speech impairments, rather it alters the on-going state of mind of a speaker. U.S. Pat. No. 5,733,129 issued to Fayerman et al in March 1998, teaches the use of an electronic timer to provide timed commands for rhythmically inhaling, speaking and exhaling for developing positive speech habits. This teaching addresses the breathing and speaking aspects of correcting the speech pattern of a person who stutters while other, more basic problems attendant this speech disorder remain unaddressed by this teaching. U.S. Pat. No. 5,765,135 issued to Friedman et al in June 1998, teaches a speech therapy system which monitors voice data and breathing data of a person and converts the data from analog to digital form. Although this teaching may simplify the processing of data, the teaching fails to address problems attendant speech impairments. The U.S. Pat. No. 5,791,904 issued to Russell et al in August 1998, teaches a speech training aid for assisting a person in changing speech habits or speech influences such as territorial speech characteristics. This teaching addresses the problems of speech and/or word elegance. U.S. reissued patent #US Re37,684E issued to Shpiro et al in April 2002 on U.S. Pat. No. 5,487,671 issued January 1996, teaches apparatus for interactive speech training. Prerecorded specimens of speeches are played to a person for attempted imitation or mimicking for improving speaker techniques. A computer database has prerecorded speeches classified according to age, gender and/or dialect for selection by the user. A person who is afflicted with the speech disorder of stuttering is identified as 'stutterer'. Authority for this identification is the Random House Webster's College Dictionary, Copyright 1995, 1992, 1991.


The present invention belongs to a method for preparing organic ligand-capped titanium dioxide nanocrystals, wherein the method comprises steps of using methyl titanate, ethyl titanate, n-propyl titanate, iso-propyl titanate, butyl titanate or titanium tetrachloride as a titanium source, and with capping by oleic acid or an organic capping agent, reacting the titanium source in an organic non-polar solvent with an aqueous alkaline substance solution in the interface at a temperature of 25 to 280° C. for 0.5 to 240 hrs, thus a transparent sol containing titanium dioxide nanocrystals is obtained, said the titanium dioxide nanocrystals have particle diameters of 1-20 nm. The preparing process has the features of mild reaction conditions and is a simpler and easier method with a shorter preparation period, thereby facilitating the industrialization.

Titanium dioxide nano-material is a hotspot in the research of material science over the past three decades. Titanium dioxide nanocrystal is an oxide which has been most intensively studied, because they are widely applied in photocatalysis, sensors, solar cell, mesoporous film and the like. In addition, the titanium dioxide nanomaterial due to its feature in the nano-scale tends to complex with an organic material having a high or low molecular weight to manufacture a device such as a solar cell by a method such as spin coating and the like. The titanium dioxide nanocrystals exhibit a very attractive prospect in photovoltaic conversion. Therefore, the methods for preparing titanium dioxide nanocrystals have been intensively studied.
Heretofore, various methods have been used to prepare titanium dioxide nanocrystals, including hydrothermal method (Chem. Mater. 1995, 7, 663; Chem. Mater. 1999, 11, 2770; Chem. Mater. 2002, 14, 1974), and sol-gel method (Science, 1994, 266, 1961; Langmuir, 1996, 12, 1411; Adv. Mater. 2002, 14, 1216). In general, the titanium dioxide nanocrystals prepared by above two methods have a larger particle diameter, and those nanocrystals with a diameter less than 10 nm can hardly be produced. The resulting titanium dioxide nanocrystals can not be dispersed uniformly in an organic solvent and exhibit a broad size distribution.

Method for preparing organic ligand-capped titanium dioxide nanocrystals

Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry Chines Academy of Sciences


An image forming system, having means for storing usage histories of latent image carriers, developer, or the like and maintenance cycles of image forming apparatuses and having a function for selecting image forming apparatuses outputting an image based on the usage history data or the maintenance cycles, in order to achieve uniform output image qualities. By managing the usage histories so as to achieve approximately the same deteriorated conditions of the latent image carriers of the image forming apparatuses, the image forming apparatuses can be put in the same condition and thus the output image qualities can be approximately the same in the image forming apparatuses. Additionally, the maintenance cycles can be adjusted to be approximately the same in the image forming apparatuses. Otherwise, maintenance periods can be controlled so as not to overlap in the image forming apparatuses.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming system comprising a plurality of image forming apparatuses connected so as to output data or to form image copies from selected ones.
2. Description of the Prior Arts
Recently, with the progress of digitalization and networking of copying machines, printers, and complex machines caused by the advance of highly-networked information technology, a technology of an image forming system capable of obtaining a large number of image copies in a short time has been in practical use. In the image forming system, an original image read from a certain single image reader is copied at a high speed using a plurality of digital copying machines connected to each other or image data transmitted from a computer are output to a plurality of printers at a high speed.
For the image forming system in conventionally practical use, importance is attached to a great volume of and high-speed image output. Therefore, there has been proposed a method of forming an image efficiently by distributing and sharing image output processing (for example, refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (Kokai) Nos. Hei 9-261395 (1997) and Hei 11-127290 (1999)). On the other hand, there has been proposed a method of correcting differences in image quality among the image forming apparatuses in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2001-83848. Furthermore, there has also been proposed a method of analyzing received image data and selecting printers for outputting the image in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (Kokai) No. Hei 10-240552 (1998).
To output an image by using a plurality of image forming apparatuses including a number of copying machines, printers, and complex machines connected to each other with the same image quality or with a desired function (image combine staple, folding, etc.), it is important to correct the image quality or to select the function or devices in consideration of the conditions (a material to be used, a frequency in use, individual differences in devices, etc.) of the image forming apparatuses and functional differences between the devices.
The aforementioned conventional image forming system has been proposed on the assumption that the conditions and functions of the image forming apparatuses are equivalent. In other words, it is not considered in the conventional systems that the image forming apparatuses may be different in conditions or functions. Therefore, the conventional system has a problem that it is hard to standardize the image quality or the function in image forming apparatuses different in conditions or functions.

Image forming system including a plurality of image forming apparatuses

Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.


A display device includes signal lines, scanning lines, pixel switches, display pixels, and a signal line driving circuit which supplies analog video signals to the signal lines. Each of the display pixels comprises one of three types of luminescent element, the three types of luminescent element being arrayed in a scanning line direction. The driving circuit includes a conversion circuit which is arranged to divide the signal lines into signal line blocks each having a predetermined number of signal lines, converts an external digital signal for each signal line block by means of a digital-to-analog converter into an analog signal based on gradation reference voltage groups corresponding to the type, and serially outputs the analog signal as the analog video signal, and a signal line selection circuit which sequentially distributes the analog video signal to related signal lines of the signal line block.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a display device which includes display pixels using luminescent elements of types different in luminous characteristics, particularly to a display device in which organic electro luminescence (EL) elements for emitting light in red, green and blue are used as the luminescent elements.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, organic EL display devices have been regarded as promising monitor displays for portable information terminals since the devices have such characteristics as lightness, thinness, and high luminance. A typical organic EL display device includes a plurality of display pixels arrayed in a matrix form to display an image. In this organic EL display device, a plurality of scanning lines are disposed along rows of the display pixels, a plurality of signal lines are disposed along columns of the display pixels, and a plurality of pixel switches are disposed near intersections of the scanning and signal lines. Each display pixel includes an organic EL element, a driving element connected in series with the organic EL element between a pair of power terminals, and a capacitance element for storing the gate voltage of the driving element. Each pixel switch is turned on in response to a scanning signal from the corresponding scanning line to write or supply an analog video signal from the corresponding signal line to the gate of the driving element. The driving element supplies to the organic EL element a drive current corresponding to the analog video signal.
The organic EL element is of a structure having a luminescent layer formed of a thin film having a red, green, or blue luminescent material such as an organic compound and held between a cathode and anode so that electrons and holes are supplied and recombined in the luminescent layer to produce excitons. The organic EL element outputs light radiated upon deactivation of the excitons. The anode is a transparent electrode formed of ITO or the like, and the cathode is a reflective electrode formed of a metal such as aluminum. With this structure, the organic EL element can produce a luminance of about 100 to 100000 cd/m2 with an applied voltage of just 10 V or less.
In the case where the organic EL display device uses pluralities of display pixels comprising the organic EL elements for emitting light of different colors, for example, red (R), green (G), and blue (B), such luminous characteristics as the luminous efficiency and current-luminance characteristic generally differ between the display pixels for each color. Therefore, if a plurality of display pixels is uniformly driven according to gradation data, the white balance and gradation are distorted.
When the gamma correction is used to solve this problem, the scale of the drive circuitry for the display pixels increases, and it easily becomes difficult to incorporate the circuitry into a portable information terminal.


A wireless communication system base station (20) includes a base station transceiver (26) that has at least one operative component (32) for facilitating wireless communications. A current limiting device (36) includes at least one field effect transistor for selectively controlling current flow to a capacitive stability device (34) associated with at least one of the operative components (32). In the disclosed example, the current limiting device (36) is in series with the capacitive stability device (34) but in parallel with the operative component (32).

Wireless communication systems typically include base stations that are arranged to provide wireless communication service over a selected geographic region, for example. Base stations typically include an antenna and a base station transceiver (BTS). The operative components of the BTS typically include a DC-DC converter. A stability capacitor typically is placed in parallel with at least the DC-DC converter to provide stability in a known manner.
Introducing a stability capacitor provides the advantage of more reliable operation, however, there is a drawback. During start-up conditions, for example, the stability capacitor will cause an undesirably high current draw until the capacitor is fully charged, for example. In some instances, the current rush can be 200 times greater than the steady state current of the operative components of the BTS. Such a high current draw may damage some components and, at least, typically triggers a battery or other powering device shutdown.
To address that situation, the typical approach is to include a current limiting field effect transistor (FET) that throttles the current to the operative components during start up conditions. While this approach has proven useful, those skilled in the art are always striving to make improvements. For example, the arrangement of the FET in series with the capacitive stability device and the operative components requires the FET to be designed to accommodate the steady state current of the operative components during normal operation. This introduces additional cost into a BTS. Another issue presented by commonly used current limiting FETs is that they require heat sink capability to absorb heat generated during operation. Adding additional heat sink components adds further cost to a BTS.
It would be useful to have a new arrangement that does not have the added costs associated with typical current limiting FETs while still providing the current protection capability of known arrangements.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Wireless communication base station with current limiting capability


A chemical mechanical polisher for polishing a surface of a semiconductor wafer is disclosed. The polisher comprises: a polishing table for holding a polishing pad; a rotatable wafer chuck for holding said semiconductor wafer against said polishing pad; an electrical lapping guide secured to said wafer chuck, said electrical lapping guide comprising: a polishable resistive sensor that has a variable resistance dependent upon the amount of material removed from said resistive sensor during polishing; and a bias means for applying a bias to said resistive sensor such that said resistive sensor is in contact with said polishing pad during polishing; a resistance sensing means for determining said variable resistance of said resistive sensor; and a microprocessor for determining the amount of material polished from said resistive sensor based upon said variable resistance.

Chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) has emerged as a crucial semiconductor technology, particularly for devices with critical dimensions smaller than 0.3 microns. One important aspect of CMP control is endpoint detection (EPD), i.e., determining when to terminate the polishing during the polishing process. The EPD systems are, in principle, in-situ EPD systems, which provide endpoint detection during the polishing process.
One class of prior art in-situ EPD techniques involve the electrical measurement of changes in the capacitance, the impedance, or the conductance of the test structure on the wafer and calculating the end point based on an analysis of this data.
Another electrical approach which has proven production worthy is to sense changes in the friction between the wafer being polished and the polish pad. Sensing changes in the motor current does such measurements. This method is only reliable for EPD for metal CMP because of the dissimilar coefficient between the polish pad and the tungsten-titanium nitride-titanium film stack versus the polish pad and the oxide underneath the metal. However, with advanced interconnection conductors such as polysilicon, oxide, copper, and barrier metals, e.g. tantalum or tantalum nitride, have a coefficient of friction similar to the underlying oxide. This approach relies on detecting the Cu-tantalum nitride transition, then adding an overpolish time. Intrinsic process variations in the thickness and composition of the remaining interfacial layer mean that the final endpoint trigger time is less precise than is desirable.
Another method uses an acoustic approach. In the first acoustic approach, an acoustic transducer generates an acoustic signal which propagates through the surface layer(s) of the wafer being polished. Some reflection occurs at the interface between the layers, and a sensor positioned to detect the reflected signals can be used to determine the thickness of the topmost layer as it is polished. The second acoustic approach is to use an acoustical sensor to detect the acoustical signals generated during CMP. Such signals have spectral and amplitude content which evolves during the course of the polish cycle. However, to date there has been no commercially available in situ endpoint detection system using acoustic methods to determine endpoint.
Finally, optical EPD systems as exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 5,433,651 to Lustig et al. sense changes in a reflected optical signal using a window in the platen of a rotating CMP tool. However, the window complicates the CMP process because it presents to the wafer an inhomogeneity in the polish pad. Such a region can also accumulate slurry and polish debris.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,413,941 discloses a method in which the wafer is lifted off of the pad a small amount, and a light beam is directed between the wafer and the slurry coated pad. The light beam is incident at a small angle so that multiple reflections occur. The irregular topography on the wafer causes scattering, but if sufficient polishing is done prior to raising the carrier, then the wafer surface will be essentially flat and there will be very little scattering due to the topography on the wafer. The difficulty with this approach is that one must interrupt the normal process cycle to make the measurement.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,643,046 describes the use of monitoring absorption of particular wavelengths in the infrared spectrum of a beam that passes through a wafer being polished. Changes in the absorption within narrow, well defined spectral windows correspond to changing thickness of specific types of films.
Each of these above methods have drawbacks. What is needed is a new method for endpoint detection that is capable of operation in the manufacturing environment.

Method and apparatus for endpoint detection for chemical mechanical polishing using electrical lapping


A fractional-R synthesizer having a divider with rational increments and configurable in rational steps able to generate a plurality of frequencies in rational increments from a reference frequency. A voltage-controlled oscillator frequency (fVCO) is related to the reference frequency (fREF) by: fREF=fVCO/RAVG, where RAVG is the average value of the rational divide value “R” over a large number of reference cycles.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to frequency synthesizers, and in particular to fractional frequency synthesizers.
2. Related Art
A diagram of a conventional phase-locked loop (PLL) synthesizer 100 is shown in FIG. 1. The conventional PLL contains a fixed integer divider 102, whose modulus N provides a fixed relation between the external reference frequency fREF 104 and the internal voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO) 106 frequency fVCO. The output of the integer divider 102 is compared to the reference frequency 104 by the phase-frequency detector (PAD) 108. The PAD 108 produces an error signal, which is proportional to the phase error between the reference frequency 104 and the integer divider 102 output. This error signal is filtered by loop filter 110 and applied to the VCO 106 input, which increases or decreases the VCO frequency until the PLL is locked. Once locked, the VCO frequency is given by: fVCO=fREF*N. Thus, with a conventional PLL only a single reference frequency can be used for a given design, and that reference frequency must be an integer multiple of the desired VCO frequency. This places limitations on application and design.
Fractional synthesizers enable the synthesis of a VCO frequency which is not an integer multiple of the reference frequency. In a fractional-N type synthesizer a variable integer frequency divider, having an integer divide value "n" is used, where "n" can be switched between different integer values in integer steps. A modulator is used to vary the modulus "n" of the variable integer frequency divider.
A diagram of a fractional-N synthesizer 200 is shown in FIG. 2. In the fractional-N synthesizer, the instantaneous relation between the output of variable integer divider 204 and frequencies generated by the VCO 106 is given by fDIV=fVCO/n, where n=. . . , N−1, N, N+1, . . . . By the modulator 202 dynamically varying n used by the variable integer divider 204 between the different integer values, fractional values of n may be synthesized, when averaged over many cycles. The modulator is clocked by the output of divider 204. The range over which "n" is dynamically varied depends on the type and order of the modulator 202. Furthermore, by having more module in the integer divider 102 than are needed for the fractional synthesis, the value "N" around which the dynamic modulation takes place, can be set to different integer values for different frequency plans.
This is illustrated in the fractional-N synthesizer 300 by the "integer set" input in FIG. 3. Thus, a large range of reference frequencies 104 can be used for a given fractional-N synthesizer design. The flexibility of fractional-N synthesis does result in some degradation of synthesizer performance, compared to a conventional PLL 100. The dynamic modulation is perpetually pulling the loop away from an ideal locked condition, and the loop is perpetually compensating for this by sending error signals to the VCO. This perpetual perturbation of the PLL causes excess phase noise in the spectrum of the VCO Output.
Most known fractional-N synthesizers use sigma-delta (ΣΔ) modulators 304 to control the modulus of the variable divider 302. The ΣΔ modulators 304 used in fractional-N synthesizers are purely digital circuits that produce one or more patterns of 1's and 0's as their output. The periodicity and frequency content of the digital patterns produced will determine the spectral quality of the synthesizer output. ΣΔ modulators 304 consist of one of more digital integrators or accumulators. Higher order modulators (with two or more integrators) shape the noise added to the VCO 106 spectrum, by pushing the quantitation noise to higher frequencies, where the loop filter 110 of the PLL can more easily filter it. The type and order of the ΣΔ modulator 304 determines the exact shape of the noise shaping function, and has a direct impact on the noise in output spectrum of the synthesizer.
There are two types of ΣΔ modulators commonly used in fractional-N synthesizers:
(1) Cascade or MASH Modulators: This topology is a cascade of two or more integrators or accumulators. The output of one accumulator is the input of the following. There are feed-forward paths from the overflow outputs of each accumulator to the final output, but there are no feedback paths external to the accumulators. Having no feedback is what distinguishes MASH modulators from the other types of ΣΔ modulators. It is also this property that gives MASH modulators the advantage of being unconditionally stable. MASH modulators are easy to design and implement and produce compact designs. The disadvantages of MASH modulators include: 1) the noise shaping function depends only on the order of the modular (which is equal to the number of integrators), and cannot optimized for the PLL; 2) MASH modulators always have multi-bit outputs which require multi-modulus dividers.
(2) Feedback Modulators: Feedback modulators have one or more feedback paths external to the integrators. There is usually at least one feedback path from output to the input. Feedback modulators may also have one or more feed-forward paths. As with MASH modulators, the number of integrators determines the order of the modulator. Unlike the MASH modulator there is more flexibility in the design by the choice of the feedback and forward paths and the coefficients of the feedback and feed-forward paths. Although the control of the noise shaping function is desirable, it also makes designs more complicated. Unlike the MASH modulator the feedback modulator is NOT unconditionally stable and requires careful choice of the feedback and feed-forward paths and coefficients to ensure stability. The feedback modulator may have a single bit output, which only requires a dual modulus divider, however multi-bit outputs are often used to improve the noise shaping. A generalized description of feedback type modulators is provided in reference: K. Chaos et. al, "A higher order topology for interpolative modulators for over sampling A/D converters", IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems, vol. 37, No. 3, pp. 309-318, March 1990.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,038,117, which is incorporated by reference herein, describes a fractional-N type synthesizer, using cascade or MASH type ΣΔ modulator. A third order MASH modulator is described and the generalized application of this method is illustrated for an Mth order MASH modulator. In this architecture the number of control bits applied to the input of the divider are equal to the order of the modulator. Thus, for a 3rd order modulator, the modulus of the divider varies dynamically between eight states: N−3, N−2, N−1, N, N+1, N+2, N+3, and N+4, where N is the nominal divide ratio. This represents significant perturbation of the PLL.
Thus, there is a need in the art for a fractional-R synthesizer that can be switched in rational values that eliminate the limitations of known fractional-N type synthesizers.


A method of fabricating a vertical MIM capacitor. An insulation layer is formed on the substrate. The insulation layer is patterned to form an opening in a predetermined area of a core electrode. Then, the opening is filled to form a sacrificial plug. Subsequently, the insulation layer is patterned to form a trench in a predetermined area of an outer electrode around the sacrificial plug. A fenced insulation layer is formed around the sacrificial plug simultaneously. After the sacrificial plug is removed, a metal layer is filled in the predetermined area of the core and outer electrodes. A vertical MIM capacitor comprising the core electrode, the fenced insulation layer, and the outer electrode is finally formed. The invention also provides a vertical MIM capacitor.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of fabricating a semiconductor integrated circuit device, and more specifically to a method of fabricating a metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Capacitors are critical elements in semiconductor integrated circuits, such as mixed signal, high frequency, analog, or digital circuits. Typically, capacitor structures for semiconductor integrated circuits include metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) capacitors, PN junction capacitors, and polysilicon-insulator-polysilicon (PIP) capacitors. Each of these capacitor structures include at least one silicon layer used as a capacitor electrode.
Nevertheless, the use of a silicon layer for the capacitor electrode may result in a higher series resistance and instability in high frequency circuits. Accordingly, metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitors have been developed to provide low series resistance. In addition, for improving element performance, the damascene process has been extensively applied in semiconductor back-end processes. Thus, it is necessary to integrate the method of fabricating capacitors with the damascene process.
Currently, capacitor fabrication integrated with a damascene process is only used for planar-type MIM capacitors, as disclosed for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,180,976, and illustrated in FIGS. 1a to 1c. First, referring to FIG. 1a, a substrate 100 is provided, such as a semiconductor substrate. An inter-metal dielectric (IMD) layer 102 is deposited on the substrate 100, wherein a copper lower electrode 103 of the planar-type MIM capacitor is formed in the IMD layer 102 by the damascene process. Then, a capacitor dielectric layer 106 and a metal layer 108 are deposited on the IMD layer 102 in order. A photoresist layer 110 is formed on the metal layer 108 to define an upper electrode of the subsequently formed planar-type MIM capacitor.
Subsequently, referring to FIG. 1b, the photoresist layer 110 is patterned by lithography to expose a portion of the metal layer 108. The metal layer 108 uncovered by the photoresist layer 110a and the capacitor dielectric layer 106 are then etched. The remaining metal layer 108a is the upper electrode of the planar-type MIM capacitor.
Finally, referring to FIG. 1c, the planar-type MIM capacitor is formed, after removing the patterned photoresist layer 110a. The above described fabrication process includes more than one instance of lithography, thus, numerous photomasks are required, thereby increasing complexity and process cost.
Planar-type MIM capacitors cannot provide a larger effective electrode area to obtain larger capacitance for high-density future generation integrated circuits due to limited space on a wafer. Further, conductive plugs connecting the upper and lower electrodes of the planar-type MIM capacitor with peripheral devices cross through numerous metal or dielectric layers in the semiconductor structure. Accordingly, it is difficult to achieve process flexibility, such as modifying the layout of a photomask, as it will affect the fabrication of numerous layers simultaneously.
Conventional fabrication of metal interconnects requires a specific distance of at least 1000 Å be maintained between interconnects to avoid shorts. Thus, as shown in FIG. 4, a conventionally fabricated comb-type vertical MIM capacitor occupies the majority of a wafer and substantially reduces the available area thereon. In FIG. 4, 402 represents a capacitor dielectric layer, 404 represents an upper electrode, and 406 represents a lower electrode.

Vertical MIM capacitors and method of fabricating the same

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd.


The systems and methods discussed herein provide for classifying CDN connections to the originating application on the first packet. In some implementations, the system identifies application connections established within a predetermined time period prior to the CDN connection and increments a value associated with these connections. The system classifies the CDN connection as corresponding to the application connection with the highest associated value, allowing routing of network traffic to take advantage of QoS benefits and reduce the need for deep packet inspection.

Classifying a connection on the first packet is important to accomplish certain networking functions, including routing applications, optimizing bandwidth usage, improving application performance, and using application firewalls. Application-based routing on content delivery network (CDN) connections require deep packet inspection, which takes significant time and processing resources in addition to adding latency to the network, to take advantage of quality of service (QoS) benefits in traffic prioritization and processing.

System and methods to filter out noisy application signatures to improve precision of first packet classification


A video photography system includes a video camera system and a background lighting system. The video camera system is configured to capture photographs of a subject positioned between the video camera system and a background. The background lighting system is configured to generate background lighting conditions on the background. The background lighting conditions include at least a first lighting condition and a second lighting condition.

Photography of a subject has traditionally been accomplished by using still image cameras to capture individual photographs. One type of still image camera is a film camera that utilizes a light sensitive photographic film or plate to capture a photograph. With a film camera, photographs are captured and stored on photographic film. Another type of still image camera is a digital camera that utilizes an electronic image sensor to capture images that are then stored in a digital storage medium. Digital cameras have largely replaced film cameras in the market.
Digital video camera technology has become more widespread, particularly in consumer products. One of the factors contributing to this is the inclusion of digital video cameras in many mobile phones, including in most smartphones. Most, if not all, of these digital video cameras are low quality, however, and are not suitable for capturing high quality video. In addition to capturing video, many digital video cameras can also be operated to save a single frame of a video as a still image. However, such images are typically much lower quality than can be obtained from a still image camera.
Even if high quality photography equipment is used, other factors can also lead to less-than ideal photographs. One of these factors is the difficulty in capturing a photograph at the precise moment when the subject has the best facial expression. Experienced photographers can learn to anticipate when the best facial expression is about to occur, but less experienced photographers can struggle to capture the best facial expression. Similarly, different subjects also have differing reactions to the photographic environment, resulting from different aptitudes, education, and experiences with photography, and as a result, it can be difficult for a photographer to predict the exact moment of the best expression. Capturing a photograph only a moment before or a moment after a good facial expression results in a lower quality photograph than could otherwise have been obtained.
Another factor that influences the quality of photographs is an unnatural environment. If a subject does not feel comfortable in the environment, it is difficult for the subject to have a natural and pleasant looking expression. The typical photography session has various aspects that can feel unnatural to the subject, such as sudden bright flashes of light, and the hurried manner in which photographs are sometimes taken.
It is sometimes desirable to initially capture a photograph of a subject with a certain background, but to later replace that background in the photograph with a different background image. High quality techniques have been developed for replacing the background in a photograph captured by still image cameras. Techniques for replacing the background in a video, however, are typically limited to lower quality chroma key compositing (also known as greenscreen or bluescreen) techniques.
There is a need for a video photography system that can be used to capture high quality photographs for use in still image or video products.


A spinal rod persuader, system and method can include an outer tube, an inner tube, and a locking element. A first actuation mechanism can be movable in a linear fashion along a longitudinal axis direction to cause the locking element to move in a linear fashion over the inner tube and to lock the inner tube onto a pedicle screw. A second actuation mechanism can be rotated to cause the outer tube to move in a longitudinal axis direction with respect to the inner tube to push the spinal rod into a final position with respect to the pedicle screw while the pedicle screw is locked to the inner tube. A slot and/or tab structure can be provided in the outer tube such that actuation of the slot/tab will allow disassembly of the inner tube, outer tube and locking element with respect to each other.

1. Field
The presently disclosed subject matter relates generally to surgical instrumentation devices, systems, and related methods, and more specifically to a spinal rod persuader device, system and method for use in placing, rearranging, and/or implanting a spinal rod adjacent to vertebrae of a spinal column.
2. Description of the Related Art
In order to stabilize the vertebrae of the spine, medical professionals have typically attached a stabilization rod along the spinal column using a series of pedicle screws attached to vertebrae. Each of the pedicle screws has a threaded portion and a head portion, with the threaded portion including screw threads that can grip each separate vertebrae. The head of the pedicle screw can include a saddle or U-shaped opening into which the spinal rod can be located. Also, set screws can be used to lock the spinal rod into the saddle or U-shaped portion of each of the pedicle screws.
During implantation or other manipulation of the spinal rod and system, a rod persuader is commonly used to persuade the spinal rod into position in the opening in the head of each pedicle screw. In general, alignment of the rod into each of the series of pedicle screws can be difficult to accomplish due to space requirements, variation in alignment of the pedicle screws, and the amount of force required to manipulate and/or bend the spinal rod. Thus, once a spinal rod is in the vicinity of a pedicle screw, a rod persuader has generally been used to simultaneously attach to both the pedicle screw and the spinal rod to urge the spinal rod into a final position within the head of the pedicle screw.
In one known device, the persuader is configured as a trigger operated device in which a distal end of a tube of the persuader is secured to the pedicle screw by a hook or claw that is simply engaged underneath the head or tulip portion of the pedicle screw. Once secured, a push rod is moved downward through the tube by action of a trigger mechanism. The push rod then engages the spinal rod to seat the spinal rod in the pedicle screw. In other devices, both the securing operation and the pushing operation of the persuader can be accomplished by a trigger mechanism. In particular, pulling the trigger a first distance causes gripper portions to engage a side of a pedicle screw. Further motion of the trigger then causes a push rod to engage the spinal rod to seat the spinal rod in the pedicle screw. Finally, another conventional rod persuader device includes first and second screw structures that are operated to both engage a pedicle screw and then to push a spinal rod into place. The conventional rod persuader device typically includes three concentric tubes that all move relative to each other by operation of screw thread mechanisms.


An apparatus and method creates remote multimedia outputs on client computers. The client computers receive a stream of semantics from a server computer. For each semantic received, the client computers identify a multimedia data object that corresponds to the received semantic. The multimedia data object has previously been locally stored at each client computer. Finally, the client computers process the identified multimedia data object in accordance with the semantic to create a multimedia output on each client computer's output device.

The present invention is directed to a method and apparatus for streaming semantics from a server to a plurality of client computers. More particularly, the resent invention is directed to a method and apparatus for streaming semantics from a server to a plurality of client computers which results in a multimedia output at the client computers that can vary in content among the client computers.
Streaming multimedia data from a server computer to a client computer is a known way to create a multimedia output at a client computer. Multimedia data includes audio, textual, and graphical (including video) data. Streaming data involves sending a continuous transmission of data from the server to the client. At the client computer, received data is buffered in a cache memory and continuously processed as soon as, or soon after, being received by the client. The client computer processes the data by creating a multimedia output from the received multimedia data. The advantage of streaming is that the client computer does not have to wait until all data is downloaded from the server before some of the data is processed and the multimedia output is created.
An example of multimedia data streaming is found in the RealAudio.RTM. audio player that is available over the Internet at Universal Resource Locator ("URL") http://www.realaudio.com. RealAudio.RTM. continuously sends audio data over the Internet from a server computer to client computers. The audio data is buffered and processed by the client computers while the data is being sent. The client computer processes the data by creating an audio output from the audio data.
One problem with existing methods of creating remote multimedia outputs at client computers using streaming of multimedia data is that multimedia data, especially audio and graphical data, requires a large amount of data for a desired output. For example, five minutes of uncompressed audio output at a client computer requires streaming approximately 4.7 megabytes of data. Streaming five minutes of video output, which includes both graphical, audio and textual data, would require even more data. Therefore, a large bandwidth is required to send multimedia data from a server to a client. Without the availability of a large bandwidth, the transmission of the data is delayed, and the streaming of the data in "real time" will not occur because the client computer will process data much faster than it receives it.
A second problem with existing methods of creating remote multimedia outputs at client computers using streaming of multimedia data is that when multiple client computers process a single set of data streamed from a server computer, the resultant multimedia output at each client computer is identical. For example, if an animated sequence is sent from a server computer to client computers, the display of the animated sequence at all client computers is identical. However, it may be desirable for the display of the animated sequence to be tailored for different client computers. For example, it may be desirable for one client computer to display an animated sequence using dogs as characters in the sequence, and another client computer to display an animated sequence using cats. Using existing methods of streaming multimedia data, this option is not available.
Based on the foregoing, there is a need for a method and apparatus for creating a multimedia output at client computers using information streamed from a server computer that uses less bandwidth than existing methods, and for enabling multiple client computers to create different multimedia outputs using the same received information from the client computer.

Remote streaming of semantics for varied multimedia output


In a combination coffee grinder and coffee storage device, a housing has a grinding chamber and a storage container located with the housing. The storage container has a removable airtight closure and the grinding chamber has grinding blades. A motor is located in the housing for driving the grinding blades. A pump, located in the housing, has an air connection to the storage container for evacuating air from the storage container. The pump is operated by the motor for evacuating air from the storage container while the motor is simultaneously driving the grinding blades

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to coffee been grinders and to coffee bean storage. More particularly, the current invention relates to a combination coffee grinder and coffee storage device.
2. Background Information
Coffee grinders (coffee mills) for grinding coffee beans into smaller coffee grinds are well known. Such devices comprise a chamber for holding coffee beans and a rotary grinding blade located in the chamber for cutting, chopping or grinding the beans into smaller pieces (coffee grinds) for use in coffee making machines.
Ideally coffee beans should be kept in a sealed container to avoid spoiling or staling of the beans. Beans left in the bean container of known coffee mills will spoil or stale because in known devices those containers are not sealed. The container may have a lid to prevent foreign matter entering the container but the lid.

Combination coffee grinder and coffee storage device


An improved process for the catalytic hydrogenation of nitriles. The basic process comprises contacting the nitrile with hydrogen in the presence of a sponge or Raney cobalt catalyst under conditions for effecting conversion of the nitrile group to the primary amine. The improvement in the hydrogenation process resides in effecting the hydrogenation in the presence of a catalytic amount of lithium hydroxide and water. To achieve a catalytic amount of lithium hydroxide, the catalyst may be pretreated with the lithium hydroxide and/or the reaction may be carried out with the lithium hydroxide present in the reaction medium.

One method the industry currently uses to manufacture aliphatic amines is the catalytic hydrogenation of aliphatic nitrites, e.g., cyanoethylated amines in either batch or trickle bed hydrogenation equipment. To selectively form primary amines such as dimethylaminopropyl amine (DMAPA) from the precursor nitrile, ammonia is generally used to control the ratio of primary to secondary amine. However, substantial amounts of ammonia are needed to be effective, and even then, several percent of secondary amine coproduct is formed. The handling of ammonia is expensive in that it requires pressurized storage, increases cycle time for loading and venting and it can present an environmental problem unless expensive recovery equipment is provided. Thus, there has been a desire to find ways to effect the hydrogenation of nitrites without the use of ammonia.
Representative patents which illustrate various procedures for the catalytic hydrogenation of nitrites are as follows:
U.S. Pat. No. 4,375,003 discloses a catalytic process for preparing amines by reacting an aliphatic nitrile and hydrogen in the presence of a sponge cobalt catalyst. The improved catalysts employed for the hydrogenation of the aliphatic nitriles are based upon cobalt-aluminum alloys which have been contacted with an alkali metal hydroxide dispersed in an aqueous medium. The examples show the addition of sodium hydroxide solutions to the cobalt-aluminum alloy which catalyst is then used to catalyze the hydrogenation reaction.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,821,305 discloses a process for the catalytic hydrogenation of the adiponitrile to form hexamethylenediamine by carrying out the hydrogenation in the presence of a sponge catalyst and caustic alkali where the hydrogen and the adiponitrile are fed into a liquid reaction medium consisting of hexamethylenediamine, water and the caustic alkali and catalyst. The catalyst employed is a sponge nickel catalyst. The examples show the use of sodium hydroxide as the caustic alkali.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,223,735 discloses a process for the catalytic hydrogenation of a reaction product of acrylonitrile and ammonia to form 1,3-propylene diamine. A wide variety of group Vb, Vlb, Vllb and Vlllb metals are taught as being suited for practicing the hydrogenation process. A large excess of ammonia is used in the process to avoid the formation of secondary amines.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,075,507 discloses a process for the cyanoethylation of glycols to produce bis(cyanoethylated)aliphatic glycols followed by reaction with hydrogen to form bis(aminopropyl)aliphatic glycols. In terms of effecting the reduction of the cyano group of the cyanoethylated glycol, the hydrogenation is carried out using a hydrogenation catalyst such as sponge nickel, palladium, platinum, ruthenium, rhodium and cobalt. Ammonia is charged to the reaction medium to maintain high yield and selectivity.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,427,356 discloses a process for producing 1,3-propylene diamines using cobalt or nickel catalysts. The improvement in their process involves the addition of a small amount of manganese dissolved in the reaction medium.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,254,737 discloses a continuous process for preparing secondary amines from nitriles. The secondary amines are prepared by carrying out the reactions in the presence of ammonia and hydrogen in the first stage and then effecting hydrogenation in the absence of ammonia. The catalyst employed in the reaction is either nickel or cobalt.

Hydrogenation of nitriles to produce amines


The present invention provides a foot and mouth disease (FMD) virus having improved stability compared to the field isolate of the same subtype, wherein the virus comprises one or more amino acid mutations along a line of symmetry of the capsid structure. The present invention also relates to a vaccine comprising such an FMD virus and its use to prevent foot and mouth disease.

Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD)
FMD is a highly contagious and economically devastating disease of cloven-hoofed animals (Artiodactyla), affecting domesticated ruminants, pigs and a large number of wildlife species (Alexandersen et al., (2003) Journal of Comparative Pathology 129:1-36) of which the causal agent is Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus (FMDV).
FMDV is a positive sense, single stranded RNA virus and is the type species of the Aphthovirus genus of the Picornaviridae family. FMDV exists as seven antigenically distinct serotypes namely A, O, C, Asia 1 and South African Territories (SAT) 1, 2 and 3, with numerous subtypes within each serotype. With the exception of New Zealand, outbreaks have been recorded in every livestock-containing region of the world and the disease is currently enzootic in all continents except Australia and North America. Although mortality rates are generally low (less than 5%) in adult animals, the UK 2001 FMD Pan-Asian O outbreak clearly identifies the serious economic consequences associated with the disease, with the cost to the public sector estimated at over 4.5 billion euros and the cost to the private sector at over 7.5 billion euros (Royal Society Report (2002) on Infectious Disease in Livestock-Scientific questions relating to the transmission, prevention and control of epidemic outbreaks of infectious disease in livestock in Great Britain. (2002) Latimer Trend Limited, Cornwall, UK).
FMD is ranked first in the l'Office International des Epizooties (OIE, World Organisation for Animal Health) list of notifiable diseases, which by definition, means that it has the potential for rapid and extensive spread within and between countries. Thus, current intensive farming practices and high stocking densities clearly encourage the rapid spread of such a disease.
FMD is widely distributed throughout the world. Developed regions such as the continents of North and Central America and Antarctica, and countries such as Australia and New Zealand are free from disease while FMD is endemic in many developing countries such as those in sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, southern Asia, Southeast Asia and South America. There are also some areas of the world which are normally free from disease, such as Europe where FMD was eradicated in 1989 and where vaccination has ceased since 1991. However, there have been occasional incursions of disease such as the 2001 UK/EIRE/France/Netherlands epidemic due to a PanAsian O strain (Knowles et al., (2001) Veterinary Record. 148. 258-259) and the 2007 UK outbreak of serotype O1 BFS/1967.
Conventional vaccines against FMD consist of whole virus virions that have been chemically inactivated, normally by use of an aziridine such as binary ethyleneimine (BEI). More than a billion doses are used annually worldwide (Rweyemamu and Le Forban (1999) Advances in Virus Research. 53. 111-126) and in many countries have been utilised successfully in controlling the disease.
Capsid Stability
Conventional formulated FMD vaccines need to be stored at 4° C. and have an expected shelf life of at most 12-18 months.
Capsid stability is disrupted by both pH and temperature with temperatures above 56° C. and a pH below 6.8 or above 9.0 believed to result in inactivation of the virus due to dissociation of the intact 146S particle into 12S particles.
A problem associated with current FMD vaccines is thus their limited thermostability and their reliance on a good cold-chain along with appropriate diluents and excipients. There is therefore a need for improved FMD vaccines.

Foot and mouth disease virus with increased stability and its use as vaccine


In an apparatus for etching a glass substrate according to the present invention, impurities that are attached to the surface of a glass substrate, which are formed by assembling a color filter substrate and a TFT substrate provided in the etching bath filled with etchant, are removed by using ultrasonic oscillation generated from an ultrasonic oscillator, by which a glass substrate having uniform thickness and surface is obtained.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an etching apparatus, and more particularly, to an apparatus for etching a substrate uniformly by using ultrasonic oscillation.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a display device for a television and a personal computer, a large sized cathode ray tube (CRT) display device is commonly used. However, since the screen must be separated from the electron gun by more than a predetermined distance for a large size screen CRT, the volume of the device is increased. Thus, such a CRT cannot be applied to a low weight, small size, and a low power consumption electronic device, such as a wall-mountable television, a portable television, and a notebook computer.
For a small and light display device, flat panel devices such as a liquid crystal display device (LCD), plasma display panel (PDP), electroluminescent display (ELD) and vacuum fluorescent display (VFD) have been introduced recently. Among the above flat panel display devices, the LCD has been researched extensively for good picture quality and low power consumption. The LCD-applied portable television and notebook computer have been introduced in the market, but there are problems to be solved in such LCD-applied devices. In particular, size and weight are important factors to be considered for the LCD.
For a small size and light LCD, there are several available methods for reducing the size and weight of the LCD element. However, the driving circuit and the thin film transistor, which are necessary elements of the LCD, are so thin that reducing these elements will not affect the weight in any significant manner. On the other hand, it is possible to reduce the weight of the LCD element by reducing the weight of the glass substrate that is a basic element of the LCD. Specifically, since the glass substrate is a heavy element of the LCD, methods of reducing the weight of the glass substrate have been continuously researched.
For a glass substrate of a given surface area, a light glass substrate requires a thin glass substrate. However, known methods of thinning the glass substrate cause damage including internal imperfections and surface roughness. Thus, the mechanical strength of the glass substrate is weakened, and the image quality of the LCD is accordingly deteriorated.
Conventionally, the most common method of reducing the weight of the glass substrate is to etch the surface of the glass substrate by soaking the substrate in a container having an etchant. In this method, however, the substrate is often not etched uniformly because of the non-uniform surface of the substrate. Further, the impurities generated during the etching process often attach to the surface of the substrate so that the resulting surface becomes even rougher.
To solve the aforementioned problems, the substrate is placed in a container having an etchant and then bubbles are generated and directed through a porous plate to the surface of the substrate in order to remove the impurities attached to the surface of the substrate, and a fresh etchant is applied to the surface of the substrate.
FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a related art apparatus for etching a glass substrate that is etched in a method employing nitrogen bubbles.
For reference, the related art was filed by the Applicant of the present invention as U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/389,959. Therefore, the present invention is an improvement of the related art.
As shown in FIG. 1, a teflon cassette 117 maintaining fixed spaces is formed in the interior of etching bath 111 filled with etchant 121. The height of the etchant 121 is lower than that of the etching bath 111 so that the etchant cannot flow out to the outside. In the teflon cassette 117, a substrate 119 including a color filter substrate and a thin film transistor (TFL) substrate is supported by a support means (not shown in the figures). A nitrogen bubble generation pipe 113 is formed on the lower portion of the teflon cassette 117 so that nitrogen bubbles 123 are supplied through a plurality of the nitrogen bubble generation tubes 115. The supplied nitrogen bubbles 123 rise along the surface of the substrate 119 so that the impurities generated during the photolithography process and adhering to the substrate surface are removed. In this type of etching process, the extent of etching of the substrate 119 depends on, and therefore can be determined by, the temperature obtained from an exothermic reaction that is generated between the etchant 121 and the substrate 119.
In this related art method, however, since the bubbles, necessarily having different sizes, are applied on the upper portion and lower portion of the substrate, there is a resultant thickness difference between the upper portion and lower portion. As a result, the substrate is still easily damaged even by light force during the LCD process because of the non-uniformity of the thickness of the substrate. Further, the substrate must be soaked for a long period, for example, scores of minutes, to etch the substrate sufficiently. Thus, the processing cost is increased in this method.