A magic cube input system comprises a control module, a page module, a quick pick module, and a function module; the function module performs selection of a character input mode or a screen keyboard change mode. Under the character input mode, the control module receives voice instructions or motion instructions to control page scrolling of the page module, pick an initial character and subsequent characters successively after the initial character being picked, and the quick pick module presents commonly used characters or vocabularies to be picked up quickly through the control module. Under the screen keyboard change mode, the control module receives the voice instructions or motion instructions to control the page scrolling of the page module and select a suitable screen keyboard via the page scrolling so as to perform character or symbol input or the screen keyboard quick change.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an input system for smart devices especially wearable smart devices and portable smart devices, and more particularly to an input system which is controlled with voices, touches, gestures, a mouse, key pressing, knob turning, sensing or remote control to attain purposes of conversion for screen keyboards and character or symbol input.
2. Description of Related Art
The currently used input technology is keying data with a keyboard, clicking a virtual keyboard on a screen with a mouse, touching the virtual keyboard on the screen, or reading out words. However, the traditional key arrangement on the keyboard, input mode, and inconvenient screen keyboard change are hardly to satisfy a variety of smart products. For example:
1. The conventional keyboard or mouse is inconvenient to be carried.
2. The keys on the conventional keyboard or virtual keyboard on the screen are close to each other such that it is easy to touch a wrong key inadvertently or not easy to find a right key conveniently.
3. The wearable devices provide a limited screen size and the screen is hard to be touched directly such that it is unfavorable for the user to conduct input with the virtual keyboard on the screen.
4. The conventional voice input system needs to recognize a lot of pronunciations of words, but the recognition rate thereof is affected by the surroundings and personal accents easily.
5. During operating the conventional voice input system, the user has to readout word by word clearly, and it results in the privacy is not confidential.
6. Steps to perform conversion between the screen keyboards are very complicated with inadequate intuition.


Solid particle erosion in a steam turbine is minimized by diverting through angled slots formed in appendages of outer rings of the diaphragms, a portion of the steam from the steam flow path thereby bypassing downstream rotating components. The slot through the first stage appendage lies in communication with a passage through a downstream outer ring of a following stage such that the diverted solid particle containing steam may be extracted from the steam flow path and passed to the feed water heater of the turbine. The slot in the second stage appendage diverts steam from between the first and second stages and about the second stage. Solid particle erosion in various regions, i.e., the trailing edge of the stator vanes, along the surfaces of the buckets and in the regions of the cover and its connection with the buckets as well as the sealing devices is thereby minimized.

Solid particle erosion of the components of a steam turbine occurs due to carryover of particles from the steam boiler and piping upstream of the turbine. The solid particles become entrained in the steam flow path. As they pass through the steam turbine, the particles cause damage to both the stationary and rotating parts of the turbine which degrades steam turbine performance and mechanical reliability. The solid particles may be deposited throughout the steam path or may exit the steam path into steam extractions that feed the feed water heaters of the cycle. However, since the particles are transported by the main steam flow through the steam turbine steam path, they have the opportunity to inflict considerable damage along the steam path before they are deposited or expelled from the main steam flow. This damage can include erosion of the rotating and stationary buckets and partitions respectively, erosion of the rotating tip covers or tenons, erosion of tip sealing devices such as spill strips and erosion of stationary structures over the tips of the rotating buckets.
Referring to FIG. 1, typical steam turbine stages of a conventional steam turbine are illustrated and generally designated 10. Two stages of the steam turbine are illustrated, for example, a first stage generally designated 12 and a second stage generally designated 14. The first stage 12 includes a diaphragm 16 having an inner web 18, an outer ring 20, and a plurality of circumferentially spaced stator vanes or partitions 22 therebetween. The first stage also includes buckets 24 secured to a rotor 26. The tips of the buckets 24 rotate past sealing devices 28 formed on an axially extending appendage 30 of the outer ring 20. The inner web 18 of the first stage diaphragm includes sealing segments 32, in this instance, mounting labyrinth seal teeth 34 for sealing about the rotor 26. The second stage 14 is similar and includes a diaphragm 36, an inner web 38, an outer ring 40, partitions 42 circumferentially spaced one from the other and disposed between the inner web and outer ring, the outer ring 40 having an appendage 44 overlying tips of buckets 46 mounted on the rotor 26. It will be appreciated that the steam flows through the illustrated stages in the direction of the arrow 48 rotating the rotor 26, thereby enabling useful work to be derived from the steam turbine.
Various apparatus and methods have been proposed and utilized to minimize the impact of the solid particles on the rotating and stationary parts of steam turbines. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,776,765 a protective device is disposed over a portion of the suction side of the partition to prevent solid particle erosion of the trailing edge of the partition due to rebound of particles from the leading edge of the buckets. Other apparatus and methods for minimizing or eliminating solid particle erosion in steam turbines include solid particle erosion resistant coatings such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,704,336 and 4,615,734.
An additional conventional apparatus is shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, wherein like reference numerals are applied to like parts as in the conventional steam turbine construction illustrated in FIG. 1. This apparatus provides for the removal of a portion of the solid particles from the main steam flow so as to minimize damage to downstream steam path components. Generally, holes and passageways are provided in the component parts to divert a portion of the steam and hence the solid particles carried by the steam about the rotating parts. Particularly, one or more holes 60 are provided in the appendage 30 for diverting a portion of the steam flowing through the steam path through the hole 60. The hole 60 includes an inlet opening 64 upstream of the buckets 24 of the first stage and a second portion 66 on an opposite sides of a sealing device 68. A passage 70 extends through the sealing segment 68 in communication with the hole portions 64, 66, thereby constituting a through-passageway in appendage 30 for bypassing steam about the rotating parts. As illustrated, the hole portion 66 exits into a passageway 72 extending through the outer ring 40 of the second stage and on to a steam extraction passage 73.
One drawback associated with this arrangement is that the particles do not easily enter the inlet opening 64. In other words, the shape of the diaphragm surface adjacent the inlet opening does not effectively direct particles to the inlet opening. Thus, particles forced near the inlet opening by centrifugal action are often still deposited under the covers of the rotating buckets, which degrades mechanical integrity of the rotating buckets.
Further, even when particles successfully enter the inlet opening 64, they are not easily passed through the hole 60. Centrifugal action causes the particles to move radially outwardly toward the inlet opening 64; however, the hole 60 is positioned perpendicularly to the inlet opening 64 thereby requiring the particles to make a sharp turn into the hole 60. As such, passage of particles through the hole 60 is hindered by this configuration.
While many of these and other efforts to minimize or eliminate solid particle erosion have been tried in the past, solid particle erosion in steam turbines remains a continuing problem for the various parts along the steam path. Accordingly there is a need for a device to effectively minimize solid particle erosion of steam turbine components.

Apparatus for minimizing solid particle erosion in steam turbines


A portable chair includes a first container for retaining items, the first container having an inclined top wall for use as a back rest. The chair may additionally include a second container for retaining items, the second container having an inclined top wall and being hingedly connected to the first container such that the first container can pivot onto the inclined top wall of the second container, such that the inclined top wall of the second container can be pivoted into alignment with the inclined top wall of the first container, for use together as a back rest, and a third container for retaining items, the third container having a substantially horizontal top wall and being connected to the second container such that the second container can pivot together with the first container onto the substantially horizontal top wall of the third container. An access opening is preferably provided in at least one container. A canopy assembly is optionally provided over the containers. Also optionally included is a shoulder strap for use in carrying the portable chair. A method of closing the chair for transport and storage includes the steps of pivoting the first container onto the second container, and pivoting the first and second containers onto the third container. A method of opening the chair for use includes the steps of pivoting the first and second containers off the third container and against the ground, and pivoting the first container off the second container and against the ground.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of chairs for use on beaches, and more specifically to a beach lounge formed of a series of hingedly connected carrying containers which can be pivoted into an open position for use, and into a closed position for carrying and storage, which when open takes the form of a first container having an inclined top wall, hingedly joined to a second container having an inclined top wall, hingedly joined to an essentially cubical third container having a horizontal top wall, the inclined top walls of the first and second containers aligning to form a continuous surface sloping downward from the top of the third container to the ground for use as a back rest, the chair being closed by pivoting the top wall of the first container onto the top wall of the second container, and then by pivoting the first and second containers onto the top wall of the third container, the first and second containers each having an access opening covered with a split, flexible sheet, and the third container being an insulated cooler with a flush lid, the lounge including a canopy mounted at one end to a pair of first elongate members pivotally joined to opposing sides of the first container, and mounted at the other end to a pair of second elongate members pivotally joined to the first elongate members, the first and second elongate members being pivoted to open and close the canopy over the back rest, and including a shoulder strap attached to opposing sides of the third container for carrying the lounge.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There have long been portable chairs for use outdoors and specifically on beaches, one general category of prior art portable chairs might group those having foldable frames covered with supporting sheets or strips. These chairs can deteriorate in the sun and can fail to provide firm, healthful support for the back. Many of these chairs also fail to provide retaining compartments for carried items. An example is Groom, U.S. Pat. No. 4,258,951, issued on Mar. 31, 1981. Groom discloses a portable, collapsible chair having a complex and expensive support frame. Arms and legs pivot out from two hinge points in spider fashion and a hammock sheet is suspended between two ends. Harrington, U.S. Pat. No. 4,890,882, issued on Jan. 2, 1990, discloses a collapsible beach chair. Von Hoffman, U.S. Pat. No. 4,775,182, issued on Oct. 4, 1988, discloses a foldable beach chair with a frame which can be folded and telescoped into a narrow configuration to fit into a carrying tube. James, U.S. Pat. No. 4,978,166, issued on Dec. 18, 1990, teaches a sunshade for use on a child restraining car seat. A canopy is mounted on a plurality of hoop-shaped ribs which fan apart on pivot elements. Clark, U.S. Pat. No. 5,996,257, issued on Mar. 17, 1992, discloses a sunshade apparatus for clamping onto the back of a recreational chair. Two support legs extend up from the top of the back rest and hingedly connect to a cantilevered canopy structure.
Some sheet and frame chairs do provide carrying compartments, but the capacity of the compartments is invariably too small to carry most items needed for an outing. An example is Ross, U.S. Pat. No. 4,687,248, issued on Aug. 18, 1987, which teaches a sheet and frame chair which can be folded into a carrying satchel. LaPort, U.S. Pat. No. 4,793,012, issued on Dec. 27, 1988, reveals a beach mat adapted for use on a lounge chair, which can be folded several times for carrying, and has a flap to receive articles. Menke, U.S. Pat. No. 3,947,903, issued on Apr. 6, 1976, discloses a chair having back rest and leg support segments which fold over a central segment on which items can be placed. Then side sheet portions fold laterally over the top of these segments and are joined with a zipper fastener. Roberts, U.S. Pat. No. 3,179,465, issued on Apr. 20, 1965, teaches a convertible beach chair, suit case combination. A complicated and expensive frame structure folds into an elongate box. Bramming, U.S. Pat. No. 3,120,404, issued on Feb. 4, 1964, reveals a seat which folds to form a lunch box.
Then there are portable chairs having cushions supported by a folding frame. Some of the cushions contain carrying compartments, but the limited size of such cushions makes the compartments too small to carry many outing items. One such chair is disclosed in Nazar, U.S. Pat. No. 4,652,048, issued on Mar. 24, 1987, and in Nazar, U.S. Pat. No. 4,474,407, issued on Oct. 2, 1984, and in Nazar, U.S. Pat. No. 4,650,245, issued on Mar. 17, 1978. Nazar reveals a portable folding chair having a seat support platform containing an insulated vessel for retaining ice, beverages, or foodstuffs. Blackman, U.S. Pat. No. 4,141,585, issued on Feb. 27, 1979, discloses a folding, cooling lounge chair. The cushions are actually containers for dry ice or other coolant having fan circulation and vents, to draw heat away from the chair occupant. Thrift, U.S. Pat. No. 4,079,992, issued on Mar. 21, 1978, discloses a seat in the shape of a open sea shell having outer walls which support interior cushions. The shell outer walls and cushions pivot closed for carrying, and might possibly retain a few small items. Wise, U.S. Pat. No. 4,634,175, issued on Jan. 6, 1987, teaches a baby carrier formed of cushion member on supporting hoop members pivoting on a common axis. A pouch is provided underneath the cushion member. Edelson, U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,350, issued on Jul. 9, 1991, discloses a thick cushion hingedly connected to a thin cushion for cross-legged sitting. Davis, U.S. Pat. No. 3,560,047, issued on Feb. 2, 1971, teaches a portable chair having a seat cushion containing an insulated liquid container and dispenser. Marshall, U.S. Pat. No. 5,121,961, issued on Jun. 16, 1992, reveals a chair having a foldable series of support panels, which can collapse into a carrying configuration. Neiborn, U.S. Pat. No. 2,512,806, issued on Jun. 27, 1950, discloses a complicated frame and cushion assembly which folds into several reclined positions, one of which can serve as a bed.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a portable folding chair containing large capacity carrying compartments and including a horizontal surface for use as a table.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such a chair which is easy to open f or use and to close for carrying and storage.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such a chair which includes a shade-creating canopy.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide such a chair which provides firm, healthful back support.
It is finally an object of the present invention to provide such a chair which is simple and reliable in design and inexpensive to manufacture.


A fabric with high shielding performance and a preparation method thereof are provided. The method includes: (1) selecting a polyester textured yarn with a denier ranging from 15 D to 50 D and a polyester filament yarn with a denier ranging from 15 D to 50 D as the yarns; (2) using three guide bars for knitting in a warp knitting machine; yarn lapping movement the first guide bar and the second guide bar use the polyester textured yarn, the first guide bar and the second guide bar knit with a modified warp plain fabric structure, the third guide bar uses the polyester filament yarns, and the third guide bar knits with a chain-stitch fabric structure; (3) jet dyeing performing a direct dyeing treatment on greige by a jet dyeing machine; and (4) carrying out a Stenter setting on a setting machine.

Fabrics used as advertising fabrics generally must be treated with a coating on the surface to enhance their shielding performance and uniform photopermeability. The coating substances and methods are not especially environmentally friendly and many cause pollution. Fabrics without the coating treatment, however, exhibit less than desirable qualities. Spotty light leakage problems occur, for example, when background lighting is used for making the ad more visible. Therefore, to avoid this problem, a fabric with high shielding performance is needed.
The visual shielding performance of a fabric depends on ambient light sources and the light absorption and reflection characteristics of the fabric. The internal structure of the fabric knit in large part determines its light absorption and reflection. Until the subject invention, there have been no methods suitable for producing a fabric with high shielding performance.

Fabric with high shielding performance, preparation method thereof, and application thereof in preparing advertising fabric


A printing system for three-dimensional objects has a control unit for storing and executing a robot program and an industrial robot which is controlled by the control unit and which has an arm with several members, wherein the tip of the arm is movable along a predetermined movement path according to path data of the robot program. A printing unit is mounted on the tip of the robot arm and is controlled by the control unit, which has at least one print nozzle for applying pointwise a respective portion of a print material at respective coordinates according to object data of the robot program.

It is known that 3D printing systems are suitable for example for 3D prototyping. This enables a fast and easy production of a workpiece for testing purposes before a series production is starting. But also for the production of a small series of individual workpieces 3D printing systems are suitable. There are several types of 3D printing systems. One type consists mainly of a print nozzle and a Cartesian manipulator, which is foreseen to move the print nozzle in xyz-direction. Thus a typical Cartesian manipulator comprises three linear degrees of freedom in movement. The structure of an 3D object to be printed is stored for example in a kind of three-dimensional matrix wherein for each coordinate the information is provided, whether a portion of print material has to be applied at the respective coordinate or not. While printing the respective portion of print material is typically in a liquid state or comparable therewith, whereas the print material is hardened after application, so that point- and layerwise a solid object is printed.
Disadvantageously within this state of the art is that the size of objects which can be printed is limited to a certain size, for example 50 cm in xyz-direction, since typical Cartesian manipulators have a corresponding limited size. Objects of a larger dimension such as for example 2 m×2 m×3 m are not printable with a typical Cartesian manipulator. The objective of the invention consists in providing a system for easily printing larger 3D objects.

Printing system for three-dimensional objects


A control circuit includes: a temperature 30; a temperature sensing section 32; a memory 36, an amplifying section 31 to which the memory and the temperature sensor are electrically connected; a first D/A converting section 38 electrically interposed between the memory and the temperature sensing section; a second D/A converting section electrically interposed between the memory and the amplifying section 31, The amplifying section 31 includes: a polarity inverting circuit 33 connected to the temperature sensor; and a variable attenuator 34, an offset adjusting circuit 100, and an amplifying circuit 35 that are connected sequentially to the polarity inverting circuit. The amplifying section 31 is connected to a sample hold circuit 41 through a displacement buffering means 101. The memory has 8 or less working control voltage setting groups.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a crystal oscillating device having a temperature compensation function and a method of adjusting such crystal oscillating device.
2. Description of the Related Art
A crystal oscillating device includes a crystal oscillator, and the oscillation frequency of the crystal oscillator greatly varies with varying temperatures.
In order to decrease the oscillation frequency variations of the crystal oscillator due to the aforementioned temperature variations, conventionally used is a technique for controlling the voltage to be applied to varactor diodes with a control circuit, the varactor diodes being used as frequency adjusting elements of the crystal oscillator.
An exemplary construction of such a conventional control circuit is characterized as follows. If such a circuit is designed to make temperature compensations for a temperature range of 130.degree. C. from -35.degree. to 95.degree. C., temperature compensation data are stored in a memory in 4.degree. C. increments by dividing such 130.degree. C. temperature range into 4.degree. C. segments.
In this case, the temperature compensation data in the aforementioned conventional example require data such as precise gradient, temperature bias point, polarity, rough gradient, and fixed offset in 4.degree. C. increments. These data constitute a single control voltage setting group, and a total of 32 groups is stored in the memory.
That is, the conventional technique is characterized as selecting and outputting the data belonging to a single control voltage setting group within the memory based on the temperature detected by a temperature sensor. As a result, the oscillation frequency of the crystal oscillator can be stabilized independently of fluctuations in surrounding temperature.
What imposes problems in the aforementioned conventional example is that not only an increase in the size of the memory leads to an increase in the size of a semiconductor integrated circuit that is constructed of the memory and the control circuit, but also the control circuit itself becomes complicated and therefore disadvantageously consumes more power.
That is, in the aforementioned conventional example, the temperature compensation data are stored in the control voltage setting groups within the memory every 4.degree. C. in order to make temperature compensations covering the temperature range from -35.degree. to 95.degree. C. in 4.degree. C. increments. Therefore, the memory must have such a large capacity as to accommodate a total of 32 control voltage setting groups. In addition, in order to control such a large-capacity memory having a total of 32 control voltage setting groups, the control circuit therefor tends to be complicated and large-sized. As a result, the semiconductor integrated circuit that is constructed of the memory and the control circuit becomes disadvantageously large-sized.
Further, the control circuit that controls the memory having 32 control voltage setting groups has exhibited a tendency to consuming more power.

Crystal oscillating device and method of adjusting said crystal oscillating device

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


In the underwater cut pellet transport apparatus in which pellets cut formed by an underwater cutting device 4 are delivered to a cooling water dehydrating device 10 and a drying device 11 by means of the head pressure of a cooling water circulating pump 6 and are dehydrated and dried there, and the thus dried pellets are then delivered to pellet silos 15 by means of the head pressure of an air feed blower 17 of a pneumatic feed facility, the above-mentioned cooling water dehydrating device 10 and drying device 11 are respectively disposed above the pellet silos 15, thereby eliminating the need for provision of the above-mentioned pneumatic feed facility.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to method and apparatus for transporting underwater cut pellets and, in particular, to method and apparatus in which underwater cut pellets of synthetic resin, which have been formed by extruding the synthetic resin into the water through a die from a kneading and extruding machine or the like and then by cutting the same in the water, are carried by the water, and are then dehydrated and dried.
2. Related art
Conventionally, as underwater cut pellet transport apparatus, generally, there is employed underwater cut pellet transport apparatus which is structured in such a manner as shown in FIG. 2.
As shown in FIG. 2, synthetic resin material, which is supplied to a kneading and extruding machine 2 through a hopper 2a or the like, is melted and kneaded by a screw 2b which can be rotated by an extruding machine drive motor 1, is extruded in a strand form into the water through a granulating extrusion die 3 disposed in the leading end of the kneading and extruding machine 2, and is cut into pellets by an underwater cutting knife 4a which can be rotated on the surface of the extrusion die 3 by an underwater cutting knife drive motor 5 provided in an underwater cutting device 4.
The underwater cut pellets are cooled by the water that is fed from a cooling water tank 7 to the underwater cutting device 4 with a head pressure of 3-5 kg/cm.sup.2 by a cooling water circulating pump 6, and are then delivered to a cooling water dehydrating device 10 through a cooling water circulating pipe 8 having a cooling water switching three-way valve 9. In the cooling water dehydrating device 10, the water and pellets are separated from each other, the pellets are next carried to a drying device 11 where the water attached to the pellets is removed from the pellets, and the pellets are then delivered to a transport hopper 16 through a classifier 12. By the way, an exhaust fan 20 is connected to the upper portion of the drying device 11 or the like.
The pellets delivered to the transport hopper 16 are then fed to a plurality of pellet silos through an air feed pipe 19 having a silo switching valve 14 due to the head pressure of an air feed blower 17 having an air filter 18.
By the way, the pellets stored within the pellet silos 15 are discharged from the lower portions of the pellet silos 15, are put into bags, and are then shipped as products.
The water separated from the pellets in the cooling water dehydrating device 10, the attached water removed from the pellets by the drying device 11, and the water diverged by switching the cooling water switching three-way valve 9 are respectively collected into the cooling water tank 7 and, after then, as described above, the thus collected water is fed to the underwater cutting device 4 by the cooling water circulating pump 6, thereby carrying out a continuous automatic water circulatory operation.
Since the conventional underwater cut pellet transport apparatus is structured in the above-mentioned manner, there have been found in the same apparatus several problems as follows: That is,
(a) Because the conventional underwater cut pellet transport apparatus is composed of many devices, the apparatus itself is complicated in structure, which causes an increase in the cost of construction of such plant, that is, underwater cut pellet transport apparatus.
(b) While the conventional underwater cut pellet transport apparatus is divided into a pellet water cooling and drying line and a pneumatic feeding line in which dry pellets are fed to pellet silos by means of air pressure, these lines produce large noises which have ill effects on an operation environment.
(c) The pellets are rubbed against the inner wall of the pipe of the pneumatic feeding line to thereby produce film-like resin shavings, while the resin shavings are mixed into the product pellets.

Method and apparatus for transporting underwater cut pellets


A waist band holder for holding up a pair of trousers or a skirt. The waist band holder has three strips, a fabric strip, an elastic strip and a Velcro strip. The strip of Velcro is attached to the elastic strip. The elastic strip is attached to the fabric strip. Two additional Velcro strips are attached to the end of the waist band trouser holder for securing to a persons waist. The strip of Velcro on the waist band holder attaches to a strip of Velcro on the inner waistband of a pair of trousers or skirt. The elastic strip allows the waist band to displace in the vertical direction when an individual wearing the waistband trouser holder sits or squats. The waist band holder then returns the trousers or skirt to its original position when the wearer returns to a standing position.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to clothing and more particularly to an improved waist band to be worn preferably on the inside of a pair of trousers or on the inside of a skirt.
2. Description of Prior Art
Trousers or skirts ride up and down vertically when a person sits or is bending his or her knees when squatting. Inner or invisible belts are old in the art and are designed to move around the waist to adjust evenly, but do not permit a garment to ride up or down. Therefore, trousers or skirts must be readjusted almost every time a person stands from a sitting or squatting position.
Generally, suspenders with their elastic bands, which allows a garment to ride up or down, is the preferred means for holding trousers in place for many men. However, because of its visibility during wearing and the cumbersome nature of removal, it is not as widely accepted in the marketplace as is the common waist belt. In areas of the world with a warmer climate, the shirt is usually worn loosely and over the trousers. In some cases the suspenders are worn inside the shirt and usually over the undershirt. This causes the suspenders to show through the shirt. This has not been widely accepted, and is a limiting factor in the sales of the suspenders.
The present invention alleviates these problems by providing an economical waist band of simple construction, to be worn on the inside of a pair of trousers or a skirt, that stretches vertically as opposed to horizontally when a person is sitting or squatting. (The term "trousers" used herein includes the term "skirt", unless also mentioned or specifically excluded).


In one embodiment a thermal dissipation heat slug sandwich includes a circuit board, a circuit package having an integrated heat slug mounted to an obverse side of the circuit board, and a lower heat sink plate on a reverse side of the circuit board thermally coupled to the heat slug and a housing enclosing the circuit board An upper heat sink plate may be mounted to the obverse side of the circuit board to cover the circuit package. The upper heat sink plate thermally coupled to the lower heat sink plate through the circuit board. An insulating cover may also be provided to redirect radiant heat from the circuit package to the housing.

Wide band amplifiers, such as gallium arsenide field effect transistor (GaAs FET) integrated circuit amplifiers, may be employed in high performance cable television distribution systems. While these wide band amplifiers provide high performance, they use more power and generate more heat than narrow band amplifiers. In general, these conventional heat sink assemblies fail to provide adequate heat management for wide band amplifiers circuits. Consequently, these wideband amplifiers are forced to operate at elevated temperatures which may reduce the life of the transistor and damage other components located within the same housing. Scientific-Atlanta, Inc.'s U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,739,586 and 5,930,601, which are hereby incorporated by reference herein, disclose heat sink assemblies that offer improved heat management capabilities through the use of thermal coupling with a circuit package having an integrated heat slug.


Disclosed is a method of efficiently manufacturing a III-V group compound semiconductor that carbon mixing is reduced, wherein a compound represented by the formula (1) or (2) is used as a V group source: ##STR1## wherein X represents a V group element, n represents integer of 1 to 3, and Y represents electron-releasing group bonded to a position selected from 2-, 4-, and 6-positions, ##STR2## wherein X represents a V group element, m represents an integer of 1 or 2, and Y represents electron-releasing group bonded to a position selected from 2- and 4-positions.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of growing a III-V group compound semiconductor on a substrate by an MOCVD method.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a conventional method of growing a compound semiconductor by a metal organic chemical vapor deposition method (MOCVD method) which is used for manufacturing a device such as a semiconductor laser and an LED, a V group hydride is used as a V group source, i.e., phosphine (PH.sub.3) is used as a phosphorus source, and arsine (AsH.sub.3) is used as an arsenic source. However, since these hydrides have very strong toxicity, high-cost peripheral equipment for such as an exhaust gas treatment is required for a safety operation. In addition, since these compounds are decomposed by only several percentages at a growth temperature of about 700.degree. C. in a normal MOCVD method, the utilization efficiency of the compounds is very low. For this reason, a high-quality thin film cannot be obtained unless the V group compounds are used several hundreds times more than III group compounds.
To solve problems in safety and utilization efficiency, various V group sources are examined.
Trialkyl V group compounds such as trimethylphosphine or trimethylarsine and monoalkyl V group compounds such as tert-butylphosphine or tert-butylarsine are examined (Appl. Phys. Lett., 48, 1531 (1986)). However, when these compounds are used, organic radicals are generated by thermal decomposition, and carbon atoms are undesirably mixed in a film to be grown. Especially, when trialkylphosphine is used, it is difficult to cause phosphorus deposition (G. B. Stringfellow "Organometallic Vapor-Phase Epitaxy" Academic Press, (1989) p. 35).
Phenyl V group compounds such as phenylphosphine and phenylarsine in which a phenyl group is bonded to a V group element are also examined. Since phenylphosphine and phenylarsine are resonantly stabilized, they are promising alternative sources that are expected that the carbon mixing to the film is substantially slight. As examples of MOCVD method using phenylarsine, growth of InAs is described in J. Cryst. Growth, 97, 489 (1989), and growth of GaAs is described in Chemtronics, 4, 78 (1989). In these examples, films can be obtained having excellent electrical characteristics that can cope with those of films obtained by using hydrides.
The above phenyl V group compounds, however, have a drawback that their thermal decomposition temperature is not largely different from that of hydrides, so that the utilization efficiency is disadvantageously low. Since the vapor pressures of the phenyl V group compounds are about 1 Torr at most at room temperature, bubblers in which these compounds are stored and supply tubes must be heated. In addition, these compounds cause side reactions in which they form adducts together with III group sources such as trimethylgallium to produce nonvolatile polymers having no contribution to the film growth (for example, Chemtronics, 4, 78 (1989)). Such side reactions are not only disadvantageous to the growth of compound semiconductors having an excellent surface, but they cause to degrade utilization efficiency of the V group compounds. To improve utilization efficiency of the V group source and to realize the growth of a high-quality compound semiconductor having an excellent surface morphology, the above drawbacks must be eliminated by chemically modifying the V group compounds.

Method of manufacturing III-V group compound semiconductor


A coin selector is provided with a charging function for smart cards and coins. A coin selector is provided with a smart card charging function comprising of a coin slot which is located at the upper section of a perpendicular base plate and a coin returning slot which is located below the coin slot at the base plate. An upwards slanting surface which faces the upper section of said base plate has a coin entry which is located at the upwards slanting surface. An antenna or sensor for communicating or signaling is located around the coin entry and under the upwards slanting surface. An antenna signal indicator is located on the upwards slanting surface.

It is known in the prior art (Japanese Patent Publication number 29308 of 1988 (see FIG. 1-5)) that a coin selector may include a coin slot, a mechanical coin selecting section for authenticating coins which is located continuously to the coin slot and is located along a coin passageway and with an outputting section which outputs a genuine signal to a charging apparatus. In recent years, the information apparatus known as a smart card has been developed and used. Such smart cards have an IC which memorizes some value information.
Also the smart cards are used for settling finances. In other words, the settling of debts/charges is accomplished with the use of coins and/or smart cards. Therefore a charging apparatus is needed that can be used to process coins and/or smart cards.
The first known prior reference (Korean Utility Model number 174519 (see FIG. 3)) for answering this need includes features with the charging apparatus having a coin selector and a reading and writing unit for a contact type smart card.
Also, an additional prior reference (Japanese Publication of unexamined Patent application number 2126121 (see FIGS. 1, 2, 4, 5, pages 3–4)) is known where a slot of a reading and writing unit is located below the banknote slot of a validator.
In Japanese Patent Publication number 29308, a customer has to insert the smart card into the slot every time. This procedure is a lot of bother. Also, when the coin selector and the reading/writing unit for the smart card are independently detached from the charging apparatus, there is a possibility where a customer might get confused as they feel that they can only use one medium or the other: for example the smart card or the coin, but not both. Furthermore the charging apparatus becomes larger in employing a device of Japanese Patent Publication number 29308.
In Korean Utility Model number 174519, when the charging apparatus is larger than the banknote size, for use as a banknote validator, the reading/writing unit can be attached easily. However when the width of the charging apparatus is smaller than the banknote, as it is with the coin selector, the reading/writing unit can not be attached.

Coin selector with a smart card charging function


A wire gripper having a gripping mechanism capable of gripping two wires at a desirable position thereof for suspending a heavy article without a rotation of the article around an axis of each wire is provided. The wire gripper (1) has an inner sleeve (10) and an outer sleeve (40). The inner sleeve (10) is formed with two wire-insertion bores (11) and two pairs of ball-set bores (21), each bore open at both the wire-insertion bores and an outer surface of the inner sleeve. And, the inner sleeve (10) has a tapered outer surface formed at a portion where the ball-set bores are formed. A spring 60 biases the inner sleeve (10) so that the tapered outer surface of the inner sleeve (10) contacts the tapered inner surface (41a) of the outer sleeve (40). Large-diameter balls (31) and small-diameter balls (31) are received in the ball-set bores (21) and protrude partially into the wire-insertion bores (11) so as to press the wire with three balls in the four balls.

In a shop window of a clothing shop and the like, a mannequin with a dress is sometimes displayed hung from a ceiling by a wire. Since such a mannequin is relatively heavy, suspending the mannequin requires a stranded wire having a larger diameter (1.5 to 2.5 mm) than that of a wire used for suspending a relatively light-weight article such as a clothes hanger.
When one stranded wire suspends a relatively heavy article, the wire is twisted easily and therefore the suspended article rotates around the wire, resulting in a problem that the article cannot be displayed facing the front. This is mainly caused by the stranded wire. When a heavy article is suspended using one stranded wire, the stranded wire is twisted by its tension in the direction in which the stranded wire is loosened. Here, an angle of the twist is nearly proportional to the tension applied to the wire (i.e., the weight of the article to be suspended). Consequentially, in order to suspend an article using a stranded wire without a rotation of the article around an axis of the wire, generally, a weight for weight adjusting is hung from a lower end of the wire, or the article is suspended using two wires.
FIG. 11 show states in which mannequins are suspended by conventional methods.
FIG. 11A shows a state in which a weight D is hung from a lower end of a wire W to which a mannequin F is suspended. For example, the weight D has weight of 3 kg. By hanging the weight D, the stranded wire W is pulled downward and therefore stretched tight, whereby a torsion of the stranded wire W can be kept at a substantially constant state.
FIG. 11B shows a state in which a mannequin P is suspended from a ceiling using two wires W. Two wire grippers 100 are mounted on a neck portion of the mannequin F. To each of the wire grippers 100, each lower end of the two wires W is connected. Each upper end of the wires W is connected to a wire attachment 101. The wire attachments 101 are coupled to parallel rails 103 which are mounted to the ceiling.
Using two wires W, the upper ends (the attachments 101) and the lower ends (the grippers 100) of the two wires W shape a plane surface. By shaping the plane surface, twisting of each stranded wire W is limited so that an article can be suspended without a rotation of the article around the wire.
However, in the conventional method using a weight shown in FIG. 11A, the weight D hung down under the mannequin P does not make a good showing. In addition, a load applied to the wire W, a wire attachment to which the wire is connected and the rail 103 to which the wire attachment is coupled becomes larger by just the weight of the weight D.
And, the conventional method using two wires shown in FIG. 11B also does not make a good showing. In addition, the method needs two wire grippers 100, resulting in giving a clutter showing. Furthermore, in order to change a height of the suspending article, two wire grippers capable of gripping a wire at a desirable position are required. In this case, it is necessary that after one of the wire gripper is slid along the wire and held to a desirable position thereof, the other wire gripper is also slid along the wire and held to the same position, which is quite inconvenient.

Wire gripper and article suspension system


Disclosed is a lubricating oil composition for automatic transmissions, which comprises a base oil and additives of (A) a sulfur-containing antioxidant or an amine-type antioxidant, (B) a phosphate or its amine salt, and (C) a reaction product of a carboxylic acid and an amine. The composition has an excellent ability to prevent the brake lining of the clutch of automatic transmissions from shuddering, and can maintain the shudder-preventing ability for a long period of time.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lubricating oil composition for automatic transmissions, and, more precisely, to that having an excellent ability to prevent the brake lining of the clutch of automatic transmissions from shuddering, and capable of maintaining the shudder-preventing ability for a long period of time.
2. Description of the Related Art
Automatic transmissions (AT), especially those equipped with a continuous slip mechanism are required to have the ability to prevent shudders that may occur in the clutch of AT. Cars using a conventional automatic transmission fluid (ATF) greatly shudder. Various attempts have been made to prevent cars from shuddering. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-305082 discloses a lubricating oil composition for automatic transmissions, which comprises a base oil and additives of (1) zinc dithiophosphate and/or basic zinc dithiophosphate, (2) at least one compound selected from the group consisting of phosphates, acid phosphates and phosphites and (3) an organic friction regulator having a specific bond and/or a functional group as introduced into the molecule. This composition is effective in preventing initial shudders but is defective in that, while it is used for a long period of time, zinc dithiophosphate therein adheres to the surface of a wet clutch to thereby greatly shorten the shudder-preventing life of the composition, resulting in that the composition could no more maintain its original properties. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-254196 discloses the addition of a friction regulator of any of phosphates, fatty acid esters and fatty acid amides to ATF, which, however, is not satisfactory for preventing initial shudders.
Given the situation, the present invention is to provide a lubricating oil composition for automatic transmissions which has an excellent ability to prevent the brake lining of the clutch of automatic transmissions from shuddering, and can maintain the shudder-preventing ability for a long period of time.

Lubricating oil composition for automatic transmission


An electronic apparatus comprising one or more microstructures on a substrate and a method for fabricating the electronic apparatus. The microstructures have alignment structures that allow the microstructures to be oriented in receptacles having shapes that are complementary to the shapes of the alignment structures. The alignment structures are shapes that vary when rotated 360°, such that the microstructures are positioned at a specific orientation in the receptacles.

1. Field
The present disclosure relates to the assembly of device and integrated circuit components on a substrate to provide hybrid electronic, optoelectronic, or other types of integrated electronic systems. For example, the present disclosure describes a method for fabricating arbitrarily configured arrays of devices or components on host circuits or substrates with a specific orientation using fluid-based transport or other mass dispersing techniques.
2. Description of Related Art
Increasingly complex integrated electronic and optoelectronic systems require larger numbers of integrated circuits and devices to implement increasingly complex system functions. However, to achieve cost and weight goals, it is preferred that these integrated systems be implemented with as few separate device structures as possible. One approach is to fabricate all of the integrated circuits and devices on a single wafer or portion of a wafer, which provides the structural base for the system and minimizes the interconnect distances between circuits and devices. Such fabrication may be referred to as "wafer-scale" integration.
Many complex integrated electronic and optoelectronic systems require the use of integrated circuits and devices that utilize different semiconductor technologies. One approach known in the art for wafer-scale integration of different semiconductor technologies is heteroepitaxy. The heteroepitaxy approach may limit the number of different devices and material systems that can be successfully integrated. Moreover, growth and fabrication procedures optimized for a single device technology often must be compromised to accommodate dissimilar material systems. Finally, testing of individual portions of the integrated system may be made difficult by the fabrication techniques used to accommodate dissimilar material systems on a single wafer.
Since it may be difficult to fabricate high performance systems using multiple device types using heteroepitaxy approaches, it may be preferable to fabricate separate arrays of devices or circuit modules and couple these separately fabricated components to a host wafer. This approach allows each individual component to have state-of-the-art performance and high yield (due to pre-testing). Each component may use proven device and circuit architectures, while optimum epitaxial growth and/or device processing sequences are employed to fabricate each component.
The separate components may be individually integrated with the host wafer using any one of several established methods for chip-level integration. These methods generally rely upon surface-mounting techniques for attaching complete die assemblies using solder bumps or wire bonding. The most advanced of these methods is the "flip-chip" technique that can support integration of a wide variety of device technologies and fully utilizes the costly, high-performance device wafer real estate. However, flip-chip is generally limited to relatively large size components, typically greater than 1 square millimeter, and is inefficient for the placement of large numbers of components due to its serial nature.
At the wafer-scale level, self-assembly methods provide the best capability to allow integration of arbitrary configurations and densities of components. The most advanced of the self-assembly methods use a fluid medium to transport components to a host substrate or wafer for assembly. Two different fluidic self-assembly methods are known in the art, which differ in the underlying mechanism used to locate, position, and connect the components on the host substrate or wafer.
The first method of fluidic self-assembly uses gravitational forces and geometrical constraints to integrate components with a host substrate. The components are fabricated with specific shapes and complementary shaped receptacles are formed on the substrate for receiving the shaped components. The components are typically formed using semiconductor fabrication techniques and the receptacles are formed by using wet or dry etching techniques. A solvent such as water or ethanol is used to transport the individual components to the host substrate with the receptacles. The receptacles trap the components, which come to rest in predictable orientations due to their specific shapes. The driving potential is primarily gravitational in origin, but the fluid and surface forces may also play a role in the assembly process.
The second method of fluidic self-assembly utilizes chemically-based driving forces to govern the assembly process, where the attraction, positioning, orientation, and ordering of components is controlled by molecular interactions at the surfaces of the components and the host substrate. Molecular-based self-assembly techniques generally use surface coatings that consist of chemically-bonded films which are either hydrophobic or hydrophilic by nature. Thermodynamic driving forces control the assembly of complex arrays of components by minimizing the surface energies of the components and host substrate.
Both methods may be used together to provide for integration of electronic and opto-electronic devices into hybrid electronic systems. See, for example, A. Terfort, et al., "Self-Assembly of an Operating Electrical Circuit Based on Shape Complementarity and the Hydrophobic Effect," Adv. Material, 10, No. 6, 1998, pp. 470–473. See also A. Terfort, et al., "Three-dimensional Self-Assembly of Millimeter-scale Components," Nature, Vol. 386, Mar. 13, 1997, pp. 162–164.
Methods for fabricating device microstructures by fluidic self-assembly have also been the subject of various U.S. patent disclosures. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,545,291, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, describes one such method comprising the steps of providing a plurality of shaped blocks, each shaped block comprising an integrated circuit thereon; transferring said shaped blocks into a fluid to form a slurry, and dispensing said slurry over a substrate at a rate where at least one of said shaped blocks is disposed into a recessed region in the substrate. In the '291 patent, the substrate is selected from a group consisting of a silicon wafer, plastic sheet, gallium arsenide wafer, glass substrate, and ceramic substrate. The flow is substantially a laminar flow and the rate of flow allows each of the shaped blocks to self-align into the recessed region.
In the '291 patent, the blocks comprising the integrated circuit device thereon are shaped by masking and etching. Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3 of the attached drawings, a block substrate 2 is provided with a top layer, a bottom layer 6 and a sacrificial layer 8 atop the top surface of the bottom layer 6 (see FIG. 1). The blocks are shaped by masking and etching the top layer using known techniques to form the etched block substrate shown in FIG. 2 comprising photoresist layer 10 atop shaped blocks 12. Then the shaded blocks 12 are removed by preferential etching of sacrificial layer 8 (see FIG. 3). The removed blocks 12 (see FIG. 3) are then mixed with an inert fluid to form a slurry and the slurry is deposited on the top surface of a substrate comprising recessed regions to allow the blocks to self-align in the recessed regions of the substrate.
To insure proper placement and registration of the microstructures in the recessed regions, the recessed regions in the prior art substrates have been etched to provide receptacle sites with geometric profiles that are complementary to the profiles of the blocks. Receptacle sites in other reports of fluidic self-assembly have also been made by etching recesses in the surface of silicon substrates. Single crystalline silicon can be etched by a number of methods to produce a variety of sidewall profiles. The etching behavior of most wet-processes can be categorized as isotropic or crystallographic. Receptacles fabricated using crystallographic etches are the most favorable for forming receptacle sites.
Crystallographically etched receptacles in a silicon substrate have been obtained by using an aqueous potassium hydroxide (KOH) solution. It is difficult to produce complementary shapes between receptacles and device microstructures using KOH etch techniques, because the microstructures require an exterior surface etch and the receptacles require an interior surface etch. The best results for shape matching have been achieved using corner compensation masking techniques for etching the device microstructure. These techniques prevent the corners from being rounded. However, in general, the microstructures are found to be etched with a more tapered shape than the receptacle sites. This leads to a loose fit.
A layer of polymer material may be used as the substrate in which receptacles are formed. The receptacles in the polymer material may be formed using plasma etching. Methods for forming tapered holes in polyimide are well-known in the art. The methods for forming tapered sidewalls typically involve using specially prepared photoresist masks (tapered erosion masks). These methods are typically limited to several microns of depth because the masking material and the polymer etch at the same rate.
Another method for forming receptacles in polymer material is disclosed in the commonly assigned and copending application "Method For Assembly of Complementary-Shaped Receptacle Site and Device Microstructures," U.S. application Ser. No. 10/218,052. This application describes a method for forming receptacles by first creating a mold having a protuberance with the same shape as a protuberance on a device microstructure. The mold is then applied to a moldable substrate, typically a polymer material, to form a receptacle site having a complementary shape to the protuberance on the device microstructure. Fluidic self-assembly is then used to provide the device microstructure to the molded substrate, and the device microstructure then self-aligns in the recess. Typically, the mold will have multiple protuberances so that multiple recesses will be formed in the moldable substrate when molded with the mold.
The three dimensional shapes of the shaped blocks comprising the microstructures or parts thereof and the complementarily-shaped receptacles described in the prior art are generally invariant under 360 degree rotation. That is, the shapes generally have no specific orientation in the plane defined by the surface containing the receptacles. Hence, when the microstructures are positioned within the receptacles, the microstructures may be oriented within the receptacle in any one of several orientations defined by the receptacle shape. For example, a receptacle having a square shape, that is, a shape with four equal length sidewalls, would allow a microstructure to be positioned in any one of four different orientations. Variations in the orientations of the microstructures positioned within the receptacles complicates the steps needed to make electrical, optical, or other types of connections to the microstructures. The variations in the orientations may also limit or complicate the electrical or optical designs implemented by the microstructures.
The three-dimensional shapes of the shaped blocks comprising the microstructures or portions thereof and the complementarily shaped receptacles may also hinder the self-alignment capabilities of the microstructures. Due to these shapes, a microstructure may be introduced in a skewed fashion to the corresponding receptacle, causing the microstructure to become stuck in the receptacle, but not properly seated in the receptacle. Those skilled in the art will understand that this problem is more likely to be seen with shapes that have well-defined corners than with shapes that have more curved features.
Therefore, there exists a need in the art for providing a method and structure that facilitates the assembly of microstructures within receptacles in a structure in a preferred orientation. There also exists a need in the art for providing a method and structure that facilities such assembly while avoiding the assembly of microstructures in a skewed manner that prevents proper seating of the microstructures.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Oriented self-location of microstructures with alignment structures


Provided herein are encoded microcarriers for analyte detection in multiplex assays. The microcarriers are encoded with an analog code for identification and include a capture agent for analyte detection. Also provided are methods of making the encoded microcarriers disclosed herein. Further provided are methods and kits for conducting a multiplex assay using the microcarriers described herein.

Immunological and molecular diagnostic assays play a critical role both in the research and clinical fields. Often it is necessary to perform assays for a panel of multiple targets to gain a meaningful or bird's-eye view of results to facilitate research or clinical decision-making. This is particularly true in the era of genomics and proteomics, where an abundance of genetic markers and/or biomarkers are thought to influence or be predictive of particular disease states. In theory, assays of multiple targets can be accomplished by testing each target separately in parallel or sequentially in different reaction vessels (i.e., multiple singleplexing). However, not only are assays adopting a singleplexing strategy often cumbersome, but they also typically required large sample volumes, especially when the targets to be analyzed are large in number.
A multiplex assay simultaneously measures multiple analytes (two or more) in a single assay. Multiplex assays are commonly used in high-throughput screening settings, where many specimens can be analyzed at once. It is the ability to assay many analytes simultaneously and many specimens in parallel that is the hallmark of multiplex assays and is the reason that such assays have become a powerful tool in fields ranging from drug discovery to functional genomics to clinical diagnostics. In contrast to singleplexing, by combining all targets in the same reaction vessel, the assay is much less cumbersome and much easier to perform, since only one reaction vessel is handled per sample. The required test samples can thus be dramatically reduced in volume, which is especially important when samples (e.g., tumor tissues, cerebral spinal fluid, or bone marrow) are difficult and/or invasive to retrieve in large quantities. Equally important is the fact that the reagent cost can be decreased and assay throughput increased drastically.
Many assays of complex macromolecule samples are composed of two steps. In the first step, agents capable of specifically capturing the target macromolecules are attached to a solid phase surface. These immobilized molecules may be used to capture the target macromolecules from a complex sample by various means, such as hybridization (e.g., in DNA, RNA based assays) or antigen-antibody interactions (in immunoassays). In the second step, detection molecules are incubated with and bind to the complex of capture molecule and the target, emitting signals such as fluorescence or other electromagnetic signals. The amount of the target is then quantified by the intensity of those signals.
Multiplex assays may be carried out by utilizing multiple capture agents, each specific for a different target macromolecule. In chip-based array multiplex assays, each type of capture agent is attached to a pre-defined position on the chip. The amount of multiplex targets in a complex sample is determined by measuring the signal of the detection molecule at each position corresponding to a type of capture agent. In suspension array multiplex assays, microparticles or microcarriers are suspended in the assay solution. These microparticles or microcarriers contain an identification element, which may be embedded, printed, or otherwise generated by one or more elements of the microparticle/microcarrier. Each type of capture agent is immobilized to particles with the same ID, and the signals emitted from the detection molecules on the surface of the particles with a particular ID reflect the amount of the corresponding target.
Existing systems for suspension array multiplex assays are limited in resolution. Some multiplex systems use digital barcodes printed on flat microbeads using standard semiconductor fabrication techniques. However, the number of identifiers that can be generated by a particular number of digits is limited. Increasing the number of unique identifiers requires increasing the number of barcode digits, thus requiring more space for printing on an already tiny microbead. Another type of multiplex system uses color-coding, such as fluorescent beads encoded with a unique fluorescent dye. However, the number of unique identifiers available for such fluorescent systems is limited due to overlapping excitation/emission spectra, and identification errors may arise from, e.g., batch-to-batch variation in fluorescent dyes.
Therefore, a need exists for an analog-encoded multiplex assay system, e.g., one not constrained by limitations such as digital barcode size or fluorophore resolution. Such a system allows nearly unlimited unique identifiers and minimizes recognition error due to the use of analog codes (e.g., from overlapping spectra or batch-to-batch fluorophore variation).
All publications, patents, and patent applications cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety for all purposes.


An image editing device of the present invention, for editing a combined photographic image formed by combining a plurality of images, comprises a first image processing section for carrying out first image processing on the image and creating a first image, a second image processing section for carrying out second image processing on the first image to create a second image, a combined photograph processing section for creating a combined photograph by combining the second image in accordance combining position of the combined photograph, and a control section for, after the first image processing has been carried out, creating a combined photograph by combining the second image that has been subjected to the second image processing in accordance with combining position of the combined photograph by the combined photograph processing section, and storing the combined photograph and the first image as a single image file.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image editing device for editing an image such as a combined photograph made up of a plurality of photographs, and to an imaging editing method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, there have been various approaches to carrying out gradation processing for digital image signals, in order to achieve image storage without gradation jumps (refer, for example, to Japanese patent laid-open No. 2005-051337 and Japanese patent laid-open No. Hei. 09-233339). Also, since there is gradual deterioration if an image is repeatedly used, deterioration prevention measures are implemented (refer, for example, to Japanese patent laid-open No. 2010-276765 and Japanese patent laid-open No. 2001-143055).

Image editing device and image editing method


A door bottom system is used with an entryway system having a door panel movable between open and closed positions. The door bottom system includes a door sweep movable with the door panel between first and second positions corresponding with the open and closed positions, respectively. The door bottom system includes a threshold assembly including a sill that defines a channel adapted for accepting a fluid. The threshold assembly includes a seal extending downwardly toward the sill to a distal end and movable between initial and sealed positions. The door sweep selectively engages and moves the seal from the initial position in the first position to the sealed position in the second position. The seal extends over and covers the channel in the initial position. The seal at least partially uncovers the channel in the sealed position such that the distal end of the seal is positioned above the channel.

1. Field of the Invention
The subject invention relates to a door bottom system for an entryway system.
2. Description of Related Art
Entryway systems typically include a door bottom system. The door bottom system typically includes a door sweep coupled to and configured to move with a door panel of the entryway system and a threshold assembly to seal against the door sweep. The entryway system typically includes a door frame and the door panel. The door panel is pivotal relative to the door frame between open and closed positions. The threshold assembly typically includes a sill and a rail, with the rail disposed on the sill. The rail is disposed below the door sweep when the door panel is in the closed position. The rail may be biased to engage and adjust to the door sweep to create a water-tight seal between the rail and the door panel. In other words, as opposed to setting the door panel and/or the rail to a predetermined height relative to each other at the time of installation to create a proper seal between the door panel and the rail, the rail instead self-adjusts to the door panel when the door panel is in the closed position to seal against the door panel.
Traditionally, the rail is biased upward toward the door panel such that the door panel engages the rail and the rail seals against the door panel. Repeated foot-traffic across the rail and/or repeated engagement by the rail may degrade the upward bias of the rail toward the door panel to seal against the door panel. Further, water and debris that infiltrates between the door sweep and the rail is directed toward an interior of the structure. As such, there remains a need to provide an improved door bottom system.

Door bottom system for an entryway system


A film forming method in which in a state in which a target substrate is loaded on a loading table body of a loading table installed in a processing container and an interior of the processing container is evacuated, a film forming material gas is supplied into the processing container while heating the target substrate with a heater installed in the loading table body, to be thermally decomposed or reacted on a surface of the target substrate to form a predetermined film on the target substrate, includes introducing a heat transfer gas containing an H2 gas or an He gas into the processing container to transfer heat of the loading table body to a radially outer side of the loading table body, before the film forming material gas is supplied.

Recently, demand for high speed semiconductor devices, scaling-down of wiring patterns, and high integration have spurred a reduction in inter-wiring capacitance, enhancement of conductivity of wirings, and enhancement of electromigration tolerance. As a technology for meeting the above requirements, a copper (Cu) multilayer wiring technology has been drawing attention, in which a film of a low dielectric constant (a low-k film) as an interlayer insulating film, and copper as a wiring material which has conductivity higher than that of aluminum (Al) or tungsten (W) and good electromigration tolerance are used.
As one of the methods of forming a copper wiring, a technology of first forming a low-k film on a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter, simply referred to as "wafer") as a substrate to be processed, forming a trench or a hole in the low-k film, forming a barrier layer made of Ta, TaN, Ti, or the like on an inner wall thereof through physical vapor deposition (PVD) represented by sputtering, forming a copper seed layer thereon through PVD, and performing copper plating thereon to bury the trench or the hole has been known.
However, since the design rule of semiconductor devices has become increasingly scaled down, it is difficult to form a copper seed layer within a trench or a hole through PVD having essentially low step coverage. Thus, a method of forming a ruthenium film as a seed layer on a barrier layer through chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and forming a copper film thereon has been proposed. Further, forming a ruthenium film through atomic layer deposition (ALD) capable of obtaining better step coverage has also been considered. Moreover, forming the barrier layer through CVD or ALD has also been considered.
In the case of forming the seed layer or the barrier layer through CVD or ALD, an organic metal compound in which a metal atom is bonded with an organic group is normally used. However, the use of an organic metal compound leads to a problem that components other than a metal easily remain in a film. Thus, using metal carbonyl is discussed as an organic metal compound raw material since it allows for obtaining a film with less impurities and the only organic ligand thereof is CO. A technology of forming a tungsten film as a barrier layer using W(CO)6 and a technology of forming a ruthenium film as a seed layer using Ru3(CO)12 have been known.
However, in a normal film forming method in which a film is formed using metal carbonyl, a film thickness in a central portion of a wafer tends to be greater while a film thickness in a peripheral portion tends to be smaller, resulting in low in-plane uniformity. For this reason, a method of installing a baffle plate having a gas outlet in a position corresponding to a periphery of a semiconductor wafer, further installing an annular inner partition wall surrounding a processing space within a processing container, and supplying a film forming material gas from the gas outlet installed in the periphery of the baffle plate toward a region positioned radially-outwardly than an outer circumferential end of the semiconductor wafer loaded on a loading table has been proposed in the related art.
When scaling-down of semiconductor devices further progresses and it becomes an era of post-22-nm node technology, a uniformly formed barrier layer or a seed layer with an extremely small film thickness of 2 nm or less will be required. However, even when the technology of the related art is used, in-plane uniformity of a desired film thickness may not be obtained due to the little temperature difference between a central portion and a peripheral portion of a wafer. Consequently, a different way or approach to secure the desired in-plane uniformity is required.

Film forming method, film forming apparatus and recording medium


An inlet subassembly for a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system. The inlet subassembly includes a divider defining a first airflow path and a second airflow path on opposite sides of the divider. The first airflow path extends from a first side of the recirculation air inlet and a first side of the fresh air inlet. The second airflow path extends from a second side of the recirculation air inlet and a second side of the fresh air inlet. A first inlet door is movable to control airflow into the first airflow path from the first side of the recirculation air inlet or the first side of the fresh air inlet. A second inlet door is movable to control airflow into the second airflow path from the second side of the recirculation air inlet or the second side of the fresh air inlet.

This section provides background information related to the present disclosure, which is not necessarily prior art.
Vehicle heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems may be configured as dual or two-layer systems. A two-layer system allows for independent airflow management in an upper area and a lower area of a vehicle passenger cabin. Specifically, internal air is recirculated at the lower area of the passenger cabin, and external fresh air is routed through the upper area of the passenger cabin. The recirculated air improves heating efficiency, and the fresh air reduces occurrences of window fogging. While existing two-layer HVAC systems are suitable for their intended use, they are subject to improvement. The present disclosure advantageously provides for an improved inlet subassembly for an HVAC system, such as a two-layer HVAC system.


Technologies pertaining to a rotary electrical contact device are described herein. A rotary electrical contact device comprises a first sheave that is disposed about a first axis and a second sheave that rotates about the first axis or a second axis that is parallel to the first axis. The device further includes two planetary sheaves that revolve around the first and second sheaves, and a belt that makes contact with each of the sheaves, the belt having an aspect ratio great than 1:1. As the first sheave rotates, the planetary sheaves revolve about the first and second sheaves and cause the belt to deform and roll along the second sheave. The belt makes rolling contact with the four sheaves. The belt comprises electrically conductive components arranged such that as the belt rolls along the sheaves, the belt maintains electrical contact between the first sheave and the second sheave.

Electric machines commonly require conduction of electric current between a rotating structure or member and a stationary structure. Conventionally, such conduction was achieved by providing a rotary electrical contact comprised of a rotating metal ring and stationary graphite brushes spring loaded against the ring to maintain contact between the brushes and the ring. In the conventional rotary electrical contact, sliding contact between the metal ring and the graphite brushes during normal operation of an electric machine causes wear that degrades the brushes. Furthermore, this sliding contact and contact bounce can cause electrical arcing that causes ablation of the graphite brushes. As a result, conventional rotary electrical contacts have short lifetimes and require frequent maintenance to replace the graphite brushes and clean carbon dust resulting from wear of the brushes.
To address these and other problems, a rolling-contact rotary electrical contact was developed to provide an electrical connection between a stationary member and a rotating member through an electrically conductive belt by way of rolling contact between the belt and the members, rather than sliding contact. Embodiments of this rotary electrical contact are described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,585,413. Generally, such embodiments include a stationary sheave, a rotating sheave, a pair of planetary sheaves, and a helical coil belt that is wound around the sheaves and that maintains electrical contact with the sheaves as the rotating sheave rotates. A total electrical resistance of such a rotary electrical contact has been shown to be a function of a contact resistance between windings of the helical coil belt and the sheaves and a longitudinal resistance of the helical coil belt along a length of the belt.

Belt structures for rotary electrical contact device

National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC


An electromagnetic relay is provided which is small in size and is capable of controlling two circuits of an ordinarily-open contact, which has a large current-carrying capacity and high interrupting capability, and which is excellent in resistance against shock and vibration. Movable contactors are held, through bow-shaped movable contactor springs, to two -shaped holding frames each being electrically separated and being mechanically connected via a card made of a highly heat-resistant resin in a card block. Thick-plate shaped movable contacts, which are attached to the movable contactors in a fixed manner, are electrically connected or disconnected to fixed contacts in a base block, in synchronization with operations of an armature of an electro-magnet block. In order to improve a current-carrying capability and interrupting capability, there are provided two pieces of ordinarily-open contacts which are connected in series to each other, and between which an interval is doubled, in each of two circuits.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electromagnetic relay and more particularly to the electromagnetic relay being suitable for control of a vehicle-mounted three-phase brushless motor.
The present application claims priority of Japanese Patent Application No. 2004-158951 filed on May 28, 2004, which is hereby incorporated by reference.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, an operating method of power steering for an automobile is changing from a hydraulic type to an electric type with the aim of improving automobile fuel consumption. At present a steering method for controlling a DC (Direct Current) motor is used in electric power steering systems in most cases. However, electric power steering systems using a three-phase brushless motor increases as its application of electric power steering to an automobile having a large piston displacement increases. As a result, a switching device that can control three phases simultaneously or that can control only two phases out of three phases becomes necessary. For example, in order to control the three-phase motor, an electromagnetic relay is becoming very useful which can simultaneously control three phases at a midpoint (connection point) of star connection or can control only two phases. Prerequisites to the control of the electric power steering by the electromagnetic relay are a large current-carrying capability (which allows a current of, for example, 100A to flow) and an interrupting capability (which can interrupt a voltage and a current of, for example, 100A at 14V.) to provide torque for the motor. Additionally, in response to a high rate at which components are made electrical and electronic in an automobile, it is required that the electromagnetic relay is miniaturized further.
A conventional electromagnetic relay is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2002-329447 in which a vehicle-mounted electromagnetic relay can be so configured as to be smaller in size. However, conventionally, a single electro-magnetic relay has not yet been known which has a current-carrying capability (which allows a current of, for example, 100A to flow) and an interrupting capability (which can interrupt a voltage and a current of, for example, 100A at 14V) being large enough for one electromagnetic relay to be able to control one three-phase brushless motor for electric power steering.
Also, at present, an electromagnetic relay designed to control the three-phase brushless motor is of a type having only one circuit with one ordinarily-open contact (which is called "1 FORM A-type"). One electromagnetic relay is used in each of, at least, two circuits out of three circuits to be used for control of the three-phase brushless motor or a plurality of electro-magnetic relays is used, in order to divide a current within the one circuit to be used for the control of the three-phase brushless motor, depending on a performance capability of the electromagnetic relay.
In current automobiles, due to miniaturization, high-density mounting, and cost reduction in various electronic components, the rate at which components are made electrical and electronic has increased. In other words, a present state is that the electromagnetic relay to be mounted on an automobile requires further miniaturization of its components, further improvement of accuracy in assembling the components, and further increases in productivity of the components, and cost reduction in the components.
When a plurality of electromagnetic relays each having only one circuit with one ordinarily-open contact is used for the control of the three-phase brushless motor, a ratio of the electromagnetic relays to occupy a space within a device using electrical and electronic components becomes greater, use of a plurality of electromagnetic relays does not meet a customer demand to provide a space-saving structure as much as possible for the devices made up of electrical and electronic components. Therefore, it is necessary that a single electromagnetic relay has two or more circuits each having the ordinarily-open contact, and a ratio of the single electromagnetic relay to occupy a space within a device using electrical and electronic components is smaller than a ratio of a plurality of electromagnetic relays, each having one circuit with one ordinarily-open contact, to occupy a space within the device using electrical and electronic components. In such an electromagnetic relay as described above, it is necessary that the ordinarily-open contact between the two circuits is kept in an insulated state and that an insulating member called a "card" is inserted between the two circuits. Additionally, in order to allow a current of 100A to flow, it is necessary that resistance across terminals is made as low as possible so that the resistance across the terminal is 1 m □ or less. To achieve this, by shortening a length of a current path for a current flowing through the electromagnetic relay as much as possible and by increasing a cross-sectional area of a current path as much as possible, resistance of a conductor must be low. Also, it is necessary that a contacting strength by which contacts are pressed against one another is made as great as possible and contact resistance among contacts is made low and is stable. It is also necessary that the electromagnetic relay can withstand shock and vibration of an automobile. Furthermore, the electromagnetic relay plays a role of breaking circuit connection in an abnormal state, and therefore it is required for the electromagnetic relay to be capable of interrupting a current of about 100A at 14V DC (Direct Current) as interrupting capability.


The present invention provides a unit assembly for storing and dispensing a film strip. The unit assembly includes a first and second panel each having a perimetrical edge; wherein the first and second panels are substantially opposed to each other; and at least one gusseted side panel disposed between at least a portion of the panels along a common side thereof, the gusseted side panel configured to facilitate access to at least one film strip which is stored in a perimetrically sealed, substantially planar cavity within the unit assembly.

Pharmaceuticals and similar substances are typically required to be ingested in relatively precise amounts. One technique for delivering precise pharmaceutical doses for ingestion or topical administration in precise amounts is to incorporate into a dissolvable film strip with the relatively precise amount of the pharmaceutical. The user simply ingests the dissolvable film strip to receive the pharmaceutical dosage.
Film strips containing medicaments may be contained within a package structure for storage before ingestion or application by the user. Such package structures may desirably provide protection to the film strip and maintain the pharmaceutical or medication in a contaminant-free, controlled environment before ingestion or application thereof by the user. The package structures are typically opened by the user manually tearing the packet to gain access to the film strip therein.
Current package structures that are manually tearable typically require a tear away portion to remove a large edge of the package that is sufficiently large to open the cavity of the package structure in which the film strip is contained. However, the size of the removed edge section must be precise, and if too large, it may be detrimental to the film strip. Tearing is imprecise and often results in either an area that is too small to effectively remove the film, or the tearing of the package is not controllable and results in the film also getting torn. Moreover, packages for such film are generally small and flat and even when torn are difficult to open and remove the film contained therein. There is a need for a film package which is easily opened in a controllable fashion and which alleviates the risks of film damage and difficulties with taking the film from the package which are attendant current package designs.


The invention relates to a patterning method of a semiconductor device. In an aspect of the invention, the method may include forming a target etch layer on a semiconductor substrate, forming a photoresist film on the target etch layer, forming photoresist patterns using exposure and development processes employing an exposure mask wherein exposure patterns, each having inclined top corners, are formed, and patterning the target etch layer using an etch process employing the photoresist patterns.

The invention relates generally to a patterning method of a semiconductor device and, more particularly, to a patterning method of a semiconductor device, wherein an abrupt winding of a layer, which becomes a target, is eased by modifying an exposure mask pattern, thereby subsequently forming a uniform layer.
A semiconductor device includes a cell area for storing data and a peripheral ("peri") area. An area where the cell and peri areas are formed on a wafer is called a die. A plurality of such dies is formed on a sheet of the wafer. The dies are isolated from each other with scribe lanes intervening therebetween.
As described above, elements having different pattern sizes are formed on a semiconductor substrate. In particular, as semiconductor devices have become more highly integrated, the width of a pattern and a gap between the patterns have decreased, so that the step of the pattern is gradually increased. Particularly, it may become difficult to form a subsequent layer since the pattern may have a wide open area. More specifically, overlay vernier patterns for alignment in the fabrication process of a semiconductor device are contained within the scribe lane area. The overlay vernier patterns have a gap wider than those of memory cell patterns of the cell area. If a layer is formed in a subsequent process, the formed layer may become weak at corner areas due to sharp pattern windings of the overlay vernier patterns. This is described in more detail with reference to photographs of FIG. 1.
FIGS. 1A and 1B are photographs showing a conventional overlay vernier pattern.
FIG. 1A shows a sectional view of an overlay vernier pattern of a semiconductor device wherein a corner of an overlay vernier pattern 102 has a sharp pattern winding 100. From FIG. 1A, it can be seen that, when a subsequent layer 104 is formed on the overlay vernier pattern 102 having the sharp pattern winding 100, a defects occurs at the area where the sharp pattern winding 100 is generated. This is because, since the subsequent layer 104 is weakly formed in the sharp pattern winding (100) area, a part of the overlay vernier pattern 102 can be exposed in a subsequent etch process, resulting in a defect.
FIG. 1B is a plan view of the overlay vernier pattern having defects 100 as in FIG. 1A. (The overlay vernier pattern is a pattern for alignment in the fabrication process of a semiconductor device.) If the defects 100 are generated as in FIG. 1B, it may become very difficult to perform accurate alignment, resulting in a low yield.

Patterning method of semiconductor device


The present disclosure discloses polyester composites and their preparation methods, and belongs to the technical field of polymer processing and modification. The polyester composites of the present disclosure comprise 65 to 90 parts of polyester, 5 to 35 parts of an elastomer, 0.05 to 3 parts of a chain extender and 0.01 to 5 parts of a functional additive. The polyester composites of the present disclosure not only have ultra-high toughness, but also can maintain high tensile strength, have excellent hydrolysis resistance, can be matched with an antibacterial agent or an antistatic agent to have good antibacterial or antistatic additional functions, can be widely applied to the fields of fibers and fabrics, plastic structural parts, plastic packages or automobile interior parts, and have a wide prospect.

Poly(butylene terephthalate) (PBT) and poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) plastics are two major commonly used polyester materials. Due to high strength, fatigue resistance, stable size, small creep, heat aging resistance and good processing performance, PBT and PET plastics are widely applied to the fields of automobiles, electronic appliances, industrial machines and the like. However, PBT and PET also have obvious disadvantages, such as sensitivity to notching and low notched impact strength, which are the main disadvantages of PBT and the PET as engineering plastics, and insufficient toughness also becomes a major obstacle for popularization and application. Therefore, the research on toughening modification of PBT and the PET has been important content of high performance of PBT and PET. Melt blending with functionalized elastomers is a simple, economical and effective method of improving polyester toughness. The toughening efficiency is improved because functional groups on the functionalized elastomers react with end groups (carboxyl or hydroxyl) on polyester to achieve in-situ compatibilization. In the patent CN201410779308 and 'Preparation and Characterization of Low-mold-temperature Glass Fiber Reinforced PET Composites', a functional elastomer ethylene-n-butyl acrylate-glycidyl methacrylate copolymer was used to modify the polyester, and in 'Effect of Hollow Glass Microspheres Content on Properties of Recycled Polyethylene terephthalate/Polycarbonate Composite Foam Materials', an ethylene-methyl acrylate-glycidyl methacrylate copolymer was used to toughen the PET. However, the notched impact strength of polyester materials obtained by the above preparation methods can still not meet some products with higher application requirements, and the addition of the elastomers can obviously reduce the tensile strength of the polyester materials. Meanwhile, the polyester materials such as PBT are often not resistant to hydrolysis due to the existence of end carboxyl groups, end hydroxyl groups and a large quantity of ester bonds, so that the polyester materials are difficult to apply in environments with high humidity.
Elastomers are typically dispersed as spherical particles in a polyester matrix to form a general sea-island structure, of which the toughening efficiency tends to be less than 'bicontinuous' or 'quasi-bicontinuous' phase morphology. Therefore, the transformation of phase morphology of polyester/elastomer blended materials from the sea-island structure to a bicontinuous phase structure is the key to further improve the toughening efficiency.
In addition, with the rapid development of economy, people have increasing requirements for additional functions of materials, such as antibacterial, antistatic and other functional properties. In the aspect of antibacterial functional property, people can improve the antibacterial property of the materials by adding ZnO into the PBT materials, for example, in the patent CN102838852A, a composite antibacterial agent containing zinc oxide is added into the PBT materials to endow the materials with the antibacterial property, however, in the process of melt processing, the addition of the zinc oxide can catalyze the thermal degradation of PBT, so that the toughness of the materials is remarkably reduced, and the application of the PBT materials is limited. In addition, the polyester materials used in the fields of electric appliance housings and the like are likely to accumulate electric charges on the surfaces in the use process, especially in a low-humidity environment, and can release static electricity under certain conditions to cause damage to human bodies and electric appliances. The patent CN102675836A invents a conductive/antistatic polyester PET composite, but the addition quantity of carbon nanotubes is large, and the preparation process is complicated, which is not conducive to industrial production. Therefore, it will be highly desirable to invent a composite with stable toughness and better additional functions.

Polyester composites and their preparation methods


A camcorder having a loudspeaker function has a recording device and includes an input device for receiving an external sound and converting it into a first electric signal and for receiving a sound from a user and converting it into a second electrical signal. The input device is preferably movable between an extended position and a retracted position. Sound processing means are provided and coupled to a speaker for outputting an amplified sound through the speaker. A switching device is provided for sending the first electrical signal to the recording device when the second input device is in the retracted position and for sending the second electrical signal to the sound processing device when the second input device is in the extended position.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a camcorder, i.e., a video camera integrally incorporating a video cassette recorder (VCR). More particularly, the present invention relates to a camcorder having a loudspeaker function.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the past, there has been commonly used a camcorder comprising only a simple microphone for receiving an external sound to enable to record it on a video tape through sound recording means arranged in the camcorder when taking a picture thereby. In such a camcorder having the microphone provided only for a recording of the sound, a photographer must communicate with an actor or a person to be photographed by his live voice, if necessary. The prior camcorder is therefore disadvantageous in that when taking a picture at great distance or in a crowded place, the photographer must shout to the actor in order to send his message to the actor.