A closure for sealing a sample tube and a method for establishing vacuum conditions within the tube while the closure is loosely positioned on the tube are provided. The closure comprises: (a) an inner stopper portion for insertion into the tube; and (b) an outer skirt portion for enclosing the tube, the skirt portion including at least two radially inwardly directed extensions for loosely positioning the closure on the tube, the extensions defining at least two passageways therebetween for exchanging gases between the interior of the tube and the surrounding atmosphere when the extensions are positioned on the tube. Preferably, the inner stopper portion and the outer skirt portion are integrally made. The method comprises: (a) loosely positioning a closure on a tube, the closure including an inner stopper portion and an outer skirt portion, the outer skirt portion including at least two radially inwardly directed extensions, the extensions being positioned on the tube; (b) exchanging gases between the interior of the tube and the surrounding atmosphere through passageways formed between the extensions of the skirt portion; and (c) tightly securing the closure to the tube so as to seal the tube.

The present invention relates to closure and method for sealing a tube and, more particularly, to highly effective sealing closure and method which enable to establish vacuum conditions within a tube while the closure is positioned on the tube.
When handling potentially contaminated physiological fluids such as blood or urine of a patient, or any other hazardous material, it is necessary to provide highly effective removable and reinsertable sealing closure for the sampling tube. Such sealing closure should preferably feature an optimal combination of structure and material so as to achieve optimal sealing properties. Further, such sealing closure should preferably enable the establishment of vacuum conditions within the sample tube, so as to allow sampling of physiological fluids by using the vacuum collection method. Further, such sealing closure should preferably enable to maintain vacuum conditions within the tube for an extended period of time, until use.
Various attempts have been made to provide sealing closures for effectively sealing a sample tube so as to maintain vacuum conditions within the tube. An example is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,531,651. However, most of these closures feature an inner stopper portion made of elastomeric material, such as butyl rubber, constructed to be received at least partially within the tube; and an outer skirt portion made of non-elastomeric material, such as plastics material, disposed radially of the stopper portion. The inner stopper portion and the outer skirt portion are usually connected to each other by means of a mechanical connection. However, closures with such a mechanical connection between the stopper portion and the skirt portion are vulnerable to separation of the two portions and therefore to deformation of the closure.
Alternatively, the stopper portion and the skirt portion are sealed to each other by means of thermoplastic elastomers which are known to have limited compression set (memory) and low resistance to deformation. Thus, such sealing connection between the inner stopper portion and the outer skirt portion may decrease the air blocking properties of the overall closure.
An example of a closure having an inner stopper portion and an outer skirt portion made as an integral unit is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,385,253. The closure is made of an elastomeric material. However, the closure disclosed is specifically adapted for the establishment of sterile conditions within the tube, while the closure is in place, i.e., securely attached to the tube. The stopper portion of such closure features extensions defining passageways through which steam can penetrate into the tube during the sterilization process. However, such closure cannot be used for maintaining vacuum conditions within the tube since any substantial pressure difference may cause penetration of air into the tube through the passageways. Further, the inclusion of extensions on the stopper portion does not provide uniform distribution of pressures on the internal facet of the tube, which uniform distribution is necessary for maintaining vacuum conditions within the tube.
Thus, none of the disclosures mentioned above provides closure having an inner stopper portion and an outer skirt portion integrally made which is specifically adapted for establishing and maintaining vacuum conditions within the tube.
Further, none of the disclosures mentioned above provides method for the establishment of vacuum conditions within the tube while the closure is loosely positioned on the tube. Rather, a special instrumentation has to be used in order to keep the closure at a predetermined position with relation to the tube while establishing vacuum conditions within the tube.
There is thus a widely recognized need for, and it would be highly advantageous to have, a closure featuring good air blocking properties, high compression set and resistance to deformation, which enables to establish and maintain vacuum conditions within a tube.
It would be further advantageous to have closure and method which enable to establish vacuum conditions within a tube while the closure is loosely positioned on the tube, thereby eliminating the need to use special instrumentation for accurately holding the closure at a predetermined position with relation to the tube while establishing vacuum conditions.


An output amplifier for a solid-state imaging device is provided and includes: a floating diffusion that stores a signal charge; and at least three source follower circuits that output a signal in accordance with a change of a potential on the floating diffusion, the at least three source follower circuits being sequentially connected in decreasing order of drain voltage from a first circuit of the at least three source follower circuits to a last circuit of the at least three source follower circuits.

The CCD solid-state imaging device, which transfers signal charges from the photoelectric converter elements by a CCD transfer section, has a plurality of vertical transfer sections that transfer vertically the signal charges read out from the photoelectric converter elements arranged two-dimensionally in a matrix form, a horizontal transfer section that transfers horizontally the signal charges in an amount of one line transferred from the vertical transfer sections, and an output amplifier that converts the signal charges transferred by the horizontal transfer section into electric signal and output it.
The output amplifier generally includes a floating diffusion (hereinafter referred to as an FD) storing the signal charges transferred from the horizontal transfer section, and two source follower circuits connected in multiple stages and outputting a signal in accordance with a change in the potential on the FD (see Japanese Patent No. 2,986,752, for example). Each of the source follower circuits includes an enhancement drive transistor and a depression load transistor. In an effort to reduce the consumption power on the output amplifier configured as above, it is a practice in the related art to provide the drive transistor in the last-stage source follower circuit with a drain voltage sufficiently lower than the drain voltage of the drive transistor of the first-stage source follower circuit. Such a configuration is important particularly for a solid-state imaging device to mount on a cellular phone or the like because of the requirement of reduced power consumption.
In the output amplifier configured to realize reduced power consumption as above, because the drive transistor of the last-stage source follower circuit has a drain voltage sufficiently lower than that of the drive transistor of the first-stage source follower circuit, the drive transistor of the last-stage source follower circuit must be made as a transistor of a high enhancement type. Such a high-enhancement transistor can be realized by increasing the thickness of a gate oxide film (silicon dioxide film) of the transistor or raising the concentration of a P-type impurity, such as boron, to implant to the gate channel. However, making a transistor high in enhancement results in an increase in the gate(channel)-to-drain voltage of the transistor. The gate(channel)-to-drain voltage, if increased, reduces the transistor's gate modulation factor due to the short-channel effect. This results in a great gain reduction in the output amplifier overall.

Output amplifier for solid-state imaging device


A display with integrated electronic devices. An device module rotatably connected to a main body of the display, comprises a module body is rotatably connected to the main body capable of moving between a first position and a second position, a first electronic device disposed on the module body, and a second electronic device disposed on the module body. The first electronic device is exposed when the module body is in the first position, and the second electronic device is exposed when the module body is in the second position.

The invention relates to a display, and in particular to a display with integrated electronic devices.
A typical display with integrated speakers is shown in FIG. 1. The display 100 comprises a main body 10 and speakers 20 attached to opposite sides of the main body 10. The speakers 20, however, occupy considerable space when the display 100 is not used.

Display with integrated electronic device


A semiconductor device including silicide layers with different thicknesses corresponding to diffusion layer junction depths, and a method of fabricating the same are provided. According to one aspect, there is provided a semiconductor device comprising a first semiconductor element device and a second semiconductor element device, wherein the first semiconductor element device includes a first gate electrode, first diffusion layers disposed to sandwich the first gate electrode, and having a first junction depth, and a first silicide layer disposed in the first diffusion layers and having a first thickness, and the second semiconductor element device includes a second gate electrode, second diffusion layers disposed to sandwich the second gate electrode, and having a second junction depth greater than the first junction depth, and a second silicide layer disposed in the second diffusion layers and having a second thickness greater than the first thickness.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and a method of fabricating the same and, more particularly, to a semiconductor device including a plurality of semiconductor element devices having different junction depth of the diffusion layers and a method of fabricating the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
A technique that reduces the parasitic resistance of a source/drain diffusion layer by forming a silicide layer, e.g., a cobalt silicide layer, in the diffusion layer has been used to increase the operating speed and reduce the power consumption of a semiconductor device.
The problem that micropatterning of a semiconductor device makes the sheet resistance of a silicide layer nonuniform between an area where spacing between adjacent gate electrodes is 0.5 μm or less and an area where the gate electrode spacing is wider than that is pointed out (e.g., Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2000-269482). This is so because when the gate electrode spacing decreases, the film thickness of a siliciding metal deposited on the surface decreases, and this decreases the thickness of a silicide layer to be formed. The technique disclosed in the above patent forms a very thin oxide film (about 0.7 nm thick) on the surface of a diffusion layer in which a silicide layer is to be formed, and deposits a siliciding metal while heating the substrate (to about 200° C.). This technique thus suppresses the silicidation reaction in an area where the gate electrode spacing is wide, thereby forming a silicide layer having a uniform sheet resistance regardless of the gate electrode spacing over the entire semiconductor wafer surface.

Semiconductor device and method of fabricating the same


An ink supplying device is provided and supplies a functional ink to a droplet ejecting portion, including: a tube body through which the functional ink passes; a degasser that removes a dissolved gas from the functional ink; a first supply path in which the degasser is fitted to the tube body; a second supply path in which the degasser is not fitted to the tube body; and a controller that switches a supply path of the functional ink to the second supply path when a viscosity of the functional ink is higher than or equal to a predetermined value, and switches the supply path to the first supply path when the viscosity of the functional ink is lower than the predetermined value. The first supply path and the second supply path are coupled by an upstream side coupling portion and a downstream side coupling portion.

In recent years, a three-dimensional object forming device for manufacturing a three-dimensional shaped object called a so-called 3D printer has been developed. For example, the three-dimensional object forming device described in the following Japanese Patent No. 4420685 divides the three-dimensional data of a shaped object into a plurality of layers, and ejects a shaping material from an ejecting portion, and cures these layers of the shaping material in order from the lowest layer thereof, so as to form a shaped object that matches the three-dimensional data. The three-dimensional object forming device includes an inkjet type head that ejects ink serving as a shaping material. A three-dimensional object forming device described in Japanese Patent No. 4420685 uses ultraviolet curable ink as a shaping material and irradiates the ejected and landed ultraviolet curable ink with ultraviolet lights from a curing portion, so as to cure the ultraviolet curable ink. Other than the inkjet method using a curing type ink as described in the Japanese Patent No. 4420685, the forming method adopted by the three-dimensional object forming device includes: a fused deposition modeling (FDM) of melting and shaping filaments, a plaster method of curing powder plaster with adhesive, and an optical shaping method of irradiating a liquid tank of an optical shaping resin with curing light.

Ink supplying device and three-dimensional object forming device


An amorphous form of imipramine pamoate, morphologically pure forms, and mixtures of amorphous and morphologically pure imipramine pamoate characterized by differential scanning calorimetry, fourier transform infrared, and powder x-ray diffraction, and pharmaceutical compositions formed therefrom.

Practically, pamoic acid salts of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) have received very little attention either by pharmaceutical scientists or synthetic organic chemists. Two simplistic observations are recurring themes in the folklore (i.e. industry practice or belief) surrounding pamoic acid derivatives. In general, the preparation of a pamoate salt converts a liquid material to a solid and an improved organoleptic property has been ascribed to such salts. Organoleptic properties, for example, are smell and taste, and pamoate salts of drug substances have been suggested as eliminating the bitter taste compared with other salts (or the free base) of the drug substance. Rationally and chemically, these attributes can be assigned to pamoate salts.
It is of some historical interest that the pamoate salts of a variety of active pharmaceutical ingredients have received attention, noting that an embonate salt is identical to a pamoate salt. In the following cited literature, the pamoate was apparently chosen a) for converting a liquid active pharmaceutical ingredient into a solid, b) for eliminating the bitter taste associated with many active pharmaceutical ingredients, or c) as a process for isolating and then chemically characterizing otherwise difficult to delineate alkaloids or active pharmaceutical ingredients. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,232,919 [Scheffler, et al.], the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, discloses azelastine embonate and pharmaceutical formulations/compositions which contain it; said embonate salt to eliminate the bitter taste of azelastine alone.
Further, the French Patent 1,461,407 [Saias, et al.], the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, discloses a process for the preparation of amine pamoates where the amine component includes piperazine, promethazine, papaverine, pholocodine, codeine, narcotine and chlorpheniramine.
The United Kingdom Patent Specification 295,656, [Carpmaels & Ransford, agents for applicants] the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, discloses a process for the manufacture of poorly soluble salts of organic bases and alkaloids. The disclosure further indicates the process for manufacture provides sparingly soluble and tasteless salts of organic nitrogenous basic compounds including alkaloids.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,502,661 [Kasubick, et al.], the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, discloses a process for the preparation of variously substituted pyridinium and imidazolines along with their acid addition salts. Some examples indicate pamoate salts prepared for select organic bases.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,925,417 [Elslager, et al.], the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, discloses quinolinium salts of pamoic acid and a process for their manufacture.
Further, the following cited references indicate the incorporation of pamoate salts in pharmaceutical formulations for providing the controlled release of water insoluble polypeptides or the oil soluble azelastine. Hence, U.S. Pat. No. 5,776,885 [Orsolini, et al.], the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, discloses a pharmaceutical composition for the sustained and controlled release of water insoluble polypeptides whereby the therapeutically active peptide is in the form of its pamoate, tannate or stearate salt.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,445,832 [Orsolini, et al.], the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, discloses a process for the preparation of microspheres made of a biodegradable polymeric material whereby a water soluble peptide or peptide salt is converted into a corresponding water-insoluble peptide salt selected from pamoates, stearates or palmitates of the peptide.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,439,688 [Orsolini, et al.], the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, discloses a process for preparing a pharmaceutical composition in the form of microparticles designed for the controlled release of a drug that includes a biodegradable polymer and where the active ingredient can be selected from a group of possible salts, one being a pamoate.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,271,946 [Hettche] the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, discloses a controlled release azelastine containing pharmaceutical composition whereby azelastine is incorporated into the formulation as its pamoate or other pharmaceutically active salt.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,225,205 [Orsolini, et al.], the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, discloses a pharmaceutical composition in the form of microparticles; the formulation consisting of a peptide as its pamoate, tannate, stearate or palmitate salt; the formulation to provide a controlled release, pharmaceutical composition for the prolonged release of a medicamentous substance.
While the patent literature describes a number of known active pharmaceutical ingredients as their pamoate salts, surprisingly the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has only three commercial products currently approved containing the pamoate moiety. These products are hydroxyzine pamoate, imipramine pamoate and triptorelin pamoate. Clearly, the pamoate moiety is an under-represented class of pharmaceutical salts and there remains a need to further explore the benefits available from producing pamoate salts of APIs.
In their Guidance for Industry, ANDAs: Pharmaceutical Solid Polymorphism, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has focused attention on the importance of characterizing the polymorphic behavior of an Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) and the impact that behavior has on the commercial presentation of a formulated drug product. Indeed, the physical and chemical properties of an API's different polymorphs often display different behavior in their intended application and are known to influence and/or impact properties important to pharmaceutical compositions. These properties include the API's bioavailability, solubility, dissolution behavior, stability profile, permeability and manufacturing handling robustness including but not limited to uniformity of mixing, compaction in compression steps for tablet making, and the flow characteristics of the bulk blend.
The pharmaceutical industry has responded to the cited FDA Guidance and a number of patents have been allowed that provide solutions to a host of problems arising from polymorphic issues. In some cases, a given issue or problem was resolved by formulating a drug product with a specific API polymorph. In other cases, a new API polymorph was isolated and characterized to overcome prior art and/or to solve a technical issue. A few examples are representative of the substantive activity in polymorph research and development for pharmaceutical compositions.
A method for obtaining the most thermodynamically stable polymorph of formoterol tartrate and its subsequent purification by recrystallization is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,472,563 (Tanoury, et al.), incorporated herein by reference. Tanoury et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 6,720,453, the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, also in relation to formeterol tartrate polymorphs, describe a process for obtaining a highly pure salt of a single enantiomer of the API.
An instructive series of patents include U.S. Pat. No. 5,736,541 [Bunnell et al.], U.S. Pat. No. 6,251,895 B1 [Larsen et al.] and U.S. Pat. No. 7,022,698 B2 [Hamied et al.], the disclosure of each is totally incorporated herein by reference, and relate to the polymorphic forms of olanzapine and its use in pharmaceutical compositions. The API, olanzapine, has been isolated and characterized in several different free-base, polymorphic forms with each polymorph demonstrating a different stability profile and each subject to formulation changes suitable for use as a final dose product.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,120,850 [Bod et al.] and U.S. Pat. No. 5,128,477 [Bod et al.], the disclosure of each being totally incorporated herein by reference, relates to the selective crystallization or precipitation of two morphologically homogeneous forms of famotidine, a thiazole derivative. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,283,408 [Hirata et al.], the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, famotidine and its pharmaceutically acceptable salts were formulated into gastric acid secretion inhibitors.
Recently, U.S. Pat. No. 6,987,111 B2 [Greco et al], the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference, discloses pharmaceutical compositions possessing long acting and/or extended release profiles incorporating the pamoate salts of aripiprazole, olanzapine and haloperidol. The inventors' observations contained in their claims purports to the physical appearance of the salt as a needle, or as crystalline, however no polymorphic examination, dissolution profile, bioavailability or pharmacokinetics was reported.
An important issue surrounding the current unprecedented activity in generic drug development is the evaluation of existing pharmaceutical products to identify their polymorphic behavior and to incorporate the correct polymorph into a generic commercial offering. Simultaneously, the generic product must exhibit a favorable impurity profile compared to the original, innovator product. Frequently for older drug products, the degree to which the active ingredient may be present in one or more polymorphic forms has not been explored or well characterized (if at all). Different polymorphic forms can radically influence a drug's solubility and result in a dramatically altered pharmacokinetic behavior for the patient.
To demonstrate the preceding assertion, U.S. Pat. No. 3,326,896 [Holstius] is illustrative, and the disclosure of which is totally incorporated herein by reference. The author discloses three embonic (pamoic acid) addition salts free from unpleasant taste and local anesthetic properties, and useful for the treatment of depression. The addition salt of 5-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)dihydro-5H-dibenz-[b,f]-azepine, (imipramine), was absorbed more slowly than the corresponding hydrochloride salt. Processes for making the embonic acid addition salts in aqueous and organic media were also disclosed. A review of the reported laboratory work reveals an anomalous observation in that the same "melting point" was reported for the pamoate salt of 5-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-10,11-dihydro-5H-dibenz[b,f]azepine as for 5-(3-methylaminopropyl)-10,11-dihydro-5H-dibenz[b,f]azepine derivative. Both "melting points" were reported as 125-150° C. even though they are different compounds prepared under the same aqueous conditions. Melting ranges of this magnitude are generally associated with the presence of impurities and/or the presence of solvates/hydrates. In connection with the material the authors isolated, no crystalline forms were observed or claimed, and indeed, no attempt was made to characterize crystalline forms through techniques such as microscopy or X-ray powder diffraction patterns. Further, no calorimetry was performed thus clues gleaned from heats of fusion or heats of hydration were not provided. Interestingly, the author claims the embonic acid addition salt of 5-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-10,11-dihydro-5H-dibenz[b,f]azepine, however the salt is not characterized as the 1:1 salt or as the 2:1 salt or some mixture thereof. Perhaps the broad melting point reported in the specification suggests the presence of impurities and/or the presence of unidentified solvates or hydrates.
With the existing commercial need and societal demand for generic drug products, the current invention is directed toward novel polymorphic forms of imipramine pamoate and their subsequent purification.

Physical states of a pharmaceutical drug substance


A circuit for converting an input signal at a first voltage level to an output signal at a second voltage level uses only thin oxide transistors. The circuit includes a first unit operating at a first power supply voltage and receiving the input signal, a second unit operating at a second power supply voltage, and a third unit coupling the first unit to the second unit. The third unit enables generation of the output signal. Use of an extra fabrication mask for thick oxide transistors is avoided by using only thin oxide transistors.

The present invention relates generally to integrated circuits, and more particularly to voltage level converting circuits for shifting digital signals between two different voltage levels.
With recent technological developments, integrated circuits (IC) with very low operating voltages are being used more often. In a circuit that has two ICs operating at different internal operating voltages, a voltage level converter is used to facilitate the transfer of signals between the two ICs. For example, if the first IC, operating at 1.2V, is used in conjunction with the second IC, operating at 2.5V, a voltage level converter is incorporated in the second IC. The voltage level converter translates the output signal of the first IC from the operating voltage level of 1.2V to an input voltage of 2.5V for the second IC.
Voltage level converter circuits are typically made using a plurality of Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor Field Effect Transistors (MOSFET). A MOSFET is characterized by the thickness of its gate oxide layer. The thickness of the gate size affects the switching speed and voltage range over which the transistor can operate. By reducing the thickness of the gate oxide layer, it is possible to increase the switching speed of the transistor.
The thickness of the gate oxide affects the voltage range over which the transistor is operable because a transistor can operate only if the voltage across its gate and its source is greater than a threshold voltage. The threshold voltage depends on the gate size. Hence, it is essential that the gate size be suitably selected. This gate size selection is of particular importance in the case of a voltage level converter. For example, the voltage level converter receives an input signal at the first voltage level and generates an output signal at the second voltage level. Hence, the gate size of each of the transistors should be selected so that each transistor can operate appropriately.
Conventional voltage level converters use transistors having a thick layer of oxide. These transistors are referred to as thick oxide transistors. Some voltage level converters use a combination of thick and thin oxide transistors.
Thick oxide transistors cannot withstand very low operating voltages. For example, thick oxide transistors have a threshold voltage of around 0.7V and an operating voltage of around 1V. Since the operating and threshold voltages are close, the reliability and performance of the voltage level converter is adversely affected. Consequently, voltage level converters with thick oxide transistors are not efficient or reliable at low voltages and limit the frequency of operation as well. Also, manufacturing thick oxide transistors requires extra masks and hence, more steps are required in the fabrication process, which leads to an increase in the cost of manufacture.
Therefore, there is a need for cost effective voltage level converters that can operate reliably with ICs, which have low operating voltages.

High voltage level converter using low voltage devices


The present invention improves upon the Czochralski method for growing a single-crystal silicon ingot and provides a high quality silicon wafer having an oxide layer with superior voltage-resistance characteristics. An apparatus and method are also provided, whereby vacancy defect density and distribution are uniformly controlled. A single-crystal silicon ingot is grown under a condition where the temperature variation of the ingot is less than or equal to 20° C./cm in the temperature range of 1000 to 1100° C.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for growing a single-crystal silicon ingot based on the Czochralski method, and more particularly to an apparatus and method for growing the single-crystal silicon ingot while maintaining a uniform growing condition and cooling condition in a radial direction of the ingot; and the single-crystal silicon ingot and wafers produced therefrom, having uniform vacancy defects in a radial direction.
(b) Description of the Related Art
The voltage-resistance characteristic of an oxide layer of a semiconductor device fabricated from a single-crystal silicon substrate can be represented by the tolerable voltage and time before the silicon oxide layer formed on the silicon wafer is destroyed and the insulating property of the silicon oxide layer disappears. It is well known that semiconductor device characteristics, including the voltage-resistance characteristic of an oxide layer, change according to the method of fabricating the single-crystal silicon substrate.
For example, a silicon substrate made of single-crystal silicon grown by the Czochralski (CZ) method is inferior to that of single-crystal silicon fabricated by the float zone method or a substrate fabricated by silicon epitaxial growth on a wafer prepared from single-crystal silicon grown by the Czochralski (CZ) method, in view of the voltage-resistance characteristics of an oxide layer. Yet, despite its drawbacks, the CZ method is the most common technique used for manufacturing a single-crystal ingot for silicon wafers, which are used for electronic devices such as semiconductors. The CZ method is less expensive and has been widely used to prepare semiconductor materials for large-scale integration (LSI), and does yield materials having good mechanical and electrical characteristics.
As electronic devices become more highly integrated and minimized, the gate oxide layer is required to have improved reliability. Since the voltage-resistance characteristic of an oxide layer is a primary material characteristic determining the reliability of the device, there is a strong need for a single-crystal silicon production technique capable of securing the superior voltage-resistance characteristic of an oxide layer, while still using the Czochralski method.
In the CZ method, a seed crystal is dipped into a silicon melt and then slowly pulled away from the melt, growing the ingot. The growth of the ingot is carried out through several processes.
First, a necking process is carried out to form a slender and long neck portion from the seed crystal. Second, a shouldering process is carried out to grow the crystal radially to obtain a target diameter. Third, a body-growing process is performed to obtain a crystal having a uniform diameter. Here, a part of the body of the ingot is made into a wafer.
After the body growing process, a tailing process is performed to slowly decrease the diameter of the ingot and separate the ingot from the silicon melt.
These processes for growing the crystal ingot are carried out in a space called a "hot zone," which includes a heater inside a grower, and other heat insulating components.
The defect characteristics of a single crystal sensitively depend on the growing and cooling conditions of the crystal, and there has been much effort to control the species and distribution of the defects formed during the growth (so-called "growth defects") by adjusting the thermal environment near a growth interface.
The growth defects are divided into categories: vacancy-type defects and interstitial-type defects. They are caused by an agglomeration of the vacancy point defects or interstitial point defects, which starts from being more than an equilibrium concentration.
The Voronkov theory, introduced in "The Mechanism of Swirl Defects Formation in Silicon", Journal of Crystal Growth 59 (1982) 625, teaches that growth defect formation is closely related to a value of V/G wherein V is a growing speed and G is a temperature gradient in the crystal near the crystal growing interface.
A vacancy-type defect is formed when the value of V/G exceeds a critical value, and an interstitial-type defect is formed when the value of V/G is lower than the critical value. Thus, the species, size, and density of the defects existing in the crystal are influenced by the pulling speed when the crystal grows in a given hot zone.
FIG. 1 is a cross sectional view of a crystal ingot growing by the CZ method, illustrating a typical defect distribution developed while controlling the growing speed such that an oxidation-induced staking fault (OISF) ring 200 is located around the circumferential edge of the ingot in a typical growth environment.
FIG. 2 is an image taken by minority carrier life time (MCLT) scanning on a cross-sectional surface of the single-crystal silicon ingot grown using the Czochralski CZ method in a typical growth environment.
As shown in FIG. 2, micro-vacancy defects, such as direct surface oxide defects (DSOD), exist around the exterior circumferential part of the ingot, since the cooling speed at the ingot exterior is faster than that at the interior of the ingot. Furthermore, coarse-vacancy defects, such as crystal originated particles (COP) or flow pattern defects (FPD), exist in the ingot interior since the value of G increases as one moves from the center of the ingot to the circumferential edge of the ingot.
In a single-crystal silicon grown by the Czochralski method, a primary factor decreasing the voltage-resistance characteristic of the oxide layer is micro-defects having a size smaller than a critical value, which are formed by the vacancy defects introduced into the crystal while pulling the single-crystal silicon ingot.
In order to improve the voltage-resistance characteristic of the oxide layer, the present invention controls the temperature gradient (G) in an axial (vertical) direction at a solid-liquid interface of the crystal and/or the initial concentration of the point defect when the silicon melt solidifies into the single-crystal silicon.
In another approach, the cooling speed of the crystal is controlled in a temperature range between the solidification temperature and about 1000°, in which the nuclei of defects is are formed and grows during the thermal processing history while the molten silicon is solidified into the single-crystal silicon. In this manner the silicon interstitials or vacancies diffuse forward to the side surfaces of the ingot or are accelerated to recombine mutually, so that it is possible to suppress the super-saturation of the interstitial or vacancy below the critical value at which the agglomeration occurs.
The introduced vacancy defects are grown through the diffusion, nuclei generation, and solidification according to the thermal history distribution of the hot zone. There has been effort to remove or reduce crystal originated particles (COP), which adversely affect the voltage-resistance characteristics of the single crystal silicon.
As shown in FIG. 1, if the ingot is grown in the pulling direction such that the oxidation-induced stacking fault ring exists at the typical hot zone, coarse vacancy defects are formed at the center part of the ingot due to heat accumulation and slow cooling effects. Since the cooling speed in the region between the exterior of the center part and the interior of the oxidation-induced staking fault ring is faster than that at the center part of the ingot, micro-vacancy defects are formed, and the vacancy defects are not uniformly distributed in the radial direction.
Also, the micro-vacancy defects formed due to fast cooling deteriorate the voltage-resistance characteristic of the oxide layer, and this occurs around the exterior circumferential part of the wafer at which the rate of cooling is relatively high.
Accordingly, in order to reduce these vacancy defects that cause problems in semiconductor devices made with single-crystal silicon wafers, it is required to decrease the pulling speed of the growing ingot. However, lowering the pulling speed causes a loss in productivity, and excessive reduction of the pulling speed is likely to, increase the formation of interstitial defects. A different approach is needed.

Single-crystal silicon ingot and wafer having homogeneous vacancy defects, and method and apparatus for making same


A pressure relief valve for use on a dampener of a motorcycle suspension system is disclosed. The pressure relief valve includes a hollow body having an aperture that extends through the body, a valve cap that includes a recessed area with an entrance of a first diameter and a mid-portion of a second diameter, the second diameter being larger than the first diameter. Attached to the valve cap is a connecting shaft that is surrounded by a spring that urges the valve cap together with the connecting shaft from a second position where a pair of seals are formed, one a seal is formed between the valve cap and the hollow body and the other seal between the connecting shaft and the aperture in the hollow body, and to a first position where both seals are opened, so that when the valve cap is in the first position the enlarged portion of the connecting shaft creates a flow-path into the aperture through the hollow body.

(a) Field of the Invention
This application relates to a system and method for adjusting the pressure in the suspension system of a motorcycle. More particularly, but not by way of limitation, this application relates to a valve system for purging gases that become trapped within the fork tubes or suspension of a motorcycle's fork.
(b) Discussion of Known Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,807,860 to Simons, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference, discloses a system for reducing the gas pressure buildup in the dampeners that are part of the front suspension fork of a motorcycle. More particularly, FIG. 8 of the Simmons patent shows a cap that is mounted at the top end of each of the fork tubes or dampeners, and includes a valve mechanism that opens when the fork tubes are fully extended and allows the escape of gases that have built up within the fork tube.
While the Simons device provides relief for the pressure buildup within the fork's dampeners, the mechanism only provides this relief when the fork's dampeners are fully extended. This type of activation, however, presents significant limitations in that opening the valve passage only when the dampeners are fully extended reduces the amount of excess gas that can be released. The dampeners are more than just dashpots, but include both the dampening mechanism and related spring return mechanism that is used to restore the dampener to the appropriate position or length. Excessive trapped gas stiffens the assembly. Thus, leaving too much gas within the dampeners will not restore the dampeners to their designed resting stage, and thus will not completely solve the problem of excessive gas pressure within the fork's dampeners.
Today's fork dampeners are provided with a cap that is installed on the top of the dampener. Each cap includes a vent hole that is covered with a threaded plug or screw. In order to relieve the pressure from excess air or gas buildup, the user must loosen or remove the threaded plug to allow this air or gas to escape. This means that in a motocross race situation, for example, the user must obtain the appropriate wrench or tool, then undo the plug, and then replace the plug with the use of the wrench or tool. This procedure is time consuming, and if the plug is accidentally dropped, can force the rider lose the race.
One known solution is the Pro-Bleeder, which has been offered for sale by Motion Pro, Inc., of San Carlos, Calif. 94070 for more than one year from the date of this application for patent. The Motion Pro device is a valve that fits into the hole on the fork cap that accepts the plug used for bleeding the trapped air or gas from the fork. The Motion Pro device includes a body with a spring-loaded pushbutton that moves a pushrod through the body to move a plug with an O-ring against an aperture at the end to the body. While the Motion Pro device provides a mechanism that allows rapid release of the trapped air or gas with the push of a button, the design has limitations.
One significant limitation of the Motion Pro design is that it only allows the use of a single O-ring, and relies on a seal that is created by compressing the O-ring against a flat surface at the end of the body. By pressing the O-ring against the flat surface the Motion Pro device relies on the force of the spring to ensure that the O-ring deforms and seals against the flat end of the body. This requires a particularly strong spring, which makes the use of the device more difficult, and places unnecessary stress on the O-ring.
Moreover, the Motion Pro device is particularly well suited for motorcycles that are used on dirt tracks or trails. This environment typically includes large amounts of airborne dust and mud, which can enter the valve mechanism of a device like the Motion Pro device and prevent the proper operation of the O-ring.
Therefore, a review of known devices reveals that there remains a need for a simple device that can be used for rapid, reliable release of excess air or gas trapped in the dampeners or struts of the fork of a motorcycle.
There remains a need for a pushbutton pressure relief valve that can be used in place of the pressure relief plug or screw commonly found on the cap of the dampeners or struts of the fork of a motorcycle, which can effectively keep out contaminants from the sealing mechanism of the pressure relief valve and the internal components of the dampeners or struts of the motorcycle.

Bleed valve system for motorcycle suspensions


A teleoperational medical system includes a teleoperational control system, a teleoperational manipulator, an operator controller. The control system includes a processing unit configured to: determine a position and orientation of a marker on an operator of the operator controller; determine whether a head portion of the operator is directed toward or away from a display region of a display; based on a determination that the head portion is directed toward the display region, initiate an operator following mode in which a movement of the operator controller provides a corresponding movement to the teleoperational manipulator; and based on a determination that the head portion is directed away, suspend the operator following mode. The determination that the head portion is directed away from the display region of the display device includes determining whether the head portion of the operator is directed away from the display region for a threshold time period.

Instruments can be used to manipulate and perform tasks in a work space. Such instruments may be configured to be supported and operated partially or entirely by teleoperational manipulator assemblies. Such instruments and teleoperational manipulator assemblies can be used to perform non-medical and medical procedures. As a specific example, medical tools or medical manipulators can be used to perform minimally invasive medical procedures. As another specific example, industrial tools or industrial manipulators can be used in manufacture or testing. As yet other examples, tools or manipulators can be used in procedures for entertainment, exploration, and various other purposes.
As a specific example for minimally invasive medical techniques, minimally invasive medical techniques are generally intended to reduce the amount of tissue that is damaged during invasive medical procedures, thereby reducing patient recovery time, discomfort, and harmful side effects. Such minimally invasive techniques may be performed through natural orifices in a patient anatomy or through one or more incisions. Through these natural orifices or incisions, clinicians may insert medical tools to reach a target tissue location. Minimally invasive medical tools include instruments such as therapeutic instruments, diagnostic instruments, and surgical instruments. Minimally invasive medical tools may also include imaging instruments such as endoscopic instruments that provide a user with a field of view within the patient anatomy.
Some medical and non-medical instrument (including manipulation instruments, imaging instruments or other sensing instruments, etc.) may be teleoperated or otherwise computer-assisted. When performing teleoperational procedures with remote instrument controllers, safe and reliable mechanisms are desired to determine when the teleoperational instruments should be responsive to operator movement of the remote instrument.

Systems and methods for entering and exiting a teleoperational state


In a circuit driving a capacitive load Cp, current passed through a transistor Q3, a diode D1 and a recovering coil L is passed through lines L1, L2, and the inductance components of the lines L1 and L2, and the drain-source capacitances of the transistors Q1 and Q2 generate LC resonance. Capacitors C1 and C2 are connected in parallel to the drain-source regions of the transistors Q1 and Q2 to increase the total drain-source capacitance and reduce the resonance frequency, so that unwanted electromagnetic wave radiation in a frequency band affecting other electronic devices is suppressed.

A sustain driver to drive a sustain electrode in a plasma display panel for example is known as a conventional driving circuit to drive a capacitive load.
FIG. 13 is a circuit diagram showing the configuration of a conventional sustain driver. As shown in FIG. 13, the sustain driver 400 includes a recovering capacitor C11, a recovering coil L11, switches SW11, SW12, SW21, and SW22, and diodes D11 and D12.
The switch SW11 is connected between a power supply terminal V4 and a node N11, while the switch SW12 is connected between the node N11 and the ground terminal. The power supply terminal V4 is provided with voltage Vsus. The node N11 is connected to 480 sustain electrodes for example, and in FIG. 13 a panel capacitance Cp corresponding to the total capacitance between a plurality of sustain electrodes and the ground terminal is shown.
The recovering capacitor C11 is connected between a node N13 and the ground terminal. The switch SW21 and the diode D11 are connected in series between the nodes N13 and N12, and the diode D12 and the switch SW22 are connected in series between the nodes N12 and N13. The recovering coil L11 is connected between the nodes N12 and N11.
FIG. 14 is a timing chart for use in illustration of the operation of the sustain driver 400 in FIG. 13 during a sustain period. FIG. 14 shows the voltage at the node N11 and the operation of the switches SW21, SW11, SW22 and SW12 in FIG. 13.
At first, during the period Ta, the switch SW21 turns on, and the switch SW12 turns off. At the time, the switches SW11 and SW22 are both off. Thus, LC resonance by the recovering coil L11 and the panel capacitance Cp causes the voltage at the node N11 to gradually rise. During the period Tb, the switch SW21 turns off, and the switch SW11 turns on. Thus, the voltage at the node N11 abruptly increases, and the voltage at the node N11 is fixed at the level of Vsus during the period Tc.
During the period Td, the switch SW11 turns off, and the switch SW22 turns on. Thus, the LC resonance by the recovering coil L11 and the panel capacitance Cp causes the voltage at the node N11 to gradually decrease. Then, during the period Te, the switch SW22 turns off, and the switch SW12 turns on. Thus, the voltage at the node N11 abruptly drops, and is fixed at the ground potential level. The above operation is repeated during the sustain period, so that a periodic sustain pulse Psu is applied to the plurality of sustain electrodes.
As described above, the rising and falling parts of the sustain pulse Psu consist of the LC resonance part during the periods Ta and Td by the operation of the switch SW21 or SW22 and edge parts e1 and e2 during the periods Tb and Te by the turn-on operation of the switch SW11 or SW12.
These switches SW11, SW12, SW21 and SW22 are each composed of an FET (field effect transistor) serving as a switching element, and each FET has a drain-source capacitance as a parasitic capacitance, and a line connected to each FET has an inductance component. Therefore, when the switch SW11 or the like changes from an off state to an on state, LC resonance is generated by the drain-source capacitance and the inductance component of the lines, and the LC resonance causes unwanted electromagnetic wave radiation.
The diodes D11 and D12 each have an anode-cathode capacitance as a parasitic capacitance, and a line connected to each diode has an inductance component. Therefore, when the switch SW11 or the like changes from an off state to an on state, LC resonance is generated by the anode-cathode capacitance and the inductance component of the lines, and the LC resonance causes unwanted electromagnetic wave radiation.
Furthermore, the drain-source capacitance of each FET, the anode-cathode capacitance of each diode and the inductance component of each line are small, so that the LC resonance frequency is high, and the frequency of the resultant electromagnetic wave is also high. Meanwhile, according to the standard for unwanted radiation defined by the Electrical Appliance and Material Control Law (Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the United States), a limit value is set for an electromagnetic wave having a frequency of 30 MHz or higher. As a result, the radiation of such a high frequency electromagnetic wave could have an electromagnetically adverse effect on other electronic devices, and therefore the radiation of such an unwanted, high frequency elecdomagnetic wave should be suppressed.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A tire component including a tire tread that comprises a vulcanized rubber, a rubber filler, and a modified rubber, where the modified rubber i) contains pendent or functional groups that contain carboxylic acid or anhydride groups, ii) has pendently grafted thereto a polymerized metal salt of an unsaturated carboxylic acid, or iii) contains both i and ii. The use of such modified rubbers in tire components advantageously increases the G′ of such components.

Hysteresis loss and storage modulus are properties of rubber that have a significant impact on tire performance. Hysteresis loss can be defined by the formula tan δ=G″/G′, where G″ is a measure of the dynamic loss modulus and G′ is the measure of storage modulus. Generally, as the temperature of a tire increase, G′ decreases. As a result, there may be a decrease in handling.
Inorganic fillers, such as silica, impart improved wet traction (as demonstrated by a high tan δ at 0° C.) and improved snow traction (as demonstrated by a low tan δ at −20° C.) when used as filler within tire treads. Mixing silica into a tire stock, however, is difficult because silica particles agglomerate and therefore they are not easily dispersed. In response, processing and dispersing aids are used during compounding. Unfortunately, the use of these processing and dispersing aids enhances the decrease in modulus that is typically observed at high temperatures.
Because inorganic fillers are technologically useful, there is a need to overcome the problems associated with the loss of G′ at elevated temperatures in tire treads containing inorganic fillers.


A circuit board component includes a substrate having non-conductive material and conductive material supported by the non-conductive material. The conductive material defines a circuit board interface, a die interface, a heat spreader interface, and (iv) a set of connections which interconnects the circuit board interface, the die interface and the heat spreader interface. The component further includes a die coupled to the die interface. The die includes integrated circuitry which is configured to electrically communicate with a circuit board when the circuit board couples to the circuit board interface. The component further includes a heat spreader coupled to the heat spreader interface. The heat spreader is configured to dissipate heat from the die. The heat spreader in combination with the heat spreader interface forms an electromagnetic interference shield when a portion of the circuit board interface connects to a ground reference of the circuit board.

A typical Area Array Package (AAP) device such as a Ceramic Column Grid Array (CCGA) device or a Ball Grid Array (BGA) device includes a substrate, a die and a heat spreader. The substrate includes layers of non-conductive material and conductive material sandwiched together into a substantially plane-shaped element which supports (i) an array of circuit board contacts on one side (e.g., columns, balls, etc.) for connecting to a circuit board, and (ii) die contacts on the other side for connecting to the die. The die is a silicon-based chip containing integrated circuitry which generates heat during operation. The heat spreader (or lid) typically glues to the side of the substrate having the die contacts (e.g., using a thermal adhesive) and extends over the die to physically protect the die. A thermally conductive but electrically non-conductive material (e.g., thermal grease) resides typically between the heat spreader and the die to convey heat from the die to the heat spreader during operation.
When a circuit board manufacturer assembles a circuit board module having the AAP device, the manufacturer first solders the AAP device to a circuit board so that the heat spreader faces away from the circuit board. The manufacturer then attaches a heat sink to the heat spreader using, for example, metallic clips. During operation of the AAP device, the heat spreader transfers heat from the die to the heat sink. The heat sink then dissipates that heat into the surrounding environment.
It should be understood that the external metallic clips, which hold the heat sink in place, electrically connect both the heat spreader of the AAP device and the heat sink to a ground reference of the circuit board (e.g., ground pads or ground vias disposed around the AAP device) to prevent the heat spreader and the heat sink from operating as an antenna due to capacitive coupling between the die and the heat spreader. Accordingly, during operation of the AAP device, the heat sink, the heat spreader and the external metallic clips operate as an electromagnetic interference (EMI) barrier to block EMI radiating from the die rather than a transmitter which distributes that EMI into the surrounding environment.

Techniques for providing EMI shielding within a circuit board component


An antenna mounting for an animal collar including an O-ring and associated retainer disposed in an opening through the housing of a radio frequency receiver. The O-ring is compressed into multiple sealing locations between the circumference of the antenna and its surrounding structure to create a resilient hermetic seal between the antenna and such surrounding structure, and to resiliently suspend the antenna within the opening in the housing.

1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to electronic pet collars employing radio frequency signals between a remote transmitter and a receiver attached to the pet collar. In particular this invention relates to the hermetically-sealed mounting of an antenna on a receiver.
2. Description of the Related Art
Electronic pet collars are commonly used for training an animal to respond in a certain manner upon receiving a correction occurring under a single circumstance or a given set of circumstances. In one application, a correction, such as a shock stimulus, is employed in the training of hunting dogs. In this application, radio signals from a transmitter operated by a trainer are transmitted to a receiver carried on a collar which encircles the dog's neck. This receiver includes an antenna that projects from the housing of the receiver to receive the signal and transfer the same to the receiver proper where a correction is developed and transmitted to the dog's neck via dual electrodes. In a training environment, as well as when the dog is afield in an actual non-training event, there is a tendency for moisture or a liquid to pass into the interior of the receiver housing through the opening in the housing through which the antenna projects. Such moisture may be occasioned by perspiration, rain or dew-laden vegetation, for example. Such moisture or liquid can be detrimental or even destructive of the operation of the sensitive electronics of the receiver.
Generally, the prior art uses internal antennas that obviate the moisture problem. However, prior art attempts to preclude such leakage of moisture or liquid into the housing of a receiver when using external antennas have included the use of epoxy or like polymeric materials to form a hermetic seal around the antenna at the location where the antenna enters the receiver housing. Such seals are relatively unyielding when the antenna is struck as by a dog passing under a fence or through brush and therefore are subject to the development of cracks through the seal or complete failure of the seal. Moreover, commonly employed epoxies can present toxicity concerns in a manufacturing environment.


A system determines who is present within an area by reading radio waves emitted from a device carried by the user and then adjusts various devices within or near the area of the user based upon a profile(s) of the user(s) that are in the area. The devices (e.g. speaker systems, lighting systems, televisions, music systems) are controlled based upon profiles of the users, giving more control priority to the users that are closer to the devices.

There are many smart devices and systems on the market. For example, networked lightbulbs allow users to send signals over local area networks to control the light's brightness and hue. Although such devices are called "smart" devices, they are only slaves to individual commands sent over a wireless network.
Add an infrared motion sensor and when a person, any person, walks into a room, the motion sensor detects the person and turns on the lights. Seems smart, but this system doesn't know which person is in the room, where in the room that person is located, and how that person would like to set the lighting. Such systems are useful in, for example, bathrooms where lighting is not desired when no person is present.
The present systems do not recognize the person or people that are present and, therefore, does not understand how to adjust various hardware based upon preferences of each person.
What is needed is a system that will detect one or more people within an area and adjust local devices in that area based upon preferences of each of the people that are detected.

System, method, and apparatus for sensing users for device settings


A data processing system for facilitating merchant transactions includes a computer for processing data, and a storage device for storing data processed by the computer. Data regarding the purchase by a purchaser of merchandise from a merchant for a specified amount of money is entered into the computer. Monetary points are then calculated which are proportionate to a purchase made. The monetary points are then allocated between a first account which may be used by a first person for the purchase of additional merchandise from the merchant, and a second account which may be used by a second person for education at an educational institution. The monetary points allocated to the first account and the second are recorded in the storage device.

The invention relates generally to a data processing system and, more particularly, to a data processing system configured for facilitating purchases of merchandise.
The present economy is being driven by many dynamics. Among them, consumer sales of retail products and services are increasingly being transacted electronically, e.g., through e-commerce, rather than through traditional xe2x80x9cbrick-and-mortarxe2x80x9d retail stores. But because many billions of dollars have been invested in xe2x80x9cbrick-and-mortarxe2x80x9d retail stores, there is great interest in sustaining sales at such retail stores. Attempts by retail stores to stem the tide of sales to e-commerce have been ineffective thus far.
Another dynamic driving the present economy is a trend toward a substantial percentage of consumers conducting retail transactions with credit cards. However, persons under the age of eighteen (minors) are not generally permitted to engage in credit card transactions. As a result, minors are disadvantaged in the marketplace for consumer goods and services.
In yet another dynamic driving the economy, the workforce is becoming more highly educated, and as the work environment is becoming more xe2x80x9chi-techxe2x80x9d and information-oriented, education is becoming increasingly valued and necessary for employees to compete for and obtain jobs. As education is becoming more valued, the price for higher education is also increasing, at a much faster rate than the inflation rate. This concerns many parents who struggle to make ends meet, and also desire to set funds aside to provide the best education possible for their children.
Therefore, what is needed is a system and method which restores and sustains consumer sales of retail goods and services at traditional xe2x80x9cbrick-and-mortarxe2x80x9d retail stores, enables minors to overcome the disadvantages of not being permitted to use credit cards, and which would also enable adults to set aside funds for the education of themselves, their children, and/or other family members or friends.
The present invention, accordingly, provides a system and method which utilizes a data processing system for facilitating merchant transactions. The system includes a computer for processing data, and a storage device for storing data processed by the computer. Data regarding the purchase by a purchaser of merchandise from a merchant for a specified amount of money is entered into the computer. Monetary points are then calculated which are proportionate to a purchase made. The monetary points are then allocated between a first account which may be used by a first person for the purchase of additional merchandise from the merchant, and a second account which may be used by a second person for education at an educational institution. The monetary points allocated to the first account and the second are recorded in the storage device.
By the use of the present invention, xe2x80x9cbrick-and-mortarxe2x80x9d retail stores may take advantage of the benefits of the Internet to better compete with e-commerce conducted over the Internet. Furthermore, minors may obtain many of the advantages of credits cards with club cards. Parents of minors also attain some peace of mind knowing that the club will provide funds for the minors to attend an educational institution such as college or a university.

Data processing system for facilitating merchandise transactions


Disclosed herein are system, method, and computer program product embodiments for processing tokenization requests in-memory of an application server. Reliance on remote devices, such as hardware security modules, is reduced because functions associated with processing tokenization requests is performed at the application server instead of the remote devices. Applicant server includes a multi-level cache for storing and accessing data for generating, hashing, and encrypting tokens in response to tokenization requests received from client devices.

Existing tokenization systems rely extensively on hardware security modules (HSMs). A HSM is a physical device capable of generating random digital keys and is responsible for managing these digital keys, which are used in securely encrypting and decrypting information. A HSM also performs encryption functions including encrypting sensitive data, such as a user's credit card information, and generating tokens associated with the encrypted data. An industry standard, the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), was established to protect a user's sensitive data and requires implementation of certain security features in order to be certified under that standard. Functionality performed by HSMs enable tokenization systems to comply with the required security features set forth by PCI DSS.
Accordingly, in existing tokenization systems, to ensure security under PCI DSS, each transaction through the tokenization system must utilize certain functions provided by an HSM. But because a request to and response from an HSM is required every time a token needs to be generated and because a single HSM can only process a certain number of transactions per second, an HSM can become a bottleneck in the tokenization system. As tokenization becomes more popular as a security mechanism in an age of data breaches, tokenization requests are ever increasing and are expected to increase into the foreseeable future. In order for tokenization systems to scale to accommodate these increasing tokenization requests, additional HSMs need to be added. But HSMs are expensive so this solution can quickly become expensive and inefficient.
In the drawings, like reference numbers generally indicate identical or similar elements. Additionally, generally, the left-most digit(s) of a reference number identifies the drawing in which the reference number first appears.

High performance tokenization platform for sensitive data


A method for the integrated facilitization of blood flow and monitoring of blood analyte concentration (for example, blood glucose concentration) includes implanting a stent configured to facilitate blood flow into a cardiovascular system of a user's body with the stent having attached thereto a continuous blood analyte determination module of a blood analyte monitoring system. The method also includes disposing a reader module of the blood analyte monitoring system external to the user's body and in proximity to a portion of the user's skin layer and monitoring blood analyte concentration via (i) emitting an RF carrier signal from the reader module toward the stent; (ii) receiving the RF carrier signal at a reflection antenna of the continuous blood analyte determination module; (iii) reflecting a modulated signal by the reflection antenna with the modulated signal being encoded with a blood analyte concentration determined by a sensor of the continuous blood analyte determination module; (iv) receiving the modulated signal by the reader module; and (v) decoding the analyte concentration from the modulated signal by the reader module.

The present invention is related to the following co-pending U.S. application: U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/835,992, filed on Aug. 8, 2007.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to medical devices and, in particular, to blood analyte monitoring devices and associated methods.
2. Description of Related Art
Continuous glucose monitors (CGM's) that are disposed (e.g., implanted) within a user's body can have limited operational lifetimes due to, for example, fouling of the CGM. Such fouling can be the result of tissue build-up or blood clotting. In addition, a challenge exists with respect to providing CGM's with a lifetime power source and providing for wireless communication with the CGM.
Many people with diabetes also have cardiac problems. For example, it is believed that thirty percent of people who could benefit from the facilitated blood flow provided by an implanted stent also have diabetes. Thus, a significant proportion of people who are in need of a stent also have a need for continuous glucose monitoring to help with their diabetic disease state.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method for integrating facilitated blood flow and blood analyte monitoring


According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a method includes receiving an event notification from a virtual machine manager operable to control the execution of one or more virtual machines, the event notification corresponding to a first virtual machine and indicating an event type associated with the first virtual machine. The method also includes updating an inventory indicating a number of active instances of one or more applications based on the event notification. The method further includes determining compliance or non-compliance with one or more license policies based on the inventory, each license policy corresponding to at least one of the one or more applications.

A virtual machine clone is a copy of an existing virtual machine, which may duplicate the state of the virtual machine at the instant of a cloning operation. When the cloning operation is complete, the virtual machine clone is a separate, independent virtual machine. With virtual machine clones, one can make many copies of a virtual machine from a single installation and configuration process. Virtual machine clones may be useful, for example, when you must deploy many identical virtual machines to a group.
Virtual machine cloning may add complexity to license and asset management in enterprise computing systems, however. For example, virtual machine cloning may cause issues for license policies that take into account the amount of active and/or or powered-on virtual machines. This is especially true with virtual machines that do not have network connectivity, as license management has typically been performed over the network.

System and method for license management of virtual machines at a virtual machine manager


Certain example embodiments described herein relate to systems and/or methods for efficient rendering of vector graphics corresponding to business models generated by a business process management (BPM) package. Such graphics may be provided in an Abstract Vector Graphic (AVG) format. In certain example embodiments, graphic images are provided to an AVG generator, along with a renderer fragment file including static code that is independent from the generated graphic but dependent on the target platform. The AVG generator in certain example embodiments produces program logic that is executable on the target device to cause the display of the graphic.

The ARIS product suite provided by the assignee of the instant invention is one of the market leading business process management tools. Customers use ARIS to document and analyze their internal processes and organization. The business models created with ARIS (currently a Java-based tool) will be later published into the organization's internal website so that the created models are available to all employees. FIG. 1 is an example model created in ARIS and, in particular, shows the Sprint phase of a Scrum project.
The models created with ARIS can be very large. Indeed, some customers have created models that are larger than 5×5 meters. These very large models generally are published to the web for availability purposes, and users may want to zoom in and out to navigate within the model. One challenge associated with bringing ARIS models into a web browser is the very large size that results in memory usage and can often lead to rendering performance problems.
The web today offers different possibilities to draw an ARIS model (or any other graphic model) into a web browser. For example, in with a bitmap-based graphic, the model can be represented as one large bitmap-based web graphic format such as PNG or JPEG. The interaction can be done with HTML and JavaScript. As shown in FIG. 2, for example, an ARIS ModelViewer may be embedded in a webpage and provide a view port. The single large bitmap-based graphic is "behind" the viewport. Navigation can be performed using HTML and/or JavaScript tools.
As another example, the model can be represented as a bitmap based graphic, but instead of using one big graphic, the model is split into several tiles. This tiled graphic technique is well known in computer graphics and generally reduces memory usage and increases rendering performance. This technique has become very popular in the computer game area, as well as for some web based applications. For example, Google Maps uses this technique. FIG. 3 demonstrates the tile-based approach for displaying a model in a view port. As shown in FIG. 3, the ARIS ModelViewer view port generates the model by re-using tiles that are sent from a central repository. However, only a few small graphics (tiles) of the model are sent to the client, with the client itself generating the larger model by re-using the small tiles.
Still another option involves using vector-based graphics. In this option, the model can be represented using a vector-based format that is available for the web (and that will be supported by the common web browser) such as, for example, SVG or VML. The Adobe Flash SWF format also is a vector-based format and could theoretically be used to draw ARIS models in the web. Vector-based images have the advantage that the graphic can be scaled indefinitely without degrading quality. FIG. 4 demonstrates a vector graphic based approach to displaying a model in a view port, where vector graphics are sent to the client and interpreted by the web browser for display in the view port.
As still another option, browser side rendering (e.g., using HTML 5 Canvas or Flash rendering) may be used to send the model data to the web browser where this data will be interpreted and the model drawn by using HTML 5 or Flash. This approach is very similar to vector-based graphic approach described above. However, most common browsers already provide a renderer for vector-based graphic formats like SVG, which interprets the SVG format and translates it into graphic commands of the web browser drawing API. FIG. 5 shows model data being fed to a renderer for ultimate display in a view port in accordance with browser-side rendering techniques. The renderer interpreters the model data and creates the model graphic by using the drawing API provided by the web browser. The resulting model is displayed in the view port.
Current solutions unfortunately are not well suited to displaying ARIS type models. For instance, current solutions have restrictions regarding memory usage and rendering performance. For example, bitmap-based graphics have the disadvantages that a large image size results in a very high memory usage. Graphic formats like PNG and JPEG allow the image data to be compressed, but the browser needs to be able to decompress it to display it into the web page, thereby requiring processing power and overhead. Another disadvantage relates to the fact that bitmap-based formats cannot be scaled without losing quality. Scaling a bitmap-based image down also results in aliasing problems such that graphic information is oftentimes lost.
By contrast, the tiled based approach is advantageous in terms of memory usage and performance. Instead of creating one large graphic representing the ARIS model, the graphic can be split in several small parts (tiles) that can be repeated. An ARIS model oftentimes contains the same symbol (e.g., as in the example in FIG. 1 above). In addition, it is possible to load only the tiles that are currently visible to the user on his screen. Unfortunately, however, this approach is disadvantageous in that it is not easy to scale the graphic (model). Thus, current solutions involve creating tiles for predefined zoom/scale levels. Otherwise, free scaling of the model typically is not possible without losing quality.
Using a vector-based graphic to illustrate an ARIS model into a web browser also has its disadvantages. For instance, the memory usage of vector formats like SVG and VML, which will be supported by the web browsers, is comparable to a bitmap-based graphic format. Although not as high, it still is often seen as unacceptable. In addition, it can often take a long time to render very large SVG and VML structures.
Although the first three approaches provide a pre-rendered graphic that is to be transferred to the web browser and displayed to the user, with HTML 5 and the introduction of the "Canvas" element, it is possible to draw graphics programmatically by using a drawing API that will be provided by the web browsers. A similar approach also is possible through Adobe Flash technology. This approach involves sending some data to the web browser that will be interpreted programmatically and rendered into the web browser by using the provided drawing API. This approach has the benefit that the size of the image transferred to the browser can be significant smaller compared to the size of the generated graphic. On the other hand, this approach has the disadvantage that the step (the business logic) of interpreting, calculating, and transferring the data into drawing commands can be very expensive.
Although a solution between browser-side rendering and vector-based graphics seems to be a good option, it may not solve performance problems for very large graphics/models.
Thus, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that there is a need for improved techniques associated with the display of models/graphics. For instance, it will be that efficiency could be increased for very large models/graphics, while keeping processing and memory requirements low.
One aspect of certain example embodiments relates to techniques that make it possible to very quickly render vector-based graphics in a web browser or other target platform or device. The graphics that are rendered in certain example embodiments are business model related graphics.
An aspect of certain example embodiments relates to techniques for rendering vector graphics that apply to concrete formats (such as, for example, EMF, WMF, SVG, etc.) and that are applicable to vector graphics in general.
Another aspect of certain example embodiments relates to a concrete graphics format that involves abstract vector graphics (AVG).
Another aspect of certain example embodiments relates to providing graphic images to an AVG generator, along with a renderer fragment file including static code that is independent from the generated graphic but dependent on the target platform.
Another aspect of certain example embodiments relates to an AVG generator that produces program logic that is executable on the target device to cause the display of the graphic based on the program logic.
Still another aspect of certain example embodiments relates to receiving a business model created using a business process management (BPM) package and creating an AVG file based on the created business model, with the AVG file being made available for display on an external device (e.g., through a network).
Still another aspect of certain example embodiments relates to optimizing or improving the performance associated with the display of the AVG by using features present in, or made available by resort to, programming language. For instance, certain example embodiments may optimize or improve performance associated with the display of the AVG by using global constants, defining auxiliary functions and/or relying on inheritance, performing inlining, splitting constant and variable code parts, skipping commands outside of a view port or viewing area, and/or the like.
Still another aspect of certain example embodiments relates to commands, syntax, and/or semantics associated with illustrative AVG file formats.
In certain example embodiments, a method of generating an AVG file for subsequent display via a software application (e.g., a browser) on a remote device is provided. The AVG file corresponds to a graphical business process model generated in a business process management (BPM) software package. Information pertaining to the model is received. The AVG file is generated, via at least one processor, based on (a) the received information pertaining to the model, and (b) a renderer fragment file that includes code that is dependent on a platform of the remote device on which the model is to be displayed but independent from the received information pertaining to the model. The AVG file includes executable instructions for causing the model to be displayed in the software application.
In certain example embodiments, a method of displaying a graphical model on a remote device is provided. An AVG file is received on the remote device, with the AVG file having been generated based on (a) information pertaining to the model, and (b) static code that is dependent on a platform of the remote device on which the model is to be displayed but independent from the received information pertaining to the model. The AVG file includes executable instructions for causing the model to be displayed on the remote device, with the instructions including vector-based commands associated with the re-creation of the model for display on the remote device, and with each said vector-based command having a predetermined format. The instructions are executed on the remote device so as to cause the model, or a portion thereof, to be re-created within a viewable area of a display provided thereto.
In certain example embodiments, an AVG generator is provided. A receiver is configured to receive information pertaining to a graphical business process model generated in a business process management (BPM) software package. At least one processor is configured to generate an AVG file based on (a) the information pertaining to the model received by the receiver, and (b) a renderer fragment file that includes code that is dependent on a platform of a remote device on which the model is to be displayed but independent from the received information pertaining to the model. The at least one processor is further configured to structure the AVG file as vector-based instructions so that the AVG file is executable on the remote device.
According to certain example embodiments, systems comprising an AVG generator and/or an AVG renderer may be provided. Such systems optionally may include, for example, a BPM software package.
According to certain other example embodiments, BPM systems may be provided, with such systems optionally including one or more of an AVG renderer, an optionally distributable AVG renderer, etc.
For instance, in certain example embodiments, a BPM system is provided, which includes a software tool configured to generate a graphical business process model, and with the graphical business process model being representable as an XML file. An AVG generator of the system comprises a receiver configured to receive the XML file corresponding to the generated graphical business process model; and at least one processor configured to generate an AVG file based on the XML file and code that is dependent on a platform of a remote device on which the model is to be displayed but independent from the received information pertaining to the model. The at least one processor is further configured to structure the AVG file as vector-based instructions so that the AVG file is executable on the remote device. A distributable, platform specific AVG renderer configured to receive AVG files and cause received AVG files, or portions thereof, to be displayed on a device hosting the AVG renderer, also may be provided.
In certain example embodiments, a method of generating an Abstract Vector Graphics (AVG) file is provided. Input corresponding to one or more graphical elements in an image is received. The input is processed, via at least one processor, to generate a set of commands that, when executed, cause the image or a portion thereof to be displayed on a display device. The set of commands is stored in an executable file on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium for subsequent execution on the display device. The commands are selected from a list of drawing commands including at least the following members: a set transform command that defines an affine transformation matrix and changes a transform member of a state associated with the display device, an add transform command that concatenates a parameter of the add transform command with the current transform member of the state, a set clip command that defines an area in which drawing commands have an effect and changes a clip member of the state, an add clip command that concatenates a parameter of the add clip command with the current clip member of the state, a draw image command that draws an encoded image on the display device, a set shape command that sets a shape member of the state, a set font command that changes a font member of the state, a set brush command that changes a brush member of the state, a set pen command that changes a pen member of the state, a set alpha command that changes an alpha member of the state, a fill command that draws a filled shaped on the display device using the shape and brush members of the state, a draw command that draws an outline of a shape on the display device using the shape and pen members of the state, a draw text command that draws a string at a specified location on the display device using the font member of the state, a save state command that makes a copy of the complete state and pushes it onto a state stack, and a restore state command that pops a topmost entry from the state stack and sets the current state to the popped topmost entry.
In certain example embodiments, a method of displaying on a display device an image or portion thereof stored in an Abstract Vector Graphics (AVG) file is provided. The AVG file is received. Commands stored in the AVG file are executed via at least one processor so as to display the image or portion thereof. The commands include at least the following drawing commands: a set transform command that defines an affine transformation matrix and changes a transform member of a state associated with the display device, an add transform command that concatenates a parameter of the add transform command with the current transform member of the state, a set clip command that defines an area in which drawing commands have an effect and changes a clip member of the state, an add clip command that concatenates a parameter of the add clip command with the current clip member of the state, a draw image command that draws an encoded image on the display device, a set shape command that sets a shape member of the state, a set font command that changes a font member of the state, a set brush command that changes a brush member of the state, a set pen command that changes a pen member of the state, a set alpha command that changes an alpha member of the state, a fill command that draws a filled shaped on the display device using the shape and brush members of the state, a draw command that draws an outline of a shape on the display device using the shape and pen members of the state, a draw text command that draws a string at a specified location on the display device using the font member of the state, a save state command that makes a copy of the complete state and pushes it onto a state stack, and a restore state command that pops a topmost entry from the state stack and sets the current state to the popped topmost entry.
Non-transitory computer readable storage mediums tangibly storing instructions for performing the above-summarized and/or other methods also are provided by certain example embodiments.
These aspects and example embodiments may be used separately and/or applied in various combinations to achieve yet further embodiments of this invention.

Systems and/or methods for efficient rendering of business model related vector graphics


Described is a method for processing work items in a data processing system. An interrupt is generated in response to receipt of a work item on a queue and the generated interrupt is serviced to schedule a task by placing the task on a task queue for later processing of the queued work item. The interrupt is not enabled at this point and therefore the receipt of further work items will not result in the generation of interrupts. When the scheduled task reaches the head of the queue, the task is executed to process the queued work item (and all other work items that have been added to the queue since the task was scheduled). When all the work items have been processed, a further task is speculatively scheduled for processing of any work items that are subsequently placed on the work item queue. When the speculatively scheduled task reaches the head of the queue, it is executed to process queued work items; if any work items were found, a further task is speculatively scheduled, otherwise the interrupt is enabled.

In modern data processing systems there are two well established methods for the communication required between hardware and software for software control of hardware devices within the system: interrupts and polling. With interrupts, each hardware device signals that there is work for the software to do by asserting an interrupt line which causes the software flow-of-control to be diverted to an interrupt handler which handles the interrupt. An interrupt is typically handled by masking (or disabling) the interrupt and scheduling a task for later execution which will service the requesting device. Once the device has been serviced, the interrupt is unmasked (or enabled) again ready to allow the generation of further interrupts. With polling, the device driver continually checks the status of the device to determine whether it needs to be serviced. If so, the device is serviced.
With polling based systems, there is a trade-off between polling frequently so as to service the device with low latency and polling infrequently so as to keep the overhead of polling to a minimum. With interrupt-based systems, the device is serviced with low latency and low overhead when it is relatively idle but when the device becomes heavily utilised and is generating many interrupts the increased interrupt overhead can make the interrupt method inefficient. Generally speaking therefore, an interrupt based system is more efficient at relatively low device utilisation and a polling based system is more efficient at relatively high device utilisation. Neither technique is especially well adapted to the situation where the device presents varying amounts of work to the system.
Attempts have been made in the art to reduce the interrupt overhead in interrupt-based systems. In IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin Vol 38 No 7 pp 497-500, a technique is described that is designed to reduce the number of interrupts generated by a LAN adapter. One type of interrupt (transmit complete) which does not impact response time is turned off thus reducing system disruption and CPU utilisation. An alternative method for identifying and reporting transmit completions is provided. Although the described technique goes some way to reducing interrupt overhead in the described environment, it necessitates the provision of an alternative method to handle the disabled interrupt.
It would be desirable to have a system having low latency at low workload levels and low overhead at high workload levels.

Data processing systems and method for processing work items in such systems

International Business Machines Corporation


When the distribution of the pressure applied to a mat is measured, a plurality of detection units is established in the air mat and the sensor for measuring the pressure applied to the air mat is needed to be provided for each detection unit. The mat for pressure measurement 2 is arranged the first medium accommodation object 21b on the right side and the second medium accommodation object 22b on the left side. The first connecting pipeline 21a is connected to the first medium accommodation object 21b and the second connecting pipeline 22a is connected to the second medium accommodation object 22b, respectively. Since the internal diameter K4 of the second connecting 22a is set smaller than the internal diameter K2 of the first connecting pipeline 21a and the pipeline length of the second connecting pipeline 22a is set longer than that of the first connecting pipeline 21a in the mat for pressure measurement 2, the pressure loss coefficient of the second connecting pipeline 22a has a greater value than that of the first connecting pipeline 21a.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a mat for pressure measurement and a body information acquisition device used thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, an air mat comprising the sleep cycle sensing device illustrated in Japanese Patent No. 2000-215 is disclosed as a mat for pressure measurement. The air mat comprises an air tube and the inside of the air tube is filled with air in a similar manner to the air mat. A sleep cycle sensing device detects the air pressure and the change amounts in the air tube by the respectively separate sensors, distinguishes whether or not a subject is on an air mat based on the detected air pressure, and measures a subject's body motion based on the change amount of air pressure. Then, a subject's sleep state is estimated based on the measurement result of the body motion.
In the above-mentioned sleep cycle sensing device, since it was not taken into consideration about the type of body motion such as whether a subject's body motion was rolling over or others, the distribution of pressure applied to an air mat could not be measured, even if the change or strength of pressure applied to an air mat could be measured. For this reason, when even the distribution of pressure applied to an air mat by using the above-mentioned air mat was measured, a plurality of detection units in the air mat and the sensor for measuring the pressure applied to the air mat for every detection units were required to be provided.

Mat for pressure measurement and a body information acquisition device


Systems and Methods for identity information verification. The system includes an electronic device and a computing authentication unit. The electronic device includes a data capture unit for electronically scanning first data and second data corresponding to respective first and second locations of an identity document indicative of an individual. The computing authentication unit is configured to: perform a first verification to verify whether the first data matches the second data; perform a second verification, when the first data matches the second data, including comparing aggregated data from both the first and second data to identity data in one or more identity databases to verify personal identity information of the individual indicated in the identity document; and cause the electronic device to indicate a result of at least one of the first verification or the second verification.

The problem of rampant and readily available fake identification cards, more particularly, driver licenses/passports, has caused many retailers to incur fines and face the loss of tobacco and liquor licenses, and has even subjected them to other forms of civil and criminal liability. Over a period of time, various attempts have been made to prevent or detect the use of fake identification cards, but not with a great deal of success.
The use of driver licenses and passports has expanded over the years to serve as identification for various applications. Examples of such applications include the purchase of alcohol, tobacco or lottery products, as well as for entrance to venues (e.g., gambling in casinos, off-track betting, movie theaters) and other user definable events (e.g., entrance into bars and nightclubs and other establishments where alcoholic beverages are served or sold). All of these businesses have a minimum age requirement for the purchase of a product at the point of transaction or for ingress into an establishment. A driver license and/or passport is typically a document used to provide age identification, and many types of age verification may be commonly accomplished in a relatively quick manner based on the identity document. There is a need to easily determine an identity document's authenticity so that an application having an age requirement (e.g., purchase of an age restricted product) is satisfied (e.g., at the time of purchase) in a convenient manner.

Method and system for identity and age verification