Pharmaceutical compositions for the delivery of pharmacologically active proteins are provided by the present invention. The compositions of the present invention comprise a polymeric matrix having thermal gelation properties in which is incorporated a discrete suspension of at least one biologically active macromolecular polypeptide which retains greater than 90 percent of its biological activity. Furthermore, the concentration of the macromolecular polypeptide is greater than 0.5 percent by weight of the composition.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to temperature-sensitive polymers for the sustained delivery of pharmacological agents and, more particularly, to poloxamers comprising suspensions of native macromolecular polypeptide agents.
2. Description of the State of the Art
Recent years have seen major advances in recombinant DNA techniques and consequently the proliferation of many protein pharmaceuticals available for a variety of therapeutic needs. Indeed, proteins or polypeptides constitute the largest class of drugs currently being considered for FDA approval. However, the therapeutic and commercial potential of polypeptide drugs will only be realized if these advances are accompanied by formulation designs leading to effective administration and stability.
Proteins are large organic molecules or macromolecules made up of amino acid residues covalently linked together by peptide bonds into a linear, unbranched polypeptide chain with relative molecular mass ranging from a few thousand to millions. The useful properties of proteins as drugs depend upon the polypeptide chain adopting a unique three-dimensional folded conformation, that is, the tertiary structure of the protein. It is this unique folding that is responsible for the protein being highly selective in the molecules it will recognize. However, the ability to maintain a unique three-dimensional structure is precisely one of the obstacles that makes the use of polypeptides in human and animal diseases fraught with problems.
Traditionally, the most widely used method of administration of therapeutic agents is by the oral route. However, such delivery is not feasible, in the case of macromolecular drugs, as they are rapidly degraded and deactivated by hydrolytic enzymes in the alimentary tract. Even if stable to enzymatic digestion, their molecular weights are too high for absorption through the intestinal wall. Consequently, they are usually administered parenterally; but, since such drugs often have short half-lives in vivo, frequent injections are required to produce an effective therapy. Unfortunately, while the parenteral route is the most efficient means of drug introduction, this route has severe drawbacks in that injections are painful; they can lead to infection; and they can lead to severe vascular problems as a result of repeated intravenous injections.
For these reasons, biodegradable polymer matrices have been considered as sustained release delivery systems for a variety of active agents or drugs. Once implanted, the matrix slowly dissolves or erodes, releasing the drug. An alternative approach is to use small implantable pumps, which slowly extrude the drug and matrix components, which dissolve after contacting body fluids. With both systems it is crucial that the drug remain evenly distributed throughout the matrix since heterogeneous distribution of the drug (e.g., formation of large clumps and voids) could lead to erratic dosing. Furthermore, both systems require polymers that remain somewhat fluid so that they can be easily manipulated prior to implantation or loading into a device.
The use of polymers as solid implants and for use in small implantable pumps for the delivery of several therapeutic agents has been disclosed in scientific publications and in the patent literature. See, for example, Kent, et al., "In vivo controlled release of an LHRH analog from injected polymeric microcapsules", Contracept, Deliv. Syst., 3:58 (1982); Sanders, et al., "Controlled release of a luteinizing hormone releasing hormone analogue from poly (d, I-lactide-co-glycolide)--microspheres", J. Pharmaceut. Sci., 73:1294-1297(1984); Johnston, T. P., et al., "Sustained delivery of Interleukin-2 from a poloxamer 407 gel matrix following intraperitoneal injection in mice", Pharmaceut. Res., 9(3):425-434 (1992); Yolks, et al., "Timed release depot for anti-cancer agents II", Acta Pharm. Svec., 15:382-388 (1978); Krezanoski, "Clear, water-miscible, liquid pharmaceutical vehicles and compositions which gel at body temperature for drug delivery to mucous membranes", U.S. Pat. No. 4,474,752. However, the polymers having the greatest potential for use in the delivery of protein drugs would exhibit reverse thermal gelation and have good drug release characteristics.
There exists a class of block copolymers that may be generically classified as polyoxyethylene-polyoxypropylene condensates, namely Pluronic polyols, or poloxamers. They are formed by the condensation of propylene oxide into a propylene glycol nucleus followed by the condensation of ethylene oxide into both ends of the polyoxypropylene base. The polyoxyethylene hydrophilic groups on the ends of the molecule are controlled in length to constitute anywhere from 10 percent to 80 percent by weight of the final molecule.
Poloxamers, which have the ability to gel as a function of temperature and polymer concentration, may be represented emperically by the formula: EQU HO(C.sub.2 H.sub.4 O).sub.b (C.sub.3 H.sub.6 O).sub.a (C.sub.2 H.sub.4 O).sub.b H (I)
wherein a and b are integers such that the hydrophobe base represented by (C.sub.3 H.sub.6 O).sub.a has a molecular weight ranging from about 900 to 4,000, as determined by hydroxyl number; and the polyoxyethylene chain consisting of at least 60 percent to 70 percent by weight of the copolymer, and the copolymer having a total average molecular weight ranging from about 4,000 to 15,000. Table 1, below, references the minimum concentrations of various poloxamers necessary to form a gel in water at room temperature.
TABLE 1 ______________________________________ Poloxamer* Molecular Weight Minimum Concentration ______________________________________ Pluronic .RTM. F-68 8,400 50%-60% Pluronic .RTM. F-88 11,400 40% Pluronic .RTM. F-108 14,600 30% Pluronic .RTM. F-127 12,600 20% ______________________________________ *Poloxamers are commercially available under the referenced trademarks through the BASF Corporation, Parsippany, N.J.
Poloxamers of low molecular weight, i.e., below 10,000 MW, do not form gels at any concentration in water.
While poloxamers, and more specifically Pluronic.RTM. F-127 or Poloxamer 407, have been used to deliver nonpeptidic drugs as well as biologically active proteins, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,100,271 and 5,457,093, respectively, sustained delivery of biologically active macromolecules for weeks or months has not been possible for reasons that are two-fold. First, previous references which disclose the incorporation of proteins in a Pluronic.RTM. matrix only disclose solutions of a protein, with concentrations less than approximately 2 mg/ml and second, formulation approaches used to incorporate proteins into polymeric systems often result in irreversible inactivation of the proteins because of the presence of organic solvents, pH changes, and thermal effects. Consequently, prior references which teach the use of poloxamers as pharmaceutical vehicles for the delivery of proteins have suffered two serious limitations; (i) low initial concentrations of protein are used, and (ii) an unacceptable percentage of the protein loses its biological activity during use or storage. These two limitations have a direct impact on the ability to produce a polypeptide drug delivery system which can be shelved for long periods of time prior to usage and administer controlled dosages of protein for a period of weeks or more preferably months. Furthermore, degraded proteins can have reduced efficacy as a drug, and can also elicit adverse reactions, such as sensitization and adverse immune response.
There is still a need, therefore, for a polypeptide drug delivery device or composition having high concentrations of fully native macromolecular polypeptides which may be regularly released over a long period of time.

Temperature sensitive gel for sustained delivery of protein drugs


The semiconductor device, which provides reduced electric current leakage and parasitic resistance to achieve stable current gain, is provided. A first polycrystalline semiconductor layer is grown on a p-type polycrystalline silicon film exposed in a lower surface of a visor section composed of a multiple-layered film containing a p-type polycrystalline silicon film and a silicon nitride film, while growing the first semiconductor layer on a n-type collector layer, and then the first polycrystalline semiconductor layer is selectively removed. Further, a second growing operation for selectively growing the second polycrystalline semiconductor layer and the third polycrystalline semiconductor layer on the exposed portion of the p-type polycrystalline semiconductor film exposed in the lower surface of the visor section without contacting the silicon nitride film, while growing the second semiconductor layer and the third semiconductor layer, so that the third semiconductor layer is in contact with the third polycrystalline semiconductor layer.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and method for manufacturing the semiconductor device.
2. Related Art
A typical conventional process for forming a generally-used base layer in a hetero bipolar transistor is illustrated in FIGS. 11A to 11C and FIG. 12. The following description will be made in reference to selectively growing crystal of SiGe for forming the base layer. A silicon oxide film 14, a p-type polycrystalline silicon film 16 and a silicon nitride film are formed on a substrate 10, which is provided with an n-type collector layer 12, and a concave portion is provided in the silicon nitride film and the p-type polycrystalline silicon film 16. Further, the side wall of the concave portion is covered with a silicon nitride film to form a silicon nitride film 18. Then, a portion of the silicon oxide film 14 exposed over the bottom of the concave portion is etched, and further, a side etching in the transverse direction is conducted to provide an opening in the silicon oxide film 14 (FIG. 11A).
Next, a contamination in the surface is removed within hydrogen atmosphere at higher temperature, and then the base layer is formed in the bottom of the opening of the concave portion via a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process. Available chemical compounds for a source gas for such CVD process includes hydrogen (H2), dichlorosilane (SiH2Cl2), germane (GeH4), diborane (B2H6), methylsilane (SiH3CH3) and the like. As shown in FIG. 11B, undoped SiGe is grown on the n-type collector layer 12 via an epitaxial process to form an SiGe monocrystalline layer 20. In such case, SiGe is grown on the exposed portion of the p-type polycrystalline silicon film 16 formed in the upper portion of the opening and exposed in the lower surface of a visor section of the p-type polycrystalline silicon film 16 including silicon nitride film 18 to form the SiGe polycrystalline layer 30.
Further, a p-type SiGe monocrystalline layer 22 doped with p-type impurity is formed, and SiGe is further deposited on the SiGe polycrystalline layer 30 to form a p-type SiGe polycrystalline layer 32 (FIG. 11C).
Subsequently, undoped SiGe monocrystalline layer 24 having an altered germanium ratio of SiGe and an undoped silicon layer 26 are respectively grown on the SiGe monocrystalline layer 22 to form a monocrystalline growth layer. In such case, an undoped SiGe polycrystalline layer 33 and an undoped silicon polycrystalline layer 34 are also deposited on the p-type SiGe polycrystalline layer 32 to form a polycrystalline layer, so that the polycrystalline layer is in con-tact with the monocrystalline layer and the polycrystalline layer also provides electrical coupling between the p-type polycrystalline silicon film 16 serving as the base drawing electrode and the base layer (FIG. 12).
Typical bipolar transistors having a base layer formed in the interior of an opening provided in the insulating layer are described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-193454 and Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-188177. Other related art documents includes Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-45885 and Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2005-57171.
Nevertheless, as shown in FIG. 12, a polycrystalline layer downwardly growing from the p-type polycrystalline silicon film 16 extends toward the transverse direction after being contacted with the monocrystalline layer, eventually being in direct contact with the portion of the silicon nitride film 18 exposed in the lower surface of the visor section. Larger dimensional area of such contact causes a larger stress generated due to a difference in thermal expansion coefficient between the silicon nitride film and the polycrystalline layer, leading to a creation of recombination energy level in vicinity of the emitter-base junction, so that a stable current gain is difficult to be obtained.

Semiconductor device and method for manufacturing same


Combinatorially generated peptides are provided that have binding affinity for Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). The peptides may be used to deliver benefit agents to various PTFE surfaces.

Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), or Teflon® is a polymer of fluorinated ethylene and was discovered by Roy J. Plunkett of DuPont in 1938 and introduced as a commercial product in 1946. It is a thermoplastic fluoropolymer.
PTFE has the lowest coefficient of friction of any known solid material. It is used as a non-stick coating for pans and other cookware. PTFE is very non-reactive, and so is often used in containers and pipework for reactive chemicals. Its melting point varies between 260° C. (FEP) and 327° C. (PTFE), depending on which specific Teflon polymer is being discussed.
Amongst many other industrial applications, PTFE is used to coat certain types of hardened, armour-piercing bullets, so as to reduce the amount of wear on the firearm's rifling. Additionally PTFE is an excellent electrical insulator with good dielectric properties. This is especially true at high radio frequencies, making it eminently suitable for use as an insulator in cables and connector assemblies and as a material for printed circuit boards. Combined with its high melting temperature this makes it the material of choice as a high performance substitute for the weaker and more meltable polyethylene that is commonly used in low-cost applications.
Due to its low friction, it is used for applications where sliding action of parts is needed: bearings, bushings, gears, slide plates, etc. In these applications it performs significantly better than nylon and acetal; it is comparable with UHMWPE, although UHMWPE resists wear better than teflon.
The ubiquitous use of PTFE in industry makes it a prime material candidate for a variety of applications where the PTFE comprises some or all of a surface. One of the drawbacks to using PTFE as surface is that very few materials are known to bind to it making modification of the PTFE surface difficult.
Peptides having a binding affinity to polymer and plastic surfaces are known. For example, Adey et al., (Gene 156:27-31 (1995)) describe peptides that bind to polystyrene and polyvinyl chloride surfaces. Additionally, peptides that bind to polyurethane (Murray et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2002/0098524), polyethylene terephthalate (O'Brien et al., copending and commonly owned U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2005/0054752), and polystyrene, polyurethane, polycarbonate, and Polytetrafluoroethylene (Grinstaff et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0185870) have been reported. However, the use of such peptides to target PTFE surfaces has not been described.
There remains a need therefore for a peptide based reagent that binds PTFE that offers flexibility in bring a wide variety of materials to the PTFE surface with minimum investment in redesign. Applicants have solved the stated problem by providing peptide reagents comprising PTFE binding peptides (PTFEBP). The PTFE binding peptides of the invention may be modified with other functional or binding peptides allowing for the delivery of benefit agents to the PTFE surface or for the use of the reagents to adhere PTFE containing surfaces.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Polytetrafluoroethylene binding peptides and methods of use


An apparatus and method for sharing data between a cloud server and at last one terminal are provided. The method includes displaying, when a data type is selected on a setting menu screen of a cloud service, meta information of real data corresponding to the selected data type, the meta information being downloaded from a server, downloading, when a piece of meta information is selected, the real data corresponding to the selected piece of meta information from the server, and deleting, when the downloaded real data is consumed completely, the consumed real data.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a data sharing apparatus and method of a mobile terminal. More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus and method for sharing the data between a cloud server and at least one terminal.
2. Description of the Related Art
Typically, the terminal device such as mobile terminal is a portable device carried by a user to provide various functions including mobile communication function. The mobile terminal can be any of mobile phone, tablet PC, laptop computer, MP3 player, and the like. The mobile terminal is capable of being equipped with various functions such as communication, camera, Internet access, video playback, broadcast reception, and the like. However, for mobile terminals designed with portability as one of the most significant factors as a design consideration is limited in memory capacity. In order to overcome the memory limitation, various researches are being conducted. One of the solutions is the cloud service.
The cloud service is a means to upload the contents such as movies, pictures, music and other media files, phonebook, and the like to a server and download any of them, whenever it is necessary, using a portable terminal equipped with the communication function. In the case of using the cloud service by means of the portable terminal, the aforementioned memory shortage problem may occurs while storing the downloaded data. There is therefore a need of a method of collaboration between the portable terminal and the server to manage the saved contents efficiently.
Therefore, a need exists for an apparatus, system and method for sharing the data between a cloud server and at least one terminal. Furthermore, a need exists for an apparatus, system, and method that is capable of synchronizing the data shared between a portable terminal and a server using metadata.
The above information is presented as background information only to assist with an understanding of the present disclosure. No determination has been made, and no assertion is made, as to whether any of the above might be applicable as prior art with regard to the present invention.

Data sharing apparatus and method of mobile terminal


A composition composed of 1-chloro-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl difluoromethyl ether and at least one surface-active substance and the use of such a composition for removing water from surfaces of objects of diverse material and type are described.

The present invention relates to compositions composed of 1-chloro-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl difluoromethyl ether and to the use of these compositions for the removal of water from the surfaces of objects of the most diverse type and from the most diverse materials.
In many processing and cleaning operations, for example in the electrical or electronics industry, the optics industry, or the mechanical industry during production of high-quality precision workpieces, objects come into contact intentionally or unintentionally with water or moisture. Consequently, water may adhere to these objects (for example as a film of moisture). However, the presence of the adhering water can have an adverse effect on further processing steps and/or on the functional capacity and service life of the objects. It is therefore necessary for many objects to be freed completely from adhering water immediately after the processing or cleaning operations which include the presence of water, or even after mere contact with atmospheric moisture and the like, before further processing or for functionally correct use.
The removal of water from objects is also referred to below as "drying". In the prior art, depending on the nature of the objects, they are dried by heating or by treatment with certain solvent compositions ("drying compositions") containing, for example, hydrocarbons, acetone, alcohols or completely halogenated fluorochlorohydrocarbons, which also contain surface-active substances. Since the objects to be dried can consist of the most diverse materials, for example of plastics, glass, metals or combinations thereof, the drying processes and the drying compositions used for drying must be compatible with a large number of materials However, drying by heating generally involves undesirably severe exposure of the drying objects to heat, or is unsuitable for a large number of materials because of the high temperatures which must be used. Also, in many cases it is not possible to dry in this way without leaving spots. In turn, the constituents in the drying compositions, especially the solvent which constitutes the main component, should be inert towards a large number of the most diverse materials.
Although many efforts have already been made to develop drying compositions having the desired properties for various fields of use and for various materials, such as, for example, a high drying action and drying quality and good inertness towards the objects to be dried, known compositions do not always exhibit the required technical and/or toxicological and/or ecological properties. For example, known prior art compositions frequently do not exhibit, or only inadequately exhibit, the high degree of inertness, drying action and drying quality which are required. Other known compositions comprise relatively large amounts of solvents which are toxicologically unacceptable or present possible safety hazards (e.g. due to their low flash points). Still other compositions comprise solvent constituents which, because of possible adverse effects on the environment, it is desirable to replace by other solvents which are at least equally suitable for the particular intended uses. Thus, there remains a need for new drying compositions having improved properties, which also exhibit better toxicological and/or environmental acceptability.

1-chloro-2,2,2-trifluoroethyl difluoromethyl ether compositions for removing water from surfaces


An inspection method for inspecting the posture of parts mounted on a circuit board. This method consists of providing a moving unit for moving a stage holding the circuit board, a light source for irradiating the parts with a laser beam, an optical system path for irradiating the parts with the laser beam, a signal output path for outputting a reference signal by the laser beam, and a processing unit to process a signal from the optical system and signal output paths. In this method, reference signals A and B are obtained at first and second positions of the parts. This method further involves holding the parts at a first position, irradiating the optical system and signal output paths with the laser beam to detect a signal from each path, and outputting from the processing unit a first phase difference signal, corresponding to the first position, of output from each path. The parts are moved to the second position by the moving unit, and there the optical system and signal output paths are irradiated by the laser beam, with signals detected from each path, and the processing unit outputs a second phase difference signal, corresponding to the second position, of output from each path. The method further consists of judging the posture of the parts by comparison of the A and B reference signals and the first and second phase difference signals.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a parts mounting inspection apparatus, an inspection apparatus thereof and a board inspected by the same apparatus and, more particularly, to a technology of automatically inspecting existence or non-existence and mounting states of respective parts mounted on a printed circuit board or a hybrid IC.
2. Related Background Art
A trigonometrical measuring method based on a light spot method and a light cutting method as an applied method thereof have hitherto been often utilized for automatically checking mounting states of electronic parts mounted on the printed circuit board or the hybrid IC.
An explanation for the prior art will be given with reference to the drawings. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a measurement principle of the trigonometrical measuring method based on the conventional light spot method. As illustrated in FIG. 12, a convergent laser beam 18 is incident vertically on a part 15 mounted on a printed circuit board 6 from a laser output unit (LD) 2 to form a spot on the part 15.
This spot beam in turn forms an image on a PSD 17 after being transmitted through an image forming optical system 16. Based on the trigonometrical measuring principle, the height of the part 15 in a predetermined position is determined. Such a measuring operation is repeated a predetermined number of times by relatively scanning the printed circuit board with the laser beams, thereby inspecting the existence or non-existence and a mounting posture of the part 15 on the printed circuit board 6.
In the above-mentioned conventional example, however, the following problems arise, because it is based on the trigonometrical measuring method. To be specific, referring to FIG. 12, i.e., the diagram of assistance in explaining the principle of the trigonometrical measuring method:
(1) The PSD sensor 17 and an incidence optical axis 18 must have a predetermined angle or greater, and hence there are constraints in terms of mounting intervals of the parts and heights because of the impossibility of avoiding a dead angle caused especially by a taller part 19 provided in the vicinity of the part 15:
(2) A measuring circuit automatically judges the center of the spot beam or the maximum reflecting position as a spot irradiating position, and it is, therefore, impossible to perform a precise check because of an error in the measurement value if a density difference exists due to an existence of a print display unit within the spot beam range: and
(3) The PSD sensor 17 and the incidence optical axis 18 must have the predetermined angle or greater, and hence the distances between the part 15 to be checked, the sensor 17 and the optical system have to be made close to some extent.


A method of determining classification codes for defects occurring in semiconductor manufacturing processes and for storing the information used to determine the classification codes. A wafer is selected from a production lot after the lot is sent through a first manufacturing process. The selected wafer is scanned to determine if there are defects on the wafer. Images of selected defects are examined and a numerical value is assigned to each of N elemental descriptor terms describing each defect. A classification code is determined for each defect based upon the numerical values assigned to the N elemental descriptor terms. The classification code and numerical values assigned to the N elemental descriptor terms are stored in a database. The wafer is sent through each sequential process and classification codes are assigned to additional defects selected after each sequential process. The classification codes and numerical values assigned to the N elemental descriptor terms for the additional selected defects are stored in the database. The stored numerical values assigned to the N elemental descriptor terms to modify the classification code. All of the defects stored in the database are assigned new classification codes in accordance with the modified classification code. A new classification code can be generated and all of the stored defects are assigned new classification codes in accordance with the new database.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a defect classification methodology in a semiconductor manufacturing testing system and more specifically, to an automatic defect classification methodology that stores information concerning individual defects and uses the stored information to provide new classification codes that are assigned to defects.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
In order to remain competitive, a semiconductor manufacturer must continuously increase the performance of the semiconductor integrated circuits being manufactured and at the same time, reduce the cost of the semiconductor integrated circuits. Part of the increase in performance and the reduction in cost of the semiconductor integrated circuits is accomplished by shrinking the device dimensions and by increasing the number of circuits per unit area on an integrated circuit chip. Another part of reducing the cost of a semiconductor chip is to increase the yield. As is known in the semiconductor manufacturing art, the yield of chips (also known as die) from each wafer is not 100% because of defects during the manufacturing process. The number of good chips obtained from a wafer determines the yield. As can be appreciated, chips that must be discarded because of a defect increases the cost of the remaining usable chips.
A single semiconductor chip can require numerous process steps such as oxidation, etching, metallization and wet chemical cleaning. Some of these process steps involve placing the wafer on which the semiconductor chips are being manufactured into different tools during the manufacturing process. The optimization of each of these process steps requires an understanding of a variety of chemical reactions and physical processes in order to produce high performance, high yield circuits. The ability to view and characterize the surface and interface layers of a semiconductor chip in terms of their morphology, chemical composition and distribution is an invaluable aid to those involved in research and development, process, problem solving, and failure analysis of integrated circuits. A major part of the analysis process is to determine if defects are caused by one of the process tools, and if so, which tool caused the defects.
As the wafer is placed into different tools during manufacture, each of the tools can produce different types of particles that drop onto the wafer and cause defects that have the potential to decrease the yield. In order to develop high yield semiconductor processes and to improve existing ones, it is important to identify the sources of the various particles that cause defects and then to prevent the tools from dropping these particles onto the wafer while the wafers are in the tools.
In order to be able to quickly resolve process or equipment issues in the manufacture of semiconductor products, a great deal of time, effort and money is being expended by semiconductor manufacturers to capture and classify silicon based defects. Once a defect is caught and properly described and classified, work can begin to resolve the cause of the defect and to eliminate the cause of the defect. The biggest problem facing the semiconductor manufacturers and the most difficult problem to solve, is the training and maintenance of a cadre of calibrated human inspectors who can classify all defects consistently and without error. Because of human inconsistency, Automatic Defect Classification (ADC) systems were developed.
One such system for automatically classifying defects consists of the following methodological sequence. Gather a defect image from a review station. View the defect image and assign values to elemental descriptor terms called predicates that are general descriptors such as roundness, brightness, color, hue, graininess, etc. Assign a classification code to the defect based upon the values of all the predicates. A typical ADC system can have 40 or more quantifiable qualities and properties that can be predicates. Each predicate can have a specified range of values and a typical predicate can have a value assigned to it between 1 and 256. A value of 1 indicates that none of the value is present and a value of 256 indicates that the quality represented by the predicate is ideal. For example, a straight line would have a value of 1 for the predicate indicating roundness, whereas a perfect circle would have a value of 256 for the same predicate. The classification code for each defect is determined by the system from the combination of all the predicate values assigned to the defect. The goal of the ADC system is to be able to uniquely describe all the defect types, in such a manner that a single classification code can be assigned to a defect which has been differentiated from all other defect types. This is accomplished by a system administrator who trains an artificial intelligence system to recognize various combinations and permutations of the 40 or more predicates to assign the same classification code to the same type of defect. This would result in a highly significant statistical confidence in the probability that the defect, and all other defects of the same type or class, will always be assigned the same classification code by the ADC system. This is done by performing a "best-fit" calculation against all assigned classification codes. If the fit is not good enough, the system will assign an "unknown" code, which means the system needs further training for that device/layer/defect. Once the classification code for a particular defect is determined and assigned the predicate values that pertain to that defect and which were used to determine the classification code are not saved. The only value saved in the database is the classification code and, is some cases, the image of the defect. Because there the predicate values are not saved, there is no method available to automatically correct or reclassify defects once they have been stored in the database. At the present, the classifications would have to be edited manually by reviewing each and every defect for which an image was retained (those with no stored image could not be corrected) and assigning the proper value. Alternatively, the wafer would have to be reloaded and the Automatic Defect Classification procedure repeated. This procedure would be appropriate only for the defects at the current process layer for that wafer. This limitation causes known erroneous data to be retained in the database which may then be used by other process/yield models or simulators to predict information such as yield or wafer starts needed.
However, if the classification code needs to be modified to further differentiate between defects, none of the existing defects can be reclassified because none of the information necessary to determine new classification codes is available.
Therefore, what is needed is a system in which the information is stored and which reviews all defects in the database using the stored information and reclassifies the defects to the new classification codes.

Automatic defect classification (ADC) reclassification engine


An apparatus for providing free wire reclamation from a granulated stream of mixed metallic and nonmetallic material comprises a vibratory conveyor having a trough assembly mounted on a suspension system and coupled to a motor for causing the suspension system to vibrate. The trough assembly includes upper and lower vibrating troughs extending parallel to one another, the upper trough including at least one gap of a predetermined width. Each trough is arranged so as to feed a different output collection point, and at least one declumping zone comprising at least one perforated deck is situated in-line with the upper and lower troughs. A magnetic separator is arranged above the gap in the upper trough so as to pick up free metal. Rubber granules fall through the gap and are deposited in a receptacle, while metal is deposited on the upper trough which feeds a separate receptacle.

The following invention relates to a system for liberating metal in processed granulated material that may contain metal parts, such as wire, in a granulated stream of ground-up metallic and nonmetallic components, such as steel belted rubber tires.
Tires are recycled by grinding and shredding the tires to form a granular stream of material. Size reduction machines grind whole tires while downstream devices called "granulators" further reduce particle sizes. Radial tires however, and in particular steel-belted radial tires, contain wire embedded in the rubber. In order to reclaim the wire and rubber in the granulated tires separately, it is necessary to first remove the wire from the rubber in the granulated stream.
Reclaiming rubber and metal wire is a difficult process because even separated chunks of wire and rubber tend to clump together forming interwoven mats, small "birds' nests," and other matrices of wire/rubber material. The rubber and steel mixture discharged from a granulator has been found to be at least 90% separated so that it should be feasible to reclaim the rubber and the wire correspondingly.
Conventionally, tire processors attempt to use cross-belt magnets to pick wire from a stream of material downstream from the output of a granulator. A conventional type of cross-belt magnetic separator is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,230,917 to Peters entitled "Method for Separation of Canned Goods and Reclaiming Useful Food Values Therefrom." A different type of magnetic separator is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,055,489, Soley, "Magnetic Separator for Solid Waste." Cross-belt magnets that attempt to separate wire from rubber are positioned at a 90° angle to a fluidized wire/rubber stream and attempt to pick the wire out of the stream. However, the mostly fluidized stream of granulated wire and rubber material that enters the magnetic field of the cross-belt magnet frequently becomes magnetized, forming a woven wire matrix with entrapped rubber. In addition to becoming magnetized, the previously separate materials change direction (i.e., make a 90° turn) as they are pulled to the corner of the magnet and are impacted by large cleats commonly found in the conveyor belts that pull the material across the cross-belt magnet. All these factors contribute to the formation of clumps of metallic and nonmetallic material mixed together.

Free wire reclaimer system for scrap tire processors


An electrophotographic method and apparatus includes a frame having a used toner inlet, a new toner inlet and a combined toner outlet. Opposing sides of the frame are positioned at predetermined angles with respect to a horizontal line extending from a bottom of the frame. The used toner inlet is positioned in an upper portion of the frame next on one of the sides positioned at a predetermined angle, while the new toner inlet is also positioned in the upper portion of the frame, but next to the other side. The predetermined angle of the frame's side that is next to the used toner inlet is at a greater angle than the other side so as to compensate for any degradation in the flow characteristic of the used toner as a result of the recycling process. The frame is configured to interface with a new toner bottle having an opening that cooperates with the new toner inlet. Accordingly, when the new toner supply is exhausted, the new toner bottle may easily be replaced without having to remove any other components.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electrophotographic method and apparatus such as that employed in a photocopy machine, a facsimile machine, a printer, and a multi functional machine capable of recording an image on a sheet of paper or other image recording medium.
2. Discussion of the Background
In a typical electrophotographic apparatus, 5-20% of a toner, or other image forming substance, used in the electrophotographic process remains on a photosensitive medium, such as a photosensitive drum or belt, without being transferred to the recording medium. In order to preserve the purity of subsequent image forming operations, this residual toner must then be removed and recovered by a cleaning device, otherwise the residual toner will make the next copy appear to be "dirty". The residual toner (i.e., the used toner) exhibits different characteristics than the new toner in that the residual toner does not flow as well as a result of being rubbed and deformed by the cleaning device. That is to say, the used toner has attributes that differ from new toner such that the used toner does not share the same flow characteristics as new toner, and thus, does not reliably reproduce images when recycled and handled in the same way as new toner.
Due to this difference in flow characteristics, many conventional devices simply discard the used toner. Certainly, this approach of discarding 5 to 20% of the total toner, rather than recycling the same, is a much less environmentally friendly process than other devices that recycle the used toner.
FIG. 1 shows a device that recycles toner, where the device is discussed in Japanese Granted Utility Model Application No. 62-26762. FIG. 1 shows a charging device 2, developing device 3, transferring device 4, and cleaning device 5 arranged around a photosensitive medium (i.e., drum 1). The cleaning device 5 is connected to the developing device 3 via a conveyance pipe 6 and a toner conveyance screw 7 is arranged to rotate within the conveyance pipe 6 so as to move the used toner therethrough. As a result, the used toner is recycled by being transported from the cleaning device 5 into the developing device 3 by rotation of the toner conveyance screw 7.
FIG. 2 shows another conventional apparatus that recycles toner as discussed in Japanese Granted Patent Application No. 62-36226, which corresponds directly with Japanese laid-open Patent Application No. 55-73078. In the apparatus of FIG. 2, a charging device 102, developing device 103, transferring device 104, and cleaning device 105 are arranged around a photosensitive medium 101. A used toner conveyance pipe 106 is rotatably installed in the developing device 103, as shown. A pipe connector 108 is installed in the cleaning device 105, as shown, such that used toner from the cleaning device 105 passes to the developing device 103 via the conveyance pipe 106 and the pipe connector 108. In this configuration, the conveyance pipe 106 is arranged horizontally, as noted by a solid line, and thus requires a set of rotatable screws 109 which urge the used toner toward the developing device 103. During a maintenance operation that requires the photosensitive medium 101 to be removed, the pipe connector 108 and conveyance pipe 106 rotate out of the way, as is illustrated by the dashed line in FIG. 2. In this configuration, the conveyance pipe 106 is no longer operable, but sufficient clearance is obtained so that sufficient access is made available for servicing the photosensitive medium 101.
As recognized by the present inventors, a limitation with the apparatus described in Japanese Granted Utility Model Application No. 62-26762 (i.e., the device of FIG. 1) is that it requires the use of an activated conveyance pipe 6 with a conveyance screw 7 therein so as to move the used toner to be added directly to the developer, without first being mixed with new toner. The dedicated conveyance path with the active conveyance screw 7 is costly to manufacture and does not necessarily ensure adequate mixing of the used toner with the new toner.
Similarly, in the device described in Japanese laid-open Patent Application No. 55-73078, the used toner conveyance coil 109 is needed to convey the used toner to the developer because the conveyance path is generally horizontal. This dedicated conveyance path with the active conveyance screw 109 is costly to manufacture and is does not necessarily ensure adequate mixing of the used toner with the new toner.

Electrophotographic method and apparatus including a toner recycle feature


A memory that employs a redundant cell array for recovery of one or more failed core cell arrays of multi-bit memory cells is described. The memory includes a plurality of core cell arrays, at least one redundant cell array, and a memory controller. The memory controller is configured to dynamically assign the redundant cell array to a failed core cell array when erasing at least a portion of the plurality of core cell arrays. The memory controller is further configured to provide read/write access to the redundant cell array when the failed core cell array is selected for read/write access.

A memory, such as a random access memory (RAM) or read only memory (ROM) often includes arrayed memory cells. Typically, each of the memory cells is coupled to at least one bit line and an overlapping word line, and each of the memory cells include a memory element that is configured to store a logic state. In operation, a memory controller reads from and/or writes to an individual memory element by receiving and transmitting signals over the bit and word lines of the memory.
In many flash-based memories, multi-bit memory cells are employed. Such memory cells conserve footprint and enhance read/write speeds by storing at least two bits of data at a given memory cell. For example, a dual-bit memory cell can conserve footprint and enhance speed by storing up to four different logic states.

Memory employing redundant cell array of multi-bit cells


A communication method, an apparatus, and a system in which a first session management function entity based on information of a terminal group determines user plane function entities accessed by terminals in a terminal group, and the first session management function entity determines a target user plane function entity based on the user plane function entities, where the target user plane function entity is used to perform communication between terminals in the terminal group. According to the method, the terminals in the terminal group are redirected to a same user plane function entity, namely, the target user plane function entity, so that communication between the terminals in the terminal group is locally implemented in the target user plane function entity. This shortens a communication path, and reduces a communication latency.

One of the development objectives of mobile communications is to establish an extensive interconnection and interworking network that includes various types of terminals. This is also one of the starting points for developing the internet of things in a cellular communications framework currently. The internet of things enables terminals in a terminal group that includes a plurality of terminals to communicate with each other.
Currently, the terminals usually communicate with each other by using a 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) network.
In some application scenarios, communication between the terminals in the terminal group poses a relatively high requirement on a latency. For example, communication between vehicles in a platoon that includes a plurality of vehicles poses a very high requirement on a communication latency.
How to reduce a communication latency in a communication application scenario in which a relatively high requirement is imposed on a latency is a problem which urgently needs to be resolved.

Communication method, apparatus, and system for determining a target user plan function entity


An image scanner, which is incorporated in an image forming apparatus, includes a stationary-document reading section, a moving-document reading section disposed at an angle to the stationary-document reading section, a reader movable between the stationary-document reading section and the moving-document reading section, and a reading element movable to different angles while contacting the stationary-document reading section and the moving-document reading section to selectively read a document placed on the stationary-document reading section and a document moving over the moving-document reading section. The image scanner further includes any one of position detector, a combination of a moving device and at least one position sensor, and a combination of at least one pressing member, a framework, and an angle changer.

Technical Field
This disclosure relates to an image scanner and an image forming apparatus incorporating the image scanner.
Related Art
Various types of electrophotographic image forming apparatuses include copiers, printers, facsimile machines, or multifunction peripherals (MFPs) having two or more of copying, printing, scanning, facsimile transmission, plotter, and other capabilities. Such image forming apparatuses include an image scanner on top or upper part of an apparatus body thereof to read an image formed on a moving document and formed on a still document. For example, a known image scanner has a configuration in which an inclined reading face of a slit glass provided for reading the image of the moving document is disposed aslant at a predetermined angle with respect to a reading face of an exposure glass provided for reading the image on the still document.
In the known image scanner, when an original document is placed on the exposure glass to read the image formed on the original document, a home position of a reader that is movable in a sub-scanning direction is set on a closer side to the exposure glass than the inclined reading face of the slit glass. By reciprocally moving from the home position in the sub-scanning direction, the reader scans the original document placed on the exposure glass and reads the image formed on the original document.
Further, the home position of the reader when an original document is fed by an automatic document feeder (ADF) to the slit glass to be read through the slit glass is set the same as when an original document placed on the exposure glass is read. By moving from the home position toward the slit glass in the sub-scanning direction and previously standing by below the slit glass, the reader scans and reads the image formed on the original document passing over the slit glass.

Image scanner and image forming apparatus incorporating the image scanner


The light-guiding structure includes a waveguide structure that comprises a substrate and a low refractive index underclad material. The waveguide structure is oxidized to form an oxidized layer on a surface of the waveguide structure. The oxidized layer is isotropically etched after the reaction-limited oxidation regime is approaching the diffusion-limited regime and repeatedly oxidized and etched so that the waveguide structure is continuously oxidized in the reaction-limited regime, reducing the overall time of oxidation and volume of oxidized material so that the waveguide structure has its sidewall roughness reduced efficiently enabling high transmission rates of guided light.

The invention relates to the field of optical communication, and in particular to high transmission waveguides and magnetooptical isolators having high Faraday rotation that can be integrated on Si and GaAs substrates.
Waveguides are typically made by deposition of the core material on a substrate of cladding material. Lithography is used to define the layout, of the waveguides, an etching step is used to pattern the waveguides, and finally a cladding is deposited on top. This typically leaves waveguides with minimal roughness on the top and bottom of the waveguide but substantial roughness on the sidewalls. There are currently two methods for reducing the roughness of silicon waveguides.
The first involves using an anisotropic etch which preferentially etches the surface to expose the slow etching {111} crystallographic planes. There are several detriments to choosing this smoothing technique. If the waveguide is crystalline, waveguides that direct light in different crystallographic directions will yield different cross-sectional shapes. This can affect polarization dependence, mode profile, and transmission of the waveguides. The final cross-sectional shape of the waveguide is usually trapezoidal or triangular depending on the original waveguide geometry. If the waveguide is polycrystalline, the effect of an anisotropic etch is unpredictable. Depending on the grain size, anisotropic etching can actually increase roughness. Not all aspects of anisotropic etching are detrimental though. Anisotropic etching has the possibility of smoothing a surface to near atomic smoothness (<4 A). The process is fast and requires no heat (the solution is often heated to 60–75 C to enhance reactivity): a plus if there is a tight thermal budget.
The second method for reducing silicon waveguide roughness is oxidation. Exposing the bare silicon waveguides to an oxygen rich environment promotes the growth of oxide. The high surface energy of the rough silicon surface is lowered by the oxidation as the crests of the roughness are etched fastest. The overall result is a smoothing effect as the oxidation occurs. There are several detriments with this method as well. First, typical silicon waveguide roughness requires several hours of high temperature oxidation to smooth the roughness to a level that allows for sufficient light transmission. This is dire for chip. designers who have tight thermal budgets and do not want diffusion to occur in other parts of the chip. Then again, the extent of cross-sectional shape alteration of the waveguides is not as drastic as in anisotropic etching. However, significant material is removed, and critical dimensional control is lost. Thus, oxidation smoothing is less sensitive to crystallographic direction, allowing for more freedom in photonic chip design.
The two methods described above have undesirable detriments. Thus, there is a need for a smoothing technique that allows for freedom in optical chip design, fits within thermal budgets, limits material loss and works with both poly and single crystal silicon.

Multiple oxidation smoothing method for reducing silicon waveguide roughness


The present invention is a method for the preparation of electrostatographic toner that includes the following steps. A polymer material is dissolved in an organic solvent to form an organic phase that includes a metal complex of zinc dimethyldithiocarbamate; zinc diethyldithiocarbamate; dibenzyldithiocarbamate, zinc di-n-butyldithiocarbamate. The organic phase is dispersed in an aqueous phase that includes a particulate stabilizer to form a dispersion and the resultant dispersion is homogenized. The organic solvent is evaporated and the resultant product is recovered, washed and dried.

Electrostatic toner polymer particles can be prepared by a process frequently referred to as "limited coalescence". In this process, polymer particles having a narrow size distribution are obtained by forming a solution of a polymer in a solvent that is immiscible with water, dispersing the solution so formed in an aqueous medium containing a solid colloidal stabilizer and removing the solvent by evaporation. The resultant particles are then isolated, washed and dried.
In the practice of this technique, toner particles are prepared from any type of polymer that is soluble in a solvent that is immiscible with water. Thus, the size and size distribution of the resulting particles can be predetermined and controlled by the relative quantities of the particular polymer employed, the solvent, the quantity and size of the water insoluble solid particulate suspension stabilizer, typically silica or latex, and the size to which the solvent-polymer droplets are reduced by agitation.
Limited coalescence techniques of this type have been described in numerous patents pertaining to the preparation of electrostatic toner particles because such techniques typically result in the formation of toner particles having a substantially uniform size distribution. Representative limited coalescence processes employed in toner preparation are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,833,060 and 4,965,131 to Nair et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,283,151 is representative of earlier work in this field and describes the use of carnauba wax to achieve similar toner morphology. The method comprises the steps of dissolving carnauba wax in ethyl acetate heated to a temperature of at least 75° C. and cooling the solution, so resulting in the precipitation of the wax in the form of very fine needles a few microns in length; recovering the wax needles and mixing them with a polymer material, a solvent and optionally a pigment and a charge control agent to form an organic phase; dispersing the organic phase in an aqueous phase comprising a particulate stabilizer and homogenizing the mixture; evaporating the solvent and washing and drying the resultant product.
Unfortunately, this technique requires the use of elevated temperature to dissolve the wax in the solvent and cooling the solution to precipitate the wax. The wax does not stay in solution of ethyl acetate at ambient temperature and as a result it is very difficult to scale up using this methodology.
The shapes of the toner particles have a bearing on the electrostatic toner transfer and cleaning properties. Thus, for example, the transfer and cleaning efficiency of toner particles have been found to improve as the sphericity of the particles are reduced. Thus far, workers in the art have long sought to modify the shape of the evaporative limited coalescence type toner particles by means other than the choice of pigment, binder, or charge agent. The shape of the toner particles is modified to enhance the cleaning and transfer properties of the toner.

Toner particles of controlled morphology


Provided is an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a recording material, the apparatus including: a first helical gear and a second helical gear that are engaged with each other; and a driving portion that applies a driving force to the first helical gear, wherein at least one of the first helical gear and the second helical gear is a helical gear in which torsional rigidity in a tooth width direction of one side end in a width direction of the gear is larger than torsional rigidity in a tooth width direction of the other side end, and wherein a twist direction of helical teeth and a rotational direction of the first helical gear due to the driving portion are set such that the other side end is engaged earlier than the one side end.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a printer equipped with a function of forming an image on a recording material such as a sheet.
Description of the Related Art
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-230657 discloses a configuration in which an annular rib is disposed between a central portion and a tooth surface of a gear and the tooth surface and the annular rib are disposed at an interval so as not to come in contact with each other. According to such a configuration, since the tooth surface and the annular rib do not contact with each other, phenomena are suppressed in which a portion of the tooth surface coming in contact with the annular rib is deformed by shrinkage during molding and thus accuracy of the tooth surface deteriorates.
By this configuration, it is considered that variation in a position occurs due to a rotation fluctuation or vibration of an image preparing portion caused by a rotation fluctuation or vibration occurring at a gear engagement cycle and thus a periodic band-like uneven density called a banding image is prevented.
However, the invention disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-230657 does not cope with reduction in size of a gear and modules for the purpose of miniaturization of an apparatus body in recent years. It is difficult to make the modules smaller in the case of reducing the size of the gear. This reason is that stress applied to a tooth root of the gear rises when the size of the module becomes smaller.
Under these circumstance, the inventors paid attention to the fact that a portion of an arm formed between the tooth surface and a rotation support portion is disposed at the center of a tooth width direction in the configuration illustrated in FIG. 3 of Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-230657. The inventors found that it is possible to reduce the size of the module and to lower the stress applied to the tooth root of the gear by changing the arrangement of the arm.


A process for extraction of alumina from ore bodies containing aluminum is disclosed. The process comprises the steps of acid leaching an aluminum bearing ore to produce a leach liquor that includes aluminum values and silicon values. Any ferrous sulfate in the leach liquor is oxidized with an oxidizing agent comprising ozone to ferric sulfate. The oxidized leach liquor is hydrolyzed at about 130.degree. C. to form a gel of ferric values which are then removed. Any ferric sulfate remaining in the leach liquor after hydrolyzing is reduced to ferrous sulfate. The reduced leach liquor is then hydrolyzed at 165-180.degree. C. to remove precipitated basic aluminum alkali sulfate. The basic aluminum alkali sulfate is then dried and calcined at around 950.degree. C. to produce alumina and alkali sulfate which releases any SO.sub.2 and any SO.sub.3. The alumina is washed to remove any alkali sulfate and the washed alumina is then agglomerated and dried.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to processes using sulfuric acid for the extraction/production of alumina for use in the production of aluminum from electrolyte and more specifically to processes which use a basic aluminum alkali sulfate as an intermediate-stage product.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The conventional methods of producing aluminum are not environmentally friendly. The aluminum industry produces in excess of forty million metric tons of green-house gas emissions worldwide each year. The use of so-called "inert anodes" in the production of aluminum has long been recognized as a solution to these emissions, but the high electrolysis temperatures needed, e.g., 950.degree. C., have proven too challenging for commercial production with inert anodes. Such process starts with alumina in the "Bayer process" and uses a caustic as an extractant. The alumina produced from the process embodiment of the present invention can be used at temperatures significantly lower in electrolysis for production of aluminum and therefore reduces the challenge of inert anode use at this reduced temperature.
In order to meet the alumina demand which results from the benefits of operation of electrolytic production of aluminum at 750.degree. C., the industry will need to examine the retrofit capability of technology to current production of alumina as well as new greenfield projects.
This application applies to greenfield projects using low cost raw materials. The use of the process for retrofit of existing production facilities is covered separately as it does not need iron removal steps for the production of "cell grade" alumina.
In many conventional processes, sulfuric acid is used as an extractant. Acid leaching leaves tailing ponds with residual acid and other residues. This environmental consequence has been a significant deterrent to commercial scale production using this method. In other processes, the loss of expensive reagents, yield losses, and reagent-recycling issues have contributed to increased costs of capital and operation. For a description of such methods and issues, see U.S. Pat. No. 4,526,763, which generally dwells on the subject of sodium or potassium metal contaminant in alumina production.

Process for production of alumina from ore bodies containing aluminum


In some examples, a system senses the location of a stylus or finger of a user relative to a virtual displayed object to determine when a virtual touch occurs. Upon or after such a determination, the system may generate a haptic action that indicates to the user that the virtual touch occurred. The haptic action may be located on a particular portion of a haptic device, which may be a handheld device. The particular portion may correspond to the location where the virtual displayed object was virtually touched. In this way, the user may receive physical feedback associated with the virtual touch of the virtual displayed object. In some examples, the virtual displayed object may change in response to the virtual touch, thus further providing visual and physical feedback associated with the virtual touch of the virtual displayed object to the user.

The popularity of smartphones, tablets, and many types of information appliances is driving demand and acceptance of touchscreens and other displays for portable and functional electronics. Touchscreens and other displays are found, among other places, in the medical field and in heavy industry, as well as in automated teller machines (ATMs), and kiosks such as museum displays or room automation, where keyboard and mouse systems do not allow a suitably intuitive, rapid, or accurate interaction by the user with the display's content.

Haptic feedback for non-touch surface interaction


An autonomous generation brake having a dynamo, following rotation of a first rotor of an annular magnet in the core area an even number of armature coil with alternating polarities inside the first stator on the outer periphery are induced to produce an alternate current potential to be rectified at a rectifier wherefrom rated direct current is delivered to stimulate respective magnetic coils on the second stator of a braking device enclosing the dynamo; the second stator clamping internally a second rotor of a metal checked heat diffusion ring so that once the second rotor turns in rotation and respective magnetic coil on the second stator are stimulated, the interrelated movement occasioned thereby will induce a vortex upon the second rotor, meantime produce a braking torque sufficient to rapid diffusion of magnetically induced heat as well as the braking heat. Magnitidue of the direct current outgoing from the rectifier maybe regulated by a pulse regulator.

(a) Field of the Invention
Autonomous Generation Brake, in particular such an autonomous generation Brake which is fit for assemblage to a sports bike or any of a variety of sports machines.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
On a sports bike which is typically meant for fixed point pedalling practice, it is necessary to mount an impediment device, or one known in the name of a braking device, to simulate the resistance prevailing in the case of a regular bicycle being ridden for transport. A typical braking device integral with a sports bike, such as the one shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 2 respectively comprises a magnetic metal stator (1) and a magnetic metal rotor (2), both being concentric with each other, with rotor (2) being stably mounted onto the follower shaft (21) that penetrates into the mandrel, enclosing the stator (l), the rotor (2) incorporates a cast iron disk (22) and a permanent magnet ring (23) clung inside (221) said disk (22); said follower shaft (2l) being transmitted by a conveyor (3) which can be, for instance, a belt or a chain. Referring to FIG. 3 it will be seen that afore-mentioned stator (1), for example an annular cast iron piece, in addition to being separate from rotor (2) by a clearance (dl), is furnished on its perimeter with armature coil (11) per pole, held apart by 2 or 3 equidistant clearances (d2), in order that once rotor (2) starts rotation, the permanent magnet in the form of a solenoid (23) that is clamped inside (221) the disk (22) will become magnetized to produce Alternate Current (=AC) (I), in the meantime, interrelated movement between each armature coil (11) and solenoid (23) the permanent magnet serves to induce current in armature coil (ll), which current interacts with solenoid (23) to produce braking effect (impedance or resistance).
Still, in a braking device the element emitting heat is basically the armature coil (11) which must be insulated, the in sulator is invariably impervious to heat transmission, that is, materials used as insulator can hardly withstand higher temperature, too high a temperature will doubtless defeat insulation materials, so heat diffusion in this connection is very much a problem, and heat diffusion in this instance must be carried out by other heat diffusion means; also, since in this connection the main braking power, speaking of a sports bike, must be rated at several hundred watts to realize sufficient braking momentum, to adjust braking torque, this power rating of several hundred watts must be duly controlled, in addition, with a greater power control circuit heating and heat diffusion can also prove to be a real hard-to-tackle problem. For improvement in view of the foregoing, efforts shed phrased in text follow below.

5F, No. 9, Alley 24, Lane 68, Kwang Fu Rd., Sec. 1, San Chung


A system for obtaining large amounts of a genomic DNA fragment from a bacterial artificial chromosome includes a vector that has a site into which the genomic fragment can be cloned and, flanking the site are excision mediating sites. The vector also includes, between the excision mediating sites and near one of the sites, a controllable origin of replication.

Efforts to determine the nucleotide sequence of complete genomes, or a large portion thereof, have traditionally taken a so-called bottom-up approach, including the steps of mapping the genome, preparing a library of random large clones in yeast artificial chromosomes (YACs), bacterial artificial chromosomes (BACs), P1 or cosmids, followed by random subcloning in M13-like vectors. Among such systems, BACs are at present the preferred vector for maintaining large genomic DNA fragments. BACs are preferred because individual DNA fragments are maintained stably in a single copy vector in the host cells, even after 100 or more generations of serial growth. In contrast, the DNA fragments cloned into YACs tend to be unstable and can yield chimeric clones. It is difficult to recover DNA clones from YACs in a pure form.
BAC (or pBAC) vectors typically accommodate inserts in the range of approximately 30 to 300 kilobase pairs. A widely used BAC vector, pBeloBac11, uses a complementation of the lacZ gene to distinguish insert-containing recombinant molecules from colonies carrying the BAC vector, by color. When a DNA fragment is cloned into the lacZ gene of pBeloBac11, insertional activation results in a white colony on X-Gal/IPTG plates after transformation. Kim, U-J et al., "Construction and Characterization of a Human Bacterial Artificial Chromosome Library," Genomics 34:213-218 (1996). Thus, it is now possible to distinguish those colonies that contain BACs with inserts from those that lack inserts. A similar prior vector, pBAC108L, lacked the ability to distinguish insert-containing BACs. Shizuya, H., "Cloning and stable maintenance of 300-kilobase-pair fragments of human DNA in Escherichia coli using an F-factor-based vector," P.N.A.S. U.S.A. 89:8794-8797 (1992).
Although these single-copy vectors are advantageously used to clone large genomic DNA fragments for subsequent analysis, especially sequence analysis, the single-copy nature of these vectors is also a limitation in that large numbers of cells containing a BAC clone of interest must be grown to produce a sufficient quantity for subsequent analysis. It is, of course, possible to amplify portions of a BAC clone of interest using, a for example, PCR, but simple amplification of the entire insert from a BAC vector has not previously been possible.
In 1993, Szybalski proposed a system for fragment-by-fragment sequencing of entire bacterial genomes by in vivo excision and subsequent amplification of the excised genomic fragments. Szybalski, W., "From the Double-Helix to Novel Approaches to the Sequencing of Large Genomes," Gene 135:279-290 (1993). One aspect of the Szybalski (1993) system is that the excision from the bacterial chromosome and the amplification of the excised genomic fragment be controlled very stringently so that excision is induced only on command and amplification is initiated only upon induction.
According to the proposed system, excision-mediating sites (EMS) are placed at 500-100 kb intervals throughout a well mapped genome in places where the EMS do not interfere with viability or genomic stability. The EMS are placed throughout the system either by (1) randomly inserting plasmids carrying transposons, EMS, and selective markers, or (2) by targeting insertions that inactivate specific, non-essential genes. EMS identified by Szybalski include .lambda. att, 2 .mu. FRT, and P1 lox.
The net result of adding EMS to a genome in the Szybalski (1993) system is a library of strains, each of which carries one EMS at a physically mapped site. Using genetic crosses between strains having neighboring EMS at a suitable distance from one another, a set of strains are produced where each strain possesses exactly two neighboring EMS. From such strains, the intervening segment (e.g., 50-100 kb), can be excised. Accordingly to the Szybalski 1993 system, if a cis-acting ori element is positioned together with and next to the excision elements, the ori element will be present on the excised DNA circle and can promote the amplification of the DNA circle.
Szybalski (1993) does not contemplate employing an amplification and excision system in conjunction with a bacterial artificial chromosome. Such a system would provide additional benefit in that it would not require the steps of interspersing EMS throughout the genome and crossing EMS-containing strains, but could instead rely upon the use of rare-cutting restriction enzymes to generate genomic fragments of suitable size for cloning into a BAC vector.


Retaining device for a wheel-alignment analyzer for attachment to a wheel of a motor vehicle. Retaining device has a retaining element having at least three retaining arms and a clamping mechanism which can be displaced along the retaining arms. The ends of the clamping mechanism are provided with an overlapping portion for overlapping the edge of the rim and the retaining element can be secured to the edge of the rim. The retaining device offers a stable engagement and centering solution, thus permitting a correct wheel-alignment analysis. The overlapping portion may be spring-loaded and biased in the direction of the wheel and/or the clamping mechanism, and a spacer and the overlapping portion may be provided on the spacer.

To yield reliable results when analyzing wheel alignment, a retaining device for a wheel alignment analyzer must be precisely centered over the center of a wheel. Because there are countless types of motor vehicle rims, which differ from one another in terms of shape, diameter and material, there are, as a result, various retaining devices with differing fastening systems. Currently known retaining devices are attached to the proper portion of the wheel with corresponding clamps, magnets or studs that are suitable for determining the center of the rim.
Retaining devices for fastening a wheel alignment system to the wheel of a motor vehicle are already described in DE 202 06 404 U1, DE 79 22 976 U1 and U.S. Pat. No. 399,066. These retaining devices have a retaining element consisting of a number of retaining arms, along which are adjustable clamping mechanisms. The end of each clamping mechanism has an overlapping portion which overlaps the edge of the rim, whereby the retaining element can be firmly secured on the edge of the rim via the clamping mechanism. The disadvantage with the previously known retaining devices is the fact that the available clamping mechanisms cannot be fastened to different types of rims without further modifications.
In DE 38 15 559 A1, a retaining device for a wheel alignment analyzer is shown in which the retaining means grips the wheel rim.
In DE 198 53 579, a retaining device of the prior art is described that contains a spacer adjustable along the retaining arms, and that feature magnets on the rear side so as to allow the device to be attached on the front side to a out rim. Because this known retaining device employs a magnetic attachment elements this retaining device is not suited to modern soft-line aluminum rims.
Other known patent documents include:
DE 8907578 Aug. 24, 1989;
U.S. Pat. No. 4,185,917 Jan. 29, 1980;
FR 2393271 Dec. 29, 1978;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,987,761 to Ohnesorge;
U.S. Pat. No. 6,338,273 B1 to Warkotsch; and
WO 00/06984 to Warkotsch.

Retaining device for a wheel alignment analyzer


Guides, devices, instruments, and systems for fixing a fractured bone are disclosed. An insertion guide includes a handle member and a guide member coupled to a second end of the handle member. The guide member being curved relative to the longitudinal axis of the handle member. A bone fixation system including an insertion guide, a guide wire and a fastener. The insertion guide including a handle member and a guide member coupled to an end of the handle member. The guide member being curved and including a through hole for receiving the guide wire. The fastener including a cannulation for receiving the guide wire. Methods of using a bone fixation systems for fixing fractured bones are also disclosed.

Most solutions for fractures in the proximal fifth metatarsal, such as, Jones fractures, involve the placement of a lateral plate or a central fixation screw. Generally, plates are used because of the ease of surgical access. In addition, plates are generally easier to use for avulsion fractures of the fifth metatarsal tuberosity. However, using a plate may result in an uncomfortable prominence for the patient. In addition, in some circumstances plating techniques do not provide optimal stability which may be found with central fixation of an intramedullary screw. An intramedullary screw may be placed through the central axis and in the intramedullary canal of the fifth metatarsal. The currently used intramedullary screw approach, however, may be hampered or rendered impossible by difficulty in accessing the central axis and/or by approach conflicts with the lateral malleolus, i.e. ankle, as well as soft tissue irritation. Thus, new and improved bone fixation systems, assemblies, insertion guides, and methods for inserting an intramedullary screw are needed which improve the stability of the patient's foot during healing and after fusion.

Bone fixation system, assembly, devices, insertion guides, and methods of use


A non-volatile memory device includes a cell array including a plurality of memory cells, a page buffer block controlling bitlines of the plurality of memory cells to program the memory cells to a first target state or a second target state, and a control logic configured to skip a verify operation for the memory cells programmed to the first target state and perform a verify operation for the memory cells programmed to the second target state during a second program loop when the memory cells programmed to the first target state are determined to be in a pass condition during a first program loop.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to semiconductor memory devices and, more specifically, to a flash memory device and a page buffer circuit of the flash memory device.
2. Description of Related Art
Semiconductor memory devices can be typically categorized into two types: volatile memory devices and non-volatile memory devices. Volatile memory devices lose their stored data when their power supplies are interrupted, while being capable of achieving high-speed read and write operations. Non-volatile memory devices retain their stored data even when their power supplies are interrupted. Thus, non-volatile memory devices are widely used to store data which should be retained irrespective of whether their power supplies are interrupted. Non-volatile memory devices include, for example, mask read-only memories (MROMs), programmable read-only memories (PROMs), erasable programmable read-only memories (EPROMs), and electrically erasable programmable read-only memories (EEPROMs).
In MROM, PROM, and EPROM devices, it is inconvenient to erase and write data and, therefore, it is generally difficult to update the contents stored therein. On the other hand, data stored in EEPROM devices can be electrically programmed and erased and, therefore, the use of EEPROM devices is increasingly becoming popular in auxiliary memory devices and system programming devices that require continuous updating of contents. In particular, flash memory devices are advantageously applied to large-capacity auxiliary memory devices because they provide higher integration density than conventional EEPROM devices.
A flash memory device is an integrated circuit which is capable of storing and reading data at any time. A flash memory device includes a plurality of reprogrammable memory cells each storing 1-bit data or multi-bit data therein. When 1-bit data is stored in one memory cell, the memory cell program states correspond to two threshold voltage distributions. That is, the memory cell is programmed to have a threshold voltage corresponding to either one of data "1" and data "0". A multi-level cell (MLC) including a plurality of memory cells configured to store multi-bit data therein has more program states. Namely, when 2-bit data is stored in one memory cell, the memory cell is programmed to a threshold voltage included in four threshold voltage distributions. When 3-bit data is stored in one memory cell, the memory cell is programmed to a threshold voltage included in eight threshold voltage distributions. Recently, various attempts have been made to store 4-bit data in one memory cell.

Non-volatile memory device and page buffer circuit thereof


The invention relates to crystalline 1H-Imidazo[4,5-b]pyridin-5-amine, 7-[5-[(cyclohexylmethylamino)-methyl]-1H-indol-2-yl]-2-methyl, sulfate (1:1), trihydrate, E6070, its method of preparation, and its therapeutic uses. Pharmaceutical compositions containing crystalline E6070 and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier represent one embodiment of the invention. The invention also relates to methods for treating an inflammatory disorder, an autoimmune disorder, or a proliferative disorder comprising the step of administering to a patient in need thereof a therapeutically effective amount of crystalline E6070.

Inflammation is a process resulting from the dilation and increased permeability of blood vessels at site of injury or infection. Chemokines and cytokines released at the site increase the expression of cell surface proteins on endothelial cells, allowing circulating leukocytes to stick to the vessel wall and migrate to the site of injury/infection within the tissue. These cell surface proteins, termed "cell adhesion molecules" allow the interaction between the leukocytes and the endothelial cells, and mediate the migration of leukocytes into the tissue. Additionally, cell adhesion molecules are required for many of the cell-to-cell interactions in the inflammatory and immune responses. There are three classes of adhesion molecules: selectins, integrins and immunmoglobulin-related proteins which can be expressed on leukocytes and endothelial cells. Several of the adhesion molecules, including E-selectin and ICAM, are induced by cytokines such as IL-1 and TNF, and their expression is mediated by the transcriptional factor, NF-κB.
Sustained or inappropriate expression of adhesion molecules can lead to inflammatory or autoimmune disorders. Exaggerated expression of E-selectin and/or ICAM can result in chronic inflammation and has been associated with several inflammatory or autoimmune disorders. Therefore, inhibitors of cell adhesion molecules may be useful for the treatment of these diseases.
Inflammatory and autoimmune diseases are not well managed by current therapy and developments of better drugs are widely pursued. For example, rheumatoid arthritis is a state of chronic inflammation within the joint characterized by cartilage and bone destruction. Traditional therapies for inflammatory or autoimmune disease, such as rheumatoid arthritis, include nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and salicylates, gold compounds, hydroxychloroquine, sulfasalazine, corticosteroids, oral penicillamines, and cytotoxic or immunosuppressive drugs. However, many of these therapies are not always sufficiently effective and have resulted in serious side effects. More recently, injectable forms of TNFα neutralizing proteins have been successfully marketed for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn's Disease, however, an orally available inhibitor has not been developed for these inflammatory or autoimmune diseases.
Able to inhibit NF-κB activation through inhibition of the IKKβ protein kinase, 1H-Imidazo[4,5-b]pyridin-5-amine, 7-[5-[(cyclohexylmethylamino)-methyl]-1H-indol-2-yl]-2-methyl (ER-807447) is a potent anti-cytokine/anti-inflammatory agent. Published PCT application WO 2004/06336 A2 and published U.S. application 2004/0186127 A1 disclose ER-807447 as a member of a novel class of deazapurine therapeutic agents having antiflammatory/autoimmune and anti-proliferative effects (both of these published applications are incorporated here by reference). These deazapurine therapeutic agents are orally available and are free of serious side effects.
Although therapeutic efficacy is the primary concern for a therapeutic agent, the salt and crystal form of a drug candidate can be critical to its development. Each salt or each crystalline form (polymorph) of a drug candidate can have different physical and chemical properties, for example, solubility, stability, or the ability to be reproduced. These properties can impact the ultimate pharmaceutical dosage form, the optimization of manufacturing processes, and absorption in the body. Moreover, finding the most adequate form for further drug development, can reduce the term and the cost of that development.
Obtaining pure crystalline forms is extremely useful in drug development. It permits better characterization of the drug candidate's chemical and physical properties. The crystalline form may possess more favorable pharmacology than the amorphous form or be easier to process. It may also possess more storage stability.
The solid state physical properties of a drug candidate influence its selection as a pharmaceutical active ingredient and the choice of form for its pharmaceutical composition. One such physical property, for example, is the flowability of the solid, before and after milling. Flowability affects the ease with which the material is handled during processing into a pharmaceutical composition. When particles of the powdered compound do not flow past each other easily, a formulation specialist must take that fact into account in developing a tablet or capsule formulation, which may necessitate the use of glidants such as colloidal silicon dioxide, talc, starch or tribasic calcium phosphate. Another important solid state property of a pharmaceutical compound is its dissolution rate in aqueous fluid. The rate of dissolution of an active ingredient in a patient's gastrointestinal fluid may have therapeutic consequences since it impacts the rate at which an orally-administered active ingredient may reach the patient's bloodstream.
These practical physical properties are influenced by the conformation and orientation of molecules in the unit cell of the crystalline compound. The crystalline (or polymorphic) form often has different thermal behavior different from the amorphous material or another polymorphic form. Thermal behavior is measured in the laboratory by such techniques as capillary melting point, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and may be used to distinguish some polymorphic forms from others. A crystalline form or a particular polymorphic form generally possesses distinct crystallographic and spectroscopic properties detectable by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), single crystal X-ray crystallography, and infrared spectrometry among other techniques.

Crystalline 1H-imidazo[4,5-b]pyridin-5-amine, 7-[5-[(cyclohexylmethylamino)-methyl]-1H-indol-2-yl]-2-methyl, sulfate (1:1), trihydrate and its pharmaceutical uses


A system and method for modifying the output of a computer program without source code modification. A computer program reads in two files, an input data file and a recipe text file. The data input file contains name/value pairs to be rendered to an output device and the recipe text file contains the formatting descriptions. The name/value pairs of the data input file need not be arranged according to a required structure. During the execution of the program, the formatting descriptions of the recipe text file are converted into a sequence of executable objects and the name/value pairs from the data input file are rendered in a format according to these formatting descriptions. A coordinated alteration of the input text file and the recipe text file will result in a modification to the output format.

Users of computer systems from time to time need programs that perform new processes that are variations of the processes performed presently. Therefore, the computer programs employed by the user require maintenance or modification to the processes they implement. Many times the necessary modifications include changes to the way the program output if formatted. Generally in the past, the output of a computer program was determined by the source code itself. Due to this, when output formats in derivation from those originally written into the program were desired, it was necessary to employ highly skilled computer programmers to make modifications to the source code of the computer program itself. As a result, when the output format of a computer program required modification, long costly delays were experienced.
For example, consider a program for making labels. Initially, during the use of the program, the location, font, letter size, and orientation of objects are acceptable. However, during the life of the program it becomes necessary to alter the format in some way to meet a new or unexpected need. To meet this need, a highly skilled computer programmer would have to reprogram the source code of the computer program causing expenditures of both time and money.
Accordingly, there remains a need in the art to reduce the amount of time and programming skill level necessary to change the output format of a computer program.

System and method for modifying output of a computer program without source code modifications


Methods, including service methods, articles of manufacture, systems, articles and programmable devices are provided for charging travel fees or awarding benefits as a function of vehicle occupancy. Variable travel fee schedules include a plurality of different rate values, each rate value associated with ride-sharing service points of a vehicle infrastructure and vehicle occupancy counts. Occupants within a vehicle traveling via a vehicle infrastructure are counted, the counting generating discrete occupant counts correlated with the ride-sharing service points. Subsets of variable travel fee schedule rate values are selected as a function of association with discrete occupant counts and correlated ride-sharing service points. Owners, occupants or other parties associated with the vehicle are accordingly charged a travel fee or awarded a benefit as a function of the rate value subset and an amount of the vehicle traveling.

The automobile is generally the most common form of daily transportation for travelers or commuters of all kinds. As the number of vehicles on roads continues to grow, traffic congestion and pollution have become very problematic. Management of public thoroughfares comprehends managing use of a variety of travel options, including personal automobile use on public roads, regional and intrastate highways, interstate highways, public toll and access roads, private toll and access roads, as well as of various forms of public/mass transportation (e.g., buses, trains, ferries, etc.). Travelers have many differing travel requirements, options, and habits, each of which impact their decisions on travel option use.
Management of travel issues and options may also contemplate considering the impact of each existing, planned, and proposed transit system on the environment. It is generally desirable to increase the green nature, for example an earth or environmental friendliness, of regional transit systems, and in one aspect considering larger area or national impacts. It is generally considered greener to pursue policies that encourage travelers to maximize their use of mass transportation options in order to minimize their automobile usage, and in particular to minimize individual trips with no other passengers by encouraging car pooling and ride-sharing behaviors.
However, travel system management and service provider entities may have difficulty balancing the requirements and desires of commuters and other travelers against travel system requirements and attributes, for example serving traveler needs while also responding to traffic congestion, environmental impact, availability and use of mass transit, and equitable distribution of travel cost issues. Thus, travelers often select travel options based on their personal costs (e.g. time and money), and not in response to overall general efficiency and environmental impact costs, in some examples resulting in multiple single-occupancy vehicle trips to common destinations rather than reduced trips through ride sharing, thus having a negative environmental impact relative to more environmentally-favorable ride sharing options.

Variable rate travel fee based upon vehicle occupancy

International Business Machines Corporation


On the transmitter side, data to be transmitted are converted into a plurality of parallel data sets by a serial-parallel converter 101 and spread spectrum modulation is effected by means of PN code generators 105 and selectors 102. Each of the modulated outputs is delayed by a delaying circuit 103 with reference to a sounder channel and the phase thereof. The output thus delayed and the output of the sounder channel are added by an adder 104 to be multiplexed and transmitted.. On the receiver side, correlation between a received signal and a reference signal is formed by a correlator 201 to obtain a correlation pulse from the correlation output thus obtained. Data demodulation is effected by means of a sounder detecting circuit 209, a sampling pulse generating circuit 210 and an information detecting circuit 211, starting from this correlation pulse.. According to the structure described above, in SS communication, data demodulation can be effected with a high efficiency by using a single correlator.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show an example of the multiplex communication device by a prior art spread spectrum communication system executing high speed data communication.
FIG. 6 indicates the construction of a transmitter, in which reference numeral 1 is a serial-parallel converting device; 2-1 .about. 2-n are multiplies; 3-1 .about. 3-n are PN code generators; 4-1 .about. 4-n are BPSK modulators; and 5 is an adder.
In the transmitter described above, inputted high sped data a.sub.1 are converted into parallel data b.sub.1, b.sub.2, . . . , b.sub.n by the serial-parallel converting device 1. Each of the parallel data sets b.sub.1, b.sub.2, . . . , b.sub.n is inputted in one input of each of the multipliers 2-1, 2-2, . . . , 2-n. On the other hand, each of PN codes c.sub.1, c.sub.2, . . . , c.sub.n different from each other outputted by each of the PN code generators 3-1, 3-2, . . . , 3-n is inputted in the other input of each of the multipliers 2-1, 2-2, . . . , 2-n. Outputs d.sub.1, d.sub.2, . . . , d.sub.n of the multipliers 2-1, 2-2, . . . , 2-n are inputted in the BPSK modulators 4-1, 4-2, . . . , 4-n, respectively, to modulate an RF carrier signal e.sub.5. In this way, RF signals f.sub.1, f.sub.2, . . . , f.sub.n are outputted by the BPSK modulators 4-1, 4-2, . . . , 4-n, respectively, which RF signals are inputted in the adder 5. An n-multiplexed spread spectrum signal g is outputted by the adder 5 to be transmitted.
FIG. 7 indicates the construction of the receiver, in which 7-1 .about. 7-n are convolvers; 8-1 .about. 8-n are multipliers; 9-1 .about. 9-n are PN code generators; 10-1 .about. 10-n are detectors; and 12 is a data demodulator.
In the receiver described above, a received signal i is divided into a plurality of signals, each of which is inputted in one input of each of the convolvers 7-1, 7-2, . . . , 7-n.
On the other hand, the PN code j.sub.1, j.sub.2, . . . j.sub.n outputted by each of the PN code generator 9-1, 9-2, . . . 9-n is applied to one input of each of the multipliers 8-1, 8-2, . . . , 8-n. An RF carrier signal m is inputted in the other inputs of the multipliers 8-1, 8-2, . . . , 8-n. The output k.sub.1, k.sub.2, . . . , k.sub.n of each of the multipliers 8-1, 8-2, . . . , 8-n is applied to the other input of each of the convolvers 7-1, 7-2, . . . , 7-n.
The output l.sub.1, l.sub.2, . . . , l.sub.n of the convolvers are inputted in the detectors 10-1, 10-2, . . . , 10-n, respectively. At this time, in the outputs of the convolvers correlation spikes are produced with a same timing for different data channels. The outputs o.sub.1, o.sub.2, . . . , o.sub.n of the detectors 10-1, 10-2, . . . , 10-n are inputted in the data demodulator 12. Demodulated data p are outputted by the data demodulator 12.
The prior art multiplex communication device described above has drawbacks that it is necessary to synchronize the carriers and that a plurality of convolvers (or matched filters) serving as correlators are required.