Described herein is a method for soft-programming an electrically erasable nonvolatile memory device, wherein soft-programming is carried out with a soft-programming multiplicity equal to twice that used for writing data in the memory device until the current absorbed during soft-programming is smaller than or equal to the maximum current which is available for writing operations and which can be generated within the memory device, and with a soft-programming multiplicity equal to the one used for writing data in the memory device in the case where the current absorbed during soft-programming with double multiplicity is greater than the maximum current which is available for writing operations and which can be generated within the memory device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for soft-programming an electrically erasable nonvolatile memory device and to an electrically erasable nonvolatile memory device implementing the soft-programming method.
2. Description of the Related Art
As is known, nonvolatile memories comprise a memory array formed by memory cells arranged in rows and columns, in which wordlines connect gate terminals of memory cells arranged on the same row and bitlines connect drain terminals of memory cells arranged on the same column.
It is likewise known that in a nonvolatile floating-gate memory cell the storage of a logic state is carried out by programming the threshold voltage of the memory cell through the definition of the quantity of electrical charge stored in the floating-gate region.
According to the information stored, the memory cells are distinguished into erased memory cells (logic state stored "1"), in which no electrical charge is stored in the floating-gate region, and in written or programmed memory cells (logic state stored "0") in which there is stored in the floating-gate region an electrical charge sufficient to determine a sensible increase in the threshold voltage of the memory cells.
In nonvolatile memories, moreover, the memory array is generally divided into sectors, each one of which is formed by a set of memory cells on which it is possible to carry out simultaneously the same operation, generally an erasure operation. In particular, in nonvolatile memories organized into sectors it is possible to carry out reading and programming of individual memory cells of a sector and simultaneous erasure of all the memory cells of the sector, and the latter operation is rendered possible by the fact that the memory cells belonging to the same sector have source terminals connected to one another.
Erasure of a nonvolatile memory carried out sector by sector is a cumulative operation, i.e., it acts simultaneously and indistinctly on all the memory cells of the sector, and is very complex in so far as it requires not just some preparatory steps to be carried out prior to executing the erasure proper, during which the electrical charges in the floating-gate region are extracted and consequently the threshold voltage of the memory cells themselves is reduced, but also requires verifications and possible modifications subsequent to the erasure proper in the case where the result of the erasure is not fully satisfactory.
In particular, to erase a sector there is first of all performed an operation of pre-conditioning, also known as "program-all-0", i.e., an operation whereby all the memory cells of the sector are taken to the programmed state irrespective of their current state. This is due to the fact that, if there were to be erased a sector in which some of the memory cells are written but others are already erased, during the erasure there would occur an over-erasure of the memory cells already erased, which, with a fair degree of likelihood, would become depleted memory cells, i.e., memory cells that have negative threshold voltage and thus drain a current even when their gate terminal is set at ground voltage. These depleted memory cells are particularly troublesome in so far as they simulate the constant presence of erased memory cells in the respective columns to which they belong and thus cause all the memory cells belonging to said columns to be read as erased irrespective of their actual state.
In order to prevent this phenomenon and to render the history of all the memory cells belonging to the same sector uniform, there is hence performed the step of writing the entire sector, and then, following upon the operation of pre-conditioning, all the memory cells of the sector are programmed.
Next, there is carried out the erasure step proper, during which the electrical charges in the floating-gate region are extracted, and consequently the threshold voltage of the memory cells is reduced.
In order to carry this out, between the source terminal and the gate terminal of each memory cell there is applied a high electric field such as to enable the electrons to abandon the floating-gate region thanks to the so-called Fowler-Nordheim tunnelling effect.
The application of the electrical potential necessary to extract the electrical charges from the floating-gate region can occur in different ways. One of the methodologies that can, for example, be used to extract the electrical charges from the floating-gate region is known in the literature as "negative gate erasure" and basically envisages leaving floating the drain terminal of the memory cell to be erased and applying to the gate terminal a negative voltage pulse having typically an amplitude of 10 V and a time duration of the order of 10 ms, and to the source and body terminals a succession of voltage pulses the amplitude of which is variable in staircase fashion from a minimum value of 3 V to a maximum value of 8 V, with steps of 300 mV.
At the end of the erasure pulse, there is then carried out an operation of verification on all the memory cells of the sector in order to check the value of their threshold voltages, and this verification is made by performing a marginated reading that will guarantee correct recognition of the memory cell in the normal reading mode.
In particular, the verification operation scans all the memory cells of the sector and is interrupted when a memory cell that does not pass the test is found. At this point the next erasure pulse is applied. Hence, the erasure process consists in the application of an erasure pulse, followed by a subsequent step of verification until all the memory cells have a threshold voltage lower than a reference threshold voltage, which is the threshold voltage of the reference memory cell used during the verification operation. Once the voltage pulses applied to the source and body terminals have reached their maximum amplitude, if the memory cells of the sector are not yet all erased, then there is envisaged a second step of pure electrical erasure, during which further erasure pulses are applied both to the gate terminals and to the source and body terminals of the memory cells of the sector, up to a given maximum number, in which the amplitude of the pulses applied to the source and body terminals of the memory cells is equal to the maximum amplitude envisaged.
At the end of pure electrical erasure, all the memory cells of the sector have threshold voltages presenting a basically gaussian distribution, on which there is superimposed a possible "tail" due to the depleted memory cells.
The sector erasure step cannot, however, yet be deemed concluded because it is still necessary to ensure that there will not be depleted memory cells that can induce errors during the reading step. As previously mentioned, in fact, since these memory cells have a negative threshold voltage and thus drain a current even when their gate terminals are set at ground voltage, they can vitiate the subsequent operation of reading of the memory device in so far as they simulate the constant presence of erased memory cells in the respective columns to which they belong and thus cause all the memory cells belonging to these columns to be read as erased irrespective of their actual state.
Hence, the erasure step proper is followed by a step of search and re-programming of the depleted memory cells, known also as "soft-programming", in which there is verified the presence of a leakage current in the columns of the memory array by biasing all the rows of the array at ground voltage.
When a column presenting this anomaly is identified, then the first memory cell of the column is addressed, and a programming pulse having a pre-set amplitude is applied to its gate terminal in order to shift slightly the threshold voltage of the memory cell towards higher values.
This is followed by reading of the second memory cell of the same column: if no leakage current is present in the memory cell, then this means that the depleted memory cell was the preceding one that has already been recovered; otherwise, the memory cell considered is programmed, and so on up to the end of the column.
Once the end of the column has been reached, the verification operation is then repeated, and in the case where a leakage current is still present, the procedure described above is repeated, increasing, however, the amplitude of the programming pulse applied to the gate terminals of the memory cells during programming.
In practice, soft-programming is never carried out on a single memory cell at a time, but rather on a given number of memory cells at a time that is linked to the number of programming circuits (program loads) with which the memory device is provided, currently sixteen. In particular, soft-programming is carried out by addressing a number of memory cells equal to the number of program loads and by soft-programming only those memory cells addressed that effectively require this operation. The number of memory cells that are simultaneously soft-programmed is generally known, in the technical field, as "soft-programming parallelism" or "soft-programming multiplicity".
To compete in the sectors of emerging markets of portable electronic apparatuses, such as, for example, MP3 players and digital cameras, nonvolatile memory devices are currently subject to a revision of their traditional specifications; in particular they are the subject of in-depth studies aimed, among other things, at reducing erasure time.
A contribution to reduction in erasure time could come from the reduction of soft-programming time, which, at least in principle, could be obtained by increasing the parallelism with which this operation is performed.
For example, reduction in soft-programming time could be obtained simply by doubling the number of program loads, but this would entail, in the case where all the memory cells addressed were to require soft-programming, a doubling of the current absorbed in the soft-programming step.
In order to generate this current, it is possible to act in two ways: either to generate the current necessary outside of the memory device, using an appropriate current generator, and supply it to a purposely provided pin of the memory device, or else to double the size of the charge pump, which, in the memory device, is dedicated to the generation of high currents.
The first solution runs, however, counter to the trend of current markets of semiconductor memory devices, which, instead, requires reduction of both the number of voltage supplies in the memory device and their absolute voltage value, whilst the second solution would lead to a significant increase in the area occupied by the charge pump on the silicon and thus to an increase in the cost of the memory device.

Method for soft-programming an electrically erasable nonvolatile memory device, and an electrically erasable nonvolatile memory device implementing the soft-programming method


A method and system for communicating information between subscribers over power transmission lines which normally convey electrical power to a plurality of diverse electrical sites for providing electrical power to electrical devices disposed at these diverse electrical sites. The subscribers on the communication network are located at these electrical sites. The electrical power conveyed over the power transmission lines is in the form of electromagnetic radiation which has an electrical field component and an associated magnetic field component. The information, such as telephonic voice communication or other data, is transmitted in the magnetic field component of the electromagnetic radiation carried over the power transmission line, such as by exciting the field with a MASER, in order to enable communication between the subscribers at the various electrical sites. The MASER provides an inverted atomic population by pumping directly, through a Q-switch and a synthetic aperture lens, into the atomic population of the electromagnetic wave carried over the power transmission line to produce acoustic wave oscillation at the appropriate atomic transition frequency. The MASER output is transmitted within the existing magnetic flux envelope created by the magnetic field of the electromagnetic radiation carried over the power transmission line and the power transmission line acts as a magnetic waveguide for the coherent magnetic frame emissions from the MASER. Inductive coupling is used to receive the transmitted information.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and system for utilizing a power transmission network as a communication network along with its normal power transmission function, and, particularly to such a network in which the magnetic field component of the electromagnetic radiation traveling along the power transmission line through a power distribution network is utilized to transmit information between subscribers, including telephonic voice communication.
2.Background Art
The use of power transmission lines as a communication media is well known in the art with some of the earliest work dating back to the 1930's in an effort to provide telephone communication to rural areas which had not yet been served by telephone lines, such as the type of prior art systems described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,032,360; 2,264,395; and 2,264,396. These systems, which employed carrier waves superposed on the electrical component of the electromagnetic radiation carried over the power transmission line, were strictly analog in nature and were not particularly successful because of the inherent limitations of the analog bandwidth, signal attenuation, and the inability to handle more than one call at a time. As further attempts were made to develop an analog based system, it was discovered that unsatisfactory radiation from the power transmission line would result at carrier frequencies in excess of 300 KHz which would interfere with long wave radio signals, limiting such systems to a frequency range of 30 KHz to 300 KHz. One such attempt at developing an analog based system, described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,684,450, permitted the use of carrier frequencies greater than 1 MHz for transmission between power transformers, however, it was found that electromagnetic noise from the power lines interfered with the information signals being transmitted, such as each time an electrical appliance connected to the power distribution network was switched on. The need to transmit information through the power transformers also proved an impediment to a successful power line communication system. Attempts have also been made to overcome these problems through the use of digital signal transmission instead of an analog carrier wave, but still utilizing the electrical component of the electromagnetic radiation carried over the power transmission line, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,554,968; 5,559,377; and 4,471,399, as well as the use of digital packets to try to overcome the noise problem, but these attempts have also been unsatisfactory and/or too costly.
Because of the well established power transmission infrastructure, and the increasing need for higher speed, higher capacity, and greater distribution of information of all types over great distances, particularly telephonic communications today, there is a continuing and increasing need to develop a satisfactory and cost effective communication system which takes advantage of the vast and well established power transmission line distribution network already in place throughout the United States and the world at large. The disadvantages of the prior art are overcome by the present invention which utilizes the magnetic field component of the electromagnetic radiation carried over the power transmission lines rather than the electric field component which the prior art has concentrated on.

Magnetic field based power transmission line communication method and system


A method in a network element is provided for improved convergence in a network that includes the network element. The network element is one of a plurality of network elements in the network each of which implement the method. The network element includes a database to store the topology of the network. The topology of the network includes a plurality of network elements and links between the network elements. The method classifies convergence actions for the network element to identify convergence actions that can be implemented prior to complete digest synchronization during a convergence process to simplify and reduce convergence latency once digest synchronization is achieved.

Network convergence is a process whereby a set of networking devices exchange network topology information to establish a synchronized view of the current network topology for the network and both compute and install the corresponding forwarding state. A routing protocol and or a set of discovery protocols are utilized by the set of networking devices to exchange topology information. The state of network convergence is achieved once all topology information has been distributed to all of the network devices in the network and the corresponding forwarding state installed.
A network convergence time is a measure of how fast the overall set of network elements in a given network is able to collectively reach the state of network convergence. When a topology change has occurred, such as the failure of a link or node, data traffic may be disrupted for the duration of the network convergence time that may result in loss or delay in packet forwarding or similar operations until a new state of network convergence is reached, therefore it is desirable to minimize convergence time.
Similarly, service convergence is a state of a set of networking devices that support services for which a component of the service is the exchange of data via multicast forwarding. Thus, each service can be associated with one or more multicast distribution trees that define the forwarding of multicast data traffic associated with a given service. When the network resource model changes, or the set of subscribing nodes for a service is altered, or the resource requirements of a service instance are changed, the service convergence state is lost and must be recalculated. The time for re-establishing the service convergence state is the service convergence time. During the re-establishing of the service convergence state data traffic for the impacted services may be disrupted. The overall time required to perform service convergence in the absence of any network topology changes may be relaxed as it is not necessarily service impacting, and the service convergence process can be performed in a more controlled fashion than network convergence.


A mounting device of a sprinkler comprises: a main body provided with a pair of side plates and an upper plate disposed on upper portions of the side plate; a rail mounting portion formed at lower ends of the side plates and insertedly fixed to a support rail; a support bar fixing portion formed at an upper side of the main body, for supporting the support bar; and a locking member inserted in the side plates in a lateral direction, for preventing the rail mounting portion from being separated from the support rail.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mounting device of a sprinkler, and particularly, to a mounting device of a sprinkler capable of facilitating an operation for mounting a sprinkler to a ceiling and of reducing the time taken to carry out the operation.
2. Description of the Background Art
In general, the sprinkler includes a sprinkler reducer mounted inside a ceiling; a sprinkler head mounted to a lower end of the sprinkler reducer and disposed to be exposed to the outside of the ceiling, for spraying of water for fire protection; and a water supply hose connected to an upper end of the sprinkler reducer, through which water needed for fire protection is supplied.
Here, the sprinkler reducer is mounted to an inner surface of the ceiling by a mounting device of a sprinkler.
The mounting device of the sprinkler in accordance with the conventional art includes: a pair of ceiling support rails fixed to an inner surface of the ceiling parallel to each other; a reducer support beam mounted between the ceiling support rails; a mounting device installed between the ceiling support rail and the reducer support beam, for fixing the support beam to the reducer support rail; and a fixing bracket for fixing the sprinkler reducer to the reducer support beam.
As seen in U.S. Pat. No. 6,260,810, the mounting device in accordance with the conventional art is disadvantageous in that an assembling operation is complicated and the time taken to carry out the operation is lengthened because of threading of locking bolts for fixing the mounting device to the ceiling support rail and to the reducer support beam.
Particularly, the two locking bolts are threaded in perpendicular directions to each other, which makes the assembling operation more complicated.


A substrate hold apparatus is provided an electrostatic chuck for electrostatically attracting and holding a substrate thereon, a push-up member contactable with a position of vicinity of an edge of the substrate on the electrostatic chuck from below for pushing up the substrate, a drive apparatus for driving at least one of the electrostatic chuck and push-up member to thereby allow the push-up member to push up the substrate, a force sensor for detecting a force applied to the push-up member in an pushing-up operation, and a control unit wherein the control unit is configured to measure the force from the force sensor as a first measurement, output a normal state signal when the measured force in the first measurement is equal to or larger than a lower limit value and is equal to or smaller than a upper limit value.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a substrate hold apparatus which is used in, for example, an ion implantation apparatus, an etching apparatus and a thin film forming apparatus and includes an electrostatic chuck for electrostatically attracting and holding a substrate thereon, and also relates to a method for judging the state of the substrate when it is pushed up using a push-up member after cutting off an applied voltage to the electrostatic chuck.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the below-cited Japanese Patent No. 3814905 (paragraphs 0010-0012, FIGS. 2-5), there is disclosed a substrate hold apparatus which includes an electrostatic chuck for electrostatically attracting and holding a substrate (for example, a semiconductor substrate) thereon, a push-up member contactable with a position of vicinity of an edge of the substrate on the electrostatic chuck from below for pushing up the substrate, and a drive apparatus for driving at least one of the electrostatic chuck and push-up member to thereby allow the push-up member to push up the substrate.
Even when the applied voltage to the above-mentioned electrostatic chuck is cut off after the substrate is attracted to the electrostatic chuck, for a certain period of time, electric charges remain between the electrostatic chuck and substrate, thereby generating a residual attracting force. Suppose the residual attracting force is large, when the substrate is removed from the electrostatic chuck, there are caused inconveniences in the substrate, for example, the substrate is caused to bounce, or to be shifted in position, or to be broken.
As means for preventing the generation of such inconveniences, in the below-cited JP-A-2004-119792 (paragraphs 0034, 0042, 0043, FIGS. 1 and 5), there is disclosed a technology in which there is provided a residual attracting force detect portion for detecting, as a residual attracting force, a load applied to a lift pin used to push up and remove the substrate from below, it is checked whether the detected residual attracting force is larger than a given value or not, and, when it is found larger, the processing is made to go to a different residual electric charge removing operation from an originally specified substrate processing operation. Specifically, a conductive wafer for removing residual electric charges is carried onto the electrostatic chuck, the conductive wafer is grounded to remove the residual electric charges, and, after then, the conductive wafer is taken out.
According to the technology disclosed in the above-cited JP-A-2004-119792, it is checked through a single residual attracting force judgment whether the residual attracting force is abnormal (that is, the residual attracting force is larger than a given value) or normal (that is, the residual attracting force is smaller than a given value). When it is found abnormal, immediately, the processing goes to a residual electric charge removing operation which is different from an originally specified substrate processing operation. However, when the processing goes to the residual electric charge removing operation, the originally specified substrate processing operation cannot be carried out during the time. This raises a problem that the throughput of the substrate (the processing performance of the substrate per unit time) is lowered greatly.
Also, according to in the JP-A-2004-119792, when it is judged that a residual attracting force (specifically, a load applied to the lift pin) detected by the residual attracting force detect portion is smaller than a given value, the processing as it goes to the originally specified substrate processing operation. However, when a detecting system (a sensor system) is abnormal or the substrate is abnormal, for example, when a load to be detected originally cannot be detected due to the abnormal state of the detecting system, or when the position of the substrate is shifted greatly on the electrostatic chuck and the load applied to the lift pin is thereby small, the load applied to the lift pin cannot be detected.

Substrate hold apparatus and method for judging substrate push-up state


There is provided an input device which is small, has good productivity, is inexpensive, and can be surface-mounted. In an input device of the present invention, a plurality of terminals of a metal material connected to deflection detecting elements are connected in a substrate portion of an operation member, and the terminal allows the input device to be surface-mounted on a print board. It is thus possible to provide the input device which is inexpensive and small without using a conventional, large flexible substrate.

1. Filed of the Invention
The present invention relates to an input device for use in a computer or the like which employs deflection detecting elements and can be surface-mounted.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In a conventional input device using deflection detecting elements, as shown in FIG. 13, an operation member 51 of synthetic resin having flexibility is provided with a prism-shaped operation portion 51a, three planar base portions 51b, 51c and 51d extending radially from the lower portion of the operation portion 51a at a 90xc2x0 angle to each other, and a joining portion 51e for joining three planar base portions 51b, 51c and 51d in the lower portion of the operation portion 51a. The operation member 51 is provided such that all the lower faces of the base portions 51b, 51c and 51d come into contact with and are mounted on a frame 50 of the keyboard for use in a computer and, in this state, the front end portions of the base portions 51b, 51c and 51d are pressed against the frame 50.
In the operation member 51, the operation portion 51a is tilted in the X1 or X2 direction, and in the Y1 or Y2 direction, so that the base portions 51b, 51c and 51d are deflected, respectively. The deflection amount is large or small according to an amount of the operation portion 51a tilted.
One face of a belt-like flexible substrate 52 made of polyester material is provided with two deflection detecting elements 53,54 consisting of a resistor and lead lines 55,56 connected to the deflection detecting elements 53,54 and formed by printing a conductive ink containing silver.
A part of the flexible substrate 52 has, adhered directly thereto by means of a bonding agent, the side not formed with the deflection detecting elements 53,54 on the top face of the base portions 51b,51c disposed at a 90xc2x0 angle to each other. The deflection detecting element 53 on one hand is mounted on the base portion 51b, and the deflection detecting element 54 on the other hand is mounted on the base portion 51c.
In such an input device, the lead portions 55,56 formed on the belt-like flexible substrate 52 are connected by soldering to the print board of the keyboard (not shown). In the operation of the input device, when the operation portion 51a of the operation member 51 is tilted in the X1 direction, the top face of the base portion 51b is deflected in the extending direction, so that the deflection detecting element 53 disposed on the base portion 51b is extended to increase the resistance value. In addition, when the operation portion 51a is tilted in the X2 direction, the top face of the base portion 51b is deflected in the-shrinking direction, so that the deflection detecting element 53 disposed on the base portion 51b is shrunk to decrease the resistance value.
When the operation portion 51a is tilted in the Y1, direction, the resistance value of the deflection detecting element 54 is increased according to the principle as described, and when the operation portion 51a is tilted in the Y2 direction, the resistance value of the deflection detecting element 54 is decreased.
Fluctuations of the abovementioned resistance values are detected as fluctuations of the voltage values, and the fluctuations of the voltage values are read by the computer. Then, the computer controls the cursor so that the movement of the operation portion 51a in the X1 or X2 direction, and in the Y1 or Y2 direction may be a movement of the cursor in the upward or downward direction, and in the leftward or rightward direction.
Since the conventional input device uses the flexible substrate 52, the device is expensive and requires adhesion of the flexible substrate 52 onto the operation member 51, mounting of the operation member 51 on the frame 50, and soldering of the leads 55,56 to the print board. Thus, the number of assembling processes is increased, whereby the device has poor productivity and requires high cost.
Since the flexible substrate 52 is belt-shaped and larger than the outside shape of the base portions 51b, 51c and 51d, a large space is needed for mounting the flexible substrate 52 on the print board. Thus, the input device becomes large.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an input device which is small, has good productivity, is inexpensive, and can be surface-mounted.
As a first solving means to solve the foregoing problems, an input device having deflection detecting elements has an operation member having a planar substrate portion and an operation portion provided in the substantially center of the substrate portion, a plurality of deflection detecting elements provided on the lower face of the substrate portion, and a plurality of terminal portions consisting of a plurality of electrode portions connected electrically to the deflection detecting elements on the lower face of the substrate portion, and a plurality of terminals in contact with the electrode portions, wherein the plurality of terminals allow the input device to be surface-mounted on land portions of a print board.
As a second solving means, four of the deflection detecting elements are disposed at a 90xc2x0 angle to each other with respect to the operation portion as its center.
As a third solving means, the portion with the terminal surface-mounted thereon protrudes downwardly from the lower face of the substrate portion, the terminal holding the lower face of the substrate portion so as to be spaced from the print board.
As a fourth solving means, the terminal portion is formed between the adjacent deflection detecting elements.
As a fifth solving means, a beam portion is formed in the substrate portion by providing a hole in the position surrounded by the adjacent deflection detecting elements and the terminal portion, the beam portion being provided with the deflection detecting element.
As a sixth solving means, the terminal is held onto the substrate portion so that a part of the terminal is embedded therein.
As a seventh solving means, the input device further has a flexible substrate provided at one face side with the deflection element and the electrode portion, the flexible substrate having the other face side adhered onto the lower face of the operation member.
As an eighth solving means, the flexible substrate is made smaller than the outside shape of the operation member.
As a ninth solving means, the terminal is a U-shaped clip, the clip gripping the operation member and the flexible substrate, and the clip having its lower piece portion arranged on the print board.
As a tenth solving means, the lower piece portion of the clip is provided with a hole in the position in which the electrode portion and the land portion are opposite to each other.
As an eleventh solving means, the lower piece portion of the clip is provided with a convex portion in the position in which the electrode portion and the land portion are opposite to each other.
As a twelfth solving means, the top portion of the convex portion comes into contact with the electrode portion.
As a thirteenth solving means, the operation member has linear portions formed by cutting off the parts thereof in the positions opposite to each other with respect to the center of the operation portion in the outer circumference portion positioned between the deflection detecting elements, the clip being arranged in the position of the linear portion.

Input device having deflection detecting elements


System, apparatuses, and methods for processing feedstock have a decomposing stage for breaking down feedstock into liquid and gaseous products and a condensing stage for condensing gaseous products to a liquid condensate. A mixing stage can also be used to combine gaseous and liquid feedstock portions into a combined liquid feedstock to be fed to the decomposing stage. The decomposing stage can be one or more flux tanks having a field generator for creating an electromagnetic field through the flux tank configured to decompose feedstock inside. The condensing stage can have a catalyst tank, distillation tank, condensing pipes, or a combination thereof. The mixing stage can be a reformer device having pairs of plates, at least some of the plates are capable of rotating to generate a shear force that creates a cavitation effect to combine the gaseous and liquid feedstock portions.

Various known processes can be used to process waste or other unusable materials into saleable products. For example, gaseous, liquid, or solid hydrocarbons, plastics, and other organic or inorganic feedstock materials can be processed into saleable products such as natural gas condensate via pyrolysis, and the related technologies and products derived therefrom. Pyrolysis involves the thermal decomposition of materials in an inert (i.e. substantially oxygen free) environment at high temperatures, for example at about 400-900° C. During pyrolysis, heat is used to break the chemical bonds in the molecules of feedstock by exceeding the decomposition temperature of the feedstock. Pyrolysis of carbon-based feedstock produces condensable and non-condensable gases, as well as residue such as char. The condensable gases can be condensed and stored, or undergo further treatment to produce products such as gasoline, diesel, synthetic gas, or other saleable hydrocarbons.
Current pyrolysis systems and methods typically comprise the heating of feedstock in kilns, such as via combustible gases, inductive heating of the kiln, or molten metal baths, to a temperature sufficient to decompose the feedstock. For example, crude oil must be heated to about 500° C. to be pyrolyzed. Such heating requires a substantial amount of energy, some of which is wasted, as not all of the energy used in generating the heat is transferred to the feedstock.
Additionally, existing materials processing systems are very expensive to operate and require large-footprint refineries located remote from the feedstock source, such as a hydrocarbon reservoir. Illustrative of the costs, according to the Canadian Fuels Association, a standard medium-sized oil refinery has the capacity to produce over 100,000 bbls per day; a small refinery produces 25,000-100,000 bbls per day. The planning, designing, permitting, and construction of a new medium-sized refinery is a 5-7-year process, and costs about $7-10 billion, excluding the cost of land. Further, such refineries need to be in areas where there is a large amount of crude oil available and most often close to population centers.
In some material processing systems, catalysts are used to convert gases into liquid hydrocarbons, such as via the Fischer-Tropsch process. While the use of catalysts can assist in liquefying gases produced after the decomposition of feedstock, it can also be problematic, as catalysts are consumed during the process and must be replaced, necessitating the intermittent cessation of materials processing. Additionally, the resulting hydrocarbon liquid product produced via the catalyzed reaction can be waxy, or otherwise unsuitable, and must be further treated to produce saleable products.
Additionally, current processes used to liquefy feedstock are energy and/or water intensive. For example, currently natural gas hydrocarbons are liquified by using a process of super cooling and pressurizing the gas until it becomes a liquid. The liquefied hydrocarbons remain a liquid as long as they stay in a super-cooled pressurized state. Another method is to use a steam methane reformer, wherein gaseous hydrocarbon is flowed amongst H2O steam where the methane molecule of the hydrocarbon steals a hydrogen molecule from the H2O steam and the methane becomes any of the higher hydrocarbon classes C2-C12. This method is expensive and consumes a large amount of water and energy to complete the liquefaction process.
Further, the distillation tanks currently used for cooling and further condensing gases are inefficient, providing a low condensation rate, for example about 70%, and requiring high pressures to operate, such as at pressures greater than 1000 PSI.

Apparatus, system, and method for processing of materials


A method for direct blow molding including steps of: inserting a blowing jig for blowing air into an inside of a prison; locating the two dies to positions so that the two dies face each other across the parison, wherein two dies have a inner space shape, of which overlapping section with the blowing jig is smaller than the outside diameter of a parison; forming the overlapping section between the parison and the blowing jig, to be smaller than an outside diameter of the parison by using a space between the two dies and the blowing jig when the blowing jig is inserted into an inside of the parison and when the two dies are combined together; and depositing a metal layer to the surface by vapor deposition.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for a direct blow molding. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for a direct blow molding suitable for a manufacturing of a liquid accommodating container.
2. Description of the Related Art
An ink-jet type recording apparatus, which is an example of a liquid ejecting apparatus, does recoding by ejecting ink droplets onto a recording medium from a liquid ejecting head. The ink-jet type recording apparatus includes a liquid cartridge for holding ink, which is detachably mounted on the ink-jet type recording apparatus. The liquid cartridge supplies ink to the liquid ejecting apparatus while mounted on the liquid ejecting apparatus. US Laid-open patent application No. 2002/0154200.
It is considered that the liquid cartridge is manufactured by forming a liquid accommodating container made of resin in a resin case. In order to supply the liquid to the exterior of the resin case, it is necessary to form the liquid accommodating container so that a part of the container may be salient and the part is exposed to the exterior of the resin case as a liquid supplying part. Sometimes, bumps are provided at the outside of the supplying part to fix the supplying part to the resin case. It is desired to manufacture the liquid accommodating container at low cost having such shapes described above.


The present invention provides an improved method for firing thick film inks in hybrid circuits which comprises firing different copper compatible thick film materials in a single firing atmosphere. The method comprises the steps of providing a paste suitable for application to a ceramic substrate, applying the paste to the substrate by a conventional technique such as screen printing, drying the substrate, and firing the substrate at an elevated temperature in an ambient comprising an inert gas and carbon dioxide to form the electrical component. In another embodiment, the substrate is fired in an ambient comprising only carbon dioxide.

Thick film hybrid circuits having high packing densities are well known in the art. Hybrid circuits are multilevel interconnected circuits consisting of a semiconductor or integrated circuit chip mounted on a ceramic insulator substrate. The circuit may be designed with termination pads for attaching semiconductor chips, connector leads, capacitors, resistors, and the like.
Thick film electrical components are made from inks or pastes formulated with organic solvents, binders and materials which will make the ink or paste either a conductor, a resistor, or a dielectric. The ink is screen printed in a selected pattern onto a nonconductive substrate, such as a ceramic or glass. The printed substrate is then dried to remove the organic solvent constituents contained in the paste and then the substrate is fired to sinter or fuse the inorganic constituents to bond the printed film to the substrate.
Precious metal conductor pastes are prepared from a noble metal, or combination of noble metals, such as gold, silver, platinum, palladium, iridium, rhodium, ruthenium, and osmium. Resistor paste materials are prepared from a variety of substances such as carbon, thallium, indium, ruthenium, and the like. Dielectric paste materials are prepared from materials such as glasses, ceramics, glazes and ferro-electric materials. Precious metal conductor, resistor, and dielectric materials are designed to be compatible with each other.
In a typical thick film firing process, the printed and dried ceramic substrate is passed through a multi-zone belt furnace. The speed of the belt is constant and the substrate progresses through heating zones of increasing temperature, typically up to about 700.degree.-1000.degree. C. The substrate is maintained at peak temperature for a predetermined period of time, generally about 5-15 minutes, after which it is cooled to ambient temperature. The zones in the furnace are commonly referred to as the burnout zone (with temperatures up to about 600.degree. C.), the hot zone (the peak temperature) and the cooling zone (ambient temperature). The presence of an oxidizing atmosphere (air) during the firing process serves to promote the sintering and bonding processes which occur between the thick film and the substrate. The presence of an oxidizing atmosphere also serves to oxidize and remove the carbon-based vehicles which are present in the paste for the purpose of improving the rheological properties of the paste during the printing step. The organic vehicles are oxidized to volatile by-products such as carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and water vapor which are readily swept from the furnace by the exiting air atmosphere.
Hybrid circuits are generally built in three dimensional structures by employing multiple layers of electrical components. Dielectric insulating layers are placed between conductor layers to permit the conductors to cross over one another. The insulated overlapping conductor layers are interconnected through vias formed through the insulating layers and filled with conductor material. The vias are holes formed in individual ceramic insulator layers which are filled with conductor metal paste. After being sintered, the vias become dense conductor metal interconnections.
Base metals, such as copper, have been substituted for precious metals in the thick film conductor pastes because of their lower cost and better physical properties (solderability and conductivity). Because copper will be oxidized in an air atmosphere during a firing step, an inert or neutral atmosphere, such as nitrogen, must be employed during firing. The inert atmosphere, however, in addition to not oxidizing copper components, also will not oxidize and remove the carbon-based vehicles from the paste in an efficient manner. In the absence of an oxidizing agent in the firing atmosphere, a portion of the organic components may pyrolyze during the firing process.
Low levels of oxygen or other oxidizing agents have generally been added to the inert firing atmosphere to oxidize and remove the organic paste vehicles. In a typical copper compatible thick film process, the printed ceramic substrate is fired in a belt furnace under an atmosphere which is substantially inert (nitrogen) but which is doped with small amounts of an oxidizing agent (typically up to about 100 ppm oxygen) to react with the organic vehicle. The burnout zone in the belt furnace is generally where the organic vehicles are burned out and removed, i.e., the zone before the furnace reaches peak temperature. The addition of the oxidizing agent is restricted to the low temperature burnout zone. There must be good separation between zones since an appreciable quantity of oxygen leaking into zones having temperatures above about 600.degree. C. will cause oxidation of the copper.
The use of an oxidizing dopant in an inert atmosphere during the thick film firing process has several disadvantages. The concentration of dopant in the inert firing atmosphere must be precisely controlled, and at such low concentration levels, such control is difficult. The oxidizing agent tends also to oxidize the copper conductor creating an adverse change in the electrical characteristics and soldering properties of the conductor because of the formation of copper oxide coatings. In addition, the carbon-based vehicles generally do not react efficiently with small amounts of oxygen present in the firing atmosphere and tend to form free carbon (soot) which can deposit on the walls and on the heating elements of the furnace, and on the substrate itself. Such deposits must periodically be removed adding to the cost of the operation. Carbon deposits on the substrate create an unacceptable appearance and can cause a defective circuit especially if the carbon deposit is between the layers of a multi-layer hybrid structure.
The use of conventional oxidizing dopants in an inert atmosphere during the thick film firing process has other significant disadvantages. Each conductor, resistor and dielectric component in the circuit usually has a different chemical composition and hence has a different chemical processing requirement in the atmosphere during the firing process. Each electrical component must usually be printed and fired separately adding additional cost to the procedure.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,234,367, issued to Herron et al. and assigned to International Business Machines Corporation, discloses a firing process for thick film circuitry of copper based conductors in an ambient of hydrogen and water vapor in a specified defined ratio followed by a sweep with an inert gas. The atmosphere is said to be reducing to copper but oxidizing to carbon.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,622,240, issued to Yext et al. and assigned to Air Products and Chemicals, Inc., discloses a firing process for copper based conductor thick film electrical components which involves using nitrous oxide as an oxidant in an inert atmosphere containing incidental amounts of water vapor.
Palanisamy et al. compared the thermodynamics for oxidation of copper and carbon based on the premise that pyrolysis or incomplete removal of the organic binders in the paste results in formation of carbon which must be removed by oxidation, Proceedings of the 1986 International Symposium on Microelectronics (ISHM), pp. 848-858. Palanisamy et al. considered the thermodynamics of mixtures of carbon monoxide-carbon dioxide and hydrogen-water vapor as reactive mixtures and concluded that the hydrogen-water vapor mixture was the superior dopant.
Thus, a number of methods are known to oxidize and remove carbon-based vehicles during the firing step in copper compatible thick film circuit forming processes. However, none of the methods is entirely satisfactory because each method requires very precise control of the concentration of the oxidizing dopant which is very difficult at such low levels. In addition, none of these methods provides a single firing atmosphere under which different electrical components, such as conductors, resistors, and dielectrics, can be fired at the same time. Accordingly, there is a need for an improved firing method in thick film forming processes which would efficiently oxidize and remove carbon-containing residues while maintaining reducing to neutral conditions for copper components. There is also a need for an improved process whereby different copper compatible thick film materials could be fired in a single atmosphere. Such a process could reduce the sensitivity of the conductor, resistor and dielectric materials to oxidants, improve the yield of the thick film forming process and reduce the cost of hybrid circuit manufacturing. The present invention provides such an improved process which allows the firing of different thick film components to be carried out in a single furnace atmosphere.

Single atmosphere for firing compatible thick film material


A vehicle occupant protection system includes a seat belt device and a knee bag device for protecting an occupant sitting on a seat of a vehicle. The protection system also includes a control unit for controlling the seat belt device and knee bag device based on a detection signal and a prediction signal from at least one of a device for detecting a state of the seat, a device for detecting whether the seat belt device is used, a device for predicting a collision, and a device for detecting a condition of an accident.

The present invention relates to a vehicle occupant protection system for protecting an occupant on a seat of a vehicle such as an automobile in an event of a collision.
As a system for protecting an occupant on a seat of a vehicle such as an automobile in an event of a collision, various airbag devices, inflatable belt devices, and curtain bag devices have been developed.
Also, a system for protecting legs of an occupant in the event of a frontal collision includes a knee bag device in which a knee bag is inflated to extend over a range covering knees of the occupant in front of a vehicle seat.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle occupant protection system including a knee bag device to be actuated together with a seat belt device and/or an airbag device according to a state of the seat, a condition whether the occupant fastens a belt, prediction of a collision, and a condition of an accident.
Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the invention.


A computer implemented system and method administrates network-based conferencing, thereby enabling users to schedule, moderate, and attend network-based conferences, without manual system administration. In one implementation, a media provider system includes a web front end which administrates scheduling of network-based presentation events, delivers interactive display screens for receiving presentation data and control commands from a moderator, and controls media pushes and streaming during the presentation event. The web front end sends Email invitations and event reminders to attendees, including a password if access to the presentation event is closed. In one implementation, the web front end receives digital audio or video data from the moderator during the presentation event, which is streamed and transmitted to attendees.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to computer network technology, and more particularly to computer network-based communications.
2. Description of Related Art
Computer networks, particularly the Internet and World Wide Web, are increasingly relied on to deliver a wide variety of information-types, including text, graphics, audio, and video. In addition to creating web sites which are accessed by computer users equipped with web browser software to xe2x80x9cpullxe2x80x9d information, advertisers are increasingly using the Internet to xe2x80x9cpushxe2x80x9d information by transmitting to a select group of users (xe2x80x9cmulticastingxe2x80x9d). Using streaming media technology, web sites are also now able to transmit high-quality live and on-demand audio/video programming. To enable continuous playback of such programming, the receiving terminal must collect and buffer transmitted data packets, and send the buffered data packets to the application which converts the data to sound and/or pictures. Thus, current web browsers typically include audio/video xe2x80x9cplayersxe2x80x9d for processing received audio and/or video data packets as a steady and continuous stream so that the user can begin viewing and/or hearing programming before the entire file is transmitted, thus making computer network-based video and audio programming practical.
One well known format for streaming audio data over the World Wide Web is xe2x80x9cRealAudioxe2x80x9d, developed by RealNetworks, Inc. RealNetworks has also developed xe2x80x9cRealVideoxe2x80x9d for streaming video data. To listen to/view a web page which includes xe2x80x9cRealAudioxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cRealVideoxe2x80x9d files, a user generally needs xe2x80x9cReal Playerxe2x80x9d software, which has been included as a standard feature in common web browsers, such as xe2x80x9cInternet Explorerxe2x80x9d developed by Microsoft Corp.
Despite the emergence of streaming media technology, conventional network-based audio/video programming requires personnel to run live productions, modify access web pages, place support media on the web, and monitor studio production.
The present invention is a system and a method which controls scheduling, set-up, and execution of network-based presentations, without manual system administration. A network-based system controls event scheduling, preparation, media streaming, and media pushes. The system manages resources, such as available presentation time slots and media streams, as well as user interface displays.
In one embodiment, the present invention is a computer-based system configured to automatically administrate network-based conferences among users who are divided into two categories: moderators and attendees. A moderator, such as a business manager who needs to inform or train a group of people, schedules a presentation session via interactive web displays generated by a media provider system, provides pre-generated presentation materials, such as a digital slide presentation, to the media provider system, as well as live audio or video during the presentation. The moderator controls flow and termination of the presentation using an interactive control display screen generated by the media provider system.
Access to a scheduled: presentation event may be public or limited to a group of invitees selected by the moderator. The media provider system sends out Email invitations to attendees, including a password if one has been assigned, and sends out reminders to both the moderator and attendees shortly before the designated time for the scheduled event. At the time of presentation, the media provider system generates an interactive control screen for display at the moderator, receives presentation control commands from the moderator, xe2x80x9cpushesxe2x80x9d previously stored presentation materials in accordance with input control commands, and transmits streamed audio or video to the attendees.
In another embodiment, the moderator and attendees exchange voice communication during a scheduled presentation via a two way phone bridge.
Advantageously, the present invention allows automated scheduling, preparation, media streaming, and media pushes, thereby offering a low cost solution to video/audio conferencing. The present invention may be implemented in an Internet environment, or as part of a businesses Intranet to create a forum for web-based training and conferences.

System and method for xe2x80x9cOpen Mikexe2x80x9d network-based communication


In a cryptographic method between a portable data carrier and a terminal device there are employed a public data-carrier key and a secret data-carrier key of the data carrier as well as a public terminal key and a secret terminal key of the terminal device. The data carrier employs as a public data-carrier key a static public key. As a secret data-carrier key the data carrier employs a secret key that is derived from a secret basic key associated with the public data-carrier key. Within the framework of the method, the terminal device checks an authentication parameter associated with the data carrier and different from the data-carrier keys.

The present invention relates to a cryptographic method between a portable data carrier and a terminal device, and to an accordingly adapted data carrier and a terminal device.
A portable data carrier, for example in the form of an electronic identity document, comprises an integrated circuit with a processor and a memory. The memory stores data relating to a user of the data carrier. On the processor there can be executed a cryptography application via which the data carrier can set up a secure communication connection with the terminal device. Further, the cryptography device can support an authentication of the data carrier to the terminal device, in the case of an identity document for example upon a border control or the like.
During such a cryptographic method, a secure data communication between the data carrier and the terminal device is prepared by a secret communication key for symmetric encryption of a subsequent data communication being agreed on, for example by means of the well-known Diffie-Hellman key exchange method or other suitable methods. Further, at least the terminal device normally verifies the authenticity of the data carrier, for example using a certificate.
For carrying out a method for agreeing on the secret communication key, it is necessary that the terminal as well as the data carrier respectively supply a secret key and a public key. The certificate of the data carrier can relate for example to its public key.
Different methods and protocols are known which support the setup of a secure communication connection between a portable data carrier and a terminal device. A key exchange method based on session-specifically dynamically generated keys can be additionally secured in a password-based manner. The password used may be a secret datum, for example a PIN, a biometric feature, e.g. a fingerprint, or the like. The password is normally stored in the data carrier, on the one hand, and supplied to the terminal device in a suitable manner in the course of the method, on the other hand. The password can be input to the terminal device e.g. by a user of the data carrier by means of an input device, for example by means of a keyboard, a sensor for biometric data, or the like. According to another embodiment, the password, for example a PIN, can be applied to the data carrier so as to be optically readable and be sensed accordingly by the terminal device. Thus it is ensured that a legitimate user of the data carrier approves the use of the data carrier within the framework of the method, by inputting the password or at least presenting the data carrier such that the password can be read out by the terminal device. An unwanted data communication, for example by contactless means, can thus be ruled out. However, such a method does not enable a mutual authentication of data carrier and terminal.
Known methods for authenticating a data carrier to the terminal device or for authenticating the terminal device to the data carrier cannot provide the security of password-based methods, however. Such authentication methods are based for example on the employment of digital certificates.


A system for adjusting the height of automobile vehicle seats having an arm of the mechanism which is hinged on a support around a hinge shaft. It is formed of two elements connected by a pivot and at least a connecting member with a predetermined rupture load. One of the elements includes a main set of teeth in the form of an arc of a circle centred on the hinge shaft and the other element includes a secondary set of teeth with same centre. A pinion located between the two sets of teeth meshes only with the main set of teeth when the two elements of the arm are securely attached. In case of an excessive load on the arm, the connection is broken and the secondary set of teeth meshes with the pinion subsequent to the relative pivoting of the two elements and prevents the rotation of the pinion.

Such mechanisms are in particular used for automobile vehicle seats for adjusting the height of these seats. In such an application, the seat is attached to the floor of the vehicle or, more precisely, to the slides attached to the floor, for adjusting the forward-rearward position of the seat, by links hinged on the seat and the said slides respectively. These links are more or less parallel and comprise the two sides of a deformable quadrilateral of a form close to that of a parallelogram. The pivoting of these links therefore especially causes a vertical movement of the seat. Conventionally, only one of these links is comprised of an arm of the type concerned by the invention where the pivoting is controlled, the other link necessarily following the movement of the controlled arm. Seat height adjustment is achieved by rotating the pinion of the mechanism which causes, by meshing with the toothed segment, the pivoting of the hinged arm and therefore a vertical movement of the seat. Conventionally, the drive pinion is installed on the seat, the center of curvature of the circular toothed segment then being located at arm hinge axis on the seat. The operation would however be similar if the center of the toothed segment was located at the hinge axis of the arm on the slide and if the pinion was installed on the said slide.
We know of a seat height adjustment system including such an arm equipped with a toothed segment with external teeth. The pinion meshing with this toothed segment is rotated either manually, or by an electric motor and a reduction gear. On account of the reversibility of the pinion-toothed segment system, the seat is held in the position selected by the user by means ensuring the rotational locking of the said pinion. When control is ensured by motor and reduction gear, this locking can be ensured for example by means of an unreversible reduction gear, for example of the worm screw type. The rotational locking of the pinion can also be ensured by locks. Seat height adjustment systems also exist where the seat is pushed upwards by a spring. In this case, the pinion does not drive the toothed segment but only locks it in position. Adjustment is achieved, after having unlocked the pinion, by pressing the seat against the action on the spring, or by retaining it, until desired position is reached and retention in selected position is ensured by then relocking the pinion.
In all cases, the loads exerted on the seat and retransmitted to the links and the floor connecting arm are supported by the pinion locking means. These loads can be very high if the vehicle is subjected to a shock or involved in an accident. The components ensuring this locking must therefore be oversized, to avoid the rotation of the pinion under the effect of the torque generated by these loads, in comparison with that which would be sufficient in terms of mechanical strength to ensure the normal operation of the mechanism. The result is substantial overall dimensions and weight for these items and high costs.

Mechanism for adjusting the angular position of an arm hinged on a support


A programmable cooking system has a programming mode for reading an identifying code on a food product and for storing a user selected recipe as a function of the code. The system also has a cooking mode for reading an identifying code on a food product and for recalling and implementing a recipe stored for the code during the programming mode. The system includes an optical code reader for reading the code. A keypad is used by the operator to input recipes during the programming mode and to input cooking variables during the cooking mode. A microprocessor stores and recalls the identifying codes and recipes in a compressed format and controls the operation of a cooking device, such as a microwave oven.

The present invention relates to a recipe implementation system for a cooking device and, more particularly, to a programmable recipe implementation system for automatically controlling the operation of a microwave oven according to a recipe input by the user and stored as a function of an identifying code commonly found on food products.
Recipe implementation systems have been used with cooking devices in past applications. However, they have required the user to maintain a recipe book and they have not allowed the user to implement original recipes. For instance, Edamula in U.S. Pat. No. 4,837,414 and Edamura in U.S. Pat. No. 4,816,635 show a cookbook containing coded recipes which may be scanned into the system for controlling a microwave oven. Accordingly, there is a need for a programmable recipe implementation system for a cooking device which allows the user to implement original recipes without resort to cookbooks.

Oven controlled by an optical code reader


According to one embodiment, a substrate processing device includes a stage configured to mount a substrate, a mold having a first surface facing an upper surface of an outer peripheral edge of the substrate and a second surface facing a side surface of an outer peripheral continuous with the upper surface of the outer peripheral edge, a mold moving mechanism configured to move the mold to bring the first surface close to the upper surface of the outer peripheral edge of the substrate and the second surface close to the side surface of the outer peripheral of the substrate, and a nozzle arranged in the mold, wherein the nozzle ejects resist.

In the process of manufacturing a semiconductor device, a plurality of layers of a thin film is formed on a semiconductor wafer, a patterned resist is formed thereon, and the thin film is etched by reactive ion etching using the resist as a mask. The thin film exposed by such reactive ion etching may be further subjected to wet etching.


A field emission electron source capable of achieving large current density is provided at low cost with good productivity. An insulating layer is formed on a substrate and has one or more openings; and an extraction electrode is formed on the insulating layer. In one or more of the openings, a plurality of emitters, each of which emits an electron by an electric field from the extraction electrode, are formed on the substrate.

In accordance with the development of fine processing technology of semiconductors, the formation of micro field emission cathodes becomes possible. Spindt et al. proposed a cone type electron emission cathode, so that a micro field emission electron source has drawn attention (reference document 1: C. A. Spindt, J. Appl. Phys. Vol. 39, p. 3504 (1968)).
A structure and manufacturing method of a field emission cathode proposed by Spindt is shown as a first conventional example in FIGS. 11A to 11D.
Referring to FIG. 11A, on the surface of a conductive substrate 101, an insulating layer 102 and a metal film 103 that functions as a gate are formed in this order. Then, a small opening 104 penetrating the metal film 103 and the insulating layer 102 to expose the conductive substrate 101 is formed by a general photolithography process.
Referring to FIG. 11B, then, a sacrificial layer 105 made of alumina is vapor-deposited at a shallow angle with respect to the substrate 101 so as to cover the metal film 103. With this step, the opening diameter of a gate formed by the metal film 103 is reduced.
Referring to FIG. 11C, thereafter, a metal 106 such as molybdenum that becomes an emitter is vapor-deposited perpendicular to the substrate 101. Since the opening diameter of the gate is reduced when vapor deposition is carried out, a cone-shaped emitter (cathode) 107 is formed inside the small opening 104.
Referring to FIG. 11D, then the unnecessary sacrificial layer 105 and metal 106 are removed by a lift-off method by etching with respect to the sacrificial layer 105. This device is operated by emitting an electron into vacuum by applying an electric voltage to a metal film 103 from the tip of the emitter 107 and receiving the emitted electrode with an anode electrode (positive electrode) (not shown) additionally disposed opposite to the emitter 107.
Thereafter, there have been proposed methods for forming a cold cathode having the similar vertical structure with the tip of the emitter sharper by using a crystal anisotropy etching of silicon or dry etching and thermal oxidation (reference document 2: H. F. Gray et al., IEDM Tech Dig. P. 776 (1986); reference document 3: Betsui, "Digest of the conference of The Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers, Autumn, 1990, SC-8-2(1990)"). A structure and manufacturing method of a field emission cathode proposed by Betsui et al. is shown as a second conventional example in FIG. 12A to 12E.
Referring to FIG. 12A, on a silicon substrate 111, an oxide film 112 is formed. Referring to FIG. 12B, by using this oxide film 112, a disk-shaped etching mask 113 is formed by a photolithography process.
Referring to FIG. 12C, then, a tapered three-dimensional shaped portion 114 is formed under the etching mask 113 by carrying out a dry etching under the conditions where side etching is present. Furthermore, by carrying out thermal oxidation, the periphery of the three-dimensional shape portion 114 is changed into a thermal oxide film 115. Thereby, a cone-shaped portion 116 made of silicon is formed inside.
Referring to FIG. 12D, an insulating film 117 such as an oxide silicon film and a metal film 118 that functions as a gate electrode are vapor-deposited in the direction perpendicular to the surface of the substrate 111, thereby attaching the insulating film 117 and the metal film 118 onto the etching mask 113 and the thermal oxide film 115.
Referring to FIG. 12E, finally by soaking in hydrofluoric acid, a thermal oxide film 115 in the vicinity of a cone-shaped portion 116 is removed, and at the same time, the etching mask 113 to which the insulating film 117 and the metal film 118 are attached is removed, thereby forming an electron source having a structure similar to the structure of the above-mentioned Spindt type electron source.
This electron source is operated by applying an electric voltage to the metal film 118 that functions as a gate electrode so as to emit electron into vacuum from the tip 119 of the cone-shaped emitter 116, and receiving the emitted electrode with an anode electrode (positive electrode) (not shown) additionally disposed opposite to the emitter 116.
On the other hand, the present inventor group has proposed a tower-shaped electron source capable of operating at lower voltage (see, EP 637050A2). A manufacturing method of this towered-shaped electron source is shown as a third conventional example in FIG. 13A to 13H.
Referring to FIG. 13A, an oxide silicon film is formed on a (100) surface of a silicon crystal substrate 121 by a thermal oxidation method, and processed into a disk-shaped micro etching mask 122B having a diameter of 1 μm or less by photolithography.
Referring to FIG. 13B, then, by carrying out anisotropic dry etching with respect to the silicon substrate 121 using the micro etching mask 122B, a cylindrical body 124A made of silicon is formed under the micro etching mask 122B.
Referring to FIG. 13C, thereafter, by carrying out crystal anisotropic etching with respect to this cylindrical body 124A, a drum-shaped body 124B with a side face formed of a surface including (331) face and a top portion including a pair of opposite cylindrical bodies is formed.
Referring to FIG. 13D, then, a thin first thermal oxide film 125 is formed on the upper side of the drum-shaped body 124B and on the surfaces of the silicon substrate 121. Referring to FIG. 13E, thereafter, by carrying out an anisotropic dry etching with respect to a silicon substrate 121 by using a micro etching mask 122B, a column shaped body 124C is formed under the drum-shaped body 124B.
Referring to FIG. 13F, then, by a thermal oxidation method, on the surfaces of the drum-shaped column body 124C (FIG. 13E) and the silicon substrate 121, a second thermal oxide film 126 is formed. Thereby, inside the drum-shaped column 124C, a tower-shaped cathode 127 having a micro diameter and a steep tip portion is formed.
Referring to FIG. 13G, on the etching mask 122B and on the substrate 121 in the vicinity of the micro etching mask 122B, an insulating film 128 and a metal film 129 are sequentially deposited by vapor deposition.
Referring to FIG. 13H, furthermore, by carrying out wet etching with respect to a second thermal oxide film 126, the micro etching mask 122B and the insulating film 128 and metal film 129 formed on the micro etching mask 122B are removed. Thereby, the tower-shaped cathode 127 is exposed and at the same time, an extraction electrode 129A made of metal film having the same size as the inner diameter of the micro etching mask 122B is formed.
Since the electron source shown in the first to third conventional examples mentioned above has a micro diameter of a gate opening, a field emission current can be obtained with a relatively low voltage.
Furthermore, for the purpose of increasing the emission current, the present inventor group has proposed an electron source by forming a porous silicon film on a surface of the convex microstructure by an anodic oxidation method, thereby emitting electrons from micro protruding portions on the surface of the porous silicon film (JP 9 (1997)-270288A). A structure and manufacturing method of the electron source are shown as a fourth conventional example in FIG. 14A to 14E.
Referring to FIG. 14A, on the surface of a silicon substrate 131, a porous silicon layer 132 is formed by an anodic oxidation method. Referring to FIG. 14B, then, on the porous silicon layer 132, an oxide silicon film containing phosphorus is deposited by a CVD method, and furthermore, a disk-shaped etching mask 133 having a radius of about 1 μm is formed thereon by photolithography.
Referring to FIG. 14C, by dry-etching the porous silicon layer 132 and the silicon substrate 131 in the vicinity of the etching mask 133, a convex structure 136 is formed.
Referring to FIG. 14D, a silicon oxide film 134 and a metal electrode 135 are vapor-deposited by using an etching mask 133 as a mask for vapor deposition. Referring to FIG. 14E, finally, by soaking in hydrofluoric acid, the etching mask 133 is dissolved so as to remove the oxide silicon film 134 and the metal electrode 135 deposited on the etching mask 133. Thus, an electron source is completed.
In this case, by applying a voltage between the silicon substrate 131 and a metal electrode 135, an electric field is concentrated on the protruding tip on the surface of the porous silicon layer 132 formed by anodic oxidation and electrons are emitted. According to this method, on the surface of the porous silicon layer 132 formed inside the open portion of the metal electrode 135, substantially numerous protruding portions, which are formed by an anodic oxidation step, are formed, and electron beams are emitted from a large number of protruding portions. Thus, a field emission electron source with a large current density can be obtained.
However, in the electron sources described in the first to third conventional examples, in order to increase the current density, gate open portions corresponding to each emitter were required to be arranged in an array at high density. In these electron sources, since space between the emitters are separated from each other by an insulating layer, when the pitches between the opening portions are narrowed in order to increase the density of the emitter arrangement, the insulating layer as a separation wall becomes thin. Therefore, gate electrode may be peeled off.
When the film thickness of the insulating layer is made to be thin, the problem may be avoided. However, since the resistant voltage of the insulating layer is reduced, a voltage sufficient to extract electrodes cannot be applied. As a result, large current cannot be obtained.
On the other hand, in the fourth conventional example mentioned above, since a general semiconductor manufacturing line does not have an anodic oxidation step, this step is required to be added, thus increasing the cost. In addition, sufficient evaluation and analysis, etc. of the effect on the other steps is required. Furthermore, when the anodic oxidation step is actually added, many problems about mass production, for example, controllability of the anodic oxidation step and uniformity of the surface of the porous silicon layer, etc., have to be clarified.

Field emission source with plural emitters in an opening

National instutute of advanced industrial science and technology


A digital monitoring device for monitoring an analog gauge including a pointer, the digital monitoring device comprising: a pixilated optical sensor array for mounting over the analog gauge to generate a digital signal corresponding to movement of the pointer; an image processing means for reading the pointer of the analog gauge from the electrical signals from the pixilated array, and an alert output for outputting an alert corresponding to pointer exceeding acceptable boundaries.

Analog gauges, otherwise known as meters or "clocks" have a pointer that sweeps across a dial in response to a monitored parameter. In time clocks, the hour hand of an analog clock goes around the clock face as the Earth rotates around its axis, or, from the viewer on Earth, as the Sun crosses the heavens.
In vehicles, for example, analog gauges that resemble clocks include fuel and temperature gauges, rev counters, speedometers, and the like. In such analog gauges, a needle or pointer moves across a linear scale, between a first extreme indicative of zero, signifying that the measured parameter is zero, be it an empty fuel tank, a cold engine, zero rev (revolution, i.e. pumping cycle of crankshaft) or zero speed, and a second extreme, or full scale deflection, that is indicative of full fuel tank, over heated engine, dangerously high revs, maximum speed, and the like.
Analog gauges are also used in airplanes and boats, and are also widely used in industry, to monitor temperature, pressures, flow rates and the like.
With reference to an analog vehicle speedometer, using such a gauge to visually monitor the speed of a vehicle may have many disadvantages. For example, if the driver looks at the speedometer to monitor his speed rather than concentrating on occurrences on the road, the driver is at least momentarily distracted and does not pay full attention to events happening on the road. The likelihood of an accident is increased. The process of repeatedly looking down at the various gauges, even if it is done only intermittently, is a wearing task and contributes to fatigue, especially on long rides. However, drivers who do not check the speed of their vehicle frequently may exceed the speed limit, or safe driving speeds. A driver inadvertently relaxing while driving might press more heavily on the accelerator pedal or reducing pressure, thereby increasing or decreasing the speed of the vehicle, without any warning being activated on such occasions. An alert such as an audible alarm noise, or some other indication regarding a velocity exceeding a predefined limit is, therefore, of great importance, and it will thus be appreciated that monitoring such clocks and gauges automatically and providing an audible or visual alert may improve driving safety, would help the driver to stay alert, improve confidence and keep driver focused on the road.
There is therefore, a need for a practical implementation of a device or system for monitoring gauges such as speedometers. Such an implementation should be retrofittable and should avoid interfering with the mechanical components of the vehicle, both to avoid damage and to prevent affecting the vehicle's warranty and/or insurance.
Prior art devices apparently do not satisfactorily address the problems involved in such systems. For example:
U.S. Pat. No. 6,748,322 to Fernandez, entitled "Speed monitoring device for motor vehicles" relates to a system for monitoring the speed and location of a vehicle over a given area by using a global positioning system and comparing the position fix and speed against a computerized map for the area containing predetermined limits for the speed and territory over predetermined times and days of the week. If a limit is exceeded the position fix and speed information is stored along with the time when it took place. The stored information can be optionally transmitted to a remote location for further processing. Also, alarm circuits are provided inside the vehicle to selectively alert the occupants that a limit has been exceeded.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,728,605 to Lash et al., entitled "Vehicle speed monitoring system and method" relates to a vehicle speed monitoring device which enables a driver to enter a speed tolerance profile that represents the driver's personal travel speed preferences and which alerts the driver when the vehicle speed falls outside the speed tolerance profile. Specifically, the speed tolerance profile consists of a number of speed tolerance ranges, each associated with a particular posted speed limit. As the vehicle travels through various map zones, the applicable posted speed limit is determined using a customized GPS map. The device determines the vehicle location, speed and the posted speed limit and then compares the vehicle speed using a running average to see whether vehicle speed is within the driver's speed tolerance profile, and, if not, the device provides the driver with a visual and/or audible warning according to the driver's operational preferences.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,515,596 to Awada, entitled "Speed limit display in a vehicle" relates to a method and apparatus for reporting a posted speed limit to the driver of a vehicle. The position of the vehicle is determined using a GPS receiver or triangulation of cellular telephone signals. The position is used to retrieve speed limit or other information from a database. The information is then reported to the driver. A technique is also disclosed for comparing the actual speed of the vehicle with the posted speed limit and issuing a warning to the driver when the posted speed limit is exceeded. All the above systems rely on GPS technology and can only work where GPS is supported.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,095,553 to Ono et al., entitled "Speedometer with an exceeding speed warning device" describes a lever fixed to a metal cap or speed cup of a speedometer that is vibratably engageable with projections provided on a rotating ring member when a speed pointer rotatable with the metal cap deflects beyond a predetermined maximum index, so that the speed pointer is vibrated to give a warning to the vehicle driver. The device described is a speedometer that might be provided with a vehicle, or retrofitted by a skilled mechanic to an existing vehicle, in lieu of the speedometer provided. It is not a device that can be easily retrofitted by a driver. The device does not address the issue of such gauges being distracting to the driver.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,980,041 to Evans, entitled "Speedometer with speed warning indicator and method of providing the same" describes an improved speed warning indicator for a speedometer comprises a transparent plate such as a transparent decal, having means such as an attached transparent plastic sheet bearing adhesive for attaching it to the transparent face cover of a speedometer casing containing a speedometer dial. The plate bears indicia, such as color and/or a plurality of spaced lines, etc. demarking the plate and the speedometer dial viewed through the plate, thereby indicating a speed warning on the dial while still permitting unobstructed viewing of all of the dial. Preferably, the plate is configured and dimensioned to overlie only a portion of the cover and dial so as to more clearly provide the speed warning. The plate can be affixed, in accordance with the present method, to the face cover of a fully assembled speedometer so as to provide very easily, simply and effectively, the improved speedometer of the invention. Though perhaps making the display of the speedometer easier to read, such a device has all the limitations of conventional speedometers, described hereinabove.
UK Patent Application No. 2,384,603 to Matharu, entitled "A speed alert device" describes a stick-like speed alert device that may be attached to the clock glass of a speedometer using vacuum suckers. The device includes a battery (dry cell), a proximity sensor and a buzzer and provides a buzzing noise when it detects that the needle (pointer) of the speedometer passes therebeneath. The device lacks enablement in that no explanation is given of how the proximity sensor senses a speedometer needle in its proximity. Additionally, such a tall protrusion extending from the speedometer, may, in itself, be a distraction to the driver, particularly since, of necessity, it is mounted off center, and ruins the symmetry of the dashboard.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,094,615 to Park, entitled "Speed limit control system and method for vehicles" describes a speed limit control system and method for vehicles, which can control both the amount of fuel injection and ignition timing of an engine so as to restrict speed more than a regulation speed. The system includes a vehicle speed sensor for generating electronic signals in accordance with an actual vehicle speed; a control device for judging the actual vehicle speed in accordance with signals from the vehicle speed sensor, outputting control signals for controlling ignition timing of an engine and the amount of the fuel injection in accordance with the speed variation in order not to exceed a predetermined regulation speed; an ignition device for igniting at a predetermined timing by signals, the signals being transferred from the engine control device; and an injection device for injecting the predetermined amount of fuel by signals, the signals being transferred from the engine control device. The system described monitors the revolution of the wheels of the vehicle directly using a magnetic sensor means and directly controls the speed. Such a system is expensive and limiting to the driver, and is difficult to override.
Dutch Patent Number NL 1008348C to George et al. entitled "an accessory for a vehicle speedometer" describes a retrofittable accessory that is attachable to the transparent cover plate of the speedometer by a suction pad. The accessory is positioned over the axis of rotation of the speedometer needle. The sensor is fitted to the end of a hinged radial carrier that is aligned with the required speed graduation and is then clamped. If the needle passes under the sensor, the sensor output triggers a circuit which produces an audible waning, which may be spoken message, such as "too fast". The sensor may be moved from one position to another, but this has to be done manually. Such a system is good to set at the speed-limit before motorway cruising, for example, but cannot be readily used for providing appropriate warnings on different roads, such as in-town, inter-city and motor way.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,659,290 to Haeri, entitled "Speed minder", relates to a universal device for vehicles which measures the speed of the vehicle and continuously displays the speed on a digital readout display located in the vicinity of the dashboard of the vehicle. A separate digital switch integrated into the circuitry of the device is used to pre-set a reference speed to a desired value. As the vehicle's actual speed exceeds this pre-set reference value, a buzzer sounds and/or the speed display flashes off and on to alert the driver that he has exceeded the pre-set speed. When the vehicle speed falls below the pre-set limit, the buzzer and flashing stops and the device acts as a regular digital speedometer. The device is adjustable, thus enabling it to be used on a wide variety of vehicles.
Haeri's sensing means is a magnetic proximity sensor that comprises a reed switch sensor surrounded by a non-magnetic metal sleeve, made, for example, from copper, aluminum, etc. The sensor requires that the pointer of the speedometer be ferro-magnetic. For weight minimization, such pointers are, however, frequently plastic or aluminium.
French Patent 9504565 to Bruch, entitled "Avertisseur de vitesse" and French Patent 89 13871 to Poulain, entitled "Procede de detection du positionnement relatif d'un indicateur a aiguille, et dispositif electronique permettant de la mettre en oeuvre" both describe sensors for sensing the position of the needle of a speedometer. Apparently a light source is provided for illuminating a spot thereunder, and the passage of the needle is detected by a change in the signal.
The sensors described by Haeri, Bruch and Poulain, like many others described hereinabove, are capable of providing simple yes/no information regarding passage of a pointer thereunder, and does not allow tracking of the pointer, or monitoring at two speeds, for example.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,554,970 to Mottahedeh, entitled "Speed alert system for an automobile" describes a speed alarm system for an automobile comprised of a first circular disk having a semi-circular electronic indicator grid formed around an outer periphery thereof. The first circular disk is rotatably positioned on a speedometer relay of an automobile and coupled thereto by a knob portion. A second circular disk has a circular recess formed therein inwardly of an outer periphery thereof. The second circular disk is positionable through an upper portion of the knob portion whereby the semi-circular electronic grid of the first circular disk is in selective alignment with the circular recess of the second circular disk. An indicating needle has a first end rotatably coupled with the upper portion of the knob portion. A second end has a magnetic portion extending downwardly through the circular recess of the second circular disk. A speaker has wiring extending outwardly thereof to couple with the existing speedometer relay of the automobile and with the semi-circular electronic grid of the first circular disk. The device to Motadeh appears to be a replacement for the traditional speedometer, requiring fitting by a skilled mechanic.
GB Patent No. 2,360,582 to Herrington, entitled "Vehicle excessive speed monitor" describes a monitor for warning a driver of excessive speed or revs. The monitor has a light source in a housing that is attached to the clear screen above a vehicle instrument panel by adhesive or suction cups. Behind the light source is the monitoring circuitry, a battery, and an audible warning device that produces an audible tone to alert the driver when the light beam is broken by the speedometer or rev counter needle. The monitor is detachable and may be positioned for a particular speed limit, e.g. 30 mph.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,600,409 to Cohen, entitled "Signaling self-contained add-on accessory for an analog metering device such as a speedometer and secondary device" relates to a self-contained accessory for an analog metering device such as a speedometer or tachometer. The accessory includes a sensor which is selectively adjustable to align with a plurality of positions in the range of movement of an output needle of the analog metering device. In the preferred embodiment, the sensor is alignable with gradation marks, e.g., miles per hour indicia on a speedometer, and the accessory provides a signal when a needle reaches a selected gradation. The signal is sent to a secondary device, such as a radar detector or central monitoring system. The signal may also be used to provide an indication that alerts a user that a selected gradation has been reached by an output needle of the analog metering device. The accessory attaches to a cover of the analog metering device and allows adjustment of sensor position without removal of the accessory from the cover. A preferred radar detector uses the signal to effect a modified operation where some functions of the radar detector are responsive to the signal of the accessory. The device described is essentially a self-contained add-on accessory for an analog metering device, that has a needle with a sensor that detects the alignment of the needle of accessory with needle of metering device.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,310,544 to Cohen, entitled "Self-contained add-on accessory for an analog metering device such as a speedometer or tachometer" relates to a self-contained add-on accessory for an analog metering device having a moving needle as an indicator of a measured output parameter, the accessory comprising: a housing dimensioned to fit on a portion of a cover of the analog metering device without obscuring gradation marks on a face of the analog metering device; a selectively adjustable member extending from the housing and alignable with a plurality of different gradation marks on the face of the analog metering device; a sensor mounted in associated with said selectively adjustable member to detect when an output needle of the analog metering device reaches a gradation on the face of the analog device with which said selectively adjustable member has been aligned; and a power source within said housing for powering said sensor.
Despite the crowded art, there is still a need for a device for automatically reading analog gauges such as speedometers, and the present invention addresses this need.


A cryptographic proxy service may be provided. Upon determining that data associated with a network destination comprises at least some sensitive data, a cryptographic service may provide a security certificate associated with the network destination. The plurality of data may be encrypted according to the security certificate associated with the network destination and provided to the cryptographic service for re-encryption and transmission to the network destination.

A cryptographic proxy service for network traffic may be provided. In increasing numbers of situations, individuals and enterprises desire for their network traffic to be encrypted between the source and destination. For example, users want their email, instant messages (IMs), social media posts, web pages, etc. to be encrypted to prevent third parties from seeing the contents and topics on which they are communicating. Conventional solutions offer the use of certificates and cryptographic key pairs, but these solutions require specific set up by the user before they can be utilized and a separate setup process must be undergone for each destination site.


The apparatus of the present invention provides a stator for an electric motor. The apparatus includes a plurality of stator components assembled together to form a generally annular stator core. A wire is wrapped around at least a portion of the stator core to form a stator winding. A first generally annular end plate and a second generally annular end plate are mounted to axially opposite sides of the stator core such that the stator core is axially trapped and retained therebetween. A fastener applies a clamping load to the first and second end plates such that the stator core is compressed therebetween. The clamping load from the fastener is applied directly to the first and second end plates which distribute the clamping load to the stator core such that the plurality of components are held together without the fastener directly applying the clamping load to the stator core. A corresponding method for providing a stator is similarly provided.

It is known to construct an electric motor using three or more concentrated windings wherein one or more of the windings are provided for each of three electrical phases. These windings can distribute magnetic flux to multiple poles of the stator in the electric motor. Such a motor is three-dimensional, in that the magnetic flux passing through the concentrated winding is conducted both around the circumference and along the axis of the motor in the stator.
Manufacturing and assembling a three-phase electric motor includes producing a plurality of motor components having relatively complex geometries, and performing additional processing steps such as, for example, winding the stator wire around the stator core teeth in a predefined pattern. In an effort to reduce manufacturing costs, a plurality of component segments may be pre-formed and assembled together to produce the motor.

Stator for an electric motor and assembly method