An effective means for building an interlocking trees datastore from multiple data sources that contained within the datastore the knowledge of the origin of the data was needed, and is thus described herein. Should it be desired or necessary to identify the different sources of data within the Kstore data structure, the present invention teaches how an additional field for the origin of the data is created, how the origin of the data is stored in that newly created field, and how the interlocking trees data store takes that field and creates nodes within the structure, therefore embedding the origin information within the knowledge contained in the Kstore data structure.

We have developed a system and various methods for creating and using interlocking trees datastores. In particular, these structures and methods have been described in patent applications U.S. Ser. Nos. 10/385,421, (now published as US 20040181547 A1) and 10/666,382, by inventor Mazzagatti. Additionally, we described a system in which such interlocking trees datastores could more effectively be used in U.S. Ser. No. 10/879,329. All of these three patent documents are hereby incorporated herein in their respective entireties by this reference to them. While the system and method we describe in this patent relate with particularity to the specific interlocking trees datastores which inventor Mazzagatti hereof described in the above-referenced patent (applications), the system and methods described herein may also be applicable to similar structures.
While the interlocking trees datastores structure created by the system originally described in co-pending patent application U.S. Ser. No. 10/385,421, and the means for the Learn Engine taught in co-pending patent application U.S. Ser. No. 10/879,329 to allow the interlocking trees datastore to accept multiple inputs, provides many useful traits for understanding the inventions described, heretofore there has been a fundamental limit on its usefulness.
As taught by copending application U.S. Ser. No. 10/879,329, the Kstore Learn Engine can accept multiple sources of input such as sales transactions from different registers, or sales transactions from registers and purchase data from inventory, but, in order for the interlocking trees datastore (hereinafter 'Kstore' or 'interlocking trees datastore', or 'K', to be used interchangeably) to distinguish between multiple sources of data input, the associated data source information for the Kstore indicating the source of data input was taught to be stored outside of the Kstore structure. Under certain operating conditions or optimal configurations of the Kstore, such as when there are multiple types of data sources, it may be important that the distinction between the origins of individual data items be included within the knowledge of the Kstore data structure.
Given that the data structure did not exist prior to the teaching of the applications lists above, there did not exist a solution for including the knowledge of the sources of data within the Kstore structure as taught by the prior art. Accordingly, a new method of identifying the sources of multiple data sources within the Kstore data structure was designed. Therefore, the ability to include the distinction between multiple data sources in the Kstore was unavailable prior to this invention.
It should be clear that a single KStore data structure may contain data from multiple sources. If the data from the different sources is the same, for example sales transaction records from different cash registers in the same store, there may be no problem in determining any knowledge one might want from the data. If however the data from each source is different, for example sales transaction data from cash registers and product purchase data from inventory, or, if one wants to distinguish which data stream came from which cash register, it may be important that the distinction between the origins of individual data items be included in the knowledge of the KStore data structure in order to interpret the data when later querying the KStore.
For purposes of definition for this document, a data stream is considered all input from a data source, and preferably it will be sequential input of data from a data source. A sequence within such a stream may be a record, consisting of field variables and delimiters, or a sequence can be a text of a book if the stream is a library of books, or a sequence could be an image file in a portfolio of image files, or a sequence could be a tune in a jukebox. Generally we refer to sequences as records in a data stream but they could be any convenient segment of the data stream.

Storing the repository origin of data inputs within a knowledge store


An apparatus and method for a secondary game of a wagering gaming system, and particularly the increase of an award in the secondary game by the value of different multipliers associated with different amounts wagered in a primary game. A secondary game provides a total award to a player based on the multiplier associated with the wagered amount in the primary game by applying the multiplier to the amount of the award earned by the player in the secondary game. A particular wagerable amount may be associated with a multiplier that is predetermined, or randomly selected from a group of predefined multipliers, or selected from a group based on a probability. The range of possible combinations of wagerable amounts and multipliers are displayed to the player in the base game to provide an incentive to maximize the wager.

Gaming devices such as slot machines have achieved a predominant presence in the gaming industry. A measure of their success can be attributed to the creative ways of providing an award to a player making a wager of value and the accompanying audio and visual presentations to create a unique, thematic, and exciting gaming experience for the player. Slot machines are no longer limited to a base game of pulling a handle to spin reels in order to line up winning symbols on a single payline. Gaming devices now have bonus games, bonus symbols, and other ways of winning or increasing an award, thereby, increasing the excitement for the player.
The secondary or bonus game can be an extension of the primary or base game or a separate game altogether with a different theme. Besides generating an award in the base game, the presence of a particular symbol or predetermined combination of symbols on a payline may also initiate a bonus game. This triggering event temporarily stalls the base game and transitions from the base game to the bonus game. The bonus game usually provides an award to a player based on play in the bonus game producing a significantly higher level of player excitement than the base game. The bonus game may also be accompanied by more attractive or unique video displays and audio performances. Upon the completion of the bonus game, the player is returned to the base game.
Known slot games have ways for the base game to increase a bonus game award or average expected award or value. One way in which the bonus game award is increased is determined by the method in which the bonus game is initiated. For example, certain wins in bonus games that are triggered by line wins are multiplied by the amount wagered for that line.
One of the ways of providing a larger award to the player is through the use of multipliers. A multiplier increases the award amount in proportion to the value of the multiplier. For example, a "2×" multiplier pays twice the normal award value. A "3×" multiplier pays three times the normal award value. Thus, a multiplier can substantially increase a player's award. It should be appreciated that multipliers are an effective means of substantially increasing an award and elevating a player's level of excitement and enjoyment.
Among other scenarios, multipliers can be randomly generated, appear in a winning combination, or be awarded based on the amount of the player's wager. Moreover, the presence of a multiplier symbol may increase the award earned in an immediate event by the value of the multiplier or be applied to later portions of the game. U.S. Pat. No. 6,004,207, for example, discloses a game that employs an incrementing multiplier that increases throughout the game according to the generation of certain symbols or symbol combinations on the reels and in conjunction with the player betting the maximum amount.
It is desirable for a gaming device to provide an opportunity for the player to enhance the bonus game award based on an increased base game wager and effectively communicate that opportunity to the player in the base game. It has been described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,155,925 to base an increase in the probability of whining in the bonus game on the amount of the wager in the base game according to a series of complex paytables. However, a multiplier advertised in the base game and applied directly to the bonus game award would allow a player to more easily understand the advantages in a bonus game based on the player's wager in the base game.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Gaming device having a graduated multiplier payout in a secondary game


The invention relates to a control unit for controlling the expansion valve of a refrigeration or air conditioning system, comprising a temperature sensor that is connected upstream of the expansion valve in the coolant circuit. If the control unit detects a decrease in temperature of the aforementioned temperature sensor, which is generally caused by the start of a defrosting process, it displaces the expansion valve into a static state, to protect said valve during the defrosting process.

The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Refrigeration and air conditioning systems of the aforesaid type, whose coolant circuit also has a compressor and a liquefier in addition to the expansion valve and the evaporator, are known in the most varied embodiments from the prior art and are used, for example, for the cooling of food or for the air conditioning of rooms. It is necessary for a continuous, efficient and problem-free operation of refrigeration and air conditioning systems of this type to regularly defrost the evaporators which are used in each case and which ice during operation. It is an aim in this process to carry out the defrosting procedure as fast as possible in order not to expose food cooled in a refrigeration system, for example, to increased temperatures for an unnecessarily long time.
During the defrosting procedure, the coolant flow present in the coolant circuit has to be diverted or interrupted by means of hot gas or cold gas during the defrosting in order thus to make it possible for the hot gas or cold gas used for the defrosting to be able to be guided through the evaporator and optionally through the expansion valve. When defrosting via the ambient air or via an electrical defrost heating, the coolant flow does not necessarily have to be diverted, but must at least be interrupted so that the evaporator is not cooled by the coolant during the defrosting procedure, which would counteract the defrosting procedure.
The interruption or diversion of the coolant flow during the defrosting procedure is usually effected by solenoid valves which are located at a suitable position in the coolant circuit, with the position of the named solenoid valves being able to be disposed either close to the evaporator or also relatively far away from the evaporator in many applications.
It must furthermore be ensured during the defrosting procedure, if electronic expansion valves are used, that the latter are moved into a static state. If, namely, the regulating or control procedure present during normal operation were continued during defrosting, this could result in damage to the expansion valve since the latter is not designed for a dry run present during the defrosting procedure. Furthermore, a control or regulation of the expansion valve continued during the defrosting procedure would result in irritating noise pollution.
It is necessary in this respect that the control device associated with the electronic expansion valve is in each case informed of when a defrosting procedure starts and ends since it can otherwise not move the expansion valve into a static state. If the solenoid valves for the interruption or diversion of the coolant flow during the defrosting procedure are located close to the control and regulation device associated with the expansion valve, an electrical connection can be established between this device and the solenoid valves via which the named information is transmitted. In many applications, however, as already mentioned, the solenoid valves are arranged spatially far away from the control and regulation device associated with the expansion valve so that the establishment of an electrical connection is difficult or associated with a disproportionate effort. An application of this type is present, for example, in a supermarket with a plurality of freezers, where at least one electronic expansion valve is located with its respectively associated control device inside each freezer and the solenoid valves for the interruption or diversion of the coolant flow are accommodated centrally in a control room which is located comparatively far away from the freezers.

Control device for refrigeration or air conditioning systems


The present invention is related to a chair leg rest assembly or kit. The assembly or kit may include, among other things, a leg rest and a frame for extension and retraction of the leg rest. In addition, the invention may include a roller assembly connected to the leg rest for covering the frame. The invention is also related to a combination of the chair leg rest assembly or kit with a chair. In such a combination, the invention also includes a back which hingedly rotates independently from a seat.

Leg rests are well known in chair-related arts as it is common for an individual using a chair to desire to prop his or her feet in a raised position for comfort and relaxation purposes. By raising a user's legs, he or she can effectively redistribute weight while seated, thereby relieving stress, and often times pain, at various locations of his or her body. Raising one's legs is one method of relieving lower back pain.


An encryption/decryption method are described, which includes that a terminal performs an encryption operation according to information of an encryption sub-node of an Encrypt And Decrypt Management Object (EADMO) node of a local Device Management (DM) tree and reports to a DM server encrypted data state information generated after the encryption succeeds; and the terminal performs a decryption operation according to the encrypted data state information sent from the DM server. An encryption/decryption system and device are also described. By means of technical solutions of embodiments of the disclosure, operations are simple without causing data loss, and a problem that data of a non-local terminal cannot be encrypted is solved.

Nowadays, mobile terminals are being used more and more widely, which increases the risk of theft or loss of data stored in mobile terminals. At present, a technical solution for protecting data in a mobile terminal through encryption in the industry has the following problems:
a user fails to encrypt data stored in a mobile terminal that is not carried along;
a process of an encryption operation, which may need to be implemented by connecting a personal computer through a data wire, is too complicated;
decryption operations are complicated if there are too many encrypted files and the encrypted files further need to be hidden or renamed and the like, and besides, data can be hardly recovered if the user forgets a corresponding encryption operation, thus causing loss.

Encryption/decryption method, system and device


A system includes a processor circuit and a computer readable storage medium. The processor circuit may be configured to plug into an on board diagnostic connector of a vehicle. The computer readable storage medium generally embodies computer executable instructions. The computer executable instructions, when executed by the processor circuit, enable the processor circuit to communicate with one or more busses of the vehicle and to communicate navigational information to an auxiliary device.

An automotive global positioning system/global navigation satellite system (GPS/GNSS) with dead reckoning (DR) capability provides accuracy in urban canyons and low signal environments. Conventional mobile smart devices such as cell phones and tablets use GPS/GNSS position information for a variety of applications.
However, the accuracy of the GPS/GNSS position information provided by the smart devices can be reduced when traveling in urban canyons and low signal environments. Battery life of the mobile devices is reduced when on board GPS/GNSS is enabled, especially when the on board GPS/GNSS unit is hunting for satellite signals in urban canyons and low signal environments.
It would be desirable to implement an automotive OBD-II device capable of generating navigational information.

Automotive OBD-II device generating navigational information


A battery pack for a vehicle is provided. The battery pack comprises: at least one battery module including a plurality of secondary battery cells, a metal framework for supporting the at least one battery module, the framework including a plurality of slots extending from a bottom side to an opposing mounting side of the battery pack, and an insert tightly positioned within each slot, the insert being made of a similar material as the framework and including a through-hole adapted for accommodating a fixation element.

In the recent years, vehicles for transportation of goods and peoples have been developed using electric power as a source for motion. Such an electric vehicle is an automobile that is propelled by an electric motor, using energy stored in rechargeable batteries. An electric vehicle may be solely powered by batteries or may be a form of hybrid vehicle powered by for example a gasoline generator. Furthermore, the vehicle may include a combination of electric motor and conventional combustion engine. In general, an electric-vehicle battery (EVB) or traction battery is a battery used to power the propulsion of battery electric vehicles (BEVs). Electric-vehicle batteries differ from starting, lighting, and ignition batteries because they are designed to give power over sustained periods of time. A rechargeable or secondary battery differs from a primary battery in that it can be repeatedly charged and discharged, while the latter provides only an irreversible conversion of chemical to electrical energy. Low-capacity rechargeable batteries are used as power supply for small electronic devices, such as cellular phones, notebook computers and camcorders, while high-capacity rechargeable batteries are used as the power supply for hybrid vehicles and the like.
In general, rechargeable batteries include an electrode assembly including a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and a separator interposed between the positive and negative electrodes, a case receiving the electrode assembly, and an electrode terminal electrically connected to the electrode assembly. An electrolyte solution is injected into the case in order to enable charging and discharging of the battery via an electrochemical reaction of the positive electrode, the negative electrode, and the electrolyte solution. The shape of the case, e.g. cylindrical or rectangular, depends on the battery's intended purpose. Lithium-ion (and similar lithium polymer) batteries, widely known via their use in laptops and consumer electronics, dominate the most recent group of electric vehicles in development.
Rechargeable batteries may be used as a battery module formed of a plurality of unit battery cells coupled in series and/or in parallel so as to provide a high energy density, in particular for motor driving of a hybrid vehicle. That is, the battery module is formed by interconnecting the electrode terminals of the plurality of unit battery cells depending on a required amount of power and in order to realize a high-power rechargeable battery.
A battery pack is a set of any number of (preferably identical) battery modules. They may be configured in a series, parallel or a mixture of both to deliver the desired voltage, capacity, or power density. Components of battery packs include the individual battery modules, and the interconnects, which provide electrical conductivity between them. A battery management system (BMS) is provided for managing the battery pack, such as by protecting the battery from operating outside its safe operating area, monitoring its state, calculating secondary data, reporting that data, controlling its environment, authenticating it and/or balancing it.
To provide thermal control of the battery pack a thermal management system is required to safely use the at least one battery module by efficiently emitting, discharging and/or dissipating heat generated from its rechargeable batteries. If the heat emission/discharge/dissipation is not sufficiently performed, temperature deviations occur between respective battery cells, such that the at least one battery module cannot generate a desired amount of power. In addition, an increase of the internal temperature can lead to abnormal reactions occurring therein and thus charging and discharging performance of the rechargeable deteriorates and the life-span of the rechargeable battery is shortened. Thus, cell cooling for effectively emitting/discharging/dissipating heat from the cells is required.
The mechanical integration of such a battery pack requires appropriate mechanical connections between the individual components, e.g. of battery modules, and between them and a supporting structure of the vehicle. These connections must remain functional and save during the average service life of the battery system. Further, installation space and interchangeability requirements must be met, especially in mobile applications.
Mechanical integration of battery modules can be achieved by providing a carrier framework and by positioning the battery modules thereon. Fixing the battery cells or submodules may be achieved by fitted depressions in the framework or by mechanical interconnectors such as bolts or screws. Alternatively, the battery modules are confined by fastening side plates to lateral sides of the carrier framework. Further, cover plates may be fixed atop and below the battery modules.
The carrier framework of the battery pack is mounted to a carrying structure of the vehicle. In case the battery pack shall be fixed at the bottom of the vehicle, the mechanical connection may be established from the bottom side by for example bolts passing through the carrier framework of the battery pack. The framework is usually made of aluminum or an aluminum alloy to lower the total weight of the construction. However, battery packs for vehicles may have a weight of 600 kg or more and thus need to be fixed at several positions with the carrying structure of the vehicle. Each of these fixings must still ensure tightness and mechanical stability of the battery pack. In the state of art, the fixation includes the use of specifically designed steel bushings which are inserted into slots of the framework and provide a through-hole for a screw. These bushings need to be coated with anti-corrosion layers so as to avoid corrosive processes with the framework. Furthermore, a sealing needs to be established on the lower side of the steel bushing as well as on the upper side where the screw is fixed by a nut. Finally, the steel bushing includes a twist protection element so as to avoid twisting of the steel bushing within the slot of the frame. As a consequence, the manufacturing process of mounting the battery pack to the carrying structure of the vehicle is complicated and automatization of the process is hindered.

Fixing element for a battery pack of a vehicle, and battery pack for vehicle including the same


A method of reconizing a fault current in a control unit and to a control unit having a circuit for recognizing the fault current. According to the invention, a current flowing into the control unit which could cause the control unit to be damaged or to operate incorrectly is detected and a fault signal is produced depending on the current detected, the fault signal causing the load or the current supply for the control unit to be switched off, for example.

The invention relates to a method of recognizing a fault current in a control unit and to a control unit having a circuit for recognizing a fault current in a control unit.
Control units are known which are connected to a voltage supply and are supplied with input signals, the input signals supplied being used to switch on or switch at least one load connected to an output of the control unit. The load is arbitrary, so that pure resistive loads such as lamps can be involved here. Also, inductive and capacitive or other complex loads, such as solenoid valves, are conceivable as well.
To drive the load, the control unit comprises a driver which is actuated, for example, by a microprocessor integrated in the control unit and thus supplies a current to the load, which is connected to ground, for example. This means that, if the control unit and also the load are operating correctly, a current flows (depending on the polarity) from the control unit into the load, for example.
In incorrect operation, the current may not flow in the desired direction, but insteadxe2x80x94in the case just outlinedxe2x80x94a current may flow into the control unit, for example owing to a short circuit. This is undesirable because this fault current can cause damage to the control unit and its components or can cause the control unit to operate incorrectly.
To eliminate this problem, it is known to connect a diode in a series with the driver of the control unit, said diode being connected counter to the direction of the fault current and preventing the fault current from flowing. However, such a diode has the disadvantage that it becomes hot during operation of the control unit and the produces a high power loss, which is undesirable.
The invention is therefore based on the object of effectively detecting the occurrence of a fault current and of protecting the control unit against such a fault current without producing a power loss.
The invention proposes a method of recognizing a fault current in a control unit, in which a current flowing into the control unit via the output is detected and a fault signal is produced depending on the current detected. A fault current flowing into the control unit can be detected without any power loss, which does not impair the detection per se, so that the fault signal produced also brings about a fast reaction.
In a development of the invention, the load and/or the current supply for the control unit is switched off when the fault signal occurs. Hence, if a fault current flowing into the control unit has been detected in good time, this fault current can cause the load to be switched off so as to prevent further damage to the control unit, if the load is the fault source. If this is not the case (for example if there is a short circuit at the output and the load itself is operating correctly), the current supply for all the control units can also be switched off.
In addition or as an alternative, it is naturally also possible for the fault signal to be evaluated. Thus, for example, fault currents flowing briefly into the control unit, which, owing to their brevity, are not harmful, can be overlooked; if the fault currents are present for longer than a predefinable time interval, however, this is recognized as a fault situation and there is an appropriate reaction. Similarly, the level of the current flowing into the control unit can be detected and assessed. In this case, too, slight fault currents can be overlooked again, whereas fault currents above a predefinable magnitude cause a reaction and are evaluated to prevent damage to the control unit.

Fault current recognition in control units


According to the present invention, light from a taking lens is reflected by a quick return mirror in a lateral direction of a body unit. Then, after passing through a screen, the light is reflected toward an upper side of the body unit by a second mirror except part of the light. The light reflected by the second mirror is reflected by a third mirror in a direction opposite to a direction in which the light is reflected by the quick return mirror, and is further reflected by a fourth mirror toward an eyepiece located on a back side of the body unit. Part of the light which passing though the screen is taken by an AF sensor unit provided in rear of the second mirror, and an image formation position of an optical image is detected.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a camera provided with an optical finder, and in particular arrangement of an autofocus detecting unit, a photometry unit for measuring exposure and an image pickup unit for use in a finder optical system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, a single-lens reflex camera using a roof prism is generally applied to a structure using a TTL type finder, an autofucus detecting unit, a photometry unit for exposure and a finder function. Such a single-lens reflex camera comprises, e.g., a quick return mirror which is rotatable in a vertical direction, a screen located above the quick return mirror, a roof prism located above the screen, and an eyepiece located in rear of the roof prism.
Furthermore, in the above structure, an optical path is bent downwards by a sub-mirror located in rear of the quick return mirror, and a mechanism for detecting autofocus is provided in a lower region of space where the quick return mirror. For example, an autofocus detecting unit and an image pickup unit disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 7-287160 and a photometry unit for exposure disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 6-130457 are known as the autofocus detecting unit, the image pickup unit and the photometry unit of the above single-lens reflex camera.


It is shown that a pressure pulse originating in a well is correlated to a pulse observed at a distant well with a characteristic time. The correlation time is directly related to the diffusion time scale arising out of the pressure diffusion equation. The relationship is affected by the source-observer or observer-observer distance but the correction is small for large distances. In practice, further corrections have to be included for finite width pulses. For these pulses, a practical scheme for continuous permeability monitoring is presented.

Permanent surface and downhole sensor technology is increasingly being implemented to enable real time monitoring and reservoir management. Acquiring vast quantities of data in real time at high frequencies is useful only if data processing and interpretation can be done at same time scales. Otherwise the value of high frequency information is lost. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/705,674 to Ramakrishnan et al. (the '674 Application) now an issued U.S. Pat. No. 7,096,092 (incorporated herein by reference in its entirety) teaches methods for real time data acquisition and remote reservoir management using information from permanent sensors. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/442,216 (or US Publication Application Number 2004/0010374, pending) to Raghuraman et al. (the '216 Application) (incorporated herein by reference in its entirety) teaches methods to efficiently process and interpret vast quantities of data acquired from permanent sensors. The '216 Application outlines algorithms for processing data at relevant time scales. The subsequent interpretation is then done using increasingly detailed levels of modeling so that the levels of modeling match the time scale of data processing. For example a pressure-pressure derivative correlation across two locations in a reservoir may be done to estimate the pressure diffusion time between these two locations and used as a tracker for formation properties (permeability, fluid mobility, porosity) over time (see the '674 Application, and Raghuraman, et al., "Interference Analysis of Cemented-Permanent-Sensor Data from a Field Experiment," (M019), Jun. 11-15, 2001, EAGE 63rd Conference & Technical Exhibition, Amsterdam, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety). This is a quick look interpretation that can easily be done over a time scale of hours/days as opposed to a full-scale reservoir simulation that takes a time scale of weeks/months. Such quick look interpretation methods, which match time scales of data collection, are needed if one has to maximize the value of high frequency information from permanent sensors. They can be useful for tracking changes in formation properties over time as well as for constraining more detailed reservoir models.
In principle, well-testing constitutes an inverse problem. One starts with assumptions regarding the reservoir, and based on the transient response attempts to estimate the relevant properties. System identification techniques through deconvolution, type-curve matching for the reservoir model, and variants of Newton iterative techniques are common in well-test interpretation. Conventional well testing implies a production or an injection test, and monitoring the resulting pressure behavior at the wellbore. (See Earlugher, "Advances in Well Test Analysis," Soc. Pet. Eng. AIME, New York (1977); Matthews et al., "Pressure Buildup and Flow Tests in Wells," Soc. Pet. Eng. AIME, New York (1967); and Raghavan, Well Test Analysis, Prentice Hall (1993), incorporated by reference herein in their entireties). Adequate shut-in prior to a well test, or alternatively, inclusion of rate data, is important in order to eliminate the influence of historical production in the interpretation. Significant emphasis is placed on the determination of skin-factor in such tests. In contrast, in interference testing, pressure is measured in a shut-in well, termed the observation well. Other wells continue to be active. Such tests can be useful in estimating reservoir scale permeabilities between the observer and the other wells, if one chooses to deploy a suitable testing scheme. The physics of the method is substantively the same as conventional testing schemes; but the methodology and the procedures are different.
An enhancement to interference testing is the pulsed interference testing, wherein a periodic pulsing of a well is carried out, and the response at an observation well is analyzed. (See Brigham, "Planning and Analysis of Pulse-Tests," J. Pet. Technol. (1970), volume 22, pages 618-624; Johnson et al., "Pulse-testing: A new method for describing reservoir flow properties between wells," J. Pet. Technol. (1966), volume 18, pages 1599-1604; Kamal et al., "Pulse-testing response for unequal pulse and shut-in periods," J. Pet. Technol. (1975) volume 27, pages 399-410, incorporated by reference herein in their entireties). An extensive set of "type-curves" is available to translate the magnitude and the time-lag of the pulse responses at the observation well. The lag is the time between the beginning of the source pulse and the peak in the pressure response. While such a method was an advance over conventional techniques for estimating inter-well permeability, a certain degree of regularity and ideality for the pulses is required. Calculations are based on extensive table/type-curve look-up, and the applicability of these techniques assume ideal conditions (e.g. periodicity, uniformity etc.). A translation of these methods for continuous updating of interwell permeability with nonsystematic or irregular pulsing is difficult.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a quick look interpretation methodology for cross-correlation of sensor data. Such techniques may be applied to cross-correlation of data from different sensor types at same or different locations.

Method for continuous interpretation of monitoring data


Methods, systems, apparatuses, and computer program products are provided for processing a stream of data. A maximum temporal divergence is established for data flushed to a data store from a plurality of upstream partitions. Each of a plurality of data flushers, each corresponding to an upstream partition, may obtain an item of data from a data producer. Each data flusher may determine whether flushing the data to the data store would exceed the maximum temporal divergence. Based at least on determining that flushing the data to the data store would not exceed the maximum temporal divergence, the data may be flushed to the data store for ingestion by a downstream partition and a data structure (e.g., a ledger) may be updated to indicate a time associated with the most recent item of data flushed to the data store.

In some data analytics solutions, a stream of data, as opposed to a set of data stored in a repository, may be processed and consumed by a user in real-time or near real-time. For example, a stream of data may include data points from various data producing entities (e.g., sensors) where each data point has a temporal importance that may diminish over time, such as temperature and/or pressure sensors in a manufacturing facility. In situations where a high number of data producing entities exist or where a single machine is not suitable for processing the entire stream of data, several partitions are often employed to ingest data points from the data producing entities. However, in many instances, the data partitions (e.g., upstream partitions) that ingest data points from the data producing entities may not comprise an optimal partitioning for a data consumer. For instance, a data consumer may desire to visualize the data using a different partition key or dimension.
In order to accomplish such a different partitioning of data, techniques are often utilized to reshuffle the stream of data from a dimension of the upstream partitions to different set of partitions with another dimension, referred to as downstream partitions. Due to the temporal importance of the data points, the downstream partitions need to ensure that the stream of data is ordered appropriately (e.g., ordering an older event before a newer event, irrespective of which event arrived at the downstream partition first). However, because upstream partitions may operate at different speeds (or a partition may be down), a large reorder buffer is generally needed to temporarily hold data points to ensure that the stream of data is ingested by the consumer in the correct temporal order. As a result, existing solutions typically require large in-memory resources, which can present not only stability and recovery challenges, but also introduce a high latency between the occurrence of an event and that event being provided to a data consumer following a reshuffle.

Efficient out of process reshuffle of streaming data


A method for controlling a group of photovoltaic energy generators, the method includes providing, to a junction that is coupled to a component of a first photovoltaic energy generator (PEG), power generated by at least a second PEG such as to increase the power that is generated from the group of photovoltaic energy generators (PEGs); wherein the group of PEGs comprises the first PEG and the second PEG.

FIG. 1a illustrates a model of a single photovoltaic (PV) cell. The single PV cell can be modeled as a current source Isc 11 in parallel with a forward biased diode Dcell 14 along with a series and a shunt resistance Rs 18 and Rsh 16. A current/sc 11 is proportional to the solar irradiance received by the PV cell and it is also approximately equal to the short circuit current of the panel. A current Id 12 flows through Del 14 while a current I 22 flows through Rs 18.
Rsh 16 represents the slope of the I-V characteristics near short circuit and Rs 18 represents the slope of its I-V characteristics near an open circuit, as is illustrated by curves 24 and 26 of FIG. 1b. Curve 26 illustrates the I-V characteristics of a real PV cell while curve 24 illustrates the I-V characteristics of an ideal PV cell.
The diode determines the non-linear (exponential) course of the current curve. The PV cell output current can be represented as:I=Isc−Io*{exp(vd/(n−vt))
Where Isc and Io relate to their respective current densities Jsc and Is as follows:Isc=A*Jsc*% irradIo=A*Is.
Where:
Jsc is the PV cell short circuit density (ma/cm2) at standard (AM 1.5 G, 1000 W/m2, T=25° C.) conditions.
A is the cell area (cm2).
Is is the cell diode reverse bias saturation current.
Vd is the voltage across the cell diode which is in good approximation to the cell voltage V.
n is the emission coefficient for the cell diode. It depends on the manufacturing process (e.g. between 1 and 2).
Vt is the cell diode thermal voltage, in some cells about 26 mv at 300K.
% irrad is the percentage of the sun irradiance in comparison to 1000 W/m2 (100%).
Partial Shading Problems in PV Systems
PV systems can include many PV cells, some of which can be shaded or partially shaded during certain points in time. The shading reduces the overall power generated by a PV system due to the loss of available irradiation caused by shading and due to the so-called mismatch loss caused by partial shading.
Usually a PV system includes many PV cells. An output voltage of a PV cell is determined by its forward biased diode voltage (which can be about 0.55 v but varies depending on the PV cell technology). Because PV systems can be required to output an output voltage of few hundred volts a very large number of PV cells are sometimes connected in a serial manner to provide such an output voltage. For example, if the PV system generates energy that should be provided to a 220 v alternating current (AC) grid then the PV system should generate a direct current (DC) voltage of about 300V or more. This requires serially connecting a few hundred (e.g., about 600) PV cells to each other.
It is noted that PV cells can also be connected in parallel—in order to increase the current/power of the PV system.
Typically long PV cells are "split" to separate PV panels, each including at least one string of PV cells.
When serially connected, a PV cell that is partially or fully shaded reduces the current that flows through the entire string of PV cells—thus reducing the power that can be generated by other PV cells in the string. PV cells that do not generate any current (for example, if they are fully shaded) nullify the power output of the entire serially connected PV cell system.
One known solution to the problem of fully shaded PV cells includes bypass diodes—if a PV cell does not generate adequate power it is bypassed by a bypass diode that is connected in parallel to the PC cell.
FIG. 2 illustrates an equivalent circuit that represents an array of sixteen sequentially connected PV cells. Each PV cells is represented by a PV cell model of a diode (such as D1 22(1), D2 22(2)) that is connected in parallel to a current source (such as 21(1), 21(2)). The current generated by each PV cell is indicated in the figure. The first fourteen PV cells generate 1 A each, while two (fully shaded PV cells) generate 0 A each. These two fully shaded PV cells are represented by PV cell models 20(1) and 20(16) that are bypassed by bypass diode 24.
The model of FIG. 2 also illustrates a load 26 that is connected to the sequence of 16 PV cells and a current lload 28 that passes through the load.
Curve 32 of FIG. 3 illustrates current lload 28 and curve 40 of FIG. 3 illustrates the power (Pload) supplied to the load as a function of the voltage drop (Vload) on the load.
The maximal power is 7 w, assuming that lload 28 equals 1 A, the voltage the falls on each diode is 0.5 volt and each of the diodes are ideal. Fourteen non-shaded serially connected PV cells generate 14*0.4 volts*1 A=7 w.
FIG. 4 illustrates an equivalent circuit that represents an array of sixteen sequentially connected PV cells. Each PV cells is represented by a PV cell model of a diode (such as D1 22(1), D2 22(2)) that is connected in parallel to a current source (such as 21(1), 21(2)). The current generated by each PV cell is indicated in the figure.
The first four PV cells (represented by models 20(1)-20(4)) are partially shaded (30%) and generate 0.7 A each, the last four PV cells (represented by models 20(13)—20(16)) are partially shaded (70%) and 0.3 A each, while other PV cells generate 1 A each.
The first four partially shaded PV cells are bypassed by bypass diode 24(1). The last four partially shaded PV cells are bypassed by bypass diode 24(2).
The model of FIG. 4 also illustrates load 26 that is connected to the sequence of 16 PV cells, a current lload 28 that passes through the load and a voltage Vload 27 developed on load 26.
Curve 54 of FIG. 5 illustrates the without any bypass the 70% shaded PV so cells force a current of 0.3 A through each PV cell. This low current allows a maximal power production of 2.4 W—as illustrated by peak 59 of curve 52.
Curve 53 illustrates lload 28 when neither one of the bypass diodes is connected (and lload=0.3 A), when only bypass diode 24(1) is connected (and lload=0.7 A) and when both bypass diodes are activated to bypass all diodes is (and lload=1 A).
Curve 51 illustrates the power that can be generated by the sequence of PV cells (a) when neither one of the bypass diodes is connected (and lload=0.3 A), (b) when only bypass diode 24(1) is connected (and lload=0.7 A) and (c) when both bypass diodes are activated to bypass all diodes (and lload=1 A).
Curve 51 of FIG. 5 illustrates the power (Pload) supplied to the load as a function of the voltage drop (Vload) 27 on the load. The maximal power production (a) when neither one of the bypass diodes is connected is 2.4 W (peak 59), (b) when only bypass diode 24(1) is connected is 2.4 W (peak 58), (c) when both bypass diodes are activated is 4 W (peak 57.
Curve 51 illustrates that there is a tradeoff between the number of bypassed PV cells and the current generated by each PV cell.
As illustrated above, the bypass prevents that PV cell from reducing the power provided by other serially connected PV cells. On the other hand, the power generated by the bypassed cell does not contribute to the total power generated by the serially connected PV cells.
Another disadvantage of bypassing PV cells is that the output power curve of the group of PV cells has several maximal power peaks (MPP). These peaks can cause mismatches between different PV panels that are connected to each other.

System and method for controlling a group of photovoltaic generators


An image forming apparatus includes a display portion that displays a setting screen, a communication portion that receives, from an information processing apparatus, an information package including a setting history and configuration information of another image forming apparatus chosen in advance, a storage portion that stores the received information package, and a control portion that extracts, based on information included in the information package, a recommended value of a setting value settable based on a setting screen currently displayed at the display portion, and that makes the display portion display one or a plurality of extracted recommended values within a recommended-value display area.

The present disclosure relates to an image forming apparatus that receives settings of various setting values. The present disclosure also relates to an image forming system including such an image forming apparatus.
Some image forming apparatuses such as multifunction peripherals, copiers, facsimile machines, and printers are equipped with a portion that provides a user with guidance (explanation, manual) on operations and settings. For example, there has been known an electronic apparatus including a display portion, a plurality of device portions as targets of maintenance, at least one guidance portion (sheet-shaped member where warning and guidance are indicated) to indicate guidance information including operation procedures and warnings related to maintenance, the guidance portion being disposed at a location corresponding to one of the device portions to which the guidance information is related, and a control portion to display guidance information indicated by a corresponding guidance portion on the display portion, in response to a display instruction.
A maintenance checkup of image forming apparatuses requires technical knowledge. This is the background for maintenance contracts sometimes made between customers and maintenance (support) service providers (such as image-forming-apparatus production and sales companies and their related companies). Under such contracts, a customer makes contact with a service center. Based on the contact from the customer, a service engineer visits the customer. The service engineer dispatched from the service provider company offers maintenance services such as a checkup, making settings, and handling malfunctions. Visiting where an image forming apparatus is installed, for example, a service engineer makes various settings in a manner suitable to the customer's environment, for example. There may be a case where a customer is at a loss about how to make settings calls for a service engineer to visit him or her. In such a case, a dispatched service engineer explains to the customer how to make settings, or the dispatched service engineer himself or herself makes settings for the customer.
The cost for such dispatch of a service engineer (that is, for services offered) is to be charged to customers. Thus, it is likely that the operational cost of an image forming apparatus increases the more frequently a customer requests dispatch of a service engineer. With such a background, there is a demand to reduce the number times service engineers visit customers or have to be dispatched to customers as much as possible to reduce the operational cost.
The reduction in number of times service engineers are dispatched to customers will increase the number of opportunities where customers have to make settings and perform maintenance by themselves. Possible solutions to help customers in such cases include introducing an on-line help function and making the settings easy to do by improving help screens to be displayed on image forming apparatuses. Help information, however, is directed to all the users and thus is somewhat uniform. Thus, these possible solutions are disadvantageous in that even with help information, it is sometimes difficult for customers to appropriately make settings by themselves for intricate and specialized image forming apparatuses to suit their installation environments.
Note that, in the above-described known art, the display portion displays a sheet that indicates sentences and figures for guidance and that is attached to the apparatus. There, the user is provided with only a limited amount of information, and cannot obtain more information than is described on the sheet. Thus, the above-described known art is not helpful to solve the above-described problem.

Image forming apparatus that displays setting values of another image forming apparatus selected in advance, and image forming system therefor


A liquid crystal display has a pad structure. The pad structure includes at least one pad formed on a substrate, an insulating film formed on the pad, and at least one conductive layer connected to the pad through contact holes defined through the insulating film. The insulating film covers side surfaces of the pad and a portion of the substrate adjacent to the side surfaces of the pad.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a display device and, more particularly, to pads for an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and a manufacturing method thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
CRTs (Cathode Ray Tubes) have been the primary type of display device for instrumentation system monitors, information system terminals, and televisions. However, conventional CRTs have not been able to respond to the need to manufacture electronic products with reduced size and weight because CRTs are fundamentally large and heavy.
LCDs (Liquid Crystal Displays), which are relatively thin and light weight, have been developed to replace the conventional CRT. In recent years, LCDs have begun to play an important role as a flat-type display device, thereby increasing market demand for LCDs.
Generally, a low cost, high performance thin film transistor-LCD (TFT-LCD) employs a non-crystalline silicon thin film transistor as a switching element. Currently, most LCD development is directed toward high resolution systems such as SVGA (800×600) and XVGA (1024×768) as compared to VGA (Video Graphic Array; maximum resolution: 640×480 pixels). Consequently, development and application of the TFT-LCD industry have been accelerated due to increase in size and enhancement in resolution. As a result, there have been many attempts to increase manufacturing productivity and decrease cost by simplifying manufacturing processes and improving manufacturing yield.
The LCD uses an electrooptical property of liquid crystals that are injected into an inside of a panel. In contrast to a PDP (Plasma Display Panel), a FED (Field Emission Display), etc., the LCD can not emit light itself. Hence, an LCD is provided with a back light as a separate light source to evenly emit light onto a display surface, thereby displaying a picture on the LCD panel.
Conventional LCD pads will now be explained with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a gate pad of the conventional LCD, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a conventional data pad.
As shown in FIG. 1, the conventional gate pad comprise three areas: a pad contact area I, a grinding area II, and an ACF (Anisotropic Conductive Film) deposit area III. A pattern on the grinding area II is removed before the ACF is deposited. The pad contact area I is in contact with the grinding area II at one side and extends beyond the ACF deposit area III at another side. As such, the gate pad comprises a gate metal 13 formed on a substrate 11; a protective film 17 and a gate insulating film 15 having a plurality of contact holes thereon through which a portion of the surface of the gate metal 13 is selectively exposed, and being sequentially laminated on an upper part of the gate metal 13; a transparent metal layer 19 connected to the gate metal 13 through the contact holes; an ACF 21 formed on an upper part of the transparent metal layer 19 in the ACF deposit area III; and a tape carrier package (TCP) layer 23 formed on the ACF 21.
Here, the transparent metal layer 19 is made of a layer of a transparent conductive material, such as ITO (Indium Tin Oxide), for use as a pixel electrode of an active region. Accordingly, a gate signal can be inputted from the TCP layer 23 to be transmitted to the gate metal 13 through the ACF 21 and through the transparent metal layer 19 and then transmitted to a thin film transistor (not shown) disposed within the active region.
The transparent metal layer 19 is formed in the pad contact area I such that most portions of the transparent metal layer 19 are covered by the ACF 21. However, a portion F1 of the transparent metal layer 19 at a side of the active region is not covered by the ACF 21 and is exposed. Further, some parts of the contact holes, which serve as a passageway for transmitting the gate signal inputted from the TCP layer 23 to the gate metal 13, exist beyond the ACF deposit area III.
Furthermore, before the ACF 21 is deposited, the gate metal 13, the gate insulating film 15, the protective film 17 and the transparent metal layer 19 in the grinding area II are removed. When the grinding process is completed, there is formed a portion F2 in which sectional surfaces of the gate metal 13 and the transparent metal layer 19 are exposed to ambient air.
The LCD of FIG. 1 further shows a color filter substrate 32 facing the substrate 11, and a sealing compound 30 for bonding the substrate 11 to the color filter substrate 32.
As shown in FIG. 2, the structure of a data pad is similar to that of the gate pad with the exception that there is a different width of each pattern and pitch between the patterns. Accordingly, the data pad also comprises a pad contact area I, an ACF deposit area III, and a grinding area II. The pad contact area I contacts the grinding area II at one side and extends beyond the ACF deposit area III at the other side at a side of an active region.
As such, the data pad comprises a substrate 11; a source/drain metal 16 formed on an upper part of a gate insulating film 15; a protective film 17, formed on an upper part of the source/drain metal 16, having a plurality of contact holes through which a surface of the source/drain metal 16 is selectively exposed; a transparent metal layer 19, formed in the pad contact area I, connected to the source/drain metal 16 through the contact holes; an ACF 21 formed in the ACF deposit area III; and a TCP layer 23 formed on an upper part of the ACF 21. Therefore, a data signal inputted from the TCP layer 23 is transmitted to the source/drain metal 16 through the ACF 21 and through the transparent metal layer 19, and then transmitted to a thin film transistor (not shown) within the active region.
In the data pad, similarly to the gate pad, the transparent metal layer 19 exists within the pad contact area I. Most portions of the transparent metal layer 19 are covered by the ACF 21, but a portion F3 existing beyond the ACF deposit area III is exposed. The source/drain metal 16, the protective film 17 and the transparent metal layer 19 in the grinding area II are sequentially removed. When the grinding process is completed, there exists a portion F4, in which sectional surfaces of the source/drain metal 16 and the transparent metal layers 19 are exposed.
The conventional LCD pads have a number of disadvantages. For example, conventional LCD pads are prone to atmospheric corrosion or electrolytic corrosion.
If an electrical signal is applied to the gate pad to be operated, the sectional surfaces of the gate metal and the transparent metal layer exposed after the grinding process, or the portion of the transparent metal layer uncovered by the ACF may raise an electrochemical reaction which increases the possibility of atmospheric corrosion or electrolytic corrosion on a portion of the gate metal, thereby leading to damage of the gate pad. That is, the thin film transistor is damaged due to a fine electrical shock generated during the electrochemical reaction, and the resistance of the gate wiring increases due to the atmospheric corrosion and the electrolytic corrosion of the gate metal.
If an electrical signal is applied to the data pad to be operated, an electrochemical reaction may be induced in the sectional surfaces of the source/drain metal and the transparent metal layer exposed after the grinding process or the portion of the transparent metal layer uncovered by the ACF which increases the possibility of atmospheric corrosion or electrolytic corrosion on a portion of the source/drain metal, thereby leading to damage of the data pad. That is, the thin film transistor is damaged due to a fine electrical shock generated during the electrochemical reaction, and the resistance of the data wiring increases due to the atmospheric corrosion and the electrolytic corrosion of the source/drain metal.

Pad structure for liquid crystal display and method of manufacturing thereof


A method for terminating an electrical conductor, comprises an outset step of defining a housing having an open end and a closed end and at least one passage therethrough for entry of the conductor into the housing to permit a termination end of the conductor to be resident interiorly in the housing. Next, the housing passage is closed and the housing is disposed with the housing open end vertically above the housing closed end. With the housing so disposed, sealant gel is introduced in liquid state interiorly of the housing. While the sealant gel is in the liquid state, there is secured with the housing, through the housing open end, apparatus for subsequent use in terminating the conductor, Upon transition of the sealant gel to a cured state, the housing passage is opened. To complete the conductor terminating method, at the installation site, the conductor is inserted into the housing passage and into registry with the terminating apparatus. One now operates the terminating apparatus to terminate the conductor. An insulation-displacement contact defines first and second beams bounding a conductor-receiving slot, the beams defining respective first and second notched insulation-displacement segments at respective leading and trailing parts thereof which are of triangular configuration having triangle bases aligned with the conductor entry passage.

A current practice providing connectors for the termination of multiconductor telecommunication cables to drop wires feeding local telephone distribution is seen in commonly-assigned U.S. Pat. No. 4,993,966, to which incorporating reference is made for all purposes.
In the '966 arrangement, a connector block having a stub cable assembled therewith is adapted for the receipt of terminal modules, which are fabricated separately from the assembly of connector block and stub cable. The terminal module comprises a base securable with the connector block and adapted to support insulation-displacement contacts (IDCs), a drop wire support member having conductor seats, through which the contacts extend, a cap or housing element, and a bolt extending through the cap and threadably engageable with the base. The cap defines passages therethrough in registry with the conductor seats of the support member to permit entry of the conductors to be terminated into the module.
To protect the conductor terminations from ambient environment, particularly moisture ingress, a sealant gel is disposed in the module around the IDCs. To complete termination, the conductors are inserted into the module through the sealant gel and the bolt is threaded into the base, advancing the IDCs into terminating engagement with the conductors within the sealant gel, thereby sealing the conductor and IDCs and the termination. As is discussed also in the '966 patent, the contacts extend outwardly of the base and are connected to conductors of the stub cable.
One aspect of the terminal modules and electrical connector terminations under consideration is expeditious manufacturability thereof. In particular, the preferred gel is a compound that is in a liquid state and cures with time and temperature to a suitable consistency. It is desirable to manufacture the terminal modules using such a gel in a manner that is most cost-effective and easiest to handle during fabrication processing.

Electrical termination and method for making same


A printer apparatus for printing data on paper traveling through the printer apparatus in a paper conveying direction. The printer apparatus includes a paper conveying portion including a driving roller and a driven roller, the driving roller and driven roller being moveable with respect to one another between an engaged position at which the driving roller and the driven roller are pressed together and a disengaged position at which the driving roller and the driven roller are separated; wherein the paper conveying portion is situated downstream, with respect to the paper conveying direction, from the location at which the data is printed on the paper; and wherein the driving roller and the driven roller are operative to pressingly sandwich the paper therebetween when the driving roller and the driven roller are in the engaged position.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a printer apparatus, and more particularly to a portable thermal printer apparatus having a first module detachably attached to a second module.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, there is a growing demand for portable thermal printers that can print, for example, barcodes and meter readouts. Compared to a general printer, a higher printing precision with respect to a paper conveying direction is required since barcodes and meter readouts are read by OCR (Optical Character Recognition).
With a conventional portable thermal printer of a clamshell type, when a cover of the printer is closed, a platen roller formed of rubber, holding a sheet of paper, presses against a thermal head. The platen roller is rotated by a motor, and the paper is fed by the frictional force of the platen roller. A conventional example is shown in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No.2002-120389.
Owing that the platen roller presses against the thermal head, the platen roller is generally formed of rubber. Although a satisfactory performance may be obtained in the early periods of using the rubber platen rollers, it is difficult to maintain such performance for a long period due to such factors as, for example, expansion/contraction caused from heat, deterioration with age, or wear.


A tape-like optical fiber cable comprises a plurality of optical fibers arranged in parallel to each other and each abutted to an adjacent fiber. Each of the optical fibers includes a cover and a lead extending therefrom. A method of forming an inclined surface at a terminal face of each lead comprises the steps of: pushing the respective leads of the optical fibers in parallel and together toward a grinding surface of a grinding means while moving in a certain direction so that terminal portions of the respective leads are simultaneously resiliently bent to form an inclined surfaces at the terminal faces of the respective leads.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical fiber and a method for forming an optical fiber and, more particularly, to an optical fiber cable having a flat tape-like configuration including a plurality of optical fibers arranged in parallel to each other and abutted to the adjacent one, hereinafter referred to as "tape-like fiber cable" and a method for treating or forming a terminal face of the optical fiber of such a tape-like fiber cable.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b) are plan and side views illustrating a general structure of a conventional tape-like optical fiber cable, in which a plurality of optical fibers are arranged in parallel to each other and each is also mutually adhered to the adjacent fiber. Each fiber includes a lead 12 (optical fiber including a core portion and a cladding portion, hereinafter referred to as "lead") and a cover 14 for covering the lead 12. In the example shown in FIG. 2, the tape-like fiber cable 10 is used as a collimator for emitting a parallel luminous flux from a terminal face of a lead 12. Also, a terminal face of the "graded index optical fiber" (GI optical fiber) 12b having a certain length is fused to the terminal face of the lead 12 which is a single mode optical fiber 12a.
Such a conventionally known tape-like fiber cable is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publications Nos. 4-25805 and 6-186501.
In the fiber cable used as a collimator, the terminal face of the lead 12 is formed as an inclined surface 12c with respect to the optical axis in order to reduce the optical return loss at the terminal of the optical lead.
In this tape-like fiber cable 10, the terminal face 12c of the lead 12 is an inclined surface which is inclined downward with respect to the plane in which the tape-like fiber cable 10 is arranged. In other words, the light emitted from the lead 12 travels in a direction (upward) to cross the plane in which the tape-like fiber cable 10 is arranged. Therefore, if a pair of such tape-like optical cables are used to form an optical device, as shown in FIG. 5, the tape-like fiber cables must be arranged so that the terminal faces thereof are inclined upward and downward, respectively. This is because, when the light passes through the inclined surface, the light is refracted because the terminal faces of the leads 12 are inclined with respect to the optical axis.
In order to make an optical device in such a manner that the light emitted from the lead travels in the same plane as that the tape-like fiber cable is arranged, as shown in FIG. 6, the terminal faces of the leads 12 of the respective fibers are formed so as to be inclined by a common angle θ for the end surfaces of all of the leads 12, such as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-324647. In this tape-like fiber cable, in the same manner as the tape-like fiber cable is shown in FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b), the leads 12 of the tape-like fiber cable are supported by a jig and the angle of the jig is controlled in such a manner that the terminal faces of the leads 12 of the respective fibers can be ground to be inclined by a certain angle
However, as mentioned above, if the tape-like fiber cable shown in FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b) is to be incorporated in an optical device, it is necessary to support the tape-like fiber cable 10 using a support 16 such as that shown in FIG. 5. Therefore, positioning of the tape-like fiber cable 10 is very difficult and manufacturing of such a support 16 is also very difficult.
On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6, if the tape-like fiber cable is constituted to be arranged in a plane, it is relatively easy to incorporate the tape-like fiber cable into a device. Nevertheless, if the tape-like fiber cable is to be used for a collimator tape fiber, it is very difficult to accurately arrange that the GI optical fiber 12b has a precise predetermined length and, therefore, a necessary function as a collimator may not fully be attained.
The function as a collimator can be obtained by controlling the length of the GI optical fiber 12b to ¼ of the wave length or to a cardinal number of times thereof. However, as shown in FIG. 6, if a grinding operation was conducted in such a manner that terminal faces of all leads be cut at a common angle of θ, the length of the respective GI optical fibers 12b would not be uniform. It is required that the accuracy in the length of GI optical fiber 12b must be less than several Am and, therefore, the tape-like optical fiber cable as shown in FIG. 6 is not appropriate to use as a collimator. In addition, in the tape-like optical fiber cable as shown in FIG. 6, when the GI optical fiber 12b is fused to the lead 12, it may be possible to regulate the position where the GI optical fiber 12b is fused to the single mode optical fiber 12a, in consideration of the finished length of the GI optical fiber 12b. However, such a method is very complicated and it would be very difficult to precisely form the optical fibers.


A passive reflective antenna located near an active receiving antennas is used to change the energy at the receiving antenna. The change in energy may be such as to remove a null created by multipath or to provide directionality, or both. The receiving antennas is permanently connected to a single receiver. When the receiver's output signal degrades below an acceptable level of quality, the reflective phase of the passive antenna's load is changed to change the phase of the reflected energy and achieve a desired effect (remove a null, change directionality, etc.) at the receiving antenna. In the simplest embodiment, the termination of the passive antenna is switched from an open circuit to a short circuit, or vice versa, to invert the phase of the reflected energy. The use of reflective elements in antenna designs, usually to achieve directionality, is well known (see the common Yagi or corner reflector antenna designs, for example), but these use passive reflector elements. The present invention, in contrast, employs active control of the reflective element. The term "reflective element" is used to mean an element that re-radiates RF energy. The position of a reflective element relative to the active receiving antenna (whether the reflective element receives RF energy from a waveform and before or after the active receiving antenna) is unimportant, so long as a portion of the re-radiated energy is picked up by the active receiving antenna and the phase with which the re-radiated energy is received is controllable.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to array antennas for communications systems, particularly RF microcell personal communications systems.
2. State of the Art
Wireless personal communications systems are known as exemplified by published International Application WO 96-41498 entitled Hearing Aid With Wireless Remote Processor, incorporated herein by reference. As described therein, a hearing aid system consists of an earpiece that can be hidden in the ear canal, and which communicates wirelessly with a remote processor unit (RPU). The RPU may be a belt pack, wallet or purse-based unit. Sounds from the environment are picked up by a microphone in the earpiece and sent with other information over a primary two-way wireless link to the RPU, where the audio signals are enhanced according to the user's needs. Signal processing is performed in the RPU rather than the earpiece to take advantage of relaxed size and power constraints. The enhanced audio signals may be combined with other information and transmitted from the RPU over the primary wireless link to the earpiece, where they are converted by a speaker to sounds that can only be heard by the user.
In an exemplary embodiment, communications between the RPU and the earpiece follow an interrogate/reply cycle. The reply portion of the primary wireless link (from the earpiece to the RPU) may use a reflective backscatter technique in which the RPU radiates a carrier signal and the earpiece uses a switch to change between a high backscatter antennas state and a low backscatter antenna state. An additional, optional secondary two-way wireless link can be used for communication between the RPU and a cellular telephone system or other source of information. Furthermore, an RPU keyboard, or voice recognition capabilities in the RPU, can be used to control hearing aid parameters and telephone dialing functions. Two earpieces and an RPU can be used in a binaural wireless system that provides hearing protection and noise cancellation simultaneous with hearing aid functions.
Although the system of WO 96-41498 arises out of the field of hearing health care, as may be appreciated from the foregoing description, the system is more broadly applicable to personal communications in general. Recently, attention has been drawn to the application of wireless personal communications systems to telecommunications and computing. At "ACM97: The Next 50 Years of Computing", for example, the prediction was made that in the future, personal computers will be wrist-sized, accompanied by a pair of reading glasses that present high-resolution images at a comfortable distance. A small, fitted earpiece and a "finger mouse" will be linked to other devices with low-power radio signals. Such a future is not far off.
One of the challenges presented in personal communications systems is to allow multiple such systems to function in close proximity to one another with no performance degradation (or graceful degradation) due to interference. An unofficial benchmark developed by the present assignee to test for robustness of communications in the presence of interference has been the "ten-person hug. " That is, ten persons each with a personal communications system of the type described should be able to form a group hug without experiencing significant performance degradation of their respective personal communications systems.
In a personal communications system as described, the RPU requires an antenna diversity system to mitigate against signal drop out due to signal nulls encountered in any real-world situation. Basically, the signal emanating from the earpiece antenna may reach the RPU's receiving antennas via numerous paths, due to multiple reflections from environmental objects. These reflections result in "multipath" problems.
Classical antenna diversity systems employ more than one antennas and either a) when the signal quality is measured to be below a predetermined threshold, the receiver input is switched to a different receiving antenna (with, hopefully, a better quality signal) or b) each antenna has its own receiver and the best quality received signal is utilized as the output signal. Any of various different measures of signal quality may be employed, such as signal strength, bit-error rate (BER), signal distortion, etc. Typically the antennas are spaced physically apart so that if one is in a null, the other or others are unlikely to also be in a null. A conventional diversity antenna system in accordance with the former technique is shown in FIG. 1. A conventional diversity antenna system in accordance with the latter technique is shown in FIG. 2.
In the first case a) active switching circuitry must be located in the antenna's signal path where signals are small and weak and subject to degradation by the switch. Furthermore, data transmission or reception must be interrupted periodically to perform a comparison of the signals received by the different antennas. Based on this comparison, one of the signals is selected. Such comparison, or "hunting," uses bandwidth that might otherwise be used for data transmission or reception. In the second case b) multiple receivers are required with the increase in size, weight, power, complexity, and, of course, cost.
In diversity antenna systems, multiple antennas function independently, usually without significant RF interaction. Apart from diversity antenna systems, directional antenna systems are also known. In directional antenna systems, also known as "beam steering" or "beam forming" antenna systems, the RF interaction between multiple antennas is controlled to realize the equivalent of a single antenna having a desired directionality. Directional antenna systems are most commonly used in radar applications, but are also being increasingly used in cellular communications, for example.
In some instances, passive reflector elements have been used to generate directionality. Referring to FIG. 3, for example, a linear antenna 31 forming a driven element has positioned adjacent to it a thin reflector element 33. With respect to the driven element, the reflector dipole is shorted out to cause the reflection of energy and is mistuned to a lower frequency (by using a longer element) to provide a phase delay that compensates for the reflective-to-active-element spacing d, thereby causing maximum radiation in the desired direction. Such a configuration is not adaptive and cannot be used to improve reception in a rapidly-changing RF environment.
A limited measure of adaptivity is attained using a conventional phased array antennas system of a type shown in FIG. 4. Multiple antennae 41 are coupled together using transmission lines (1.sub.1 -, 1.sub.2, 1.sub.3). The transmission lines function as delay lines, the lengths of the transmission lines being chosen to exhibit the desired delay. Two different sets of transmission lines are provided, the transmission lines in each set having length chosen appropriately to achieve a desired directionality. RF switches 43 are used to switch between the two different sets of transmissions lines. When the RF switches are in one state, for example, the antennas system might be optimized for "broadside" reception. When the RF switches are in the other state, the system might be optimized for 45.degree. reception. The limited degree of adaptivity of the system of FIG. 4 comes at the expense of increased size and cost.
Other conventional phased array antennas systems are fully adaptive. Referring to FIG. 5, for example, multiple antenna elements 51 are each coupled to individual phase shifters 53 and antenuators 55, the outputs of which are coupled to a common line feed 57. Referring to FIG. 6, a conventional phased array antenna system is shown using continuously adjustable RF phase shifters 61 and separate receivers (63, 65) for each element. (The separate receivers are provided with a common frequency reference f.sub.0, element 64.) Using RF signal processing techniques, the signals from the two different elements (67, 69) can be summed (block 68) in any desired phase relationship.
None of the foregoing techniques is suitable for a compact, low-power, low-cost personal communications system. What is needed, then, is an antenna system that provides the benefits of known diversity and/or directional antenna systems but that is small, power efficient, and low-cost. The present invention addresses this need.


The invention provides a semiconductor chip package, and a means of forming such a semiconductor chip package, in which one or more semiconductor chips are electrically connected to a mounting substrate by wire bonding in which an adhesive tape is provided on the active surface of the semiconductor chips for encapsulating at least an upper portion of the bonding wires adjacent the active surfaces to improve the stability of the bonding wires during subsequent processing.

The present invention relates to a semiconductor device and, more particularly, to a semiconductor chip package in which a semiconductor chip is electrically connected to a substrate by wire bonding. Generally, in forming such a package, a semiconductor chip is attached to a mounting means such as a substrate or lead frame using a liquid adhesive.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a conventional semiconductor chip package assembled with a liquid adhesive. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of a conventional semiconductor chip package assembled with a liquid adhesive.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, a semiconductor chip package 310 includes a single semiconductor chip 311. The semiconductor chip 311 is attached to a printed circuit board 321 by a layer of liquid adhesive 325. Chip pads 312 are connected to substrate pads 322 by bonding wires 327.
As illustrated in FIG. 2, a semiconductor chip package 410 includes two semiconductor chips in a vertical stack. A first semiconductor chip 411 is attached to a printed circuit board 421 using a layer of liquid adhesive 425. A second semiconductor chip 413 is then attached to the first semiconductor chip 411 by a layer of liquid adhesive 426. Chip pads 412 and 414 and the semiconductor chips are electrically connected to substrate pads 422 by bonding wires 427.
The semiconductor chip packages 310 and 410 are commonly protected from external environments by sealing portions 335 and 435, respectively. The sealing portions 335 and 435 are typically made of an epoxy molding compound (EMC). The sealing portions 335 and 435 seal the semiconductor chips 311, 411 and 413, the bonding wires 327 and 427, and the connection portions of the semiconductor chips and bonding wires. Solder balls 337 and 437 are attached on the bottom surface of the printed circuit boards 321 and 421 and function as external connection terminals.
In the conventional semiconductor chip packages illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the semiconductor chips are attached using a liquid adhesive. The use of liquid adhesive in assembling chip packages may introduce processing complications including the need to maintain a uniform quantity of adhesive to reduce voids under the chip and to reduce adhesive overflows onto the semiconductor chip and substrate. The presence of such defects may degrade the reliability of the final semiconductor product. Further, when a semiconductor chip package is produced by vertically stacking a plurality of semiconductor chips, the liquid adhesive may contaminate the semiconductor chip pads and possibly complicate or degrade the performance of subsequent processes or the reliability of the resulting semiconductor device.
In an effort to address some of the problems associated with liquid adhesives, film-type non-conductive adhesive tape has been used to replace liquid adhesive for mounting semiconductor chips. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of an example of a conventional semiconductor chip package using an adhesive tape for mounting the semiconductor chip.
As illustrated in FIG. 3, a semiconductor chip package 510 includes two semiconductor chips 511 and 513 provided in a vertical stack. A first semiconductor chip 511 is attached to a printed circuit board 521 by a liquid adhesive layer 525. A second semiconductor chip 513 is attached to the first semiconductor chip 511 by a non-conductive adhesive tape 526. The adhesive tape 526 is sized to be located generally within chip pads 512 of the first semiconductor chip 511, and with a thickness that provides a space for the wire loop portion of bonding wires 527b connecting the chip pads 512 to substrate pads 522.
In attaching a semiconductor chip using an adhesive tape, however, misalignment may result in the adhesive tape covering a portion of the chip pads or extending beyond the chip edge so that the wires may not be bonded normally to the chip pads. Furthermore, the empty space remaining between the upper chip and the lower chip at their periphery may compromise the process of attaching bonding wires to the upper chip resulting in poor bonds and/or damaged chips and may result in voids in the EMC.

Semiconductor chip package having an adhesive tape attached on bonding wires


The pneumatic Achilles sleeve assembly comprises a sleeve and at least one strap for fastening the sleeve around the ankle. The sleeve assembly positions an arch cell which contains a dynamic volume of air within the sleeve under a human foot. The arch cell is fabricated from a flexible material and is in communication with a conduit member. Upon application of external pressure to the arch cell, air is expelled from said air cell through said conduit member. The sleeve assembly also positions a tendon cell which contains a dynamic volume of air within the sleeve against the Achilles tendon. The tendon cell is in communication with the arch cell via the conduit member. The tendon cell is also fabricated from a flexible material. Upon the expelling of air from said arch cell, the air enters through the conduit member into the tendon cell which exerts a greater pressure against the Achilles tendon.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a compression sleeve for pneumatically applying dynamic pressure to the Achilles tendon, and to the sole of the foot, particularly at the arch.
2. Description of Related Art
Active people commonly experience the ache and debilitating effects of posterior heel pain as a result of three commonly accepted causes: Haglund syndrome, Achilles tendinitis/osis and Sever's disease.
Haglund syndrome is characterized by a painful soft tissue swelling where the Achilles tendon attaches to the calcaneum (heel bone). Haglund syndrome can often result in the development of a bony deposit on the back of the calcaneum or in the inflammation of the bursa, the fluid filled sac that decreases friction between the Achilles tendon and the calcaneum, which is known as retrocalcaneal bursitis. It is believed that Haglund syndrome results from the repetitive application of trauma or stress to the Achilles tendon.
Achilles tendinitis and tendinosis describe two classifications of tendon injury around the Achilles tendon. Tendinosis refers to non-inflammatory intratendinous degeneration which is initially asymptomatic. Tendinitis describes symptomatic degeneration of the tendon associated with inflammation. Stanish has referred to these tendon classifications as non-union soft-tissue injuries. It is believed that non-union soft-tissue injuries are caused by inadequate perfusion of the local tissues. The affliction is characterized by soft tissue swelling, tenderness to the touch and roughening about the Achilles tendon known as crepitus. Those suffering from Achilles tendinitis/osis also experience pain with active pointing and passive raising of the foot.
Sever's disease results from a sclerosis or thickening and irregularity of the growth plate known as the calcaneal apophysis. It is believed that Sever's disease results from inflammation of the soft tissues of the heel following an injury. Sever's disease may cause a number of conditions including retrocalcaneal bursitis, traction apophysitis, which is the separating of the tendon from the bone, and osteochondrosis of the calcaneal apophysis which is irritation and inflammation of the bone and cartilage in the heel. Those suffering from Sever's disease experience pain down the back of the heel with passive raising of the foot, rapid and repetitive pointing of the foot and a springy gait. Sever's disease is aggravated by running and jumping.
These conditions are often treated by use of heel lifts which normally are foam pads approximately 0.25 inches thick; oral pain relievers; shoe inserts; anti-inflammatory medications; rest; ultrasound; various physical therapy treatments; and flexibility exercises. Surgical procedures such as diagonal removal of a heel bone known as oblique calcaneal osteotomy; removal of a deep and superficial retrocalcaneal bursae; cleaning and tendon repair are sometimes required for effective treatment.
Plantar fasciitis is an inflammation of the fascia along the bottom of the foot. The fascia are sheets of fibrous tissue beneath the surface of the skin that enclose muscles or muscle groups and separate muscular layers. Plantar faciitis can be quite painful to an individual but can be soothed by massages that increase circulation to the plantar fascia.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,841,957 in the name of Wooten, et al. describes a U-shaped pad for applying compression around the affected area of the heel. However, the device disclosed in the Wooten patent only applies static pressure to the affected area of the Achilles tendon. We have reason to believe that a dynamic pulsating pressure would be more effective in remedying maladies associated with the Achilles tendon.
Nitric oxide is known to be released with a change in sheer stress in blood flow against the endothelial cells lining the veins. Our studies indicate that pulsating pressure accelerates venous velocity. Other studies show that acceleration of venous velocity increases sheer stress. A recent study, Modulation of Tendon Healing by Nitric Oxide, authored by George A. C. Murrell and others indicates that nitric oxide is present during tendon healing, and that the inhibition of nitric oxide reduces the healing response. While the tendons are avascular, the small nitric oxide molecule is known to pass through vessel walls. Nitric oxide acts as a vasodilator, providing greater fluid and nutrition to local tissues.
The results indicated by testing the present invention supports the belief that application of a dynamic, pulsating pressure around the sides of the Achilles tendon provides relief and healing to those suffering from maladies afflicting the Achilles tendon.
United Kingdom patent No. 817,521 discloses an apparatus for facilitating the blood circulation in the extremities of the human body. The device shown in this patent is cumbersome, making the same difficult and time consuming to attach to the lower leg of the wearer. A further disadvantage in the use of this device resides in the fact that the inflatable cushions must be inflated from an external source, such as a pump.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,348,530 discloses a pneumatic ankle brace with a bladder and foot pump arrangement. The device of this patent is of rather complicated construction and requires use of a detachable hand-held pump.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,841,956 discloses a device adapted to be mounted to the lower leg and foot of a person for inducing venous blood flow in the leg. This device includes a pulse generator and programmable distributor necessitating a non-ambulatory position for the wearer during use.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,678,945 discloses a self-inflating ankle brace including air bags with resilient, compressible filler material. This patent discloses only a brace.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,322,530, assigned to the instant assignee and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, discloses a wrap made of a plurality of stretchable flexible straps. The straps wrap around the foot to hold in place one aircell positioned in the vicinity of the Achilles tendon and another aircell positioned in the vicinity of the arch of the foot, the two aircells being operatively connected to one another through a conduit member. As the user walks and steps on the aircell at the arch, that aircell is compressed, and the pressure in the aircell at the Achilles tendon is increased. As the user step off the arch aircell, the airflow is reversed, and air travels back from the Achilles tendon aircell to the arch aircell, ready for the next cycle. This device provides effective pneumatic compression of the Achilles tendon, but can be difficult for the user to apply and adjust properly.