Scheduling decisions between a first base station and a second base station are coordinated with respect to using subframes overlapping almost blank subframes for transmission, wherein the almost blank subframes include mandatory almost blank subframes which are predefined and are not to be used by the first base station and may be used by the second base station for transmission, and optional almost blank subframes which may be used by the first base station and the second base station. The almost blank subframes may be used for transmission according to the coordinated scheduling, and the transmission may be received by a user equipment.

The following meanings for the abbreviations used in this specification apply:    ABS Almost Blank Sub-frame    BTS Base Transceiver Station    C-RAN Cloud Radio Access Network    CRS Cell specific Reference Signal    CSI Channel State Information    DL Downlink    eICIC enhanced Intercell Interference Coordination    GBR Guaranteed Bit Rate    LTE Long Term Evolution    MIB Master Information Block    OPEX OPerational EXpenditures    PCI Physical Cell Identifier    PDCCH Physical Downlink Control CHannel    PDSCH Physical Downlink Shared Channel    PRB Physical Resource Block    PSS Primary Synchronization Signal    QoS Quality of Service    RLM Radio Link Monitoring    RRM Radio Resource Management    RSRP Received Signal Received Power    RSRQ Received Signal Received Quality    SIB System Information Block    SSS Secondary Synchronization Signal    TTI Transmission Time Interval    UE User Equipment    UL Uplink    3GPP 3rd Generation Partnership Project
Embodiments of the present invention relate to LTE and LTE-A radio access. In current LTE radio access networks there are two major trends for improving system capacity: namely, support of heterogeneous networks that are composed of macro, micro, pico and femto eNode Bs, and also centralized baseband processing where a large number of radio heads are connected to a central processing unit (also the terms C-RAN or baseband pooling/baseband hotelling refer to this kind of network deployments).
In the following, micro, pico and femto cells are referred to as small cells. Heterogeneous networks will deploy small radio cells/base stations in hot spot areas with high traffic demand like train stations, town centres, office areas etc in addition to the existing macro layer that provides the basic LTE coverage. The small cells might use the same or a different frequency layer. 3GPP has defined the so-called eICIC concept to enlarge the small cell coverage for those scenarios where both cells work on the same frequency layer. For this scheme a number of downlink sub-frames are not used by the macro base station and therefore the small cell base station will not be interfered in those sub-frames by the macro base station (some interference from reference symbols, synchronization symbols etc will remain and could be at least partly cancelled by the UE to enhance the performance). This allows the small cell base stations to serve in those sub-frames UEs that are located in the so-called cell range extension area that is just outside of the normal small cell coverage. This allows a better load balancing between the macro and small cells.
FIG. 1 illustrates the usage of the sub-frames in the macro and the small cells in the normal coverage and the small cell coverage. As shown, there are some subframes defined as ABS for the macro cell, and these subframes are preferably used for UE's in small cell range extension.
Another trend in future LTE network deployments concerns centralized baseband processing deployments where a number of different radio heads with different output power levels (serving macro/micro/pico or femto cells) are connected to a central baseband processing unit as shown in FIG. 2. In this example, the centralized baseband processing is carried out for a macro cell and also for small cells #1 to #3, which may be located in the geographical area of the macro cell.
Such schemes offer a number of advantages like                Centralized operation and maintenance saves OPEX        Baseband pooling gains        Simplified implementation of cooperative radio resource management schemes
A basic problem of the above described eICIC scheme is that the macro cell will lose resources since DL transmissions are neither allowed on PDSCH nor on PDCCH. This leads to a loss of DL resources for the macro cell in proportion to the number of almost blank sub-frames. As a side effect there will be no dynamically scheduled uplink transmissions 4 sub-frames after a DL ABS since no PDCCH transmission were allowed during the ABS. Only semi-persistent UL scheduling allocations will be possible for those UL sub-frames.
Nevertheless, this scheme could still provide better system capacity and especially better cell edge throughputs since either those resources can be used by several small cells that are under the coverage of the considered macro cell or there are many users close to a small cell location in a so-called hot spot area. In both cases it is advantageous to reduce the capacity of the macro cell and boost the capacities of the small cells.
However, in real network deployments there will be a lot of different scenarios and the load of the macro and small cell layer will change dynamically due to mobility of the users and/or varying traffic demand.
Hence, the load has to be considered. In the following, some procedures regarding load collection and change of an ABS pattern according to the prior art are described.
3GPP has defined a number of procedures over the X2 interface that allow the exchange of load information as well as the negotiation of appropriate ABS patterns that will be employed by macro and small cells. Within the load information message two different information elements—the invoke information element and the ABS information element—have been defined to trigger (by small eNode B) and distribute ABS pattern information (by macro eNode B). Furthermore, within the resource status request/response messages the ABS status has been added to check the usage of the ABS in different radio cells which is a load measure for the ABS usage in the small cells.
Those procedures can be used to collect load information in the macro cell on the underlying small cells and decide on suitable ABS patterns and distribute the ABS information to the associated small cells. However, such layer 3 signalling requires some time and therefore ABS patterns can be changed in the range of a few minutes or so since the cell extension of the small cells needs to be adjusted also in response to the modified ABS pattern.
The adjustment of the cell range extension requires an estimation of how much spare capacity a certain neighbour cell has available. This can be checked via the composite available capacity information element that can be exchanged via the X2 interface as part of the resource status request/response/update procedures. Based on the collected load information it is possible to negotiate different values for the cell range extension via the mobility change procedure over the X2 interface. Finally these modified range extensions need to be converted to appropriate cell individual offset parameters that are then signalled to a subset or even all UEs in order to achieve the appropriate load balancing between the radio cells.
Thus, the described load adjustments by layer 3 signalling have the following drawbacks:                Cannot be too fast since it is handled by radio layer 3 protocols        Create a high signalling load if they are done too often        Cannot track fast load changes        Some definitions like the definition of composite available capacity are not so precise that a very good load balancing in a multi-vendor environment can be achieved.        Use of a larger range extension does not directly mean that the load changes in the same way since that depends very much on the location of the UEs around the considered small cell.        Cannot track the large load imbalances between different small cells        Cannot track the high load variations in small cells that are caused by the relatively low number of UEs per small cell (typically there are only a few UEs per small cell)

Fast load balancing by cooperative scheduling for heterogeneous networks with eICIC


A self-locking hinge for agricultural machine panels includes a receptacle configured to slidingly receive an insert along a receiving axis. A hinge with fixed and movable portions and pivot axis transverse to the receiving axis is connected to the insert. A locking retainer is connected to the movable portion and engages an opening in the receptacle as the movable portion is moved toward a first position corresponding with panel closure. Engagement of the locking retainer in the opening precludes movement of the insert portion along the receiving axis. Moving the hinge in an opposite direction disengages the locking retainer from the opening and permits sliding movement of the insert. The locking retainer further includes an arcuate surface configured to engage an edge of the opening which may further be eccentrically arranged about the hinge axis to enable the locking retainer to move the insert into a desired position as the hinge is moved toward the first position.

The present invention relates generally to agricultural machines having moveable panels to provide access to internal areas, and, more particularly to a hinge mechanism that enables easy removal of the access panel in one position while preventing removal of the panel while in a second position.
Many harvesting machines and headers employ movable hoods or panels to provide access to the machine internals. These panels are typically hingedly connected to provide convenient access for routine inspections. Oftentimes the panels are removable to afford even greater access to the machine internals, such as for component service or replacement. The conventional method for panel removal involves detaching the hinges on which the panel swings from the machine structure, typically secured by bolted connections. Panel removal thus requires a time-consuming removal of multiple fasteners. Furthermore, loose fasteners are easily misplaced which adds further complication to reinstalling the panels.
It would be advantageous to provide an improved connection for an access panel on an agricultural machine that would permit hinged opening and closing of the panel for routine access as well as allow the panel to be easily removed from the machine without requiring tools for removal.


A current output circuit with bias control and a method thereof are provided. The current output circuit includes a current mirror circuit comprising a first transistor and a second transistor having respectively two drains, and a control circuit coupled to the current mirror circuit. The control circuit receives drain voltages of the first transistor and the second transistor, and adjusts a respective gate bias of the first transistor and the second transistor according to a respective drain voltage thereof.

A digital-to-analog-converter (DAC) generates an analog signal (voltage or current type) in response to a digital data. The DAC can be applied in many applications such as communication interface, Ethernet PHY, xDSL controller). Please refer to FIG. 1, showing a sample of a conventional DAC. The conventional DAC 10 comprises a plurality of DAC units 11, 12, . . . and 1n. Each DAC unit 11, 12, . . . , in comprises a switch 111, 121, . . . , 1n1 and a current source 113, 123, . . . , 1n3. The switch 111 (121, . . . , 1n1) can be implemented by a pair of transistors (1111, 1113) ((1211, 1213), . . . , (1n11, 1n13)). Each of the current sources 113, 123, . . . , and 1n3 is implemented by a respective transistor. The respective gate of the pair of transistors 1111, 1113, 1211, 1213, . . . , 1n11, 1n13 of each DAC unit 11, 12, . . . , 1n receives a digital signal D1+, D1−, D2+, D2−, . . . , Dn+, Dn−, provides analog currents to a load (not shown in FIG. 1) between PAD1 and PAD2 according to the digital signal, and produces an output signal Vout between PAD1 and PAD2.
With the development of the semiconductor process, the operational adapted is gradually decreasing, and it is more and more difficult to fulfill the requirement for many specifications such as 802.3. For example, an amplitude of the transmission signal is 5V for the 10M transmission mode of the Ethernet. Please refer to FIG. 2, showing a circuit diagram of a conventional Current Steering DAC. The DAC 20 comprises a plurality of DAC units 11, 12, . . . and 1n (the diagram only shows one DAC unit 11), and an impedance 13 comprising a first matching impedance Z1 and a second matching impedance Z2.
When the DAC 20 is implemented with a 0.18 μm CMOS Process, the operational voltage VDD is 1.8V. Please refer to FIG. 2 again, wherein the single-side amplitude peak value of the first analog signal Vout is 1.25V, and there is only 0.55V (1.8-1.25) at two terminals of the DAC unit 11 when the voltage between the first pad PAD1 and the second pad PAD2 reaches the peak value. Therefore, it is possible to affect the working voltage of the current source 113 (implemented by a transistor 113) of the DAC unit 11, and make the operational point of the transistor 113 enter a triode region, which results in a reduced current and a decreased amplitude of the DAC unit 11. The mentioned phenomenon will be more serious if the operational voltage VDD is even lower.
The conventional solution is to increase the area of the transistor 113 for decreasing the saturation drain-source voltage (VDS,SAT) thereof, which makes the operational point of the transistor 113 difficult to enter the triode region. However, the mentioned solution will increase the whole area of the circuit, and thus increase the cost as well as decrease the competitive ability accordingly.
In order to overcome the drawbacks in the prior art, a current output circuit with bias control and a method thereof are provided in the present invention.

Current output circuit with bias control and method thereof


A system, apparatus, and method for communicating Bluetooth keys is described. The system and method utilize a gateway apparatus that is communicates coupled to a cloud component over a first network channel, and communicates a gateway key over a local wireless Bluetooth channel. The gateway includes a processor, a memory, a fixed location, and a local broadcast range associated with an area surrounding the fixed location. The cloud component registers the gateway and a mobile wireless device having a processor and memory. When the mobile wireless device is within the local broadcast range of the gateway, the mobile wireless receives the gateway key over the local wireless channel. Upon receiving the gateway key, the mobile wireless device communicates a device key over the local wireless channel to the gateway. The gateway then communicates the received device key along the first network channel to the cloud component, and the mobile wireless device communicates the received gateway key over a second network channel to the cloud component. The cloud component then records the received gateway key with an associated receipt time and the received device key with an associated receipt time in a database.

The efficacy of mobile marketing depends on the ability to tune noise out and deliver relevant content. Imparting relevance is difficult because context is inextricably linked to location. To be truly effective, mobile applications must be smart enough to discern that a user searching for an "apple" in a grocery store likely requires a fruit and not an iPhone.
Prior to the emergence of the first player tracking systems at the end of the millennium, gaming operators relied on casino hosts to cultivate and maintain personal relationships with customers. With the explosion of the megaresorts that followed the opening of the Mirage in 1989, it became exponentially more challenging to build relationships with customers.
Fundamentally, player tracking supported the ability to track play in a more effective and efficient manner, which afforded casino operators the opportunity to triage their clientele and devote more resources to their most profitable players. Although tracking systems have grown more complex, it is still difficult for resorts to engage their customers once they're inside the casino because these antiquated systems are two dimensional. Some of the more savvy operators have experimented with social media as a method of making these systems more interactive, but with limited success. Operators are still learning how to prioritize content, and consumers are often overloaded with content. Worse, pushing ads with little or no relevance results in users' deleting their mobile apps.
In a highly commoditized industry like gaming, content providers must strive even harder to ensure their content has context that differentiates themselves from their competitors. Despite all the technological advancements in the gaming industry over the last 120 years, the vast majority of growth has been driven by expansion of brick and mortar casinos: more devices, more casinos. Technologies that deliver meaningful contextual awareness will be the primary driver of gaming revenues for the foreseeable future.
A system, apparatus, and method for communicating Bluetooth keys is described. The system includes a cloud component, a plurality of gateways, a mobile wireless device, a plurality of unique gateway keys, a device key, a first network channel, a second network channel, and a local wireless channel. The cloud component is communicatively coupled to each of the plurality of gateways over the first network channel so that the cloud component registers each gateway. Each gateway includes a processor, a memory, a fixed location, and a local broadcast range covering an area surrounding the fixed location. The gateways each broadcast a unique gateway key over their local broadcast ranges on a wireless Bluetooth channel. The mobile wireless device receives a unique gateway key over the local wireless Bluetooth channel when the mobile wireless device is within the local broadcast range of the corresponding gateway. When the mobile wireless device receives the gateway key, the mobile wireless device communicates a device key over the local wireless Bluetooth channel to the gateway. The gateway then communicates the received device key to the cloud component over the first network channel and the mobile wireless device communicates the received gateway key to the cloud component over the second network channel. The cloud component records the received gateway key in association with a gateway key receipt time and the device key in association with a device key receipt time in a database.
In one embodiment, each gateway generates a unique gateway key and the mobile wireless device generates the device key.
In another embodiment, at least one of the first network channel and the second network channel includes a wide area network. In yet another embodiment, the second network channel includes a wireless carrier network operating a high bandwidth wireless protocol that supports communications between the mobile wireless device and the cloud component.
In a further embodiment, the cloud component generates a unique gateway key for each gateway and the device key for the mobile wireless device.
In a still further embodiment, the gateway key includes a symmetric gateway key and the device key includes a symmetric device key. In an alternate embodiment, the gateway key includes an asymmetric gateway key and the device key includes an asymmetric device key.

Multi-channel communication of data files


An electron emitter provides a photocell having at least one photosensitive side, an electron accelerator, an electron collector disposed between the photosensitive side of the photocell and the electron accelerator, a non-metallic vacuum chamber having an adjustable vacuum containing the photocell, the electron accelerator and the electron collector; and a light source to excite electrons on the photosensitive side of the photocell. Upon light activation, infrared light strikes the photocell, causing electrons to be excited and released. The highly positively charged electron accelerator will attract the electrons under sufficient vacuum conditions. Some of the electrons travelling towards the electron accelerator will encounter the electron collector and be collected thereon. The device may be used as a rectifier or regulator to replace vacuum tubes such as for audio amplifiers and high voltage devices. It may also have application as an x-ray generator, an electron microscope or a display screen.

Vacuum tubes are arrangements of electrodes in an envelope of glass or other material within which a vacuum has been applied. The electrodes are attached to leads passing through the envelope for connection to an electrical circuit. Simple vacuum tubes comprise a filament sealed in a glass envelope evacuated of all air. Upon heating of the filament by a process called thermionic emission, electrons are released form the filament. The released electrons, bearing a negative electrical charge, will move through the vacuum towards a positively-charged metal plate anode, resulting in a flow of electrons from the filament to the anode.
Vacuum tubes have been used for a wide variety of electronics applications, and are still used for specialised audio amplifiers. Vaccum tube principles are used in cathode ray tubes in televisions, oscilloscopes and computer monitors.
It is known to provide a device for x-ray imaging. An example of such a device includes U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/795,414 by Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba ("Toshiba"). The Toshiba patent describes an x-ray image tube device having a vacuum tube enclosing a main body. The main body has a photoelectric surface for converting light into electrons. Focusing electrodes along the length of the vacuum tube act as an electron accelerator and electron focuser directing electrons to an anode (electron collector) at the other end of the vacuum tube.
There are a number of desirable objectives in relation to electron emitters. Such electron emitters should ideally be able to operate without heating. They should be operable using a variety of electron activators, including various light sources. Existing electron emitters achieve some of these objectives, but with varying degrees of success.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a cold electron emitter in which electrons are released from a photocell upon activation by a light source. It is a further object of the present invention to provide such a device which is of simple architecture.


This invention provides improved methods of protection required under the 1999 edition of the National Electric Code, section NEC 830 requirement that if a drop coaxial cable (usually supplying an individual residence) carries power above a certain voltage, it must include sufficient protection from electric shock for people who may come in contact with it. A drop coaxial cable would be carrying sufficient power for NEC 830 protection if it were supplying a cable telephone interface box or other AC powered network interface devices. In one embodiment, the invention utilizes the AC power signal from the drop cable to operate an AC power sensing circuit. The circuit utilizes an upper and lower current range to determine whether to activate a switch operative to interrupt the AC power in the drop cable. One variation of the invention utilizes an oscillator generated probe signal to determine if there is a valid circuit connection. Another variation of the invention utilizes an oscillator driven AC power insertion circuit to determine if there is a valid circuit connection. The invention allows RF signals to continue transmitting unimpeded.

NEC830 deals with requirements for broadband communication systems, such as cable television systems, which provide powering on, or attached to, the coaxial cable on which signals are transmitted to bring, for example, television programs and other services to subscribers. Coaxial cable usually runs from a device called a xe2x80x9ctap,xe2x80x9d which extracts a portion of the power from the distribution coaxial cable, to a subscriber""s building or residence, hereinafter referred to simply as xe2x80x9cthe subscriberxe2x80x9d. This coaxial cable is called the xe2x80x9cdropxe2x80x9d. NEC830 requires that if the drop carries power above a certain voltage, it must meet certain requirements for the protection of people who may come in contact with it. The most common reason the drop would be carrying power is to supply a cable telephone interface box, or network interface device (NID). The requirements of NEC830 are that the drop must meet certain physical requirements, or it must be protected by a UL xe2x80x9clisted fault protection devicexe2x80x9d, to detect if a drop is either shorted or open and, in either case, interrupt power carried in the drop until the fault has cleared.
Broadband services, such as cable telephony applications, may require AC power to be supplied from the tap cable to the drop cable. The coaxial cable drop to the subscriber is therefore xe2x80x9cAC hotxe2x80x9d and subjects the installer or other craftspersons working with the cable drop to potential electrical shock and/or electrocution.
An example of an NEC830 safety circuit for interrupting AC power on the drop cable is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,793,590 to Vokey et al. The device described in Vokey is a two-unit device having a tap unit and a premise unit. An independent DC power source is used to power the two-unit device and to provide a probe voltage. A dual threshold detector compares a DC voltage drop proportional to the AC power transferred to the drop cable with a probe voltage to determine whether there is a short or open condition at the junction of the tap and drop cables. While Vokey is suitable for its general purpose, it utilizes an analog methodology that can lack long-term calibration dependability in harsh environmental conditions. Also, the limitations of monitoring a DC voltage drop proportional to the AC power transferred to the drop cable tends to make the Vokey methodology inaccurate because the monitored DC voltage drop is merely an approximation of the actual AC power transferred to the drop cable. In addition, the second (DC) power source creates certain inefficiencies. A capacitor must keep the DC power source separate from the AC power signals in the drop cable and thus is critical for the operation of the safety device as a whole. This capacitor""s necessarily large physical size makes it cumbersome for circuit packaging. Capacitors of this size are available, but along with being larger than one would like in this application, getting one with an adequate current rating and good long term reliability in an outdoor (but sheltered) environment is difficult. Thus, for an efficient and reliable safety device solution it would be desirable to eliminate the need for large value capacitors and to have a precise, rather than approximate, monitoring capability.
The present invention overcomes the above-described problems in the prior art by providing a coaxial cable safety device that utilizes the AC power already present in a drop cable as a powering and monitoring solution to provide a parameter indicative of such AC power. The present invention is a coaxial cable protection system for a cable media environment that includes a primary cable and a drop cable having first and second conductors. The first and second conductors carry AC power and RF signals to a network interface device. The present invention includes a first circuit component for allowing the RF signals to be transmitted from the primary cable to the first conductor of the drop cable. A second circuit component features an active state for passing the AC power from the primary cable to the first conductor of the drop cable and a blocking state for selectively blocking the passage of AC power to the first conductor. A sensor actuates the second circuit component to block AC power from the first conductor if the current drawn between the first and second conductors is outside of a prescribed range.
A variation of the present invention is a sensing circuit utilizing the resistance in a drop cable. An oscillator generates a probe frequency. A comparator compares the resistance in a conductor with a known resistance. The known resistance is proportional to the probe frequency. An actuator opens and closes a circuit component for blocking AC power from passing to the drop cable based on the comparison of the drop cable resistance provided by the comparator with the known resistance.
Another variation of the present invention uses a frequency generation and detection circuit that monitors the drop cable for a tone signal. The drop cable has a first end and a remote end. An oscillator utilizes the AC signal from the drop cable to generate a tone signal. A circuit component actuated by the oscillator will block AC power in the drop cable if the oscillator does not generate a tone signal and will allow the AC power to pass if oscillator generates a tone signal.


The present invention provides an alternative means of displaying aircraft flight information traditionally provided by a standalone rate of turn indicator on the aircraft instrumentation panel. The bank angle effective to achieve a rate of turn equal to a desired rate of turn for an aircraft is displayed to the pilot by generating and displaying one or more bank angle markers on the roll scale of an aircraft attitude indicator. The position of the desired rate of turn bank angle markers may be updated continuously as a function of airspeed and other flight parameters. The present invention enables a pilot to perform a coordinated turn at a desired rate of turn without having to reference a separate rate of turn indicator on the instrumentation panel and/or without having to independently calculate the associated bank angle according to any known xe2x80x9crule of thumbxe2x80x9d or other estimation method.

The present invention relates generally to aircraft instrumentation systems. More particularly, the present invention relates to an indicator for displaying the bank angle effective to achieve and maintain a desired rate of turn for an aircraft.
The prior art is replete with various aircraft flight control instruments and displays. These instruments and displays use a combination of alphanumeric and graphical information to indicate the state of the vehicle. The primary flight parameters that are displayed to a pilot are traditionally regarded as being pitch and roll attitude, altitude, airspeed and heading. Secondary parameters may include vertical speed, rate of turn and various navigation and engine related parameters. A number of mechanisms have been devised for presenting this information to the pilot. Early aircraft generally use dedicated instruments for each of these parameters. Modern display technology, however, allows multiple parameters to be presented on a single display. Such flight control displays, which may be of the panel-mounted variety (e.g., heads down display or HDD) or of the heads up display (HUD) variety, are commonly found in commercial, military, and civilian aircraft.
To control an aircraft, a pilot must maintain a high level of awareness of the state of the vehicle and, in particular, the primary flight parameters. To achieve this the pilot must typically continuously and rapidly scan the instrument panel to locate and interpret the displays of the primary flight parameters. The pilot also typically periodically glances at the secondary displays, although this task can be performed at a lower rate than the monitoring of the primary displays. The continual, fast, repetitive scan of the primary flight instruments constitutes a significant workload for the pilot. The difficulty of this task may be compounded by stress and other abnormal or adverse conditions encountered by aircraft operators. When overtaxed, pilots may incorrectly interpret or be confused by even the simplest data and may fail to act, or, conversely, may tend to overreact under the circumstances.
A further common difficulty is that of fixation on a single instrument whose indicated parameter may have excessively varied from a desired value. This type of fixation frequency results in inordinate variation in parameters displayed on other instruments, because of the excessive concentration devoted to the correction of the first-discovered or discrepant parameter.
The workload of the pilot and the probability of pilot error may be mitigated by presenting data to the pilot in a manner that simplifies interpretation and minimizes the effort required to gather the required data.
During instrument flight, certain regulatory authorities, such as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), generally direct pilots to perform procedure turns at a standard rate of turn, such as, for example, at a heading change rate of three degrees per second. For some aircraft, the standard rate of turn may be some multiple of this number. For the purposes of this discussion, the FAA standard rate of turn for aircraft, or other appropriate rate of turn, will be referred to as the desired rate of turn of the aircraft. Traditionally, the rate of turn of an aircraft has been displayed on a dedicated scale with markers placed at predefined points, such as, for example, at the xc2x13 degrees per second points on the scale. Such a dedicated scale has been located in a variety of positions on prior art instrumentation panels, such as, for example, on a linear scale below the aircraft attitude indicator and/or on a separate gauge on the instrument panel.
Even though during instrument flight a pilot""s focus must remain on the primary flight instruments while turning, the pilot is also responsible for maintaining the required rate of turn. It is possible for the pilot to maintain a constant rate of turn by maintaining a constant airspeed and roll attitude. To perform a turn, a pilot rolls an aircraft in the direction of the turn to a bank angle approximating the bank angle effective that required to achieve the desired rate of turn. A glance at the rate of turn indicator can then be used to confirm whether the desired rate of turn has been achieved. The roll attitude can then be adjusted to achieve the desired rate of turn. Having achieved the desired rate of turn, the pilot can then complete the maneuver without further reference to the rate of turn indicator by simply maintaining a constant roll attitude and airspeed. This process, however, generally causes the pilot to divert attention away from the primary instruments.
To obtain the initial estimate of the roll attitude (i.e., bank angle) effective to achieve the desired rate of turn of 3 degrees per second, pilots have commonly used a well-known xe2x80x9crule of thumbxe2x80x9d during aircraft operation to calculate this effective bank angle:
xe2x80x83(V÷10)+7
Thus, for example, using this xe2x80x9crule of thumb,xe2x80x9d the pilot of an aircraft flying level (i.e., neither climbing nor descending) at 150 knots would roll the aircraft to a bank angle of 22 degrees to achieve a standard rate of turn of 3 degrees per second.
For a coordinated level turn, the rate of turn is typically a function of the speed of the aircraft and the bank angle as shown in Equation 1:
R.O.T.xe2x88x9dtan(xcex8)/V
where
xcex8=bank angle, degrees
V=Velocity, True Air Speed (TAS)
R.O.T.=Rate of Turn, degrees per second
(See Hurt, H.H. Jr., Aerodynamics for Naval Aviators. US Navy: NAVWEPS 00-80T-80 (1965)).
Given the speed of the aircraft, it is possible to calculate the bank angle effective to achieve a desired rate of turn by solving the above Equation 1 for the bank angle. This gives Equation 2:
xcex8xe2x88x9dtanxe2x88x921(R.O.T.xc3x97V)
FIG. 1 shows a plot of bank angle (xcex8) as a function of airspeed (V) for a number of different desired rates of turn.
A method of integrating display of the bank angle derived from the above equation or other appropriate algorithm relating bank angle to rate of turn with the pilot""s attitude display would allow the pilot to perform a rate turn without diverting attention away from the primary instruments to monitor the rate of turn. A secondary benefit would be the possibility for removal of the standalone rate of turn indicator, thus decreasing cluttering of the instrument panel.
It is, therefore, a general aspect of the instant invention to provide for a single display on which certain critical flight and navigational parameters are simultaneously displayed and to do so in a manner which is intuitively simple for the pilot to use and to interpret, thus enhancing pilot efficiency and safety.
Various embodiments of the present invention provide alternative techniques of displaying aircraft flight information traditionally provided by a standalone rate of turn indicator. The proposed invention not only addresses the problems of space shortage on aircraft display panels, but it also more directly answers a pilot""s question during flight as to what bank angle must be maintained in order to achieve a desired rate of turn at a particular airspeed. Specifically, the proposed invention includes an integral directional marker that is easy to detect and to interpret by the pilot.
In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the bank angle effectual to achieve a desired rate of turn is displayed-to the pilot by generating and displaying one or more bank angle markers on the roll scale of the aircraft attitude indicator. The position of the desired rate of turn bank angle markers may be updated continuously as a function of airspeed. The present invention enables a pilot to perform a coordinated turn at the desired rate of turn without having to reference a separate indicator and without having to resort to the traditional xe2x80x9crule of thumb.xe2x80x9d
In a further aspect of one embodiment of the present invention, the desired rate of turn indicator may be designed to compensate for non-level flight and to reflect this in calculating the position of the desired rate of turn bank angle markers. To compensate for non-level flight in calculating the position of the desired rate of turn bank angle markers, it is useful to incorporate factors such as the vertical acceleration of the aircraft into the equation for calculation of the roll angle effective to maintain a desired rate of turn.
The various aspects and embodiments of the present invention described in detail herein assume that the pilot is performing a coordinated turn. Certain aircraft, such as, for example, helicopters, can perform uncoordinated turns, or pedal turns, at low airspeeds. The desired rate of turn bank angle indicator of the present invention may not provide useful information during an uncoordinated turn. Moreover, obtaining accurate airspeed data at very low airspeeds may be difficult due to limitations of some airspeed sensors. In light of these limitations, the desired rate of turn bank angle markers may be removed from the display when the aircraft is traveling at a low airspeed.

Desired rate of turn bank angle indicator


An important component selection device is provided for selecting a component having a higher importance in a simulation calculation, so that the component having a higher priority is calculated firstly by a calculation device and the importance of the updated component is re-evaluated so as to be reflected in the calculation thereafter. When a high speed is required, the ranking of the important components are realized by hardware. Moreover, when a storage device has a plurality of candidate value data for each of the component data and the calculation device updates the candidate values one by one, the magnitude of variety of the candidate values is used as the importance of the component data and the component having this value which is large is calculated with a higher priority so that the calculation of the component having a small change is omitted, thereby increasing the simulation speed.

Conventionally, in simulation of a system composed of multiple components, such as a model of a physical or social phenomenon, in order to calculate time variation of the system, energy minimization, relaxation to self-consistency, or the like, state values for all components and a conditional expression or state transition expression relating to the components are calculated one by one in turn, repeatedly over and over again, and the state values are updated little by little, whereby the precise numerical values are determined. Therefore, it requires an amount of calculation time proportional to the power of the number of all components and thus if the number of the components is enormous, calculation time takes too much time; accordingly, there is a problem in that it becomes difficult to obtain results.
Particularly, in the case of simulation of time variation of a physical system, just determining all state values at a given time step requires energy minimization and relaxation to self-consistency and thus there is a need to perform iterative calculation for correcting each state value. Since such calculation is repeatedly performed for each time step, enormous calculation time is required. In the case of a system in which all components change greatly or a system for obtaining very precise calculation results, such an amount of calculation time may be absolutely needed. A drawback is that, even in other cases, in conventional calculation methods, it always requires about an equal amount of calculation time.
As a solution of a search or optimization problem by a computing machine, there is a method, such as branch and bound, in which a component list representing the priority order of calculation is provided and calculation is performed according to the list without calculating all components in turn. This method, however, aims at correct computation and a calculation process of component data and an update to the priority order list are processed one by one as a software algorithm and hence, the method has a drawback in that, an update to the list takes time, which in turn increases overall processing time. In addition, when such a software scheme is applied to the case in which data processing for each component is relatively simple, such as the aforementioned computer simulation of physical systems, there is a drawback in that the proportion of costs for calculation of priority order to the cost for data processing for each component is higher and thus calculation efficiency does not improve much. As a scheme of parallel computation, there is an invention in which a scheduler schedules multiple processes into multiple processors, such as a parallel computing system of patent document 1, for example. However, the invention is for load distribution and thus cannot be applied to a process of minutely dividing calculation of each component in simulation calculation. Although an apparatus that arranges data by hardware at high speeds is already invented, such as a sorting apparatus of patent document 2, the apparatus does not have a mechanism for rearranging the data by importance and thus cannot be used in terms of an object of the present invention.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-3321
Patent Document 2—Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-305993

Method and apparatus for priority based data processing


An image pickup apparatus comprises a plurality of photoelectric conversion areas, and a light adjustment area including a first transmission portion for transmitting light which is provided in association with a first photoelectric conversion area included in the plurality of photoelectic conversion areas and a second transmission portion for transmitting light which is provided in association with a second photoelectric conversion area included in the plurality of photoelectric conversion areas. The light adjustment area is configured to cause a part of light incident on the second transmission portion to be incident on the first transmission portion.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image pickup apparatus for picking up an object image.
2. Related Background Art
Conventionally, in forming a color image, an image pickup technique is widely used which picks up an object image by a single image pickup element in which pixels each provided with any one of primary color filters of red (R), green (G) and blue (B) are arranged in mosaic and generates luminance information and color information corresponding to the number of pixels by subsequent signal processing. In many cases, a color filter array of the image pickup element used in this technique is the Bayer array. This image pickup technique can realize significant cost reduction without degrading quality of an image so much compared with an image pickup method of a three plate system that separates an object image into R, G and B in advance using a beam splitter for color separation and picking up an image by image pickup elements prepared for respective colors.
However, the above-mentioned conventional technique has the following problems. In general, image pickup for obtaining good image characteristics is composed of a first process for forming an object image by an optical device, a second process for adjusting a high frequency component of a spatial frequency characteristic of the object image to be suppressed, a third process for photoelectrically converting the object image with the spatial frequency characteristic adjusted, and a fourth process for correcting a response to an obtained electric signal according to a spatial frequency. In this image pickup, since sampling of an optical image is performed by an image pickup element with a limited number of pixels, it is necessary to reduce components equal to or greater than the Nyquist frequency peculiar to the image pickup element in spatial frequency characteristics of the optical image. Here, the Nyquist frequency means a frequency that is a half of a sampling frequency depending on a pixel pitch. Therefore, the optimized series of processes adjusts an optical image subjected to sampling to be an optical image of characteristics corresponding to the Nyquist frequency peculiar to the image pickup element, thereby obtaining a high quality image in which aliasing distortion is not conspicuous, that is, moiré is not conspicuous.
A Modulation Transfer Function (MTF) that is a spatial frequency transmission characteristic of an image is an evaluation amount with which a characteristic concerning sharpness of a digital still camera, a video camera or the like can be represented well. Specific elements affecting this MTF are a focusing optical system functioning as an optical device, an optical lowpass filter for limiting a band of an object image, an opening shape of an photoelectrical conversion area of an image pickup element, digital aperture correction and the like. An overall MTF representing final image characteristics is given as a product of MTF of each element. That is, it is sufficient to find MTFs for the above-mentioned first to fourth processes, respectively, and calculate a product of the MTFs. However, since digital filtering that is the fourth process is applied to an image output that has already been subjected to sampling by the image pickup element, it is unnecessary to take into account a high frequency wave exceeding the Nyquist frequency.
Therefore, a configuration for reducing components equal to or greater than the Nyquist frequency peculiar to an image pickup element in spatial frequency characteristics of an optical image means a configuration in which components equal to or greater than the Nyquist frequency are few in a product of the MTF of the first process, the MTF of the second process and the MTF of the third process excluding the fourth process. Here, in the case in which viewing of a still image is considered a premise as in a digital still camera, it is necessary to take into account the fact that an image giving a good feeling of resolution can be easily realized if response in a frequency slightly lower than the Nyquist frequency is higher even if a high frequency wave exceeding the Nyquist frequency is not zero but remains more or less.
In the formation of an object image by the focusing optical system that is the first process, in general, it is easier to correct optical aberration in a center of a screen than in a periphery of the screen. When it is attempted to obtain a good image in the periphery of the screen, it is necessary to obtain extremely good characteristics close to a diffraction limit MTF that depends on an F-number of a focusing lens in the center of the screen. In recent years, this necessity has been increasing as an image pickup element uses smaller pixels. Therefore, it is better to consider an MTF on the assumption that the focusing optical system is an ideal aplanatic lens.
In addition, in an image pickup element in which light receiving openings of a width d are laid without of the light receiving opening is the same as a pixel pitch, a response value of the third process at the Nyquist frequency u=½d is rather high. Due to this response, it is a general practice to trap the vicinity of the Nyquist frequency in the second process in order to lower the overall MTF in the vicinity of the Nyquist frequency.
In the second process, an optical lowpass filter is usually used. A material having a birefringence characteristic such as that of quartz is used for the optical lowpass filter. In addition, a diffraction grating of a phase type as disclosed in JP 2000-066141 A may be used. When a birefringent plate is intervened in an optical path of an optical device and the optical axis is slanted to be arranged in parallel with a horizontal direction of a focusing surface, an object image by a normal ray and an object image by an abnormal ray are formed deviating by a predetermined amount in the horizontal direction. Trapping a specific spatial frequency by the birefringent plate means deviating a bright part and a dark part of a stripe of the spatial frequency so as to overlap each other. An MTF by the optical lowpass filter is represented by Expression (1):R2(u)=|cos (π·u·ω)|  (1)where Rs(u) is response, u is a spatial frequency of an optical image and ω is a separation width of an object image.
If a thickness of the birefringent plate is selected appropriately, it is possible to reduce the response to zero in the Nyquist frequency of the image pickup element. If the diffraction grating is used, it is possible to realize the same effect by separating an optical image into a plurality of images of a predetermined positional relationship and superimposing the images by diffraction. However, it is necessary to grow crystal such as quartz or lithium niobate and then grind it to be thin in order to manufacture the birefringent plate. Thus, the birefringent plate becomes very expensive. In addition, the diffraction grating is also expensive because a highly precise fine structure is required.
On the other hand, JP 2001-078213 A discloses a technique that makes an effective light receiving opening larger than a pixel pitch to suppress an MTF of pixels equal to or greater than the Nyquist frequency by using a compound eye lens although an image pickup system of a single plate type is used. However, since image shift depending on an object distance occurs due to the compound eye, a sampling pitch of an object image becomes unequal in a distance other than a reference object distance. That is, misregistration occurs. Therefore, a predetermined image performance is not always realized regardless of object conditions.
Moreover, as disclosed in JP 01-014749 B (FIG. 5), it is also attempted to suppress response to a high spatial frequency by forming a photoelectrical conversion area of pixels in an intricate shape with respect to neighboring pixels. However, since a shape of the pixels becomes complicated, an extremely fine structure is required. In addition, since each pixel divides a plane, an effect is not easily realized if an object image projected on the pixels has, for example, a slant line along the dividing line. In addition, in each pixel of a color image pickup element, only light transmitted through a predetermined optical filter among an incident light flux is photoelectrically converted, and the light is outputted as an electric signal. Thus, light that could not have been transmitted through the optical filter is disposed of as heat or the like.
FIG. 26 shows an array of photoelectrical conversion areas 901 on an image pickup element. As shown in FIG. 27, a microlens 902 for magnifying area of an opening is provided for each of the photoelectrical conversion areas 901. FIG. 28 is a perspective view of the microlens 902. As shown in the figure, the microlens 902 is a lens having a positive power and has a function of converging received light fluxes to the photoelectrical conversion areas 901 of the image pickup element.
For example, in a CCD image pickup element having pixels with primary color filters arranged in mosaic, which is said to have good color reproducibility, optical filters of red (R), green (G) and blue (B) are arranged one by one between the microlens 902 and the photoelectrical conversion area 901. In this case, in the pixels having the optical filters of R arranged, only red light is photoelectrically converted, and blue light and green light are absorbed by the optical filter and generate heat. In the pixels having the optical filters of G arranged, blue light and red light are not photoelectrically converted but outputted as heat in the same manner. In the pixels having the optical filters of B arranged, green light and red light are not photoelectrically converted but outputted as heat in the same manner. FIG. 25 shows a spectral transmissivity characteristic of the color filters of R, G and B in an image pickup element. Since infrared ray has high transmissivity, infrared ray cut filters for cutting a wavelength of 650 nm or more are additionally used in stack. As is seen from this, only ⅓ of visible light is effectively used in one pixel.
Considering a utilization efficiency for each color of R, G and B more in detail, for example, a ratio of area of R, G and B pixel of a color image pickup element of the Bayer array shown in FIG. 29 is ¼: 2/4:¼ when area of a unit constituting a regular array is assumed to be one. Thus, a utilization ratio of green light when an overall amount of light is one is ⅓× 2/4=⅙ as a product of a term of wavelength selectivity and a term of an area ratio, those for red light and blue light are ⅓×¼= 1/12, respectively. When these are totaled, ⅙+ 1/12+ 1/12=⅓. Therefore, the utilization efficiency is still ⅓. To the contrary, when an overall amount of light is assumed to be one, ⅔× 2/4=⅓ of green light and ⅔×¼=⅙ of red light and blue light are not effectively utilized among the overall amount of light.
The above description is for the image pickup element using primary color filters. However, ⅓ of visible light is not photoelectrically converted and is not effectively utilized in an image pickup element using complementary color filters. In this way, the conventional image pickup element of the single plate type using either primary color filters or complementary color filters has a bad light utilization efficiency because an image pickup surface is divided by color filters.
On the other hand, JP 08-182006 A discloses a structure of an image pickup element that eliminates such waste of an amount of light. In this image pickup element, a prism is arranged for each spatial pixel, and object light whose color is separated by the prism is received by three color pixels of R, G and B. However, the color pixels have a size approximately ⅓ of the spatial pixels. If it is attempted to make a sensor of a small pixel pitch, an extremely fine structure is required of the color pixels, but there is a limit in making the pixel pitch smaller.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Image pickup apparatus containing light adjustment portion with reflection of a portion of light onto adjacent pixels


A new method of controlling the critical dimension width of polysilicon by planarizing the photoresist underlayer is described. A semiconductor substrate is provided wherein the surface of the substrate has an uneven topography. A layer of polysilicon is deposited over the uneven surface of the substrate. The polysilicon layer is covered with a spin-on-glass layer wherein the spin-on-glass material planarizes the surface of the underlying topography. The spin-on-glass layer is covered with a uniform thickness layer of photoresist. The photoresist layer is exposed through the desired mask, developed and patterned to form the desired resist mask. The exposed spin-on-glass and polysilicon layers are removed by etch. The photoresist mask is stripped. The spin-on-glass layer remaining over the polysilicon patterned layer is removed, resulting in the polysilicon layer having the desired uniform critical dimension.

(1) Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method of controlling the critical dimension width of polysilicon, and more particularly, to a method of controlling the critical dimension width of polysilicon by planarizing the photoresist underlayer using a spin-on-glass layer in the manufacture of integrated circuits.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown a portion of a partially completed integrated circuit in which there is a silicon substrate 10. Field oxide regions 12 are formed in and on the silicon substrate resulting in a uneven topography of the top surface of the substrate. A layer 14 of polysilicon is deposited over the surface of the substrate. A layer of photoresist 16 coats the surface of the polysilicon layer 14 and planarizes the substrate. The differing photoresist depths A and B will make an imperfect image and resulting mask.
FIG. 2 shows a top view of the active area 20 of the semiconductor substrate. Field oxide regions 12 surround the active area. This figure illustrates the necking problem 17 of the PRIOR ART in polysilicon region 14, especially for areas having a large change in topography such as the field oxide to active areas. The differing photoresist thicknesses cause the different critical dimension width of the polysilicon due to the standing-wave effect. This necking problem could result in early breakdown of the integrated circuit via the neck, 17. The circuit critical dimension (CCD), Testline, and Testkey can differ by as much as 0.15 micrometers. Testline and testkey are process monitor patterns having the same dimension as the CCD, but different surrounding patterns.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,003,062 to Yen and 4,775,550 to Chu et al describe processes for planarization using spin-on-glass materials. These Patents are cited to show the general use of spin-on glass materials in the art.

Critical dimension control with a planarized underlayer

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company


A composition and method for using the composition for degrading pollutants in-situ. The composition comprises a biocarrier coated with an antigen-specific antibody that attracts and binds pollution-degrading antigens. The biocarrier, which is preferably in the form of glass microspheres, is coated with one or more strains of antibody. The antibody may be placed into the ground in or near the source of pollutants where it may attract antigens present and bind them, or the antibodies may be first exposed to the antigens and then placed in the ground. Alternatively, the coated biocarriers may be used to degrade pollutants in ground water pumped to the surface and through a biofilter containing the biocarriers. The remediated groundwater can then be returned to the soil.

1. Field of the Invention
This application relates generally to a process of biodegradation of groundwater pollutants.
2. Discussion of Background
Bacterial remediation of soil and groundwater contaminants are well known in the art. Hegeman et al in U.S. Pat. No. 5,024,949, incorporated herein by reference, teaches bacterial isolation, selection, and amplification techniques for providing bacterial cultures useful in the degradation of chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbons. The teachings of Hegeman et al are applicable to other soil or water borne contaminants where bacteria are known to convert or degrade a contaminant to safe or less harmful metabolic byproducts. It is well known in the art to adopt bacterial selection protocols to identify and culture strains of bacteria with a degradation (metabolite) preference for a single chemical species, such as TCE, even when similar chemical hydrocarbon species are also present.
Heretofore, the use of bacterial agents to remediate groundwater and soil contaminated sites have been largely confined to passing contaminated water and soil through incubation tanks housing cultures of specified bacteria under optimal pH, temperature, and nutrient conditions. This treatment protocol is capital and labor intensive, requires frequent monitoring, and long periods of time.
In situ treatment of groundwater and soil contaminants with bacterial agents is also known. However, in situ treatments typically employ the introduction of controlled levels of nitrogen, phosphorus, air, and other nutrients in an effort to stimulate bioremediation. The introduction of nutrients often generates excessive growth and plugging of access wells and injection points. Further, the bacterial bloom which results is often nonspecific which may dilute the presence and activity of the desired bacterial agent, or promotes bacterial activity which produces unwanted byproducts (such as vinyl chloride) as opposed to a preferred metabolic degradation pathway. In addition, the nutrient supplementation occurs on a rather large scale and is therefore costly.
Accordingly, there is room for improvement and variation in the art of bioremediation processes and treatment protocols.

Use of serospecific biocarrier compositions for enhanced biodegradation and bioremediation of groundwater

The United States of America as represented by the Department of Energy


A microfabricated containment capsule has a bulk substrate delimiting a cavity with a boundary, a first portion of which constitutes an inner wall of a solid portion of the bulk substrate. The bulk substrate also provides at a second portion of the boundary a membrane joined to one side of the bulk substrate, the membrane having at least one porous area with controlled pores.

The present invention relates generally to microfabricated porous membranes with bulk support, and more particularly to microfabricated porous membranes whose bulk support is an unetched portion of a substrate on which the membrane was fabricated.
Porous membranes may be used as elements of absolute particle filters, immunological barrier capsules and time-release diffusion barriers. Devices incorporating porous membranes must have sufficient mechanical strength to withstand routine handling during fabrication and use. These devices must also be able to withstand the mechanical stresses inherent in their intended use.
Filtration devices are an indespensable necessity, for example, of current health care technology, and in particular of biotechnology. Within the health care industry, examples of areas that require accurate filtration devices are patient and blood product protection, diagnostics, and the fields of pharmaceutical, biotechnology and bioprocessing, including blood fragmentation technology. For several applications within these domains, required filter features include: control of the pore sizes and distributions, and of the relative diffusion rates; absolute pore sizes as small as the nanometer range; high durability; and biochemical and mechanical resistance. Certain existing, commercially-significant filter technology employs polymeric membranes, and is incapable of addressing a variety of needs in the cited application areas.
Precise control of filter pore sizes in the 50 to 100 angstrom range, for either organic or inorganic filters, would allow, for example, biologically important molecules to be mechanically separated on the basis of size. In the present state of the art, there is a very limited selection of filters having pores much less than the resolution limit of 0.35 microns of photolithography. Some filters known heretofore having pore sizes in this range include polycarbonate membrane filters, sintered filters, zeolites, and one instance of a microfabricated bulk micromachined filter.
Polycarbonate membrane filters (nucleopore filters) may be used where pore sizes between 500 and 3500 angstroms are needed. These filters, however, cannot be used at high temperatures, in strong organic solvents, or where no extracted oligomers can be tolerated. The pores of polycarbonate membrane filters are also randomly located. As such, there is a compromise between having a high enough population of pores per unit area and having too many instances of partially overlapping pores. Partially overlapping pores provide pathways through the filter that allow some particles to get through that are larger in diameter than the rated cut-off size of the filter.
Filters that are available in other materials, such as metals or ceramics, are made by sintering together discrete particles. This technique yields a random structure with a relatively large dead volume and no exact cut-off size above which transport is impossible.
Materials such as zeolites, which have a crystal structure with large channels, can be used as molecular sieves in the limited range of from about 5 to 50 angstroms. Zeolites are not amenable to fabrication as thin membranes.
A microfabricated filter with bulk micromachined structures is described by Kittilsland in Sensors and Actuators, A21-A23 (1990) pp. 904-907. This design uses a special property of silicon wherein silicon becomes resistant to a certain etchant when highly doped with boron. The pore length of this filter is determined by the lateral diffusion of boron from a surface source at a single crystal silicon-thermal oxide interface. As is known, such lateral diffusion is the diffusion in the plane of the source, away from the source. The use of this technique makes it very difficult to precisely control the pore length. Also the method of fabricating this filter cannot be applied to materials other than silicon.
Thus, it can be seen that currently there is a need for filters that can be fabricated from a wide variety of materials and that have pores of well controlled shape and size smaller than about 3500 angstroms and arranged in a precise pattern to exclude the possibility of overlap.
Such pore sizes are also necessary for microencapsulation for immunological isolation. Medical researchers have demonstrated that the concept of microencapsulation to provide immunological isolation is valid. The islets of Langerhans, which produce insulin in mammals as well as hormones that control the metabolism of glucose by other organs, have been transplanted between different species. For example, pig islets have been transplanted into diabetic dogs to control glucose metabolism. However, these unprotected islets function only for a short time before the immune system of the host kills the donor cells.
Encapsulation of islets in order to protect them from immune system macromolecules has been shown to prolong the survival of donor cells. By using various means of encapsulation, insulin production from pig islets has been maintained for over one hundred days in dogs. Encapsulation methods to date include using semipermeable amorphous organic polymeric membranes, sintered together particles, and intermeshed ceramic needles. Significant problems have been encountered, however, limiting the useful life of these capsules to not much more than one hundred days.
The two principal problems with the capsules described above are inadequate mechanical strength and insufficient control of pore size and pore distribution. Specifically, if the thickness of an organic membrane capsule wall is increased to provide the required mechanical strength, molecules cannot diffuse through the capsule wall quickly enough to provide the appropriate physiological response when needed. Moreover, if the size and distribution of pores cannot be controlled, such as with sintered together particles or amorphous polymeric membranes, there is a high probability of oversized or overlapping pores which could provide an opening large enough for immunological macromolecules to enter the capsule.
It is desirable that a capsule combine mechanical strength with the ability to allow the free diffusion of small molecules such as oxygen, water, carbon dioxide, and glucose, while preventing the passage of larger molecules such as the immunoglobins and major histocompatibility (MHC) antigens. Also, the intermediate sized molecular products, such as insulin, produced by the donor cells should be able to diffuse out to the host at a sufficient rate to provide the needed metabolic function.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a structure combining mechanical strength with controlled pore size down to the nanometer range.
Another object of the present invention is to provide such a structure obtainable using simple fabrication techniques.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the claims.

Micromachined porous membranes with bulk support


A supportive display container having an inner structure and an outer structure. The dimensions of the inner structure and the outer structure are such that when the outer structure has been placed over the inner structure, there is a gap between the side or sides of the inner structure and the side or sides of the outer structure which can hold an insert consisting of compressible material. The gap is of such a dimension that compression of the insert and friction prevent the inner structure and the outer structure from slipping apart. Preferably the side or sides of the outer structure are transparent to permit viewing of a message or design that is preferably on the insert. When the top of the inner structure is open, devices for stacking cubes, holders for cards, and display platforms can be inserted into the interior of the inner structure.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a container that can be used to display small banners or other objects such as cards or small decorative items and to support structures such as radios.
2. Description of the Related Art
A variety of display containers have been patented.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,548,706 covers a transparent solid body, preferably a cube, having a channel running around the lateral sides of the body slightly inward from the perimeter. A display sheet can be inserted into the channel for viewing.
A block having transparent outer walls forms the subject of U.S. Pat. No. 3,596,391. Inner walls are bowed centrally inward away from each face of the block and are intended to have art work placed upon their outer side.
The device of U.S. Pat. No. 3,703,045 has a transparent closed geometrical shape with one removable surface for inserting a similarly shaped inner structure where the central portions of each surface of the inner structure are indented to accommodate a photograph.
The structure of U.S. Pat. No. 3,716,936 closely resembles that of U.S Pat. No. 3,703,045 except that the surfaces of the inner structure are not indented and that there is a base with a multi-sided cover that rests upon the base and fits over the inner structure.
Again, the display device of U.S. Pat. No. 3,774,332 resembles that of U.S Pat. No. 3,703,045 except that the surfaces of the inner structure are not indented and that the outer structure consists of two U-shaped portions that fit together to form a hexagonal object.
Two five-sided boxes, one of which fits inside the other, are the subject of U.S. Pat. No. 4,195,729. The open portion of each box is placed at the top, and a cover is simultaneously placed over each box. The outer box is transparent, and photographs may be inserted between the sides of the two boxes.
An inner and an outer cubic body constitute the basic structure for U.S. Pat. No. 5,226,252. The outer cubic body has a bottom; the inner cubic body has an anchorage means on its top. Photographs can be placed between the adjacent sides of the two cubic bodies. The inner and outer cubic bodies are so constructed that they snap together using a protrusion on one body and a recess on the other body. As illustrated in FIG. 3, this locking means precludes a photograph from extending to the full height of the inner cubic body.
Furthermore, none of the devices of the preceding patents utilize the banner or photograph between adjacent walls to form a compression fit that holds the inner structure to the outer structure.
Nor can such devices be stacked with independent rotation of each device, and neither are any of the devices adapted to hold cards, such as baseball cards, above the device.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 6,012,185 deals with blocks for elevating the legs of beds; but none of the patents discussed herein suggest that they can function both as a display device and also support another structure.


A socket wrench has a rigid extension provided for attachment to the handle portion. The extension has at a first end thereof a receiving portion for matingly receiving a spline-drive shank of the wrench handle through a rear face of the extension, and has a spline-drive shank extending perpendicularly from a forward face of the extension at a second, opposite end thereof. A low clearance is maintained such that the forward face of the second end of the extension resides in a plane substantially parallel to or rearward of the forward face of the head. The socket wrench may further include a ratchet head attachment having its lower end recessed at its rear face for receiving the second end of the extension therein.

The present invention relates to a wrench, particularly a socket wrench of the ratchet type, having an extension mechanism removably attachable to the head portion, allowing for a multitude of variable positions, and especially permitting use within a confined space.
Prior art wrenches exist which have included an extension device. However, these wrenches suffer from drawbacks which make them difficult or impossible to use in situations in which there is little or no room to maneuver.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,691,316 to Brame teaches a ratchet wrench having an extension means removably attachable to the head portion of the wrench. The head portion includes a square shaped shank projection, which mates with a square receiving portion on the extension means. This mating structure allows for a solid, but nonvariable, connection between the wrench handle and the extension. Furthermore, the effective operating depth of the wrench with the extension is too great for very narrow work spaces.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,334,445 to Timewell provides an extension means for a socket wrench comprising a rod hinged at one end thereof to a socket for engaging a square shank of the wrench head, and hinged at its other end to a shank which further engages a socket. The rod is thus adjustable into a Z shape, but suffers from the above drawbacks in that the hinged socket and shank portions add to the effective operating depth of the wrench, and the square shanks provided permit operation within only a single plane.
Therefore, it is an object of the invention to provide a socket wrench having a rigid extension means and ratchet head mechanism which are configured to maintain a shallow operating depth of the wrench.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a socket wrench having a rigid extension means and a ratchet head which permit a multitude of adjustable configurations at different angles.


Disclosed are a telescopic transmission cable device and a mobile terminal. The device comprises: a cable body and a rectification part, wherein the cable body comprises at least two wires insulated inform each other, one end of the cable body is a built-in end while the other end is an external connection end; when the cable body is coiled up into a coil, the external connection end and the built-in end are respectively connected to two input ends of the rectification part, and the two output ends of the rectification part are respectively connected to a positive and negative electrodes of a power supply to be charged; and when the cable body is in a linear shape, the external connection end is connected to an external device, the two wires of the built-in end are respectively connected to the positive and negative electrodes of the power supply to be charged, and the two output ends of the rectification part are respectively disconnected to the positive and negative electrodes of the power supply to be charged. The telescopic transmission cable device is applicable to a variety of mobile terminals.

Mobile terminals such as a mobile phone and a tablet computer can be carried by people to everywhere, and it is greatly convenient for people's life.
However, most of the mobile terminals have a relatively short standby time; therefore, conveniently charging the mobile terminal becomes particularly important. At present, a charge method mainly includes wired charge and wireless charge. The wired charge method needs a special cable and a fixed power supply, which has more restrictions and poor flexibility despite of high charge efficiency. The wireless charge method needs to set a special receiving coil and a circuit inside a mobile terminal and a user can charge the mobile terminal without a special cable; however, the receiving coil is disposed on a circuit board inside the terminal and the coil design is limited by the size of the mobile terminal.

Telescopic transmission cable device and mobile terminal


Provided is a thermoplastic resin film of which adhesive force can be easily adjusted to lie within an appropriate range when the thermoplastic resin film is bonded to other members such as a glass plate. A thermoplastic resin film according to the present invention includes a thermoplastic resin, and a compound represented by the following formula (1). In the formula (1), R1, R2, R3, R4 and R5 each represent a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group, a carboxyalkyl group, a group that is a salt of a carboxyalkyl group and alkali metal, or a group that is a salt of a carboxyalkyl group and alkaline earth metal, and at least one of R1, R2, R3, R4 and R5 represents a carboxyalkyl group, a group that is a salt of a carboxyalkyl group and alkali metal, or a group that is a salt of a carboxyalkyl group and alkaline earth metal.

A glass plate-including laminate in which a resin film is bonded to a glass plate is known. Among glass plate-including laminates, laminated glass is broadly used.
Since laminated glass generates only a small amount of scattering glass fragments even when subjected to external impact and broken, laminated glass is excellent in safety. As such, the laminated glass is widely used for automobiles, railway vehicles, aircraft, ships, buildings and the like. The laminated glass is produced by sandwiching a thermoplastic resin film between a pair of glass plates. Besides the laminated glass, the thermoplastic resin film is sometimes used while it is bonded to a member other than a glass plate.
The thermoplastic resin film used for the laminated glass is disclosed, for example, in the following Patent Document 1.
The following Patent Document 1 discloses a sound insulating layer (thermoplastic resin film) including 100 parts by weight of a polyvinyl acetal resin with an acetalization degree of 60 to 85% by mole, 0.001 to 1.0 part by weight of at least one kind of metal salt among an alkali metal salt and an alkaline earth metal salt, and 30 parts by weight or more of a plasticizer. The sound insulating layer can be used as a monolayer interlayer film, or can be laminated with other layers to be used as a multilayer interlayer film.

Thermoplastic resin film and glass plate-including laminate


A power transfer device and an associated method thereof are disclosed. The power transfer device includes a driver unit having a plurality of converters. The driver unit includes a plurality of legs forming ones of the plurality of converters, such that at least one leg of a first converter of the plurality of converters is common to a second converter of the plurality of converters. Each converter of the plurality of converters includes an output terminal. The driver unit may include a plurality of transmitter coils. In some implementations, a different transmitter coil is coupled to each output terminal of a respective converter.

Embodiments of the present invention relate generally to power transfer systems and more particularly to a power transfer device of a power transfer system.
The power transfer device is realized using multiple transmitter coils. Typically, a dedicated power electronic driver unit may be employed for exciting each of the multiple transmitter coils. Accordingly, the number of power electronic devices employed is high, thereby increasing the power electronic foot print. Also, the cost of the power transfer systems is considerably higher due to use of higher number of power electronic devices.
In a conventional system, a single high current capacity power electronic driver unit may be employed to excite all transmitter coils together. All transmitter coils may be excited even when corresponding receiver devices are not present. The excitation of all the transmitter coils together causes unnecessary electromagnetic interference and power losses. Accordingly, efficiency of the power transfer system is reduced.
Thus, there is a need for an enhanced power transfer device and as associated method.

Power transfer device with a plurality of converters


A method and system for managing multiple queues providing a communication path between a virtual machine and a hypervisor in a virtual machine system. The multiple queues are bundled together and identified on a polled list. When one of the queues on the polled list is used to communicate a request from the virtual machine to the hypervisor, a virtual machine exit is performed and a virtual machine exit is disabled for all of the queues on the polled list. The queues on the polled list are assigned to an initial host CPU to service requests from the virtual machine. If a particular queue on the polled list experiences a load that exceeds a load threshold, the particular queue is removed from the polled list and assigned to a different host CPU.

Virtualization allows multiplexing of an underlying host machine between different virtual machines. The host computer allocates a certain amount of its resources to each of the virtual machines, including host central processing units (CPUs). Each virtual machine is utilized by a guest to access the allocated resources to execute applications, including operating systems (referred to as guest operating systems). The software layer providing the virtualization is commonly referred to as a hypervisor (also known as a virtual machine monitor (VMM)) executed on a host operating system. The hypervisor emulates the underlying hardware of the host computer, making the use of the virtual machine transparent to the guest operating system and the user of the computer.
The virtual machines may communicate with the hypervisor via one or more queues. The queues may serve as channels for a guest running on a virtual machine to pass requests to the hypervisor for execution by a CPU of the host computer. Certain virtual machine systems may include a single queue for receiving multiple requests from a virtual machine. Such systems may be configured to batch or bundle the requests for communication to the hypervisor via the single queue. When the virtual machine places the requests on the queue, a virtual machine exit is performed which causes a transition of control from the virtual machine to the hypervisor (i.e., the virtual machine stops running in the virtualized mode). However, in many systems there is desire to handle a high load produced by multiple virtual CPUs (VCPUs) of the virtual machine by using multiple queues to communicate with multiple host CPUs for servicing the requests in parallel.
Although the use of multiple queues may be beneficial in handling high loads, the servicing of requests on each of the multiple queues may involve multiple VM exits (i.e., a VM exit for each of the multiple queues). The multiple exits performed in such systems typically significantly increase the overhead associated with communications relating to the exiting process.

Multiple queue management and adaptive CPU matching in a virtual computing system


An electric motor drive apparatus includes: an AC/DC converter converting AC into DC by the switching of multiple power devices; a control circuit performing PWM switching control of the multiple power devices; a current detecting circuit that detects input current from the AC power supply to the AC/DC converter; an electromagnetic contactor connecting or cutting off power from the AC power supply to the AC converter; and a DC link unit including a smoothing capacitor for smoothing DC voltage, and is constructed such that the control circuit determines that the electromagnetic contactor has been welded when input current is detected in a condition where with the DC link unit having been charged, the electromagnetic contactor is turned off to cut off the power from the AC power supply to the AC/DC converter and the multiple power devices are controlled by PWM switching in accordance with the switching commands.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electric motor drive apparatus, and in particular to an electric motor drive apparatus having a function of detecting whether or not an electromagnetic contactor for connecting and cutting off power supply has been welded, using an AC/DC converter for converting input AC voltage to DC voltage.
2. Description of the Related Art
There is a known method in the field of electric motor control apparatuses for driving machine tools, industrial machines, robots, etc., in which an electromagnetic contactor is installed in the input power line, and is turned off in order to isolate the electric motor control apparatus from the power supply when an emergency stop or an alarm occurs, to thereby stop the supply of energy from the power supply and suspend the operation of the electric motor (e.g., Published Japanese Patent No. 3506590 (JP 3506590 B)).
According to this conventional method, there is a risk that when an excessive current flows through the electromagnetic contactor, the contacts are welded, and therefore the electromagnetic contactor is unable to cut off the connection between the power supply and the electric motor control apparatus. To deal with this, it is a common that when a weld in the electromagnetic contactor occurs it is checked by monitoring auxiliary contacts of the electromagnetic contactor by turning on and off the contactor in a state where the machine is suspended without consuming energy (e.g., Published Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2007-181885 (JP 2007-181885 A).
FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a conventional electric motor drive apparatus. A conventional electric motor drive apparatus 1000 includes an AC/DC converter 101 for converting three-phase (R-phase, S-phase, T-phase) alternate current (AC) voltage supplied from an AC power supply 20 via a reactor 108 into direct current (DC) voltage; a smoothing capacitor 105 for smoothing DC voltage; and a DC/AC converter 110 for converting DC voltage to AC voltage for driving an electric motor 30. Interposed between the AC power supply 20 and the AC/DC converter 101 is an electromagnetic contactor 104. The electromagnetic contactor 104 is turned off at emergency stop or at the time of alarm generation to separate the motor control apparatus 1000 from the AC power supply 20 and stop energy supply from the AC power supply 20 to the motor control apparatus 1000.
The AC/DC converter 101 includes a plurality of power devices Tr1 to Tr6 and a plurality of diodes D1 to D6 connected in inverse parallel with these devices. The multiple power devices Tr1 to Tr6 are controlled by PWM switching in accordance with switching commands from a control circuit 102. The electromagnetic contactor 104 has auxiliary contacts 201, the presence or absence of a weld in the electromagnetic contactor 104 is detected by a detecting circuit 202. The result of detection of the presence or absence of a weld by the detecting circuit 202 is transmitted to a weld detection determining circuit 203, from which the determination result on electromagnetic contactor welding, i.e., whether or not the electromagnetic contactor 104 has been welded, is output.
There is a known device which includes a booster circuit arranged between a relay and an inverter, a capacitor connected in parallel with the inverter and a means of detecting voltage across the terminals of the capacitor, and determines that a weld of the relay is occurring if the terminal voltage of the capacitor is higher than that before boosting when the output from the booster circuit has been increased to the maximum set voltage with the relay opened (e.g., Published Japanese Patent No. 4121972 (JP 4121972 B)). However, it is necessary in this method to hold the value of the DC link voltage before boosting and the trouble of boosting the output to the maximum set voltage.
As above, in the conventional technologies, the electromagnetic contactor equipped with auxiliary contacts is needed, and an additional circuit such as a detecting circuit, a weld detection determining circuit or the like needs to be provided, externally or in the electric motor drive apparatus, in order to monitor the auxiliary contacts, which leads to increased costs.

Electric motor drive apparatus having function for detecting welding of electromagnetic contactor


A lithographic apparatus includes an illumination system configured to provide a beam of radiation and projection system configured to project the radiation beam onto a target portion of a substrate. At least one of the illumination system and the projection system includes a focusing element for reflecting or refracting the beam. A plurality of stop discs is provided, each having an aperture therethrough, together with a disc positioner configured to place one of the stop discs adjacent the focusing element to control the numerical aperture (NA) of the projection system or illumination system. The apparatus further includes a disc changer configured to select one of the stop discs and provide the selected stop disc to the disc positioner, the disc changer being external to the projection system or illumination system.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lithographic apparatus and a device manufacturing method.
2. Description of the Related Art
A lithographic apparatus is a machine that applies a desired pattern onto a target portion of a substrate. Lithographic apparatus can be used, for example, in the manufacture of integrated circuits (ICs). In that circumstance, a patterning device, which is alternatively referred to as a mask or a reticle, may be used to generate a circuit pattern corresponding to an individual layer of the IC, and this pattern can be imaged onto a target portion (e.g. including part of one or several dies) on a substrate (e.g. a silicon wafer) that has a layer of radiation-sensitive material (resist). In general, a single substrate will contain a network of adjacent target portions that are successively exposed. Known lithographic apparatus include steppers, in which each target portion is irradiated by exposing an entire pattern onto the target portion at once, and scanners, in which each target portion is irradiated by scanning the pattern through the beam of radiation in a given direction (the "scanning" direction) while synchronously scanning the substrate parallel or anti-parallel to this direction.
Between the reticle and the substrate is disposed a projection system to image the irradiated portion of the reticle onto the target portion of the substrate. The projection system includes components to direct, shape and/or control the beam of radiation, and these components typically include refractive optics, reflective optics, and/or catadioptric systems, for example.
A consideration in lithography is the size of features of the pattern applied to the substrate. It is desirable to produce apparatus capable of resolving features as small and close together as possible. A number of parameters affect the available resolution of features, and one of these is the wavelength of the radiation used to expose the pattern.
It is expected that the use of EUV lithography will enable the manufacture of feature sizes below 32 nm using radiation with an EUV (extreme ultra violet) wavelength between 5 and 20 nm, and typically 13.5 nm. Radiation at this wavelength is absorbed in most materials, and conventional refractive optics are generally considered to be unsuitable for use with such radiation. The optics in a projection system for use with EUV lithography is therefore based on mirrors, which operate in a high vacuum environment. The projection system is therefore enclosed in a projection optics box (POB) which is kept under vacuum.
Similar considerations apply for lithography using radiation having a wavelength falling outside the EUV band. For example, a projection system for lithography using radiation having a wavelength of 193 nm may also include mirrors instead of, or in addition to, refractive optics. The projection system may therefore need to be kept under a vacuum or at least in a controlled environment for non-EUV lithography.
Furthermore, considerations that apply to the projection system will also apply to the illumination system used to supply the beam of radiation to the reticle. As with the projection system, the illumination system includes components to direct, shape and/or control the beam of radiation, and these components typically include refractive optics, reflective optics, and/or catadioptric systems, for example. As with the projection system, the illumination system may need to be kept in a controlled environment or under vacuum.
The projection system and/or illumination system generally also includes elements to set the numerical aperture NA of the projection system and/or illumination system. In some prior art systems an aperture adjustable NA-diaphragm may be provided in a pupil of the projection system and/or illumination system. Particularly in the case of EUV lithography, the space around the optical components is very restricted, making the use of an adjustable diaphragm impractical.
In addition, it may be desirable to use apertures having a shape other than a circle. For example, an elliptical aperture is useful for off-axis reflective systems. It is practical to produce apertures having such shapes using an adjustable diaphragm.
A proposed solution to the unsuitability of adjustable diaphragms is the provision of a series of individual stop discs, each having an opening with a fixed aperture, to adjust the NA stop. The stop discs are loaded into a mechanical disc changer mechanism which can place one of the discs at a time in the pupil of the projection system. A single stop disc occupies considerably less space than an adjustable diaphragm, and enables the shape of the NA stop to be determined more accurately.
Optics which operate under high vacuum should avoid contamination. Contaminants (e.g. particles, molecules) can lead to a deterioration in the reflectivity of the mirrors. Due to the exceptionally small feature size, particles as small as 50 nm can lead to failures on the finished substrate. The introduction of a magazine of interchangeable stop discs and a mechanical disc changer mechanism into the projection system and/or illumination system increases the chance of introducing contaminants into the projection system and/or illumination system at the same time.
The complex mechanical disc changer must also be reliable. The projection system is generally situated in the very center of a lithographic apparatus, and any repair involves breaking the vacuum and completely disassembling the apparatus. This process is time consuming and expensive, and may also lead to contamination within the projection system. The disc changer should be designed to be as reliable as practicable, but nevertheless may need to be serviced on occasion. Furthermore, in some circumstances it might be desirable to modify the discs available to the disc changer, for example to modify the range of NA stops available to the lithographic apparatus. This is again impossible without breaking the vacuum and disassembling the apparatus.

Lithographic apparatus and device manufacturing method