Provided is a lithographic developer used to develop a resist pattern having regions with different sizes and shapes, by dissolving and removing a resist region of a resist layer formed in the resist pattern, wherein the developer comprises a surfactant capable of increasing the dissolution of a resist in the resist region to be dissolved and removed, having a smaller dissolving-and-removing area on the surface of the resist layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lithographic developer (developing solution) and a lithographic process. More particularly, it relates to a lithographic developer and a lithographic process, suited for ultra large scale integration processing.
2. Related Background Art
In recent years, as semiconductor devices are made more highly dense and fine, it has been required in lithography to form fine resist patterns having a processing latitude. Hence, photoresists having a high resolution are used to form the patterns. Such resists are of a positive type or a negative type. In usual instances, the patterns are formed using an alkaline developer as exemplified by a 2.38% by weight aqueous solution of tetramethylammonium hydroxide (hereinafter "TMAH").
As resist materials have been made to have a higher resolving power, the ratio of dissolving rate at exposed areas of a resist layer to that at unexposed areas thereof, i.e., the selection ratio of a resist to a developer has been improved. The state thereof is shown in FIG. 16. In FIG. 16, the ratios of dissolving rate at exposed areas of a resist layer to that at unexposed areas thereof are shown as functions of TMAH concentration, in resists having different resolutions. In the drawing, a positive photoresist A has a resolution of 1.2 .mu.m, a positive photoresist B, 0.8 .mu.m, and a positive photoresist C, 0.6 .mu.m. As shown in the drawing, the selection ratio a resist has is seen to exponential-functionally increases with an improvement in the resolution of the resist. In other words, an achievement of a resist having a high resolution is seen to be equal to an improvement in the selection ratio at exposed areas of a resist layer and unexposed areas thereof.
In order to improve developability, it is attempted to increase the concentration of a developer. Such an attempt, however, leads to a decrease in the selection ratio at exposed areas of a resist layer and unexposed areas thereof, resulting in a deterioration of the-resolution performance of resists.
FIG. 17 shows a 0.55 .mu.m line-and-space resist pattern developed by a developer of a conventional type in which no surfactant is added. Exposure was carried out using a g-line reduction aligner having a lens with a numerical aperture of 0.43. Because of a poor wettability of the developer on the resist surface, trailing and residues (shown by the encircled portions, 1201, in FIG. 17) of the resist pattern are seen to have occurred after development. In order to prevent such a phenomenon, a developer containing a surfactant has been used in some instances. When, however, some types of substrates are used, none of conventional developers containing a surfactant can prevent the resist residues from occurring. Conversely, the addition of some types of surfactants has caused a decrease in the sensitivity of resists or a decrease in exposure latitude.
FIG. 18 shows the flatness of the surface of a silicon wafer having been immersed for 60 seconds in the developer of a conventional type in which no surfactant is added, which flatness is indicated as the central-line average roughness. As is seen therefrom, the wafer having been immersed in the developer has a very rough surface only because of its contact with the developer for a time as short as 60 seconds, compared with a reference wafer having not been immersed in the developer. Fabrication of semiconductor devices in such a state of surface brings about an extreme deterioration of electrical characteristics. FIG. 19 shows data obtained by examining a channel mobility of MOS transistors fabricated by the use of wafers having a rough surface. The channel mobility is seen to be extremely poor with respect to the reference value when the surface has roughed upon its contact with the developer.
The silicon surface can be prevented from roughing when a certain surfactant is added to the developer, but the surfactant is adsorbed onto the silicon. FIG. 20 shows data obtained by observing the carbon 1s peak by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). A peak 1501 that shows the presence of the surfactant was seen in the data from the silicon surface exposed for 60 seconds to the developer containing a surfactant. It was found that, when the developer containing a surfactant was used, the surfactant was adsorbed to the underlying substrate and was not removable by usual rinsing. Adsorption of the surfactant to the substrate surface caused a carbon contamination to bring about a lowering of film quality in the subsequent formation of various kinds of thin films. On the other hand, when a surfactant not adsorptive to the silicon surface was selected, the surface of silicon roughed.
Under existing circumstances, no resist can show its ability when contact holes are formed using a resist having a resolution up to 0.6 .mu.m (capable of forming-line-and-space patterns with a mask fidelity).
FIGS. 21A to 21F show cross-sectional photographs of contact holes developed using a conventional developer. In the case of exposure conditions under which contact holes with a size of 0.8 .mu.m are formed (220 mJ/cm.sup.2), 0.7 .mu.m and 0.6 .mu.m holes are in a condition of under-exposure.
In the case of exposure conditions under which contact holes with a size of 0.7 .mu.m are formed (280 mJ/cm.sup.2), 0.8 .mu.m holes are in a condition of over-exposure and 0.6 .mu.m holes are in a condition of under-exposure. Namely, in regions having a smaller exposure area in themselves (e.g., hole regions), the developer had so poor a wettability that it did not penetrate into the resist pattern and hence no satisfactory resist performance was exhibited.
In order to improve the wettability of developers, developers containing a surfactant are used. FIG. 22 shows the relationship between the concentration of a surfactant added to a developer and the exposure threshold energy for the formation of contact holes. The contact hole exposure threshold energy is meant to be an exposure energy necessary for the bottom of a contact hole to reach the underlying substrate. The exposure threshold energy decreases with an increase in the concentration of the surfactant added to the developer, but the difference in exposure threshold energy between different hole sizes does not change from the state before the addition of the surfactant. Namely, when conventional surfactants are used, it Gas been impossible to form fine contact holes with different size, in a high precision under the same exposure conditions.
FIGS. 23A-C show cross-sectional photographs of contact holes formed using developers containing the surfactant as shown in FIG. 22. FIGS. 23A-C show that when the conventional surfactants are added the side walls of contact holes have a curved shape. When the amount of a conventional surfactant added was increased to improve the wettability of the developer, a deterioration of hole configuration occurred.

Lithographic developer containing surfactant


The invention discloses covalent organic nanosheets (CONs) made of triazole based diamine and triformyl phloroglucinol. The 2D structure of these nanosheets enables their facile amalgamation as an anodic material in a coin cell battery, which exhibits exceptionally high specific capacity of ˜720 mAh/g at a current density of 100 mA/g.

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) owing to their modular structure and ordered porosity can serve as chemically tunable supports. Typically Lithium ion batteries (LIB) are built from Graphite and LiCoO2. A common feature of these anodic and cathodic materials is their 2D structure. Since their initial discovery, many 2D materials with comparable layered structure have been explored as Li insertion/de-insertion substrate.
Some of the highly desirable characteristics of a superior electrode material include their moderate to high surface area to ensure maximum charge storage per unit area, and the other is the hierarchical porosity rendering facile access for favourable kinetics. One of the key attributes of graphite which has made it historically most utilized storage material is its ability to exfoliate. Exfoliation-assisted surface area/porosity enhancement and adsorption site creation is facile in organic substrates such as graphene, MoS2, CNT or other carbonaceous structures, which makes them components of top-performing Li and Na storage materials for batteries. In this regard, Covalent Organic Frameworks could have much more to offer as they are typically built with pre-designed cross-linking units to assist construction of extended/periodic hexagonal or square-grid layers. Also, their C/N or C/B, or in general, the atom1/atom2 ratio can be controlled with stoichiometric exactness and the chemical function (e.g. Nitrogen: pyridyl vs. triazine vs. Schiff) which can be modified.
Another feature of relevance for developing as electrode material comes from the type of inter-layer interactions they possess. Typically, the COF layers are held together by interlayer π-π interactions or in special cases via additional hydrogen bonding. In their optimized structure, the interlayer separations typically fall in the range of 3.2 to 4.5 A. Moreover, unlike graphite, the layers of COF are not built from fused aromatic rings. Hence, the interaction forces are optimal for holding them together, but more importantly to support facile exfoliation without losing the overall structure. Particularly, the COFs formed by imine linkages are amenable to exfoliate into nanosheets. This exfoliation can have marked consequence in ion storage (S. Wang, Lijiang Wang, Kai Zhang, Zhiqiang Zhu, Zhanliang Tao, and Jun Chen, Nano Lett., 2013, 13, 4404-4409. (b) Oscar A. Vargas C., Álvaro Caballero and Julian Morales, Nanoscale, 2012, 4, 2083-2092).
Also, in COFs, the building units are longer and contain flexible bonds. Therefore the layers of COF show a by demand structural rearrangement which facilitates accommodating the extra-framework species, be it ions or nanoparticles. This flexibility and tunability has made COFs find its use in gas storage, hydrogen evolution, proton conduction, quantum sieving, photoconductivity, catalysis, and even in self-cleaning superhydrophobic surfaces and sensing. Conducting and semi-conducting COFs built from components rich in electronic character (conjugated π-clouds, donor-acceptor nodes or high polarizing moieties) have been used as electrodes or electrolytes.
The research on lithium storage using several carbon rich materials, polymers and classical inorganic oxides, sulfides have been known for several decades. Lithium insertion in Nitrogen-doped graphenes is also known. In comparison, less is known about utilizing covalent organic frameworks for lithium ion storage. As an effective approach, Yuliang Li et al. designed a porphyrin-thiophene-based conjugated COF with enhanced intrinsic electronic conductivity and demonstrated high specific capacity of up to 666 mAh/g, but this specific capacity was seen to drop significantly with increasing current density. Also, there are some interesting theoretical studies focused on the inclusion of Li into the frameworks of COFs, all of which point at the Li ions being bound to the hydrocarbon backbone, more precisely, to the aromatic rings forming the COF that can facilitate chemical interactions with Li.
Similarly, Fe2O3 supported on nanosheets of graphene shows high anode activity (1355 and 982 mAh/g for charge and discharge cycles, respectively), arising from the redox reactivity at the iron center. However, one serious problem involved in these redox active systems is that upon cycling they tend to drop in performance owing to some irreversible reactions between the Li and the substrate. At higher current densities such undesirable irreversible reactions become more frequent and are typically characterized by their low columbic efficiency. Other carbonaceous support stabilized iron based anodes are also plagued by similar issues. So relatively less reactive (Lewis basic/acidic) and neutral systems could be advantageous when it comes to obtaining prolonged cycle life.
Covalent Organic Nanosheets (CONs) have tunable modular structure and high surface areas. Covalent organic frameworks under hydro/solvothermal conditions can grow into self-exfoliated nanosheets. Their graphene/graphite resembling micro-texture/nano-structure makes them suitable for electrochemical applications. The covalent organic nanosheet (CONs) is a disordered derivative of a COF, and this brings some advantages. While the highly ordered porous structure of a COF could bring advantage kinetics, confinement and accessibility; converting them into relatively more disordered nanosheets could be profitable for a different reason. The disordered carbon nanostructures can in many cases display practical capacities higher than even the theoretical capacity of graphite. Partly this is due to their ability to generate carbons of higher oxidation state under the electrochemical force provided during the Li insertion. Crucially, such reactions are reversible. This could mean that CONs can present chemical and structural features aptly suited for Li insertion under the electrochemical potential of a battery.
Under the above background, it has become an objective of the present invention to provide a novel COF which can be self-exfoliated into covalent organic nanosheets (CONs) with exceptional stability and high porosity and thus most suited for Li ion insertion.

Self-exfoliated triazole-triformyl phloroglucinol based covalent organic nanosheets for high and reversible lithium ion storage


Methods of fabricating micro-electromechanical system devices from complementary metal oxide semiconductors (CMOS) are provided.

A MEMS device is a blending of integrated circuit (IC) technology with micro-sized mechanical elements. As a result, MEMS devices combine ICs with three-dimensional features and even moving parts. The electronics of a particular MEMS device is typically fabricated using integrated circuit (IC) fabrication techniques, while the micro-mechanical components are typically fabricated using micro-machining processes.
Within the field of MEMS generally, there continues to be a high demand for new "on-chip," planar micro-machined inductors that exhibit high inductance and possess a high quality factor (i.e., the Q-factor or, more simply, Q). The demand has been driven in large part by the advent of magnetic driving MEMS applications, such as magnetic microactuators and micro-sensors as well as miniature integrated power converter devices. The requirements for these and similar such devices include small size, low loss, large inductance, high current-carrying capacity, and low fabrication costs.
The goal of devising effective and efficient fabrication techniques for such devices in a planar geometry has proved a difficult challenge, presenting problems that continue to be obstacles to the implementation of low-cost, fully-integrated magnetic MEMS devices. Moreover, utilization of such MEMS devices has been limited due to the relatively low inductance that is conventionally achieved with such devices, the inductance being typically on the order of a few to several hundred nano-henries (nH).
Accordingly, despite numerous MEMS inductor designs, utilization of existing devices continues to be largely confined to high-frequency regimes such as RF and microwave circuits as well as signal processing circuits. This is due to the low inductance, low Q factor, and poor power handling capacity typically exhibited by the conventional devices resulting from conventional fabrication processes.
In accordance with conventional fabrication techniques, MEMS inductors are made by etching a substrate or flipping up to reduce substrate loss. The robustness and high-vibration sensitivity of suspended thin-film inductors fabricated according to these techniques can pose problems, however. Some proposed solutions entail using thick photolithography to create thick conductor layers so as to reduce series resistance, but the stability and reliability of the employed polymers are still concerns. The remaining problem of substrate loss can pose yet another problem.
Conventional techniques, moreover, do not provide for effective and efficient fabrication of power electronic devices, in which inductance usually must be high—in the range of 100 nano-henries (nH) to a few micro-henries (μH)—and current-carrying capacity typically must be considerable—in the range of 10 Amperes (A). Resistance is typically in the range of a few milliohms (mΩ) range. In addition, conventional fabrication techniques for such devices tend not to be IC compatible. Thus, application-specific ICs and chip-to-chip wire bondings are often needed to effect fabrication of such devices, typically resulting in increased cost and performance degradation.
It follows that there remains a need for effective and efficient processes for fabricating IC-compatible MEMS inductors and similar devices that possess high Q factors, high inductance, and high current-carrying capacity.

Fabrication of a micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) device from a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS)

University of Florida Research Foundation, Inc.


A method for operating an electronic device is provided. The method includes detecting a touch of an external input device, determining at least one region associated with the detected touch, receiving scanning data from the external input device, and displaying the scanning data at the determined region.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to electronic device, and more particularly, to a method and an electronic device for scanning data.
2. Description of the Related Art
Based on rapid development of electronic devices such as smart phones and tablet Personal Computers (PC), electronic devices allowing wireless voice communication and information exchange have become necessities in the life. As electronic device technologies advance and wireless Internet is adopted, the electronic device is developed from a portable device for simple phone call to a multimedia device for schedule management, games, remote control, and image capturing, to thus satisfy the user's needs.
Recently, the transparent display is applied to various electronic devices. The transparent display becomes transparent under user's control using a transparent electronic device to thus show a background behind the display. Applications of the transparent display capable of showing the background behind the display are also developed.
However, when scanning and outputting the data, the conventional method for scanning data using the transparent display is subject to a time gap between the data scanning and the data output and a gap between the data scanning point and the output point.
There is a need to enhance user convenience using characteristics of the transparent display when the data is scanned using the transparent display.

Method for scanning data and electronic device thereof


A graphene sheet including graphene comprising ten or fewer wrinkles per 1,000 square micrometers of the graphene.

1. Field
This disclosure relates to a graphene sheet, a graphene base including the graphene sheet, and highly efficient methods of preparing the graphene sheet and the graphene base, whereby multiple graphene sheets may be simultaneously formed directly on a substrate. The graphene sheet may have a large size, fewer defects, and improved quality relative to commercially available graphene.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, graphite has a structure in which planar, two-dimensional ("2D") graphene sheets are stacked parallel to each other to form a three-dimensional crystalline material. Each graphene sheet includes carbon atoms linked to each other in a hexagonal configuration. Recently, extensive research on graphite has shown that graphene sheets, which were separated from graphite, have very useful characteristics and are unlike other materials. For example, the electrical characteristics of graphene are anisotropic, and thus depend on the crystallographic orientation of the graphene. The anisotropy enables selection of the electric characteristics by using graphene in a selected direction. Thus, a device having selected electrical characteristics may be provided by using the graphene in a selected crystallographic orientation. Graphene sheets are therefore useful for carbon-based electrical devices or carbon-based electromagnetic devices.
However, currently it is difficult to prepare a large-sized graphene sheet with sufficiently few defects, and it is even more difficult to directly form such a graphene sheet on a substrate without transferring the graphene from another material. Thus there remains a need for a large graphene sheet having fewer defects, and a method of forming the graphene sheet which avoids transferring the graphene sheet, such as transferring the graphene sheet from a material on which it is formed to a substrate for a device, for example.

Graphene sheet, graphene base including the same, and method of preparing the graphene sheet


A method for finding shortest paths is disclosed which uses a piecewise linear cost model to guide the search of through a compact tile graph and to ensure that a shortest path may always be found in a computationally effective manner. Cost function propagation from tile segment to tile segment is used to search for a target location from a source location through a region, and the shortest path is found through tracing backwards using the cost functions calculated during the searching. Linear minimal convolution is used to facilitate the cost function propagation.

1. Field
The present invention relates to path search techniques and, more particularly, to systems and methods to aid routing around obstacles such as for integrated circuit (e.g., VLSI) routing.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are many important practical applications for path searching. The classic, student's example is the traveling salesman searching for an efficient path to visit a list of locations. Some search methods are useful to plan the movement of a robot across a room around obstacles such as furniture or the movement of a robot arm through space around obstacles. One practical and currently very important engineering application of path searching is found in the semiconductor and electronics arts. Path searching and routing techniques are typically employed for layout of conductive traces. Other practical applications are well known.
The classical path searching problem and current techniques can be understood in the context of searching for a shortest path from a source point or location to a target point or location through clear space of a routing region (two-dimensional or otherwise) around various obstacles in the routing region. More specifically, assume that inside a rectangular routing region there are several rectilinear obstacles. The space not occupied by the obstacles may be called clear space. For any given two points inside the clear space, the minimum cost path search problem is to find the path with the minimum cost (e.g., the shortest path or by some other measure) inside the clear space that connects them.
Computational efficiency of path search and routing techniques is important, particularly for complex routing problems such as those presented by modern semiconductor technology and applications such as VLSI routing. Existing approaches to solving this problem typically suffer from at least one, and sometimes all of the following disadvantages: (i) complexity, (ii) overlong computational time, (iii) failure to achieve an optimal path when multiple paths exist, (iv) failure to find a path when one exists. The semiconductor routing industry, for example, is constantly looking to improve techniques for solving this problem to mitigate or eliminate the above disadvantages.

Short path search using tiles and piecewise linear cost propagation


An apparatus is disclosed for harvesting seed which includes a frame and a housing defining a seed box and having a rotary brush mounted on a forward portion thereof which is connected to link bars which are in turn connected to the frame. Corresponding pairs of link bars are attached between the frame and housing on opposite sides of the apparatus, the link bars on each side being substantially parallel to each other. Means are provided for varying the angle of the link bars to the frame, the link bars operationally functioning as a parallelogram to raise or lower the housing at a constant angle relative to the frame. A draw bar is pivotably connected to the front of the frame and tilt angle adjustment means are provided to vary the angle between the frame and the draw bar thereby providing an independent means for varying the angle of attack of the rotary brush to the plants from which seed is being collected.

The present invention has a particular application to harvesting seed from native grasses and wild flowers in their native habitat. Many species of grasses and wild flowers native to the prairies are in danger of being lost due to exclusion from their native habitats due to the incursions of man. It is now being recognized that reseeding of areas previously taken for agricultural or other purposes, is desirable. In order to reseed such areas with native grasses and wild flowers, it is necessary to recover seeds from such species where they occur naturally. This may often be in rough terrain that is not amenable to normal harvesting methods. Further, many wild plant varieties are endangered species, and harvesting of seed should be undertaken in such a manner as to impact the plants and their habitat as little as possible.
A number of prior art devices exist which deal with various aspects of gathering seed from crops and other plants in the field.
Hall (U.S. Pat. Ser. No. 765,831) discloses a seed stripping apparatus comprising a farm implement having a rotary brush and a hopper. The rotary brush knocks the seed off the plants into a gathering area. In order to prevent the seed being lost, a rotary fan is mounted above and behind the rotary brush to cause a counter-current of air to force the floating seed down behind the rotary brush and into a seed box. Hall also discloses a single towing bar offset to one side of the rotary brush. A handle is provided to adjust the height of the rotary brush above the ground.
Otis (U.S. Pat. No. 1,587,349) discloses a rotary brush mechanism supported on the end of an arm. The arm's height may be pre-adjusted in fixed increments. A hopper consisting of a two member clamshell-like cowling encapsulates the rotary brush, and provides a downwardly presented throat into which seed bearing portions of plants being harvested protrude. The plants are acted upon by the brush and the air current it creates in order to remove the seed from the plant. The hopper members are spaced apart at the top to provide a vent for the air current. The angle of presentation of the throat is adjustable by movement of the hopper members relative to each other, in order to compensate for change in tilt angle with change in elevation of the arm.
Neilson (U.S. Pat. No. 2,412,002) discloses a rotary, or brush, mechanism located within a collecting box. The apparatus is mounted upon a two-wheeled trailer for towing behind a vehicle. The forward end of the box enclosing the rotary brush may be moved vertically to adjust the height of the brush. A hand operated lever is provided to raise and lower the mechanism. However, vertical adjustment also effects the "tilt" of the brush and hopper apparatus.
Armstrong (U.S. Pat. No. 2,658,321) discloses a towed seed harvester with adjustable height and angle mechanisms. A tow bar is attached to one side of the apparatus which is carried on an axle and wheels. A rotary brush knocks seeds into the rear hopper compartment which has a hinged lid on the top rear surface. The hinged lid is spaced apart from the rear wall to provide an air vent. The unit may be adjusted for vertical height and tilt angle by means of a tilt mechanism including a hand lever, movement of which adjusts the angle between the tow bar and the apparatus. Vertical height of the unit may also be adjusted by raising or lowering the apparatus relative to the axle. However, adjustment of vertical height is relatively difficult, requiring that the apparatus be independently raised or lowered on standards attached to the axle and held with bore holes in the standard aligned with bore holes in a member secured to the apparatus. Also adjustment of the height by raising or lowering the apparatus on its axle varies the ground clearance of the apparatus. Further, the tilt mechanism is relatively complex, including several elongated moving parts which may cause maintenance problems.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,073,098 to Farrar discloses an apparatus for harvesting caster beans which includes an air suctioning mechanism for harvesting beans and depositing them in a gathering mechanism.


The present invention has an object to provide a filter circuit for communication generative an effective digital output as well as an analog output in a filter circuit of low electric power consumption. The function speed of an A/D converting circuit is minimized by intermittently holding an analog output signal according to an experience that peak detection can be performed by partially sampling the signal after the acquisition.

The present invention relates to a filter circuit for communication, especially to a matched filter effective for a spread spectrum communication system for the mobile cellular radio and wireless LAN.
A matched filter is a filter for judging the identification between two signals. In the spread spectrum communication, each user who receives a signal processes a received signal by a matched filter using spreading code allocated for the user to as to find a correlation peak for acquisition and holding.
Here, assuming that a spreading code is d(i), sampling interval is xcex94t, a length of spreading code is N, a received signal before a time t is x(T-ixcex94t), a correlation output y(t) of matched filter is as in formula (1). In formula (1), d(i) is a data string of 1 bit data.                               y                                (            t            )                          =                              ∑                          i              =              0                                      N              -              1                                                                    d                                            (                i                )                                                                x                                            (                                  t                  -                                      i                                                              xe2x80x83                                                            Δ                                                              xe2x80x83                                                            t                                                  )                                                                        (        1        )
A conventional matched filter circuit is described here. In an accumulation circuit of a digital matched filter in FIG. 16, digitized input signal X is held in a shift register SFT-REG and shifted, then, a multiplier registered in a register REG is multiplied to the input signal on the predetermined sample timing by a plurality of digital multiplying portions DM. The outputs of multiplying portions are added by the digital adder DAD. These operations correspond to the formula (1). For the acquisition, double or higher order of sampling is necessary. In such a case, the circuit in FIG. 16 is plurally structured. Consequently, the size of the whole circuit was large and consumed much electric power. It is a serious defect. Though a circuit of SAW device was used, the total circuits cannot be incorporated within one LSI and S/N ratio was low.
The applicant of the present invention proposes a matched filter circuit by an analog circuit in FIG. 17. The electric power consumption was reduced by a circuit with a multiplier and an adder of voltage driven type using a capacitive coupling. However, a digital output is also necessary as an output of a matched filter because conventional digital communication will be also used for the present.
The present invention solves the above conventional problems and has an object to provide a filter circuit for communication generative an effective digital output as well as an analog output in a filter circuit of low electric power consumption.
In a matched filter circuit according to the present invention, the function speed of an A/D converting circuit is minimized by intermittently holding an analog output signal according to an experience that peak detection can be performed by partially sampling the signal after the acquisition.
It is possible to use a circuit of rather low speed as an A/D converting circuit by the matched filter circuit according to the present invention. Therefore, it is profitable considering the cost, yield and electric power consumption.


A laminated ratchet tool includes a laminated ratchet head defining an internal gear and a pawl mechanism carried by the ratchet head and including two laminated pawls arranged for ratcheting engagement with the gear teeth. Each of the laminated parts includes a plurality of plates arranged in a congruent stack and fixedly secured together, as by brazing. Each plate is formed by stamping and has plural orienting structures stamped therein, each such structure being a displaced portion which forms a recess at one side of the plate and a projection extending from the other side of the plate, so that the projections on one plate mate in the recesses of an adjacent plate to facilitate alignment of the plates. The ratchet head includes toothed inner plates which define the internal gear and untoothed outer plates which define bearing surfaces for the pawl mechanism.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to ratchet tools and the ratchet mechanisms therefor and, more specifically, to the toothed portions of the ratchet mechanisms.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Ratchet tools, such as wrenches and the like, are well known and typically include a gear member disposed for engagement with one or more pawls. The gear member may be arranged as either an internal or external gear, typically a spur gear. The present invention has particular application to ratchet mechanisms of the type which utilize internal gears, with the pawl mechanism being disposed inside the gear. Such mechanisms are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,765,449 to Peters and U.S. Pat. No. 5,537,899 to Dietrich, the former disclosing a manually-operated ratchet wrench, and the latter disclosing a power-operated ratchet wrench. In both cases the ratchet mechanism is of a dual-pawl configuration, although it will be appreciated that similar mechanisms utilizing a single pawl are also known. While the following discussion will be fundamentally in the context of ratchet mechanisms of the types disclosed in the aforementioned patents, this is simply for purposes of illustration, and it will be understood that the present invention and the fundamental principles thereof have application to ratchet tools and ratchet mechanisms generally.
In such prior ratchet tools, the gear and the pawls are typically formed from forged blanks with the teeth being broached on the parts. The parts must then undergo further machining and other finishing processes, resulting in high manufacturing costs. Furthermore, the broaching may leave broach "drag" marks on the finished parts, which can cause surface imperfections.
In any ratchet tool, particularly power tools, the toothed parts are, by the nature of the ratchet operation, subjected to high wear. Thus, these parts are typically designed as replacement items, particularly in the case of power tools. This tends to increase the overall cost and inconvenience of operation of the tool to the end user.
Furthermore, in ratchet tools of the type disclosed in the aforementioned patents, the ratchet head or gear essentially "floats" around the drive body which carries the pawls, and is supported by the working action of the pawls, which are located approximately 180.degree. apart. This "floating" action allows the ratchet head to move off center and thereby allows greater or lesser engagement of the pawl teeth with the ratchet gear teeth. This action tends to accelerate wear of the components and aggravates self-reversing or lock-up caused when the teeth on the pawl do not properly engage the gear teeth. In this event, one pawl may snap to the opposite position and thus allow the pawls to oppose each other and prevent operation in either direction. This tendency to self-reversing or lock-up is not only a great inconvenience to the user, but leads to excessive warranty costs. In the tool of U.S. Pat. No. 5,537,899, pawl-end positioning pins have been added to alleviate the tendency to lock-up. But this complicates the construction and assembly and does not cure the "floating" action and resulting imbalance which aggravate the tendency to excessive wear of the toothed parts.

Ratchet mechanism with laminated parts and method of making same


A film image signal generation apparatus according to the present invention, includes: a film displacement device which displaces a developed film, which is first in a film cartridge, to an image area; an image signal conversion device which converts an image of a film frame, which is currently opposed to the image area, into a first image signal; an image signal generation circuit which generates a second image signal for displaying a display which is not a film frame which is currently opposed to the image area; and a control circuit which controls the image signal conversion device and the image signal generation circuit so as to output the second image signal without outputting the first image signal, when a predetermined film frame is not opposed to the image area.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a film image signal generation apparatus which converts images which have been photographed upon a photographic film into an image signal such as a video signal or the like, and which outputs this image signal.
2. Description of the Related Art
As apparatuses for converting an image upon a photographic film which has been developed into an image signal such as a video signal or the like and then outputting this signal, there are disclosed (in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,482,924, 4,485,406, and 4,506,300) apparatuses which output an image on a film as a video signal which has been shot by using a CCD camera. If this output signal is then input into a video monitor, it is possible to view the image on the film upon the screen of the monitor. Further, it is possible to edit the image onto a video tape, or to output it using a video printer or the like. With such apparatuses, the film is stretched out so as to lie flat and is fitted into a holder, and then is manually slid so that the position of the film frame is matched with the image frame of the CCD camera. Accordingly, it is necessary to adjust the position of the film by moving the holder while watching the image on the monitor, and as shown in FIG. 35 the frames upon the film are imaged while it is being slid and are output just as they stand as images upon the monitor.
However, it is troublesome for the operator to be required to adjust the film to the predetermined imaging position while watching the image projected upon the monitor from the film in this manner, and moreover the image on the film can be quite difficult to see when it is thus being projected upon the monitor just as it stands during the sliding process.


A high performance boat stabilized through the use of foam stabilizing members is provided. The boat has a rigid, planing hull including a transom, and a pair of curved sides extending forward from the transom to form a bow. A bottom is joined to the sides forming a chine. The foam stabilizing members are mounted on the sides of the hull above the chine and extend from the transom along the length of the boat. The sides of the boat also include an upper and lower flange extending outwardly from the sides of the boat adjacent to the upper and lower edges of the stabilizing members at the location where the stabilizing members attach to the sides of the hull. The lower flange helps to ensure that water is not forced in between the sides of the boat and the stabilizing members, thus preventing possible damage to the boat. Additionally, the stabilizing members are attached to the side of the hull without the use of holes extending from the exterior to the interior of the hull, thus preventing water from seeping into the hull.

It is very important to design smaller boats with flotation devices in the hull to ensure that the boat remains floating in case substantial water gets into the boat or the boat capsizes. Additionally, foam flotation devices provide the boat with added buoyancy, thus increasing carrying capacity and safety. The installation of foam flotation devices is especially important in the case of small boats which are designed for operation on rough waters, such as in the case of rescue boats.
Many prior art boat designs incorporate foam devices within the hull of the boat, as in U.S. Pat. No. 4,060,865 (Woolworth). Typically, the foam flotation members are incorporated directly within the hull structure itself. These boat designs are generally safer than designs which do not incorporate flotation devices within the hull. Prior art designs use foam flotation devices within the hull to increase safety but do not take full advantage of the unique properties of the foam flotation devices in order to increase boat performance.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,287,624 (Lowther), a series of foam flotation devices or wings are attached to the exterior and interior of a low-speed fishing boat. The exterior wings extend from the transom approximately to the point halfway between the transom and the bow where the wings terminate, thus presenting a large flat surface to the oncoming waves. The foam flotation wings provide increased stability and buoyancy to the boat hull, however, the teachings of Lowther would create significant problems if used on a high-performance, high-speed power boat. The flat surface presented to the water by the termination of the foam flotation wing would create a substantial hazard if the boat was operated at speeds over simple trolling speeds. At high speeds, the flat surface of the flotation wings could cause a loss of control of the boat or could cause the boat to "trip" on a wave, possibly capsizing the boat.
In the context of a boat, "tripping" means that an exterior surface of the boat contacts the water creating a force which causes the boat to deviate from its intended path. As an example, if the flat surface of the flotation wings in Lowther were to contact the water when the boat was moving at high speed, the force produced by the water striking the flat surface could cause the boat to begin spinning or even to list to the extent that the boat capsizes.
In addition to the problems described above, the method used to attach the flotation devices to the boat hull also creates a number of disadvantages. In Lowther, the flotation wings are attached by bolting through the foam wings and boat hull. This creates a number of holes in the hull and thus a significant risk of water leakage. If a boat incorporating the teachings of Lowther were operated at high speeds, the significant water pressures would likely force the foam flotation devices away from the hull, possibly resulting in loss of control of the boat or damage to the hull and the foam flotation devices. The water pressure would also likely force water through the holes by means of which the foam flotation devices are attached to the hull.
Other prior art boat designs use inflatable cylinders to form the sides of the boat, as in the case of Zodiac boats. The inflatable cylinders provide a high degree of stability to the boat but result in a loss of performance. Generally, prior art inflatable boat designs use inflatable cylinders as the sides of the boat and either a flexible floorboard or a rigid floorboard formed of wood or fiberglass. In operation, the cylinders serve as the running surface for the boat and remain in contact with the surface of the water; thus, a substantial wetted surface area and a significant amount of drag are created. This design also results in a very poor ride due to the fact that the boat tends to skip or bounce over the top of the waves. In addition, the inflatable cylinders are easily damaged and must constantly be inspected for tears, leaks, etc. Another disadvantage to inflatable boats is that typically the interior of the boat is very small, thus leaving little room for carrying equipment or passengers.


High speed, perspective correct texture mapping is performed by identifying lines of constant depth in a polygon and repeatedly subdividing the polygon along lines of constant depth to produce subpolygons having a maximum mapping error which is less than a predetermined maximum mapping error, preferably less than one pixel. Subdivision may be performed using a "Check/Subdivide/Check" embodiment or a "Predictive Subdivision" embodiment. In Check/Subdivide/Check, a greatest mapping error for a polygon is determined, and if the mapping error is greater than a predetermined mapping error, the polygon is further subdivided. In Predictive Subdivision, a polygon is subdivided into subpolygons which are sufficiently small to ensure that maximum texture mapping error is less than a predetermined mapping error, so that repeated checking and subdividing is not necessary. In either embodiment, linear interpolation can be used for high speed texture mapping, while maintaining the perspective error to below any desired maximum.

Computer-based graphical processing systems and methods are widely used for displaying three-dimensional images on a two-dimensional graphical display. The three-dimensional images are typically formed of collections of polygons. In order to add surface details to the image, texture mapping is typically used. In texture mapping, a patterned image or texture bitmap is plastered onto a polygon surface to thereby produce a modified object with the added detail of the texture. When the texture-mapped polygon is rendered into a scene, the texture is also rendered as if it were painted on the polygon.
Texture mapping of a polygon on a graphical display is generally accomplished by finding texture coordinates at the center of each pixel inside the polygon and coloring the pixels with the corresponding bits from the texture. The bits from the texture are also referred to as "texels".
Texture mapping allows detail to be added to a scene without significantly complicating the scene's model. For example, brick walls, tiled and carpeted floors, and complex control panels may be rendered with just a few polygons. Pictures on walls can be digitized versions of actual pictures. Grass, trees, water and bushes may be rendered convincingly with minimal modeling. Thus, with texture mapping, a model-maker can create more realistic models with less effort.
Although texture mapping simplifies modeling, it complicates rendering of the scene on the two-dimensional graphical display. If the textures are not rendered precisely, the viewer may see annoying distortion. Generally, precise perspective correct texture mapping may be provided, but at the expense of rendering speed.
There are several texture mapping methods and systems currently in use. Some sacrifice precision for the sake of speed, as is often necessary when developing interactive systems. Others are precise, but are too slow for interactive use.
The simplest high speed texture mapping system and method is linear approximation. For example, a polygon with correct texture points at the vertices is scan-converted from top-to-bottom, linearly interpolating texture coordinates both along polygon edges and across scanlines. Linear approximation is not exact, however, because texture coordinates are linear with respect to pre-perspective projection world space, not post-projection display space.
For example, consider a segment in screen space from (x.sub.s1, y.sub.s1) to (x.sub.s2, y.sub.s2), with correct texture coordinates (u.sub.1, v.sub.1) and (u.sub.2, v.sub.2). To linearly interpolate texture coordinates at (x.sub.s, y.sub.s) along the segment: EQU u.sub.linearapprox =u.sub.1 +q (u.sub.2 -u.sub.1) EQU v.sub.linearapprox =v.sub.1 +q (u.sub.2 -u.sub.1) (1)
where q=(x.sub.s -x.sub.s1)/(x.sub.s2 -x.sub.s1) or PA1 where q is as described in Equations (1). PA1 where w is interpolated between (x.sub.s1, y.sub.s1) and (x.sub.s2, y.sub.s2), i.e.: EQU w=w.sub.1 +q(w.sub.2 -w.sub.1) PA1 where q=(x.sub.s -x.sub.s1)/(x.sub.s2 -x.sub.s1) or PA1 (x.sub.s1, y.sub.s1) to (x.sub.s2, y.sub.s2) PA1 and where w.sub.1 =1/z.sub.1 and w.sub.2 =1/z.sub.2 PA1 u.sub.correct =u.sub.1 +r(u.sub.2 -u.sub.1) PA1 r=(x-x.sub.1)/(x.sub.2 -x.sub.1) PA1 x=(x.sub.s /w) PA1 w=w.sub.1 +q(w.sub.2 -w.sub.1) PA1 q=(x.sub.s -x.sub.s1)/(x.sub.s2 -x1.sub.s1) PA1 w.sub.1 =1/z.sub.1 PA1 w.sub.2 =1/z.sub.2 PA1 w.sub.1 =1/z.sub.1 PA1 w.sub.2 =1/z.sub.2.
(y.sub.s -y.sub.s1)/(y.sub.s2 -y.sub.s1) PA2 (y.sub.2 -y.sub.s1)/(y.sub.s2 -y.sub.s1)
that is, q is the fraction of the distance along the segment from (x.sub.s1, y.sub.s1) to (x.sub.s2, y.sub.s2). The domain of the u and v variables depends on the size of the texture bitmap. To simplify the equations, the texture coordinates are normalized so that u.sub.1 =v.sub.1 =0, and u.sub.2 =v.sub.2 =1: EQU u.sub.linearapprox =q EQU v.sub.linearapprox =q (2)
A system or method can calculate delta values for u and v, and can add to calculate each successive texture coordinate along the line. To perform a complete two-dimensional texture mapping as described above, Equations (2) are used to interpolate texture coordinates both along polygon edges and across scanlines.
Linear approximation is relatively simple and computationally inexpensive, but the distortion it produces is usually unacceptable. As an example, see FIG. 1 which illustrates a cube which is texture-mapped with a checkerboard pattern. The lines separating the rows and columns of squares should be straight, but they are bent and twisted, especially on the top and right sides of the cube.
Approximation can be improved by using quadratic rather than linear interpolation. See the publications by D. Kirk et al., "The Rendering Architecture of the DN10000VS", Proceedings of SIGGRAPH '90, Dallas, Tex., Aug. 6-10, 1990, pages 304-305, and G. Wolberg, "Digital Image Warping", IEEE Computer Society Press, Los Alamitos, Calif., 1990, pages 199-200. For a modest increase in per-pixel calculation, texture mapped surfaces can cover a wider range of depth and still be rendered without noticeable distortion. Distortion still occurs, however, and in certain circumstances this distortion looks worse than distortion from linear approximation.
A second basic strategy for perspective correct texture mapping is subdivision. A polygon is divided, typically in half, to produce subpolygons, and correct texture coordinates are computed exactly for the new subpolygon corners. Each subpolygon is further subdivided, typically in half, and at some point the resulting subpolygons are rendered using linear, quadratic, or even constant approximation. An example of subdivision is described in Japanese published Patent Application 06-036039, published Feb. 10, 1994 to Takahisa et al. entitled Texture Mapping Device. As shown therein, a texture mapping device is equipped with an error evaluation expression calculation part, which calculates an error evaluation expression. When the maximum value of the error evaluation expression exceeds a predetermined permissible error, the projection plane is subdivided.
Another example of subdivision is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,307,450 to Grossman entitled Z-Subdivision for Improved Texture Mapping. Disclosed is a graphical display system and method for Z-subdivision of polygons into quadrilaterals and triangles whose vertices are arranged between two adjacent Z-planes. Once a primitive is sliced into component portions, a texture is mapped onto each component portion by interpolating texture parameters to points on or within the component portion.
There are occasions where texture mapping must be exact, even if a viewer cannot see gross distortion. For example, consider a polygon with a city map texture. There may be situations where a rendering system places "pins" on the map to mark locations, and renders the pins as additional polygons. If the texture mapping is not sufficiently accurate, the pins will likely be over incorrect positions on the map even though the map may not look distorted. An even worse problem is that the map will "dance" around beneath the pins as the observer moves.
Exact calculation systems and methods often calculate the correct texture coordinates incrementally so that a texture-mapped polygon may be rendered by incrementing along polygon edges and across scanlines, just as in the linear approximation algorithms described above. See a publication by G. Wolberg, entitled "Digital Image Warping", IEEE Computer Society Press, Los Alamitos, Calif., 1990, page 196.
For example, assuming a line in pre-perspective projection space is rotated and translated so that the viewing vector is along the z axis, projecting the line's endpoints (x.sub.1, y.sub.1, z.sub.1) and (x.sub.2, y.sub.2, z.sub.2) requires dividing the non-depth coordinates by the depth: EQU (x.sub.s1, y.sub.s1)=(x.sub.1 /z.sub.1, y.sub.1 /z.sub.1) EQU (x.sub.s2, y.sub.s2)=(x.sub.2 /z.sub.2, y.sub.2 /z.sub.2)
Although the texture coordinates are not linear in screen space, the depth reciprocal, 1/z, is linear. See the textbook entitled Computer Graphics Principles and Practice, Second Edition by J. Foley et al., Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, Inc., 1990, pages 230-237. Accordingly, for a screen point (x.sub.s, y.sub.s) along the line: EQU (x, y, z)=(x.sub.s /w, y.sub.s /w, 1/w)
that is, q is the fraction of the distance along the segment from
In order to obtain a correct texture coordinate for screen coordinate (x.sub.s, y.sub.s), the exact calculation technique inverse projects to find the world coordinates (x, y) and uses these coordinates to linearly interpolate the texture coordinates:
These equations can also use y.sub.s values instead of x.sub.s values, and there is a similar operation to find v coordinates. Normalizing u, and substituting r into the equation for u.sub.correct : EQU u.sub.correct =(x-x.sub.1)/(x.sub.2 -x.sub.1)
Substituting in x=x.sub.s /w, x.sub.1 =x.sub.s1 /w.sub.1, and x.sub.2 =x.sub.s2 /w.sub.2 : ##EQU1## w=w.sub.1 +q(w.sub.2 -w.sub.1) q=(x.sub.s -x.sub.s1)/(x.sub.s2 -x.sub.s1)
In order to obtain correct texture points along the line ((x.sub.1, y.sub.1), (x.sub.2, y.sub.2)), rendering increments x.sub.s from x.sub.1 to x.sub.2 and w from w.sub.1 to w.sub.2 and evaluates Equation (3) at each increment. An entire polygon can thus be rendered in this manner, using Equation (3) to incrementally calculate correct texture coordinates along polygon edges and also across scanlines.
Unfortunately, exact calculation requires at least two divides (or a divide and two multiplies) per pixel. Although perspective correct results are obtained, the calculation time is generally excessive.
In conclusion, texture mapping methods and systems have generally been either accurate and slow or fast and inaccurate. As high resolution graphical display systems are increasingly being used for many consumer, commercial and military applications, there is a greater need for perspective correct texture mapping. Moreover, as the systems are increasingly used for real-time viewing of three-dimensional scenes, there is an increased need for high speed texture mapping. Even as machines become faster, screen resolutions and polygon counts will continue to increase, so that fast, perspective correct texture mapping will continue to be needed.

Perspective correct texture mapping system and methods with intelligent subdivision


This invention relates to a process for the preparation of an inorganic oxide gel comprising contacting at least one fluorinated inorganic oxide precursor with a fluorinated gelling agent in the presence of at least one fluorinated solvent to form a solution; allowing sufficient time for gelation to occur; and isolating the inorganic oxide gel. Gels made by this process are useful as coatings and as components in inorganic/organic hybrid materials.

Polysilicate or other inorganic oxide networks and particles can be generated from molecular precursors through room temperature hydrolytic and condensation sol-gel reactions. Such reactions generally require cosolvents for the essential reactants water and the molecular precursor compound, such as a tetraalkoxysilane, and are catalyzed by either acid or base.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,441,718 describes a process for making an inorganic gel comprising mixing specific non-fluorinated inorganic oxide precursors with particular carboxylic acids.
European Patent Application 0 574 928 A2 describes the synthesis of fluorosilicone resin by the hydrolysis of a perfluoroalkyl-containing silane of the formula F(CF.sub.2).sub.a CH.sub.2 CH.sub.2 SiY.sub.3, wherein Y is chlorine, bromine or C.sub.1 to C.sub.4 alkoxy, after being dissolved in an organic solvent and subsequently dripped into aqueous acid. Additional water or organic solvent is added thereafter and later an aqueous layer removed.
The process of the present invention concerns hydrolysis and condensation of inorganic oxide precursors in a fluorinated solvent. Fluorinated solvents have not previously been used for such processes due to their incompatability with water, catalysts and inorganic oxide precursors.
It is desirable to generate hybrid inorganic and fluoropolymer materials with very small inorganic domains (<75 nm) so as to improve the durability of the fluoropolymer. It is well known that small inorganic particles can be generated via sol-gel chemistry. However, such chemistry is not practiced in perfluorinated solvent systems which are essential for dissolving said fluoropolymers.

Process for making inorganic oxide gels in fluorocarbon solvents


A method for capturing a tensile force exerted during the pulling of a pipe or line during installation, includes capturing a strain on the pipe or line via one or more sensors arranged on the pipe or line. Multiple strain sensors may be arranged such that they are offset at various angles across the circumference of the element being installed. One or more sensors may be mounted to a towing head for pulling the pipe or the line during installation.

Pulling a pipe or line during installation typically is performed such that a pilot hole is first drilled from a starting point to an end point by driving a drill string through the ground with a driving mechanism. The drill string can be driven into the ground with a twisting motion and/or by pushing or pulling. Driving said drill string by means of a percussion mechanism also is possible. At the end point, a pipe or line can be connected to the drill string, wherein a coupling transfers the tensile forces from the drill string to the pipe or line, but not the twisting motion. If the diameter of the pipe or line is equal to or smaller than the diameter of the drill string, it is not necessary to expand the pilot hole while pulling the pipe or line through said hole. If the diameter of the pipe or line is greater than the diameter of the drill string, a reamer must be installed between the drill string and the coupling attached to the pipe or line, which serves to loosen and remove the ground and rock around the pilot hole up to the diameter of the reamer. To facilitate the loosening and removal of the ground and rock, and to accomplish the transport of the same to the surface, a rinsing liquid can be conveyed to the reamer, which can comprise a bentonite suspension with adjustable viscosity. At least a portion of the thixotropic bentonite suspension typically flows through a ring channel between the expanded drill hole and the pipe or line being installed, diminishing the friction between the wall of the expanded drill hole and the pipe or line.
The detection of the tensile forces exerted on the pipe or line typically is conducted by means of a tensile force measuring device arranged at the coupling between the end of the drill string and the pipe or line, wherein the detected tensile force is conveyed to a data logger and/or the data is transferred simultaneously via radio waves. For example, DE 297 24 364 U1 describes a device for pulling pipes or cables through a pilot hole, wherein a coupling with an integrated tensile force measurement device is arranged between the pipe or line being installed.
The permissible tensile forces for the installation of plastic pipes, for example, depend on the duration and the temperature of the pipe wall of the plastic pipe. A need exists to evaluate the quality of the installation and of the installed pipeline, for warranty reasons alone. According to the known technical solutions, only the tensile forces exerted longitudinally at the leading end of the pipe are detected. The evaluation of the permissible tensile forces always is performed under the assumption that the thickness of the pipe wall is equivalent to the smallest permitted wall thickness. As the measurement is performed indirectly, tolerances are indicated, with the result that far lower tensile forces are typically used than would be possible from a purely technical perspective. This results in unused potential, as a higher tensile force would directly translate to longer installation lengths.
On the other hand, pipe wall temperatures higher than those anticipated in the calculation bases lead to a reduction of the permissible tensile force, which increases the risk of damaging the pipe during the pulling process.

Method and device for detecting a tensile force exerted while pulling a pipe or line during installation


A gas discharge ballast circuit comprises a resonant load circuit including a resonant inductance, a resonant capacitance, and circuitry for connection to at least one gas discharge lamp. A d.c.-to-a.c. converter circuit is coupled to the load circuit for inducing an a.c. current in the circuit. It comprises first and second converter switches serially connected in the foregoing order between a bus conductor at a d.c. voltage and a reference conductor, and connected together at a common node through which the a.c. load current flows. The first and second converter switches each comprise a control node and a reference node, the voltage between such nodes determining the conduction state of the associated switch. The respective control nodes of the first and second converter switches are interconnected. The respective reference nodes of the first and second converter switches are connected together at the common node. A bridge network is connected between first and second nodes and has first and second input nodes on which respective first and second input signals are applied, and first and second output nodes respectively connected to the common and control nodes so as to control the switching state of the converter switches. An oscillator provides the first and second input signals. A boost capacitor is coupled between the bus and reference conductors. A boost inductor is supplies energy to the boost capacitor. A boost switch intermittently couples one end of the boost inductor between the bus and reference conductors so as to store energy in the inductor.

Power supply, or ballast, circuits for various loads typically include a converter for supplying a.c. or d.c. current to a load. Such circuits typically include a pair of non-complementary switches in the converter. For example, it is common to use a pair of identical, n-channel enhancement mode MOSFETs as the switches. However, the use of such non-complementary MOSFETs has various drawbacks.
For instance, each of the non-complementary MOSFETs must be controlled by a separate gate-to-source (or control) voltage. This requires level shifting of voltage to couple a single control signal to each of the gate-to-source voltages of the pair of MOSFETs. Such level shifting can be accomplished by a transformer or by conventional bootstrapping means. The transformer method works well at high speeds, e.g., over 20 kilohertz, but is costly and hard to control. The bootstrapping method, usually implemented by an Integrated Circuit (IC), has good control capability, but is unable to work at high speeds, beyond 100 kilohertz.
In accordance with a first aspect of the invention, it would be desirable to provide a ballast circuit for a gas discharge lamp that overcomes the foregoing drawbacks. In accordance with a second aspect of the invention, it would further be desirable for such a ballast circuit to provide a feedback function to synchronize the frequency of lamp current to desired starting and operating frequencies, and also to provide a cathode preheat function. In accordance with a third aspect of the invention, it would be desirable to incorporate with either the first or second aspects of the invention circuitry for achieving a high power factor.

High power factor ballast circuit with complementary converter switches


An apparatus for processing film has two processing units and transport rollers for conveying film past the units. One of the units may include a scanning device and the other unit may include a copying device. Alternatively, the two units can comprise a prescanning device and a main scanning device, respectively. The apparatus further has a receiving station for film cartridges and at least one separate receiving station for film which is not confined in cartridges. Film can be fed to the transport rollers from either station.

The invention relates to the processing of photographic material.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,251,840 illustrates a cartridge containing film which is wound onto a spool. The film has a guide section which is located within and does not project from the cartridge.
A processing laboratory for cartridges of this type is disclosed in the European Patent Application No. 664 483. Here, the film is withdrawn from the cartridge for copying and is afterwards rewound into the cartridge. The cartridge and the copies are then given to the customer.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,093,686 proposes to rewind the film into the cartridge following development. The cartridge is thereafter placed in a copier which unwinds the film from the cartridge for copying and subsequently winds the film back into the cartridge.
In contrast to the above, films having the conventional small format are removed from the cartridges completely prior to development. Subsequent processing of the films, which are in the form of strips, is carried out independently of the cartridges.
The European Patent Application No. 677 771 describes a processing apparatus which can handle film cartridges as well as filmstrips without cartridges. A filmstrip introduced into the apparatus is first passed through a scanner and then through an exposure or copying station. On the other hand, a film cartridge is placed in a receptacle, and the film is then unwound from the cartridge and transported through the scanner. After being scanned, the leading portions of the film are temporarily stored behind the scanner as the trailing portions undergo scanning. When the entire film has been scanned, the film is wound back into the cartridge which is thereupon removed from the receptacle and placed in a second receptacle behind the scanner. The film is now unwound from the cartridge once more and transported through the copying station. Following copying, the leading portions of the film are temporarily stored behind the copying station while the trailing portions are copied. Upon completion of copying, the film is rewound into the cartridge.
The apparatus of the European Patent Application No. 677 771 is very expensive and difficult to operate.


In an internal combustion engine with direct fuel injection, which comprises a number of operating elements each including a combustion chamber delineated by an internal wall of a cylinderhead and a piston movably disposed in a cylinder, an injector mounted in the cylinderhead has a fuel injection nozzle which injects fuel into the combustion chamber in a cone-like pattern wherein an ignitable fuel/air mixture is formed and a spark plug is mounted on the cylinderhead within a spark plug sleeve which extends into the combustion chamber and forms, adjacent the spark plug electrodes, an ignition chamber which is in communication with the interior of the cone-like fuel spray pattern so as to receive therefrom an easily ignitable relatively rich fuel mixture which, upon ignition by the spark plug, generates a flame beam igniting the fuel mixture within the cone-like spray pattern.

The invention relates to an internal combustion engine with direct fuel injection, which provides for a stratified combustion in a wide performance range and includes pistons which are movably disposed in cylinders and define combustion chambers limited by a cylinderhead wall. Injectors are mounted in the cylinderhead which inject fuel into the combustion chambers in cone-like patterns to form in the combustion chambers with the combustion air a fuel/air mixture which is ignited by a spark plug.
DE 43 24 642 A1 discloses such an internal combustion engine including a combustion chamber which is delimited by a piston disposed in a cylinder of the internal combustion engine and the inner wall of a cylinderhead. An injection nozzle of an injector injects fuel in a cone-like pattern into the combustion chamber where an ignitable fuel/air mixture is formed with the combustion air admitted to the combustion chamber. The mixture is ignited by a spark plug having electrodes which extend into the cone-shaped fuel spray pattern and between which a spark is generated. The electrodes are arranged adjacent the injection nozzle whereby a fuel-rich mixture is ignited such that stratified combustion is achieved depending on the engine load, and, as a result of a pressure and temperature increase resulting from the combustion of the fuel-rich mixture portion, the fuel-lean mixture in the remainder of the combustion chamber is combusted. The electrodes are wetted by the fuel injected into the combustion chamber so that, over a period of time, carbon deposits may form on the electrodes whereby the development of a spark may be prevented. Furthermore, the electrodes must be relatively long in order to facilitate ignition of the mixture adjacent the fuel injection nozzle. As a result, depending on the engine load, either knocking may occur by excessively heated electrodes in the area where they are exposed to the fuel or carbon deposits may form on the electrodes because of cooling of the electrodes by their exposure to the fuel.
It is the principal object of the present invention to provide an internal combustion engine with direct fuel injection which will maintain optimal operating conditions over a long period of time.

Internal combustion engine with direct fuel injection


A communication control method which performs route control in a communication system comprising: a specific network constituting the Internet; a first network configured to accommodate a specific device connected to the specific network; a second network provided between the specific network and the first network; and a processing device configured to perform predetermined processing on the basis of a packet transmitted between the specific network and the first network, the communication control method comprising: causing a path setting device in the communication system to execute a communication route-setting process comprised of, in accordance with first routing information defining a path leading from the first network to the specific network to be branched in the second network, controlling a path so that a first path of the branched path is set as a path via the processing device, and a second path of the branched path is set as a path leading to the specific network.

Along with the expansion of the Internet, a sudden increase in access to corporate websites at the time of a business scandal and an increase in traffic as represented by distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks have become a major concern to the Internet connected user network such as a corporate network (for example, refer to Patent Literature 1). As means for protecting a user network from such temporary bursts of traffic, network services such as a content delivery network (CDN) for offloading traffic outside of the user network and a cloud type DDoS protection service have become mainstream.
Such network services realize services by intentionally redirecting traffic originally leading to a specific device in an Internet connected user network to a network service provider network using a domain name system (DNS) or a border gateway protocol (BGP) and apply attack mitigation devices or the like in the provider network to clean the traffic.
When traffic redirection using the DNS is performed, an IP address relative to a host name of a user is mapped to an IP address of a network address translation (NAT) or proxy installed in a service provider network and traffic is redirected to a provider network. In the case of redirection using the BGP, traffic is redirected to a service provider network by advertising a longer address prefix route than that normally advertised by the user for the BGP route selection mechanism prefer more specific routes.
Aside from the DNS or the BGP redirection methods as described above, policy-based routing (PBR) is another method to redirect traffic within a network. The PBR method defines a policy to an interface on a router where the traffic passes through and the traffic matched to the policy to be forwarded to a specific interface on the same router according to the policy rule.

Communication control method, communication control device, and computer program


A system comprises a rules engine that generates a hierarchical structure based upon investment data and a plurality of rules. Further, the system comprises a processing engine that performs one or more calculations on data stored by the hierarchical structured based upon the rules and generates a report based upon the one or more calculations.

1. Field
This disclosure generally relates to the field of computing devices. More particularly, the disclosure relates to hierarchical structures utilized by computing devices for data aggregation.
2. General Background
Organizations may utilize a variety of portfolio managers that are not part of such organizations to manage their investments rather than utilizing employees. Examples of such organizations may include universities, pension funds, etc. By utilizing such portfolio managers, the organizations may have employees concentrate on activities of the organization rather than investment decisions that are a specialty of portfolio managers.
An organization may be responsible for investing a significant cash sum for which the organization diversifies risk allocation through a variety of different portfolio managers. Thus, the organization tries to reduce the risk of investment decisions from any one portfolio managers. As a result, the organization typically monitors the investment decisions of the different portfolio managers and changes allocations of the total investment amount to members of that group of portfolio managers as necessary so that adequate performance standards are met.
To ensure that the portfolio managers are obtaining adequate results, the organization will typically require that the portfolio managers report various metrics, e.g., performance and market value, on a regular basis. The organization may then utilize such reporting to change investment allocations, i.e., increasing the allocations to the better performing portfolio managers and decreasing the allocations to the lesser performing portfolio managers.
Current configurations allow portfolio managers to organize the results that are reported in a nested manner. For example, portfolio managers may utilize current configurations to organize data according to a first level of asset class, a second level of strategies, and a third level of investment. The formula for performing such aggregation may utilize certain events, e.g., cash flow, and the timing of those events for all investments that are nested under the same heading. Therefore, current configurations allow for hierarchical aggregation of investment data for reporting purposes. In addition, the hierarchical aggregation allows portfolio managers to view such data in a user interface.
Most current hierarchical configurations are static tree implementations. In other words, the nested investment data is presented in a rigid structure. Such configurations often have limited nesting depth, i.e., may typically only include between three to five levels of nesting. Further, the breadth of such configurations is often predetermined by the first level of a known taxonomy. In addition, each nesting level must represent the same concept, e.g., all aggregations at a third nesting level must be of a type of investment strategy. Such a predictable structure has allowed for automated configurations to place investment allocations into the corresponding location of the static tree, but has prevented portfolio managers from placing allocations into tree locations that are intuitive.
To mitigate the rigidity of the static tree implementations, some configurations allow for freeform development of tree structures with arbitrary nesting, breadth, and depth. Yet, the arbitrary structure of such free form configurations prevents automation. Therefore, the freeform tree implementations require manual placement of investments in corresponding nesting levels of a freeform tree. Further, the freeform tree must be maintained indefinitely during the evolution of the portfolio.
As a result, the current configurations are either too rigid for portfolio managers to customize to provide effective reporting or too manual for efficient allocations of significant quantities of investments in a tree structure. Therefore, current hierarchical configurations do not provide effective hierarchical aggregation of investment data for reporting purposes.


In one embodiment, a system and a method relate to generating a summed ion spectrum for a test sample, the summed ion spectrum identifying ion intensities at multiple different mass-to-charge ratios, and comparing the summed ion spectrum of the test sample with multiple reference summed ion spectra to identify a potential match.

It is often necessary to analyze materials to determine what substances they contain. This is true, for example, in the field of forensic science. Specifically, a forensic scientist may be called upon to analyze a sample from a fire or an explosion that occurred at domicile or place of business. In the case of a fire, the scientist may need to determine whether the fire was accidental or intentional (i.e., arson). In the case of an explosion, the scientist may need to identify explosive materials that were used to cause the explosion to assist law enforcement officials in identifying the individual or organization (e.g., terrorist group) responsible for the explosion.
In the case of fires, determinations as to the cause of the fires are typically made by analyzing fire debris, such as ashes, collected from various locations at the scene of the fire. The debris is placed in a container along with a carbon strip and the container is heated to cause the residue from any substances contained in the debris, such as gasoline or other ignitable liquids, to vaporize and then condense on the carbon strip. The carbon strip is then placed in a solvent to remove the substances and yield a mixture that can be analyzed using a gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer. As the various components from the mixture are output from the gas chromatograph, they are received by the mass spectrometer that breaks each component down and generates a mass spectrum of each component. A total ion chromatogram, which provides an indication of the total quantity, or intensity, of ions present for each component, can be created that comprises a graphic representation of the total ion intensity for each component in time as the components are chromatographically separated.
Once the total ion chromatogram is produced, it can be compared with the total ion chromatograms of various known ignitable liquids that could have been used to start the fire. Normally, such comparison is made by a forensics fire debris analyst familiar with ignitable liquids. Through the comparison, the analyst can draw a conclusion as to what ignitable liquid, if any, started the fire.
The above form of analysis has been used for many years and relies heavily on the expert, but subjective, opinion of the analyst. Furthermore, even when the total ion chromatogram from the sample is very similar to a total ion chromatogram of a suspected ignitable liquid, and it therefore appears likely that the analyst's opinion is correct, it is possible that the similarity could be diminished by the presence of residue formed from other materials which breakdown under the intense heat of a fire (e.g., carpeting, upholstery, foam padding, building materials) to produce substances in the debris that did not arise from the ignitable liquid. That possibility may undermine the conclusions made by the analyst and could result in an inability to prove that arson was in fact the cause of the fire. Moreover, the expert's conclusions are typically only considered valid if each total ion chromatogram used in the analysis was generated using the same equipment under the same conditions, thereby preventing the creation of a central database that could be universally referenced when making determinations as to the substances contained within a sample.

Systems and methods for identifying substances contained in a material

University of Central Florida Research Foundation, Inc.


There is disclosed a video playback device for playing back a video program in fast forward mode on a display screen coupled to the video playback device. The video playback device contains an apparatus for selectively playing back portions of an audio signal associated with the video program during fast forward mode. The apparatus comprises: 1) an audio filtering processor for identifying a plurality of audio sub-segments in the audio signal and determining an importance factor associated with each of the plurality of audio sub-segments; and 2) a video processor coupled to and controlled by the audio filtering processor, wherein the audio filtering processor transmits selected ones of the plurality of audio sub-segments to the video processor and causes the video processor to play the selected audio sub-segments concurrently with a corresponding portion of a video signal from the video program during fast forward mode.

A wide variety of video playback devices are available in the marketplace. Most people own, or are familiar with, a video cassette recorder (VCR), also referred to as a video tape recorder (VTR). More recently, video recorders that use computer magnetic hard disks rather than magnetic cassette tapes to store video programs have appeared in the market. For example, the ReplayTV™ recorder and the TiVO™ recorder digitally record television programs on hard disk drives using, for example, MPEG-2 compression. Additionally, some video playback devices may record on a readable/writable digital versatile disk (DVD) rather than a magnetic disk.
Virtually all the systems that are capable of playing video programs have fast forward and rewind features. During the fast forwarding or rewinding of a video program, the audio portion of the video program is usually muted. As is well known in the art, increasing the speed of a video program, whether rewinding or fast forwarding, causes distortion in the audio. There are methods for speeding up the playback of speech by 50% with minimal effect on quality. However, this is not sufficient for high speed play modes and non-speech segments of the audio track.
There is therefore a need in the art for a system and method that will provide the playback video signal with corresponding undistorted audio during fast play modes such as fast forward.

System and method for fast playback of video with selected audio


A camera generally including a sensor and an auto-exposure circuit is disclosed. The sensor may be configured to generate a digital signal in response to an optical signal. The auto-exposure circuit may be configured to control a lightness of a picture within the digital signal by (i) adjusting at least one among an aperture, a shutter and an analog gain and (ii) adjusting a digital gain applied to the digital signal, wherein the digital gain adaptively reduces the lightness of the picture.

Automatic exposure (AE) is a process by which a still camera or a video camera controls an overall lightness of a picture. For conventional digital cameras, an aperture, a shutter time and a gain are controlled to adjust the lightness. A gain of six decibels (dB) increases a signal voltage by a factor of two.
Many combinations of aperture, shutter time, and gain can achieve a given lightness level. Therefore, besides determining the overall lightness level, conventional AE methods operate with the following considerations: (i) all lenses have a maximum aperture and a minimum aperture, (ii) cameras have a minimum shutter time and a maximum shutter time, (iii) for video cameras, the shutter time cannot exceed a frame time, (iv) electro-optical sensors have a minimum gain and a maximum gain, (v) a wide aperture reduces a depth-of-field, which can be helpful (i.e., focus on the subject and blur the background) or not helpful (i.e., less of the scene can be in focus), (vi) a lens will typically achieve a maximum sharpness and a lowest distortion over a range of aperture values that is smaller than the full range of possible aperture values, (vii) a long shutter time increases motion blurriness, which can be good (i.e., show motion in a still picture, make motion appear smooth in a video sequence) or bad (i.e., the picture is too blurry), (viii) high gain increases noise and is therefore usually avoided, (ix) for low light situations, and with the above described limitations of using shutter time and aperture to increase light, a high gain is sometimes appropriate.
With reasonably good light, conventional AE techniques will try to keep the total picture lightness at a certain level, independent of the amount of available light. For low illumination levels, the conventional AE techniques will permit the picture lightness to be reduced. Furthermore, the maximum gain used at the low illumination levels is reduced to keep the pictures from being too noisy.

Automatic exposure with digital gain optimized for noise reduction


A reclining board with an adjustable stand for carrying a baby in a baby bathtub, including an oblong board having one end terminated to a hook for hooking on a baby bathtub, a stand retained collapsed by a torsional spring, and a lock device fastened to the oblong board at the bottom to lock the stand in an upstanding position to support the opposite end of the oblong board above the bottom of the baby bathtub. The stand includes a substantially U-shaped supporting tube, and two eye end rods joined by a cross rod, each eye end rod having one end pivotably connected to a respective barrel on the oblong board by a pivot bolt and an opposite end inserted into either end of the supporting tube at a desired depth and then fixed in position by a respective screw bolt.

The present invention relates to a reclining board, and more particularly to a reclining board with an adjustable stand for use in a baby bathtub which can be conveniently adjusted to carry the baby in water or above water according to different washing conditions.
Washing a baby is not an easy job. Because a baby is very tender, the mother or nurse must carefully catch the baby with one hand and then wash the baby with the other hand. While washing in a baby bathtub, the baby may be hurt easily. There is disclosed a reclining board specifically designed for carrying a baby in a baby bathtub. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the reclining board has one end terminated to a hook hooked on one end of the baby bathtub, and an opposite end curved downwards and stopped at the bottom of the baby bathtub. After being put on the reclining board, the body of the baby is dipped in water. Therefore the mother or nurse can conveniently wash the baby with less effort. This structure of reclining board is effective only when the baby is to be washed in water. When to apply a soap, the baby must be turned upwards from the lying position into the sitting position, or carried away from the water. When washing the hair, the head of the baby shall be turned backwards or downwards so that water does not enter the ears or the nostrils. However, turning the head backwards or downwards will make the baby uncomfortable. People may prepare a small reclining chair for carrying the baby as the baby is removed from the baby bathtub for applying a soap. Preparing an additional reclining chair needs much room space and will complicate the washing procedure. Further, the baby must be well wrapped with a bath towel when the bay is put on the reclining chair for washing the hair. Therefore this structure of reclining board is still not satisfactory in function.

Reclining board with an adjustable stand for use in a baby bathtub


An image compressing circuit is comprised of: a number generating circuit which generates a respective number for each X-bit pixel in an input image such that the respective number changes in a cyclic fashion from pixel to pixel across each row of pixels in the input image; and, a translator circuit which performs a translation on each individual X-bit pixel together with its respective number to produce a corresponding Y-bit pixel, where Y is less than X. This translation is one which, when performed sequentially on several consecutive X-bit pixels of a single magnitude and their respective numbers for one cycle of the numbers, produces a series of Y-bit pixels of one or two magnitudes with an average value that increases monotonically as the single magnitude increases. By these Y-bit pixel series, the fidelity of the input image is retained even though Y is less then X.

This invention relates to circuits for compressing a digital image such that the compressed image retains its fidelity.
By a digital image is herein meant an array of pixels which are arranged in rows and columns. Such an array is called a frame; and, it is generated by various video sources like, for example, a digital camera or a digital storage device which stores and regenerates the camera images.
Each pixel consists of a certain number of bits which specify the brightness of the image at the pixel's row-column location in the frame. A pixel having "X" bits will range in magnitude from 0 to 2.sup.x -1. A magnitude of 0 corresponds to minimum brightness; a magnitude of 2.sup.x -1 corresponds to maximum brightness; and the remaining magnitudes between 0 and 2.sup.x -1 correspond to intermediate brightness levels.
Suppose now that a digital image having X bits per pixel is to be displayed on a video display which can accommodate only Y-bits per pixel, where Y is less than X. For example, suppose the video source provides an image with 5-bits per pixel (32 brightness levels), but the video display can only display pixels with 3-bits (8 brightness levels).
In the above case, the 5-bit pixels must somehow be compressed to 3-bit pixels. However, in making that compression it would seem that a loss of fidelity in the displayed image is unavoidable. Such a loss of fidelity will occur if, for example, the 3-bit pixel is obtained by simply stripping off the two least significant bits from the 5-bit pixel.
Accordingly, a primary object of the invention is to provide an image compressing circuit which compresses X-bit pixels to Y-bit pixels, where Y is less than X, while retaining image fidelity.

Circuit for compressing digital images while retaining image fidelity


A self-cleaning, back-washable filter apparatus and method for use with a pumping apparatus which is at least partially immersed in fluid. The filter apparatus may comprise a vibration device that is powered by a flow of fluid. A method for filtering a flow of fluid is also disclosed, comprising vibrating a filter by applying a flow of fluid to the filter.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a filter apparatus and more particularly to a self-cleaning, back-flushable filter for removing particulate material from a pump intake.
2. Description of the Related Art
Submersible pumps are often lowered into fluid supplies such as those found in well casings or ponds in order to remove the fluid that is found there. Often, the fluid contains sand and other abrasive particles that are a constant cause of inefficiency in and potential failure of the pumping systems. For example, sand can cause severe damage to the pump and valves in the pumping system.
Many types of filters have been designed for use with submersible pumps. Such filters have typically included a filter element designed to screen particulate material from the pump intake. However, the particulate material often becomes entrapped in the filter element. The quantity of particulate material collected on the filter element is directly proportional to the to the pressure drop that occurs across the filter element. Since an excessive pressure drop across the filter element can significantly reduce fluid flow, the filter element must be periodically changed or cleaned. Often, this is done by removing the submersible pump from the fluid and removing the filter element. This can be a timely and inconvenient process. Pumps with intricate backwashing systems have been designed, but these are often expensive and cannot be used to retrofit existing systems. As a result, many pumps are generally operated without any filter and therefore experience early pump failure and extensive and costly down time.
There exists, therefore, a continuing need for further improvements in fluid filter devices having a self-cleaning filter element. There further exists the need to have a relatively simple and reliable manner of backwashing filter elements used with an existing pump.
To clean water down to hyperfiltration, nanofiltration and ultrafiltration sizes, cross flow filtration with a pressure gradient has been employed. While this has proven successful, it is also expensive due to the disposal and/or treatment of resulting concentrate of contaminants. New methods are needed to eliminate or drastically reduce the concentrate in order to provide low cost filtration of fluids, such as drinking water.

Method and system for filtering sediment-bearing fluids