A method for reducing the transition rate of a pulse width modulated signal representing an original signal having a predetermined frequency range of interest and producing an output signal, the method including the steps of: combining pulses from a predetermined number of consecutive frames into a combined pulse; and positioning the combined pulse within the predetermined number of consecutive frames, such that the output signal has substantially the same Fourier Transform phase as the pulse width modulated signal, for at least the predetermined frequency range of interest of the original signal.

A pulse width modulated (PWM) signal is generally a pulse sequence, wherein the width of each pulse is indicative of the input value of the signal. Pulse width modulation has many uses, for example in class D amplifiers, which operate in on/off modes and drive the load directly from the power supply, and are relatively efficient since they have small or minimal internal resistance.
However, PWM signals suffer from a number of problems. One problem relates to the transition rate of the signal. An ideal pulse has an infinite slope, i.e. zero rise time and fall time. A real pulse has a finite slope, meaning that the signal cannot switch from the logical low value to the logical high value, or vice versa, in zero time, and some time is required for switching. The energy losses of devices using PWM signals, such as class D amplifiers, increase as the transition rate of the signal increases. Energy losses occur on every transition, due to the energy required to switch the amplifier from OFF state to ON state, in addition to charge and discharge capacities, including parasitic capacities via serial resistance.
Therefore, it may be desirable to decrease the transition rate of the signal. However, in Sigma-Delta (SD) modulation or multi-level SD modulation, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is improved as the oversampling ratio (OSR) increases, thus increasing the transition rate.
Thus, in order to reduce the AC losses and increase efficiency, it would be desirable to reduce the transition rate, while maintaining SNR performance. One approach for achieving this goal is to design a class D amplifier as described in FIG. 1, by using noise shaping digital-analog-converter 100 for converting the digital signal having a particular rate into an oversampled SD signal having two or more levels. The SNR of the noise shaping modulator increases as the OSR between the input signal and the SD rate is increased. The oversampling SD signal is fed into pulse width modulator 104, which provides stimuli to a class D driver 108 and through a low pass filter 112 to the load. The transition rate of this implementation is very high, therefore the efficiency of the class D amplifier implemented this way is limited.
An alternative solution for reducing energy losses while maintaining SNR involves decimation of the SD signal, so that the transition rate is reduced. However, good decimation of a signal requires an increase in the resolution of the output signal beyond the decimation ratio, which can require a clock rate which is non-feasible for digital implementation. A simple first order decimation by an integer R refers to summing every R consecutive samples, and generating one sample having the combined length. The output range of such sample is R times the original range. However, there is one output pulse instead of every R pulses, so the same system clock can be used. Further, simple down sampling a sigma-delta signal by a factor of R, causes the output range to be extended by a factor of R. Accurate decimation requires the extension of the output range by more than R, and may thus be infeasible due to the resolution being limited by available system clocks.
Due to the folding effect, caused by noise in the high frequencies part being added to the signal in the low frequencies part, simple decimation suffers from degraded SNR performance in the relevant frequency band, such as frequencies under 20 KHz, which are the human audible frequencies.
A known technique for decimating a signal involves accurate decimation, which reduces the high frequencies using a good low pass filter, but imposes higher clock rate requirements. Yet another known problem associated with PWM signals is the harmonic distortion, which is usually more severe when lower transition rate and wider pulses are used. The harmonic distortion is the result of effective sampling jitter which is correlated with the input samples. For normal PWM where each pulse starts at the beginning of its time frame, i.e. is left-aligned in its time-frame, the wider a pulse is, the later is the effective sampling time of the pulse. Thus, for a pure sinusoidal signal, the positive peak is shifted to the right while the negative peak is not shifted at all.
Referring now to FIG. 2, showing an original pure sinusoidal graph 200, and a distorted signal 204, which is the result of correlated jitter. The distorted signal coincides with the original signal on the low points 208, 208′ and 208″, and reaches maximal distortion on the high points 212, 212′ and 212″.
The effective sampling time suffers from a variable delay which may be up to half the time frame or the widest pulse, since the effective sampling time occurs in the middle of each pulse. Therefore, the overall peak-to-peak jitter is equal to half of the widest pulse, then reducing the pulse width by increasing the transition rate, reduces the distortion as well. However, as detailed above, reducing the pulse width will increase the transition rate and thus increase energy losses.
If the starting point of each pulse is changed to a random timing within the frame rather than left-aligned, the harmonic distortion will indeed reduce, but at the price of its energy spreading over the audio band, and adding a fixed background noise which is particularly disturbing in low level inputs.
Another known technique used is named Barrel Shifting in which each pulse starts at the phase at which the previous one ended. If overflow occurs, then rotation is used. This technique produces fixed jitter but spreads the spurious harmonics over the whole sampling range, and thus adds fixed noise.
There is thus a need in the art for a method for modified PWM signal, so that jitter and transition rate are reduced so that energy losses are reduced while SNR is not harmed, without requiring resolution higher than the maximal available system clock.

Method and apparatus for pulse position modulation


A playyard system includes a playyard structure and a canopy. The playyard structure is partially covered by the canopy which channels heat outward to provide improve shading and ventilation. Sides of the playyard structure have mesh panels with removable covers to further control shading and ventilation. Accordingly, the playyard system has improved thermal characteristics. Furthermore, the canopy allows visibility and easy access to the interior of the playyard structure.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a playyard system, and more particularly, to a playyard system with improved shading and ventilation characteristics.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Playyards have been available for many years to provide a convenient and controlled play environment for children. Recently, advances have been made to enhance the transportability of playyards, thereby allowing the playyard to be used in outdoor environments. Examples of transportable playyards are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,811,437 to Dillner et al. and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/556,057 to Nielsen et al., now U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,345 the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
Dillner et al. discloses a foldable playyard which is readily collapsible to a storage position without disassembly of any parts. In the storage position, the playyard is easily transportable from one location to another. The playyard includes a frame assembly having a hub member and latch mechanisms to controllably erect and collapse the playyard.
Nielson et al. discloses a mobile portable playyard which includes a playyard structure having wheels and a carrying case having a towing strap. In the folded position, the playyard structure is disposed within the carrying case with the wheels extended through wheel openings of the carrying case for convenient transport of the playyard.
Because playyards are increasingly used in outdoor environments, exposure to sunlight is more common. Accordingly, the sunlight may cause the temperature of the playyard interior to increase. Furthermore, the interior of the playyard may receive ultraviolet (UV) and infrared radiation.
Some users place a cover, such as a towel or blanket, may be placed over the top of playyard in an attempt to block sunlight from the playyard environment. However, this approach is generally not recommended and may affect the temperature of the playyard interior. Because the heat within the playyard rises, and the cover forms a pocket to trap some of the heat, the temperature of the playyard interior increases.
In addition, the sides of the playyard may be formed of a solid material. This will block air from flowing, thereby decreasing ventilation. Consequently, heat cannot escape as easily, thereby causing increased temperature in the interior of the playyard. However, if the sides of the playyard are formed of a mesh material to improve ventilation, sunlight can enter the playyard interior. Accordingly, the playyard environment may receive increased UV and infrared radiation.


A mechanism for an elliptical exerciser comprises a crank rotatably connected to a frame so as to have a free end rotatable in a circular path. A restriction member is rotatably connected to the frame. A transmission member is connected to the restriction member, and a central portion thereof is rotatably connected to the crank, whereby the central portion of the transmission member moves along said circular path while the first end of the transmission member is constrained by the restriction member to move along a reciprocating arcuate path, such that a free end of the transmission member moves along an elliptical path. A reciprocating member has a first end rotatably connected to the transmission member, with a second end of the reciprocating member being operatively mounted to the frame, such that a reciprocating movement of the second end of the reciprocating member along the frame causes the first end of the reciprocating member to move along said elliptical path by the combined constraints of the crank, the restriction member and the transmission member. A foot pedal is connected to the reciprocating member, whereby the foot pedal moves along another elliptical path.

1. Field of the Application
The present application relates to elliptical exercisers and, more particularly, to foot pedal mechanisms thereof, and to a relation between upper- and lower-body workouts in elliptical exercisers.
2. Background Art
Elliptical exercisers, also known as ellipticals, elliptical trainers and elliptical exercise machines, combine the natural stride provided by a treadmill and the simplicity of a stair climber. On an elliptical exerciser, a user stands upright comfortably while holding onto the exerciser's handlebars and strides in either a forward or reverse motion. The handlebars are often moveable and are synchronized with the pedals upon which the user strides, to provide a full upper- and lower-body workout.
Elliptical exercisers are unique in their ability to put minimal stress on the joints while offering a weight-bearing workout, and this has ramifications in the inhibition of the onset of osteoporosis. The feet of the user never leave the pedals of the exerciser, thereby eliminating any impact in the workout. Therefore, there is a reduced risk of injury from overusing any given muscle group, thereby facilitating training for anyone with back, knee, hip and joint problems. The low-impact, intensive, cardiovascular workout provided by the elliptical exerciser is achieved through natural and smooth motion.
The mechanisms incorporated into elliptical exercisers move in a continuous smooth motion and do not suffer the effects of direction reversal (e.g., in a stair-climber, the feet must change direction virtually instantaneously). In addition, elliptical exerciser technology provides a more functional pattern of movement. Since elliptical exercisers simulate a natural walking pattern, they can easily be accompanied by upper-body exercise. Many other devices, by their mechanical structure (e.g., treadmills) or by their pattern (e.g., cycling), do not readily adapt to upper-body workouts.
The various manufacturers of elliptical exercisers have developed many iterations of this basic technology. As a result, the state of the art includes a plurality of machines that have a different "feel"—e.g., the articulation of the ankle, knee and hip can be different.


A shielded, molded electrical connector includes a conductive sleeve surrounding an insert body housing the connector elements. A metal coupling member is received on the sleeve and in electrical continuity with the sleeve. An outer sheath formed of moldable thermoplastic material with wire strands embedded throughout forms a conductive shield from the sleeve to a braided shield (in the case of a cord set) or to a conductive shield on an insert body housing complementary connector elements (in the case of a splitter).

The term "molded" connector is used to refer to an electrical connector having a connector body (called an "insert body") housing the conductive connector elements (sometimes called "connector terminals") which may be male or female and which are connected to the wires of an electrical cord, usually having two or more wires. The junction between the cord and the connector body is encased in a molded thermoplastic material, which, conventionally, is non-conductive, and acts as an insulating, protective cover of the junction between the wires on the cord and the terminals in the connector. Male and female connectors of this type are commonly fastened together mechanically by means of threaded male and female coupling nuts on the mare and female connectors respectively.
Molded connectors and their associated wires frequently carry signals having high data rates or high frequency components, but they are not shielded. This renders the systems and circuits employing the connectors and wires susceptible to radio frequency interference or "noise".
To reduce susceptibility of these systems to radio frequency interference, the cords or cables may be provided with a metal cover, typically a braided jacket or sleeve. However, this still leaves the connectors, junctions and other couplings at least partially unshielded, and therefore susceptible to RFI.
The present invention incorporates a metal sleeve or housing on the outside of the insert body, male or female, and surrounding the connector terminals. A metal coupling nut is received on one end of the metal sleeve and establishes electrical continuity with the metal sleeve.
The other end of the metal sleeve is adapted to establish electrical continuity with the conductive shield of the cord. A moldable thermoplastic material with strands off the metal wire embedded throughout, is placed to encase the junction between the outer insulating jacket of the cord and the braided shield on one end, and the adjacent metal sleeve of the connector body on the other. This provides the desired structural advantages of a molded connector, while at the same time, a completely shielded connector structure, with enhanced immunity to radio frequency interference.
In the case where at is desired to make a shielded splitter or other connecting device using shielded molded connectors and an intermediate terminal connecting structure such as a printed circuit board to connect the terminals of one connector (e.g., male) to the terminals of one or more other complementary (i.e., female) connectors, an insulating pre-mold material is first used to encase all exposed pins, wires and other metal parts of the current-carrying components. The conductive molding material with embedded conductive strands is then applied as an overmold, covering the premold, and establishing a complete sheath for the junction, and establishing electrical continuity with the metal rackets of all associated connectors.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to persons skilled in the art from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment accompanied by the attached drawing wherein identical reference numerals will refer to like parts in the various views.


Prior to a modification of an executable computer file (101), a modification analysis manager (111) stores (1101) content concerning a specified number of specified sized blocks (115) of a specified section of the executable file (101). After the modification of the executable file (101), the modification analysis manager (111) compares (1103), for each block (115), the content at the location of the block (115) after the modification of the executable file (101) with the content of the block (115) prior to the modification. The modification analysis manager (101) determines (1105) the status of the modification, responsive to a result of the comparison.

Computers are vulnerable to malicious computer code such as worms, viruses and Trojan horses. As used herein, "malicious computer code" is any code that enters a computer without an authorized user's knowledge and/or without an authorized user's consent. Malicious computer code can infect a computer by modifying an executable file, such that when the executable file is run, the malicious code executes on the computer. It is possible to analyze an executable file both before and after it is modified, in order to attempt to identify a malicious modification. However, there are many legitimate reasons why an executable file can be modified. It is often difficult to determine whether a modification is legitimate or malicious, as the differences between the two are often subtle. It is therefore desirable to be able to distinguish between a legitimate modification and a malicious modification to an executable file.
Legitimate modifications and malicious modifications do each tend to have certain characteristics. For example, most legitimate modifications insert new code somewhere in the code section of the executable file, thereby adding additional code and shifting the unchanged code to accommodate the modification. Malicious modifications rarely involve such substantive reworkings of the code section. Instead, a malicious modification will often simply append malicious code to the end of the file, and then replace a single instruction in the code section (or header) with an instruction to transfer execution to the appended malicious code. Additionally, legitimate modifications frequently substantively alter the data section of the executable file, whereas malicious modifications rarely do so. Finally, malicious modifications often include specific modifications to the executable file, such as modifying an entry point to transfer control to another location, appending content to the executable file (e.g., to the end of the data section) or altering the flags to extend execute privileges to the data section, so as to be able to execute the maliciously appended content. It would be desirable to utilize these legitimate and malicious modification characteristics to distinguish between a legitimate modification and a malicious modification to an executable file.

Distinguishing legitimate modifications from malicious modifications during executable computer file modification analysis


A floating-and-diving fishing plug with a lip on the front end for pulling the plug under the water when it is reeled quickly. The plug additionally having a propeller and a central drive shaft for oscillating front and rear leg elements without a positive connection between the shaft and the legs. The legs are journaled in the plug with the end portions of the front legs angled towards the front of the body and oscillating below the journal axis of the front leg so that the front legs are not swept back and pinned by the water flowing over the plug.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a floating-and-diving fishing plug with a propeller and oscillating leg elements providing sound and motion, both on the surface and under water.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Fishing plugs are made from bits of wood or plastic shaped like a minnow, frog, etc., and are all alike in that they are intended to look or act like something a fish might like to eat. A floating-and-diving plug floats when it is cast and has a lip that causes it to dive when it is retrieved, the depth at which it planes being determined by the angle and shape of the lip, the length of the angler's cast and the speed of the retrieve.
There are two ideal situations for floating-and-diving plugs. The first is when the angler is casting from a bank with a sloping shoreline where the plug can be reeled quickly as it passes over the drop-off and then slowly in the shallow area as it approaches the shore. The second spot is over a submerged weed bed in deep water. A floating-and-diving plug can be passed just over the weed tops when retrieved at the correct speed. It can be reeled very slowly when the weeds are nearest the surface and faster when they are more deeply submerged. If the angler sees a fishy-looking pocket, he can stop reeling and twitch the plug with short pulls as it slowly rises.
Floating-and-diving plugs are also useful for early morning and late-evening trolling, when the fish are feeding in water of moderate depth. Unlike straight-sinking plugs, floating-and-diving plugs are buoyant and will come to the surface when the angler slows down the boat or makes a short turn. This prevents the plug from getting snagged.
An ideal floating-and-diving plug would provide a satisfying solid ka-chunk when it is cast. It would disturb the surface when it is reeled slowly and it would make sounds and wiggle underwater as it is reeled quickly. The ka-chunk gives the angler confidence and the sound and motion attracts the fish.
A surface disturbing plug is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,791,064 to Van Iseghem, Jr. with a propeller and oscillating leg elements built to splash and wiggle on top of the water. In a preferred embodiment, a central drive shaft causes the legs to oscillate without requiring a positive connection between the shaft and the legs. The patented plug is not designed to dive as water flowing over the body would bend the front legs backward, possibly jamming the propeller. The Van Iseghem, Jr. plug, however, is a good candidate for modification as described herein because it provides good surface action.


A mold for encapsulating semiconductor device packages provides improved reliability by reducing air traps in the encapsulant. The mold has an upper mold die and a lower mold die which together form a cavity where the package is encapsulated by the molding compound. Air traps are reduced by equipping the lower mold die with projections formed along edges of the cavity extending in the direction of the molding compound flow. The mold allows a reduction of the formation air traps around or at the positions where the lead frame and chip are located so that the reliability of the resulting package is improved.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a molding apparatus. More particularly, it relates to a mold for encapsulating semiconductor device packages having improved reliability due to reduced formation of air traps in the encapsulant. The presence of air traps is reduced by equipping the mold of the present invention with projections inside the mold cavity, extending along the sides of the lower half of the cavity in the direction of flow of the molding compound.
2. Background of the Related Art
In fabricating lead-on-chip (LOC) packages, a lower surface of the inner leads of the lead frame is attached to an upper surface of the chip by way of a double-sided polyimide adhesive tape. Each one of the bonding pads on the chip is electrically connected to a respective corresponding one of the inner leads on the chip by way of electrical connection means such as bonding wires. Thereafter, an encapsulation process using encapsulants such as epoxy molding compounds is performed to protect the chip, inner leads and electrical interconnections from exterior environmental stresses and to form a package body.
A mold is used to encapsulate the semiconductor package assemblies and transfer molds are employed for carrying out the encapsulation using a molding compound. The term `mold` used throughout the present application refers to transfer molds. In particular, the present invention will be described in relation to a mold adapted for encapsulating LOC packages, but is not limited thereto.
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional transfer mold for encapsulation of semiconductor device packages; FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the part `A` in FIG. 1; and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line `3--3` in FIG. 2.
With reference to FIG. 1 through FIG. 3, a mold 100 comprises a mold body 70 having an upper mold die 50 and a lower mold die 60, and a press 40.
The press 40 has a support plate 20 which is mechanically coupled to a vertically movable transfer means (not shown); a cylinder 10 integral with an upper surface of the support plate 20, the cylinder containing an oil 35 and being provided with a hydraulic inlet port 12 and a hydraulic outlet port 14; and a press cylinder rod 30, an upper part of which is within the cylinder 10 and a lower part of which extends downwardly from the cylinder 10.
The lower mold die 60 is mounted onto and fixed to a base part (not shown) located at the lowermost part of the mold 100. The lower mold die has a chase 62 for receiving molding compound tablets; a plurality of runners 64 in communication with the chase 62; a plurality of gates 66, each gate integral with a corresponding one of the runners 64; and a plurality of cavities 68 in communication with a respective corresponding one of the gates 66. The package assembly has electrical interconnections between each component and is encapsulated within the cavity 68. The runners 64 and gates 66 are passages through which the molding compounds pass so that cavities 68 are filled with the molding compounds.
The upper mold die 50 is mechanically coupled to a vertically movable transfer means (not shown), for example, at its upper surface. The upper mold die 50 has a port 52 where molding compound tablets are loaded. The upper mold die 50 has a symmetric structure to that of the lower mold die 60, including a plurality of cavities 58, but excluding the gates 66 described above.
The operation of the mold 100 will be described hereinafter with reference to FIGS. 4A and 4B.
FIG. 4A is a perspective view depicting a lead frame within a transfer mold and FIG. 4B is an enlarged view of portion `B` of FIG. 4A; FIG. 5 is a perspective view depicting the package assemblies after the molding process is completed; FIG. 6 is an enlarged perspective view of the part `C` in FIG. 5; and FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line `7--7` in FIG. 6.
Now, the molding process and the operation of the mold 100 will be explained with reference to FIG. 4 through FIG. 7.
Lead frame strips 200 are placed into the cavities 68 in the lower mold die 60. The lead frame strips comprise a plurality of lead frame units, each lead frame unit having a chip 110, inner leads 142 attached to the chip 110, and electrical connection means such as bonding wires 160. As shown in FIGS. 4B and 7, each lead frame has a plurality of parallel inner leads 142 which are placed onto two opposite sides of an upper surface of the chip, and the chip is attached to the inner leads by way of adhesives, for example double-sided polyimide tape 150. Further, the chip is electrically connected at bonding pads 112 to inner leads 142 by way of electrical connections such as bonding wires 160. Outer leads 144 formed integrally with the inner leads 142 remain exposed to the outside of the package body after the molding process is completed and are electrically connected to external devices such as printed circuit boards.
The upper mold die 50 is lowered by a transfer means, which is mechanically coupled to the upper mold die 50, until the bottom of the upper mold die 50 contacts the upper surface of the lower mold die 60. Thereafter, molding compound tablets are introduced into the port 52 in the upper mold die 50.
The pressing means 40 is lowered until the bottom of the press cylinder rod 30 contacts the tablets or reaches a specified distance from the tablets. The lowering of the pressing means is accomplished by a transfer means coupled mechanically thereto.
Oil 35 is charged into the cylinder 10 through the hydraulic inlet port 12, pressing on the press cylinder rod 30, thereby pressing down the pressing means 40. The lowered press cylinder rod 30 presses the molding compound tablets which are in a molten state so that the fluid molding compound 80 flows into the port 52, runners 64, gates 66, and cavities 58, 68. The molding compound tablets can be melted by the action of preheated mold dies 50, 60 having a temperature from about 170.degree. C. to about 180.degree. C., or the action of a separate heater. The encapsulated lead frame units 90 are encapsulated so that the chip 110, inner leads 142 and electrical interconnections 160 are covered with the molding compound.
After the molding process is completed, the pressing means 40 and the upper mold die 50 are elevated by the transfer means, and flow of the fluid molding compound 80 is stopped. Then, the lead frame strip 200 is removed from the mold die.
FIG. 8 depicts a schematic model of a transfer mold used to study molding compound velocity and air traps within the mold; FIG. 9 depicts the result of simulations for determining the molding compound flow within the transfer mold; and FIG. 10 depicts the distribution of air traps in the upper and lower mold die of the cavity, which is obtained from the result in FIG. 9.
With reference to FIGS. 8 through 10, the model mold having a cavity employed for the simulations has a size of 1.0 mm.times.13.00 mm. All the components within the cavity are omitted for simplicity. The molding compound runs through a common runner R.sub.1, and flows into the cavity C.sub.1 via the gate G.sub.1 and then flows into the next cavity C.sub.11 via the gate G.sub.11. The cavity C.sub.1 is located closer to the port 52 (see FIG. 4A) than the cavity C.sub.11.
The shear velocities .beta..sub.1 and .beta..sub.11 in the lower mold die are greater than the shear velocities .alpha..sub.1 and .alpha..sub.11 in the upper mold die, since the flow channel in the upper mold die is narrower than that in the lower mold die, and the molding compound flowing therein undergoes a greater flow resistance. Further, since the molding compound is introduced into the lower mold of the cavity after being introduced into the upper mold of the cavity and the shear velocities .alpha..sub.1 and .alpha..sub.11, and .beta..sub.1 and .beta..sub.11 are measured at the same time, the shear velocities .beta..sub.1 and .beta..sub.11 in the lower mold cavity are inevitably higher than the shear velocities .alpha..sub.1 and .alpha..sub.11 in the upper mold cavity.
As a result, air traps T are formed where the molding compound does not flow uniformly, and where the molding compound does not fully fill the cavity, thereby causing air bubbles.
The partial filling of the molding compound and the creation of air bubbles may reduce package reliability. Specifically, water vapor is introduced at the partially filled portion and/or air bubble portion during the package reliability tests which are performed at elevated temperature and pressure. The water vapor causes separation between the inner leads and the chip and electrical shorts at the bonding wires.
The air traps T produced within the encapsulated package are localized at the positions having the greatest velocity deviation along the shear velocities shown in FIG. 9. Moreover, more air traps T are observed at the positions farthest from the gates G.sub.1 and G.sub.11 of the cavities C.sub.1 and C.sub.11. Note that the small and large circles in FIG. 10 simulate the small and large openings of a lead frame during the simulation of the flow of molding compound within the transfer mold.

Mold having projections for inhibiting the formation of air pockets


A flexible inner member for rotation within an angled outer tubular member of a rotary tissue cutting instrument to cut anatomical tissue includes a flexible region for conforming to the configuration of an angled region of the outer tubular member. The flexible region comprises a cut having convoluted path areas formed through a cylindrical wall of a tubular body of the inner member. The convoluted path areas are rotationally spaced on the tubular body in alternating sequence with connecting path segments of the cut. The cut follows a convoluted path in the convoluted path areas forming the wall of the tubular body into a pair of complementary, mating hook formations of opposed curvature. The connecting path segments extend rotationally along the tubular body between the convoluted path areas.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains generally to flexible inner members rotatably disposed within angled outer tubular members of rotary surgical tissue cutting instruments wherein the inner member has a flexible region to transmit torque while conforming to the angled configuration of the outer tubular member. More particularly, the present invention pertains to flexible inner members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments wherein the flexible region comprises a cut with convoluted path areas formed in a tubular body of the inner member.
2. Brief Discussion of the Related Art
Angled rotary tissue cutting instruments have become widely accepted for use in various surgical procedures to cut anatomical tissue at a surgical site within a patient's body. Angled rotary tissue cutting instruments typically comprise an elongate angled outer tubular member and an elongate flexible inner tubular member rotatably disposed within the angled outer tubular member. A cutting element at a distal end of the inner member is exposed from an opening at a distal end of the outer member to cut anatomical tissue at the surgical site when the inner member is rotated within the outer member. The inner member is ordinarily rotated within the outer member via a powered surgical handpiece coupled to proximal ends of the outer and inner members, with the handpiece being maintained externally of the patient's body. The outer tubular member has one or more angled, curved or bent regions along its length to provide an angled configuration that facilitates positioning of the cutting element at the surgical site when the instrument is introduced in the patient's body, and particularly when the instrument is introduced through a narrow or small size, natural or artificially created entry opening in the patient's body. The inner tubular member is provided with one or more flexible regions to reside within the one or more angled, curved or bent regions of the outer member for transmitting torque to rotate the cutting element while conforming to the angled configuration of the outer member. The angled configuration of the outer member is particularly beneficial in facilitating positioning of the cutting element at the surgical site where there is a non-straight path in the body from the entry opening to the surgical site. In such cases, angled rotary tissue cutting instruments are usually better suited to access the surgical site more easily and quickly, and with less trauma to the patient, than are rotary tissue cutting instruments in which the outer tubular member is longitudinally straight. In many surgical procedures performed using rotary tissue cutting instruments, the internal lumen of the inner tubular member is used to transmit suction to the surgical site to aspirate anatomical tissue and/or fluid through the inner member. In addition, an annular gap or clearance between the internal diameter of the outer member and the external diameter of the inner member is commonly used as an irrigation passage to supply irrigation fluid to the surgical site.
One design advantage in rotary tissue cutting instruments is to minimize the external diametric size of the outer member to allow introduction of the instrument in the patient's body through entry openings as small as possible in size and/or to facilitate advancement of the instrument to the surgical site with as little trauma as possible to the patient. Another design advantage in rotary tissue cutting instruments is to maximize the internal diameter of the inner tubular member so that aspiration of tissue and/or fluid through the inner member can be accomplished with greater efficiency and with less risk of clogging. Yet a further design advantage in rotary tissue cutting instruments is to maintain an appropriate annular clearance between the internal diameter of the outer tubular member and the external diameter of the inner member to avoid jamming of the instrument and/or to provide efficient flow of irrigation fluid between the outer and inner members. In angled rotary tissue cutting instruments, it would also be a design advantage to minimize the number of structural components or parts required for the flexible region of the inner member, thereby reducing manufacturing and material costs, as well as reducing the risk of operational problems arising from structural complexity and/or multiple structural components. The foregoing design advantages must necessarily be balanced against the need to maintain sufficient strength and rigidity in the flexible inner members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments when transmitting torque via the flexible regions, particularly considering that angled rotary tissue cutting instruments must oftentimes be designed to operate at high rotational speeds and to withstand the forces imposed when cutting very hard or tenacious anatomical tissue.
Various designs previously proposed for the flexible regions in the inner members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments have limited the extent to which the aforementioned design advantages can be optimized in angled rotary tissue cutting instruments. Some of the deficiencies associated with prior designs proposed for the flexible regions in the inner members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments include increased radial thickness of the annular wall of the inner tubular member along the flexible region resulting in a larger external diameter and/or smaller internal diameter for the inner member, structural complexity and/or the need for multiple assembled structural parts to form the flexible region, constriction of the internal diameter of the flexible region when transmitting torque within an angled region of the outer tubular member, longitudinal stretching of the flexible region, and insufficient strength and rigidity in the flexible region limiting the range of bend angles over which the flexible region is able to effectively transmit torque. Designs for the flexible regions of inner tubular members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments that result in the inner tubular member being of larger external diametric size normally require that the angled outer tubular member be of larger external diametric size in order to rotatably receive the inner member while maintaining the appropriate annular clearance between the outer and inner members. Designs for the flexible regions of inner tubular members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments that result in the inner tubular member having a smaller internal diameter or that result in constriction of the internal diameter will typically have a negative impact on the ability to aspirate tissue and/or fluid through the inner tubular member. Designs for the flexible regions of inner tubular members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments that involve structural complexity and/or multiple assembled structural parts generally result in the inner tubular member being of higher cost and at increased risk of operational problems. Operational problems are also more likely to occur in inner tubular members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments in which the design for the flexible region in the inner member makes the flexible region prone to longitudinal stretching.
In some flexible inner tubular members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments, the flexible regions are formed of a plurality of concentric spirals, typically an inner spiral, a middle spiral and an outer spiral attached to one another at their ends. Each spiral is formed by winding a flat strip of material, with alternating spirals being wound in opposite rotational directions about a central longitudinal axis of the inner member as represented by U.S. Pat. No. 4,646,738 to Trott, U.S. Pat. No. 5,286,253 to Fucci and U.S. Pat. No. 5,540,708 to Lim et al. It has also been proposed to provide shafts having flexible regions made up of concentric coils of wound wire of circular cross-section, rather than wound flat strips of material, as represented by U.S. Pat. No. 5,437,630 to Daniel et al and U.S. Pat. No. 5,529,580 to Kusunoki et al and by German Patent DE 3828478 A1. The radial dimension or thickness of the annular wall of a flexible region comprised of multiple concentric spirals or coils tends to be substantial since it includes the individual thickness of each spiral or coil. Flexible regions of this type tend to result in flexible inner tubular members of larger external diametric sizes requiring diametrically larger outer tubular members, and/or of smaller internal diameters leading to reduced aspiration capability. In addition, flexible inner tubular members having these types of flexible regions will ordinarily be associated with higher material costs due to the multiple structural components involved and with higher manufacturing costs associated with producing and assembling the different structural components. The risk of operational problems may be greater due to the presence of multiple structural components and increased structural complexity, and the securement or attachment sites for the multiple spirals or coils present the potential for structural failure.
Another design approach for the flexible regions in the flexible inner tubular members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments involves a single continuous spiral or helical cut formed in an inner tube, and one or more layers of spiral wrap disposed over the cut region of the inner tube as represented by U.S. Pat. No. 6,533,749 B1 to Mitusina et al and U.S. Pat. No. 6,656,195 B2 to Peters et al, and by United States Patent Application Publication No. US2005/0090849 A1 to Adams. The one or more layers of spiral wrap are each formed by winding a flat strip of material over the cut region in the inner tube and attaching the ends of the strip to the tube. The helical cut and the one or more layers of spiral wrap are arranged so that their rotational direction or turn about a central longitudinal axis of the inner member alternate in opposite directions. The Peters et al patent discloses the helical cut in the inner tube as having a dovetail pattern. The extent to which it is possible to minimize the radial dimension or thickness of the annular wall of a flexible region comprised of an inner tube and one or more layers of spiral wrap over a cut region of the tube is limited by the fact that the wall thickness of the inner tube and the thickness of each layer of spiral wrap contribute cumulatively to the radial dimension of the annular wall formed by the flexible region. Furthermore, the inner tube and each spiral wrap are separate structural components assembled during manufacture, giving rise to issues of increased cost and structural complexity.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,338,495 B2 to Adams is an example of a flexible region in a flexible inner tubular member of an angled rotary surgical cutting instrument formed of a helical cut in an inner tube, a layer of adhesive disposed over the cut region of the inner tube, and a heat shrunk sleeve disposed over the cut region of the inner tube and being bonded thereto by the adhesive. The helical cut is formed in the inner tube in a stepped pattern. Again, the radial thickness of the annular wall formed by the flexible region is made up of the individual thicknesses of the inner tube wall, the adhesive layer, and the wall of the sleeve. The flexible region requires multiple parts or materials in addition to the inner tube, and is still somewhat complicated from a manufacturing standpoint.
Flexible regions have also been provided in the inner tubular members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments by forming disconnected slots or openings in an inner tube as illustrated by U.S. Pat. No. 5,152,744, 5,322,505 and 5,510,070 to Krause et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,620,415 to Lucey et al, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,620,447 to Smith et al. Each slot is filled with a pliable material in a multi-step process carried out after the slots are formed. The preferred slot configuration described in the Krause et al, Lucey et al and Smith et al patents involves circumferentially discontinuous slots disposed in parallel spaced relation, the slots being arranged perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the inner tube.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,053,922 to Krause et al pertains to a flexible shaft for reaming the medullary space in bones. In contrast to the flexible inner members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments, the flexible shaft of Krause et al '922 is not shown to be rotatably disposed within a rigid outer tubular member, and is thusly not subject to the same design considerations as the inner members of rotary tissue cutting instruments and of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments in particular. In further distinction to the flexible inner tubular members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments, the flexible shaft of Krause et al '922 is said to be an elongated tubular member of substantial wall thickness. A flexible inner tubular member of substantial wall thickness would be undesirable in an angled rotary tissue cutting instrument because it would result in a reduction in the internal diameter of the inner member, which would reduce aspiration capability, and/or it would require an outer member of larger external diameter to accommodate the inner member, which would require larger size entry openings in the patient's body for introduction of the instrument. The tubular member of Krause et al '922 comprises a slot, said to be of substantial width, extending spirally around the tubular member in a pattern that forms pairs of complementary, mating interlocking teeth and recesses in the tubular member that Krause et al '922 relies on to transmit torque. The tooth and recess slot pattern repeats without interruption, such that each complementary, mating interlocking tooth and recess pair borders the next complementary, mating interlocking tooth and recess pair. The slot configuration thusly consists entirely of the configurations of the teeth and recesses of the particular slot pattern, resulting in an "unbound joint".
Despite the numerous different design approaches previously proposed for the flexible inner members of angled rotary tissue cutting instruments, it was not recognized until the present invention that a flexible region comprising a cut formed in a tubular body of the inner member with convoluted path areas between non-convoluted connecting path segments of the cut would provide numerous design advantages, including the advantages of design simplicity, eliminating the need for the flexible region to include an additional structure or layer of material over the cut region of the tubular body or within the cut itself, appropriate rigidity and torsional strength, resistance to stretching in the longitudinal axial direction of the inner member, preservation of the integrity of the internal diameter of the inner member, and the capability to transmit torque within angled outer tubular members having a broad range of bend angles.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Flexible inner member having a flexible region comprising a cut with convoluted path areas


There is provided an automatic analysis system that dispenses samples and reagents into a plurality of reaction vessels to cause reaction and to measure the liquid resulting from the reaction. The system implements a method of handling capped sample containers such as vacuum blood collection tubes along transfer routes. A sample container opening/closing mechanism is provided which removes the caps of the sample containers prior to sample dispensing and which closes the sample containers following sample dispensing using the same corresponding caps as before the dispensing. Also provided is an opening/closing mechanism that retains and manages the caps removed from the sample containers, as well as a transport unit capable of selecting one of the transport routes which fits the identified sample containers so as to close them with the fit caps. This invention thus provides a container opening/closing system that improves throughput of the sample collection process in conjunction with the automatic analysis system performing the sample container opening/closing process.

The automatic analysis system is a system that includes an automatic analysis unit for measuring the physical properties of samples given as the measuring object (e.g., biological samples such as blood serum and urine, or liquid mixtures of samples with reagents) for analysis purposes. Also included are processing units that perform diverse processes such as a container cap opening process, a dispensing process, a container cap closing process, a stirring process, and an analyzing process.
In connection with the container cap opening and closing processes of the above-mentioned automatic analysis system, there exist prior-art techniques of an opening/closing unit that opens and closes the caps of sample containers (called the cap opening process and the cap closing process hereunder), such as the opening/closing means described in Patent Literatures 1 through 4 cited below. With regard to a container transporting process of the automatic analysis system, there exist prior-art techniques for container transportation such as the transport means described in Patent Literature 5 cited below.
A cap opening unit described in Patent Literature 1 offers a cap opening method for opening a plurality of caps at the same time. An opening/closing unit described in Patent Literature 2 offers an opening/closing method whereby the opening/closing unit moves rotatively while holding container caps and performs the dispensing process and cap closing process in the same position as in the cap opening process. An opening/closing unit described in Patent Literature 3 offers a method whereby, after performing the container cap opening process, the opening/closing unit moves on while holding the container caps and carries out the dispensing process and cap closing process in the same position as in the cap opening process. An opening/closing unit described in Patent Literature 4 offers a method whereby, after performing the process of opening the cap of a container, the opening/closing unit holds the cap and allows the container to move rotatively to perform the dispensing process in a position different from the position where the cap opening process was performed, and carries out the cap closing process in the same position as in the cap opening process. The transfer means described in Patent Literature 5 offers a rack buffer mechanism furnished with a plurality of holding positions.


A printed circuit board assembly is provided. The assembly has a substantially rigid member, the substantially rigid member having a first protrusion, a support member with a first slot that accepts the protrusion in such a way to produce flex in at least one of the rigid member and the support member. The flex exerts compression on the protrusion that prevents it from disengaging the slot.

Many electronic devices use one or more printed circuit boards. These printed circuit boards can support and electrically connect various electronic components in a device, such as capacitors, resistors, processors, and other circuit boards. The components are ordinarily connected along one or more conductive paths, which may be found on the inner or outer layer of the printed circuit board. Printed circuit boards offer numerous advantages over other forms of electrical connections based on their ease of manufacturing, their elimination of human error in wiring, and their ease of assembling a completed circuit.
A printed circuit board is often part of a printed circuit board assembly, where it is connected, both mechanically and electrically, to one or more other printed circuit boards or other electronic components. In a conventional connection for a printed circuit board assembly, the boards are joined together at right angles. The first board traditionally has two or more through-holes located on its planar surface, and the second board traditionally has two or more protrusions along one of its edges. The protrusions are configured in alignment with the through-holes and have a shape complementary to the through-holes. The boards are connected by inserting the protrusions into the through-holes and applying solder to either side of the connections. The solder provides mechanical stability to the boards by maintaining them in a perpendicular orientation to each other, and it also facilitates an electrical connection between the boards. Although frequently used, this type of connection for a printed circuit board assembly has a number of disadvantages: it can be slow and tedious to complete the connections with solder, and the necessary precision can be difficult for the manufacturing process. In addition, a board cannot be easily replaced in an assembly, as it requires removing the solder on the current board and re-soldering a new board, which may require special training.
Variations of this type of connection may also be used in a printed circuit board assembly. For instance, one type of connection may use through-holes and protrusions but also one or more fasteners, such as screws, instead of or in addition to solder to maintain the connection of the boards. This type of connection may allow for easier replacement of a board in an assembly, but the connection can still be slow and tedious to install, and it may require special tools depending on the configuration and location of the boards in the assembly. A first printed circuit board may also be connected at a right angle to a second printed circuit board through the use of a female connector installed on the planar surface of the second board. A male connector may be installed on the first board, or the edge of the first board may be configured to insert into the female connector. In this type of connection, the female connector may supply a compressive force to hold the second board in place, or a fastener like a screw may be used to maintain the mechanical and electrical connection of the boards. Although this type of assembly may be easier to install and not require special tools, boards manufactured with this type of connector are more expensive because they require special parts, and the installation of the connector on the second board may be difficult and slow to manufacture.
Consequently, there is a need in the art for a printed circuit board assembly with a mechanical and electrical connection that is inexpensive, quick, and easy to install; allows for ready replacement of printed circuit boards; and does not require special tools or parts to complete the connection.

Connection for printed circuit board assemblies


A liquid ejecting head which discharges a liquid from a nozzle opening including a piezoelectric body layer and a piezoelectric element possessing an electrode which is arranged on the piezoelectric body layer, wherein the piezoelectric body layer consists of a complex oxide having a perovskite structure, and when 2θ is fixed within the range of 21.9° to 22.7° to scan in the direction of the χ-axis, the piezoelectric body layer has a peak in the range of 4.75° to 28.3° and when 2θ is fixed within the range of 31.1° to 32.6° to scan in the direction of the χ-axis, the piezoelectric body layer has a peak in the range of 24.8° to 40.75°.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a liquid ejecting head which possesses a piezoelectric body layer consisting of a piezoelectric material and a piezoelectric element having an electrode and which discharges droplets from a nozzle opening, a liquid ejecting apparatus and a piezoelectric element.
2. Related Art
As a piezoelectric element which is used in a liquid ejecting head, there is a piezoelectric element which is configured by sandwiching a piezoelectric material which is present with an electromechanical conversion function, for example, a piezoelectric body layer consisting of a crystallized dielectric material between two electrodes. Such a piezoelectric element is mounted on the liquid ejecting head, for example, as an actuator apparatus in a flexural vibration mode. Here, as a representative example of the liquid ejecting head, for example, there is an ink jet recording head in which a part of a pressure generating chamber communicates with a nozzle opening which discharges ink drops, it is configured by a trembler and by transforming the trembler by the piezoelectric element, pressure is applied to ink in the pressure generating chamber to discharge from the nozzle opening as an ink drop.
There is a demand for high piezoelectric characteristics in a piezoelectric material used as a piezoelectric body layer configuring such a piezoelectric element and as a representative example of the piezoelectric material, lead zirconate titanate (PZT) is included (refer to JP-A-2001-223404). However, from the point of view of an environmental problem, there is a demand for a piezoelectric material which is reduced the content of a non-lead or a lead. As a piezoelectric material which does not include lead, for example, there is a BiFeO3-based piezoelectric material including Bi and Fe (for example, refer to JP-A-2007-287745).
However, there is a problem that a crack is likely to occur on a piezoelectric body layer consisting of a complex oxide which is reduced the content of such a non-lead or a lead.
Here, such a problem is similarly present not only in an ink jet recording head, naturally, but also in other liquid ejecting heads which discharge droplets other than an ink, and further, is similarly present in an piezoelectric element to be used other than a liquid ejecting head.

Liquid ejecting head, liquid ejecting apparatus and piezoelectric element


A method of production of a magnetoresistance effect device is able to prevent or minimize a drop in the MR ratio and maintain the high performance of the magnetoresistance effect device even if forming an oxide layer as a surface-most layer constituting a protective layer by the oxidation process inevitably included in the process of production of microprocessing by dry etching performed in a vacuum. Two mask layers used for microprocessing are doubly piled up. This method of production of a magnetoresistivity effect device including a magnetic multilayer film including at least two magnetic layers includes a step of providing under a first mask material that is a nonorganic material a second mask material able to react with other atoms to form a conductive substance, and a device made according to the method.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of production of a magnetoresistance effect device, more particularly, relates to a method of production of a magnetoresistance effect device suitable for preventing a drop in a magnetoresistance ratio.
2. Description of the Related Art
Magnetic random access memories (MRAMs) are integrated circuit magnetic memories that is now paid attention as memories having integration densities on a par with dynamic random access memories (DRAMs), featuring high speed performance on a par with static random access memories (SRAMs), and enabling unlimited rewriting. The magnetic random access memories and magnetic heads are mainly comprised of layers of nonmagnetic or magnetic thin films of several nm (nanometer) thickness giving a tunneling magnetoresistive (TMR) effect. This configuration with the TMR effect is hereinafter referred to as "TMR devices".
Further, each of the plurality of magnetic films forming a TMR device is formed by sputtering. The insulation layer is formed utilizing an oxidation reaction of a metal.
The basic structure of a TMR device is shown in FIG. 5. A TMR device 101 is basically comprised, as explained above, of an insulation layer 102 sandwiched at its two sides by ferromagnetic layers 103 and 104. Arrows 103a and 104a show the directions of magnetization of the ferromagnetic layers 103 and 104, respectively. FIGS. 6A and 6B are used for explaining the state of resistance in the TMR device 101 when applying a voltage V to the TMR device 101 by a DC power source 105. The TMR device 101 has the feature of changing in resistance in accordance with the states of magnetization of the ferromagnetic layers 103 and 104 due to the DC voltage V applied from the DC power source 105. Further, as shown in FIG. 6A, when the directions of magnetization of the ferromagnetic layers 103 and 104 are the same, the resistance value of the TMR device 101 becomes minimum, while as shown in FIG. 6B, when the directions of magnetization of the ferromagnetic layers 103 and 104 are opposite, the resistance value of the TMR device becomes maximum. The minimum resistance of the TMR device is indicated by "Rmin", while the maximum resistance of the TMR device 101 is indicated by "Rmax". Here, in general, there are a "current-in-plane" (CIP) structure sending a sense current in parallel to the plane of the device film and a "current perpendicular to plane" (CPP) type sending a sense current in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the device film. FIG. 5 and FIGS. 6A and 6B show an example of a CPP type magnetoresistance effect device.
A "MR ratio (magnetoresistance ratio)" is defined for the above TMR device 101 as follows:MR ratio=(Rmax−Rmin)/Rmin  (1)
Next, the conventional method of production and problems of a TMR device having the above multilayer structure and resistance characteristics will be explained from the viewpoint of the deterioration of the MR ratio.
A magnetoresistance effect device like a TMR device built into an MRAM or magnetic head is microprocessed in the process of production. For example, when etching the magnetic layers forming the TMR device, an etching gas of a mixed gas of carbon monoxide and a nitrogen compound (for example, NH3: ammonia) (CO+NH3) or an alcohol-based etching gas including hydroxy groups (CH3OH) etc. is used. At this time, if using a resist mask made of an organic material for the etching, no selectivity can be obtained and microprocessing is not possible, so the practice has been to use tantalum (Ta), titanium (Ti), etc. giving selectivity with respect to the magnetic layers as a hard mask and etch by reactive ion etching (RIE) etc. In particular, Ta is originally used as a thin film material forming part of a TMR device and has the advantage that it can be deposited by the sputtering method in the same step as another magnetic material (see Japanese Patent No. 3131595, Japanese Patent Publication (A) No. 2002-38285, and Japanese Patent Publication (A) No. 2001-274144).
However, if using Ta, Ti, etc. as a hard mask for etching by the above-mentioned gases, the oxygen contained in the gases reacts with the surface of the hard mask to form oxide films at the surface-most layer of the hard mask. This state will be explained with reference to FIGS. 7A to 7C. FIGS. 7A to 7C show the conventional process of dry etching of the TMR device 101 provided with a Ta layer 111 as the layer forming the hard mask. In the TMR device 101, in particular reference numeral 112 shows a substrate and 113 a bottom electrode.
In FIGS. 7A to 7C, the resist 114 is used to etch the Ta layer 111 to form a hard mask of the Ta layer 111. In the state of FIG. 7B, as a result, a hard mask 111a made of the Ta layer 111 is formed. In FIG. 7B, the hard mask 111a of the Ta layer 111 is used for etching the layers forming the TMR device. At this time, the above-mentioned gases are used. In FIG. 7C, an example of the state where the TMR device 101 is etched using the hard mask 111a of the Ta layer 111 is shown. In this example, the free layer 115 and barrier layer 116 are etched and the hard mask 111a of the Ta layer 111 is left at a thickness of tens of Å on the free layer 115.
In the conventional dry etching method explained above, finally the hard mask 111a of the Ta layer 111 is left as a surface layer at the topmost layer of the TMR device 101. After this, the TMR device 101 finished being microprocessed in the vacuum dry etching apparatus is taken out of the dry etching apparatus, that is, is exposed to the air. Therefore, the TMR device 101 is placed in an environment in contact with oxygen contained in the air. Accordingly, by not removing all of the Ta layer used as the hard mask in the etching, but leaving some of it, this is given the role of a protective layer protecting the magnetic layers from oxidation etc. As a result, the surface-most layer of the remaining hard mask 111a of the Ta layer 111 inevitably reacts with the oxygen in the air in the step of transfer from the vacuum microprocessing to the air, even if not using an etching gas containing oxygen atoms as explained above, and forms an oxide film (or oxide layer) 117 at the surface-most layer where the hard mask contacts the oxygen.
However, if the oxide film 117 is formed at the surface-most layer of the hard mask 111a of the Ta layer 111, the oxide film 117 becomes an insulation layer. If the insulation layer is formed at the surface-most layer of the TMR device 101, a parasitic resistance ends up being formed, so the above-mentioned MR ratio falls. This drop in the MR ratio is more striking with a TMR device of the CPP type, that is, the type shown in FIGS. 7A to 7C, sending a sense current in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the device film, compared with the CIP type sending a sense current in a direction parallel to the plane of the device film. Therefore, it is necessary to remove the oxide film 117 at the surface-most layer of the hard layer 111a of the Ta layer 111 to prevent a drop in the MR ratio, but as explained above, it is necessary to protect the free layer 115 from oxygen in the air when transferring the TMR device finished being microprocessed by etching to the outside of the dry etching apparatus. This problem similarly occurs when using Ti as a hard mask instead of Ta.
The TMR device after microprocessing is exposed once to the air, then transferred to the next step of production for forming electrodes etc.
Further, as related art of the present invention, there are the thin film device and method of production of the same disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication (A) No. 2001-28442. The thin film device and method of production of this publication relate to a magnetic head and a method of production of a magnetic head and mainly has as its object formation of lead electrodes by highly selective dry etching without damaging (etching) the GMR.

Magnetoresistance effect device and method of production thereof


A system and its associated methodology for distributed positioning and collaborative behavioral determination among a group of objects, interactive tags associated with each of a plurality of objects provide to each object relative positional data and state information regarding the other nearby objects. Using this information, each object develops a spatial awareness of its environment, including the position and action of nearby objects so as to, when necessary, modify its behavior to more effectively achieve an objective.

Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention relate, in general, to determining the relative position of an object and, more particularly, to collaborative positioning and behavior determination using, among other things, active range determination resources.
Relevant Background
Sensor fusion is the combining of sensory data or data derived from sensory data from disparate sources such that the resulting information is, in some sense, better than would be possible when these sources were used individually. By comparison, data fusion is the process of integration of multiple data and knowledge representing the same object into a consistent, accurate, and useful representation. In each case, the overall goal is to provide more accurate, more complete, or more dependable/reliable result.
The data sources for a fusion process are not specified to originate from identical sensors. Indeed, one could argue that disparate data sources related to the same goal may provide a more accurate and more reliable product. While the fusion of multiple sensory data so as to provide "better" data is admirable, better data by itself is often inadequate. This is particularly true with respect to the behavioral use of spatial or positional data.
Understanding one's precise location has been a long quest throughout history. By possessing positional knowledge combined with an accurate map, one would think that many of the challenges from getting from point A to B would be resolved. Yet despite the ubiquitous nature of GPS systems, people continue to get lost, traffic jams continue to occur and collisions remain a threat. Indeed, one might argue that such systems have made the problems worse. Lacking in the prior art is a fusion of disparate positional determinative resources that provides a user with not only spatial but also relational information that can form the basis for a behavioral modification. Particularly lacking is a means to gain the ideal benefits of both absolute and relative positioning at the same time by appropriately combining multiple positioning techniques.
GPS is an example of absolute positioning and provides the benefit of supporting path planing, facilitating communication about positioning over large distances, and providing a persistent understanding of where things are in the world. Relative positioning has the benefit of being robust, more precise and does not require connection to an external source (i.e. satellite). Prior teachings have not provided a means to gain the benefits of both approaches simultaneously. These and other deficiencies of the prior art are addressed by one or more embodiments of the present invention.
Additional advantages and novel features of this invention shall be set forth in part in the description that follows, and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following specification or may be learned by the practice of the invention. The advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities, combinations, compositions, and methods particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Distributed positioning and collaborative behavior determination


A polarization of a light signal is modulated to provide polarization tracking in a wireless optical communication system. The light signal having the modulated polarization, such as a sinusoidally varying polarization, is transmitted from an optical transmitter having polarization-maintaining fiber. The light signal having the modulated polarization is received at an optical receiver. A portion of the light signal is directed to an analyzer that detects the modulated polarization and generates an amplitude-modulated light signal corresponding to the modulated polarization. The amplitude-modulated light signal is directed to a tracking detector, such as a quad cell detector, that generates an amplitude-modulated electronic signal corresponding to the amplitude-modulated light signal. The amplitude-modulated electronic signal can be subsequently used to control or perform tracking of the optical receiver. Such tracking can include adjustment of an orientation of the optical receiver with respect to the light signal received from the transmitter.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to communication systems, and in particular, relates to polarization tracking in wireless optical communication systems.
2. Background Information
With the increasing popularity of wide area networks, such as the Internet and/or World Wide Web, network growth and traffic have exploded in recent years. Network users continue to demand faster networks, and as network demands continue to increase, existing network infrastructures and technologies are reaching their limits.
An alternative to existing hardwire or fiber network solutions is the use of wireless optical telecommunications technology. Wireless optical telecommunications utilize beams of light, such as lasers, as optical communications signals, and therefore do not require the routing of cables or fibers between locations. Data or information is encoded into a beam of light, and then transmitted through free space from a transmitter to a receiver.
For point-to-point free space laser communications, the use of narrow optical beams provides several advantages, including data security, high customer density, and high directivity. High directivity makes the achievement of high data rates and high link availability easier, due to higher signal levels at a receiver. In order to take full advantage of this directivity, some form of tracking is often necessary to keep the antennas of a transmitter and of the receiver properly pointed at each other. For example, a transmitted optical beam with a 1-mrad divergence has a spot diameter at the receiver of about 1 meter at a 1 km range. Thus, movement of the transmitter or receiver by even a small fraction of the divergence (or field-of-view) could compromise the link unless active tracking is employed. Since high-speed communication channels utilize extremely sensitive detectors, such systems require equally sensitive tracking systems.
Charge coupled device (CCD) arrays or quadrant cell optical detectors (sometimes referred to as xe2x80x9cquad cellsxe2x80x9d) may be used as tracking detectors in a tracking system. In either case, an electrically controllable steering mirror, gimbal, or other steering device may be used to maximize an optical signal (e.g., light) directed at a high speed detector, based on information provided by the tracking detector. This is possible since optical paths for tracking and communication are pre-aligned, and the nature of a tracking signal for a perfectly aligned system is known. CCD tracking is very sensitive, offers potentially more immunity to solar glint because of the ability to ignore glint xe2x80x9cfeaturesxe2x80x9d on the CCD array, and is in general a well-proven tracking method. However, at certain wavelengths, a lower wavelength tracking beam is often necessary due to limitations of CCD detection systems.
In the case of quad cells, for an aligned optical system, an equal signal in all four quadrants will normally indicate that the steering mirror has optimally directed the optical communication signal onto the high-speed detectorxe2x80x94if there is any deviation from this, the steering mirror will direct the optical signal back to this optimum equilibrium.
The signal on the quad cells may be direct current (DC). DC tracking may use the average signal content of the communications channel from each quad cell. A problem with DC is that quad cell electronics cannot distinguish between an actual optical signal and a signal that may have come from solar background radiation or from imperfect transmit/receive isolation. Thus, the tracking system may misalign the transmitter and receiver in the presence of background light.
Collectively, these tracking methods often suffer from disadvantages including bulkiness, expense, complexity, and inaccuracy or imperfect performance. Accordingly, improvements are needed for tracking in wireless optical communication systems.
According to one aspect of the invention, a method is provided that includes modulating a polarization of a light signal, and transmitting the light signal having the modulated polarization. The light signal having the modulated polarization is received, and an amplitude-modulated light signal based on the modulated polarization is generated. The amplitude-modulated light signal is used to perform tracking of a receiver with respect to the received light signal.

Method and apparatus for polarization tracking in wireless optical communication systems


A system includes a generator and a circuit. The generator is coupled to provide power to a power grid. The circuit is coupled to the generator and is adapted to use a scheme to detect a shut down of the power grid and prevent the generator from providing power to the power grid in response to the detection of the shut down of the power grid. The circuit is also adapted to receive an indication to modify the scheme and modify the scheme based on the indication.

The invention generally relates to a generator control system to accommodate a decrease in a power grid voltage.
A fuel cell is an electrochemical device that converts chemical energy produced by a reaction directly into electrical energy. For example, one type of fuel cell includes a polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM), often called a proton exchange membrane, that permits only protons to pass between an anode and a cathode of the fuel cell. At the anode, diatomic hydrogen (a fuel) is reacted to produce hydrogen protons that pass through the PEM. The electrons produced by this reaction travel through circuitry that is external to the fuel cell to form an electrical current. At the cathode, oxygen is reduced and reacts with the hydrogen protons to form water. The anodic and cathodic reactions are described by the following equations:
H2xe2x86x922H++2exe2x88x92 at the anode of the cell, and
O2+4H++4exe2x88x92xe2x86x922H2O at the cathode of the cell.
A typical fuel cell has a terminal voltage near one volt DC. For purposes of producing much larger voltages, multiple fuel cells may be assembled together to form an arrangement called a fuel cell stack, an arrangement in which the fuel cells are electrically coupled together in series to form a larger DC voltage (a voltage near 100 volts DC, for example) and to provide more power.
The fuel cell stack may include flow plates (graphite composite or metal plates, as examples) that are stacked one on top of the other, and each plate may be associated with more than one fuel cell of the stack. The plates may include various surface flow channels and orifices to, as examples, route the reactants and products through the fuel cell stack. Several PEMs (each one being associated with a particular fuel cell) may be dispersed throughout the stack between the anodes and cathodes of the different fuel cells. Electrically conductive gas diffusion layers (GDLs) may be located on each side of each PEM to form the anode and cathodes of each fuel cell. In this manner, reactant gases from each side of the PEM may leave the flow channels and diffuse through the GDLs to reach the PEM.
A fuel cell system may include a fuel processor that converts a hydrocarbon (natural gas or propane, as examples) into a fuel flow for the fuel cell stack. For a given output power of the fuel cell stack, the fuel flow to the stack must satisfy the appropriate stoichiometric ratios governed by the equations listed above. Thus, a controller of the fuel cell system may determine the appropriate power that the stack needs to supply, and based on this determination, the controller estimates the fuel flow to satisfy the appropriate stoichiometric ratios to produce this power. In this manner, the controller regulates the fuel processor to produce this flow, and in response to the controller determining that a change in the output power is needed, the controller estimates a new rate of fuel flow and controls the fuel processor accordingly.
The fuel cell system may provide power to a load, such as a load that is formed from residential appliances and electrical devices that may be selectively turned on and off to vary the power that is demanded by the load. If the fuel cell system is producing more power than is being consumed by the load, then the fuel cell system may provide power to a power grid.
More than one fuel cell system may be connected to the power grid and thus, it is possible that many fuel cell systems may be furnishing power to the power grid. For safety reasons, the fuel cell systems may be designed to shut down or at least disconnect from the power grid when the main utility that supplies power to the power grid shuts down. This scheme permits servicing of the power grid when the main utility shuts down by ensuring that all sources of power to the grid are removed from the grid.
For purposes of detecting when the main utility shuts down, a particular fuel cell system may monitor the voltage on the grid. In this manner, when the grid voltage decreases below some predefined threshold voltage, the fuel cell system may shut down in response to detecting this decrease. It is possible that the utility may lower the grid voltage when the overall load on the grid approaches the capacity of the grid. Such a lowering of the grid voltage, however, may cause the fuel cell systems to shut down, as the voltage drop may inadvertently indicate a shut down of the main utility to these fuel cell systems.
Thus, there is a continuing need for an arrangement and/or technique to address one or more of the problems that are stated above.
In an embodiment of the invention, a technique includes coupling a generator to a power grid to provide power to the power grid. A scheme is used to detect a shut down of the power grid, and the generator is prevented from providing power to the power grid in response to the detection of the shut down of the power grid. An indication is received to modify the scheme, and the scheme is modified based on the indication.
Advantages and other features of the invention will become apparent from the following description, from the drawing and from the claims.

Generator control system to accommodate a decrease in a power grid voltage


A plate body includes: an inner bulge protruded on one side of the panel body and recessed on the other side and has a periphery spaced from attachment parts; connector bulges having a certain width protruded on the one side of the plate body and recessed on the other side and connect the periphery of the inner bulge to the attachment parts; and an outer bulge recessed on the one side of the plate body and protruded on the other side and continuous with the inner bulge, the connector bulges and the attachment parts. The inner bulge, the connector bulges and the outer bulge of the plate body are expansion-molded and include a skin layer formed on the surface and has high resin density and an expanded layer formed therein and has a plurality of voids and low resin density relative to the skin layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a resin panel in which a skin layer is formed on its surface and an expanded layer having a plurality of voids is formed therein. The invention also relates to an automobile door using the resin panel.
2. Description of Related Art
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. H11-179751 discloses a molded resin body including a skin layer formed on its surface and an expanded layer having a plurality of voids formed therein. According to the literature, the molded resin body is obtained using a mold assembly which consists of a moving mold containing a movable mold inside and a stationary mold. Specifically, a fiber-filled thermoplastic resin is filled by injection in a cavity of the mold assembly in a closed state and the movable mold is retracted in the moving mold to increase the cavity volume in the course of solidification of the fiber-filled thermoplastic resin, thereby allowing the fiber-filled thermoplastic resin to expand. The molded resin body is in the form of a panel and the entire region of the panel is made of the expanded layer for weight reduction. The H 11-179751 literature also describes that integral convex parts are formed on the surface of the molded resin body and a layer harder than the expanded layer is formed in parts of the molded resin body corresponding to the convex parts so that the parts of the molded resin body around the convex parts are improved in strength and rigidity.
In some cases, the molded resin body is in the form of a flat panel and provided with integral attachment parts for fixing the panel to a target object. In this case, if the panel is configured as disclosed in the H11-179751 literature, the hard layer provided in the parts of the panel body corresponding to the attachment parts is still an expanded layer, though it is harder than the expanded layer in the other parts of the panel body. Therefore, the parts of the panel body around the attachment parts as well as the panel body itself may not provide adequate strength and rigidity. Worse still, torsional rigidity and bending rigidity may be insufficient. In such a situation, the resin panel cannot be fixed to the target object with stability.


An automated method and a graphic processor for managing colors for a user interface to be displayed over at least one multimedia frame provided by an electronic device. The user interface comprises at least one graphical item having at least one predetermined color. The method comprises steps of: analyzing, by a graphic processor of the electronic device, the digital multimedia content comprising the at least one multimedia frame, extracting, from said digital multimedia content, data blocks defining an array of dominant colors in at least a part of the at least one multimedia frame, filtering the array of dominant colors of the part of at least one multimedia frame according to at least one predefined criterion managing color selection, obtaining a resulting array of dominant colors, generating, by a user interface generator coupled to the graphic processor, at least one graphical item by applying at least one dominant color from the resulting array of dominant colors to said at least one graphical item, said at least one dominant color being selected to be visible in the part of the at least one multimedia frame whereon the at least one graphical item is displayed.

A user-friendly graphical user interface provides attractive graphical effects having a pleasant esthetic appearance as well as a possibility of an easy and intuitive usage. A user interface generally displays items comprising text strings, graphical icons, graphical objects, gradients and images. A common way to display the list of items is to configure a first graphics layer of the graphical user interface as a static background and a second graphics layer to display the items over the background in a scrolling manner. The background may have a predetermined area, which is distinguished from the surrounding area by a special effect, such as a highlight, a gradient or a frame. The item which is displayed over the predetermined area is treated as an item of interest. Such a display does not alter the way in which the items are displayed on the second graphics layer. Another way to display the list of items is to configure a first graphics layer of the graphical user interface to display the items and a second graphics layer to display a symbol or a frame in a scrolling manner over the first layer. The item over which the symbol is displayed is treated as the item of interest. Such display does not alter the way in which the items are displayed on the first graphics layer.
With the development of technology in the field of electronic devices such as computers, mobile equipments, television sets associated to set top boxes, etc., various types of user interfaces have been developed to facilitate users' experiences in using the devices. Today, many electronic devices are implemented with a touch screen to provide a graphic user interface UI replacing keyboards. The UI thus includes various types of menus and images, as for example, windows, scroll bars, icons, control buttons, etc.
In video centric devices and video display environments, the amount of content is considerably increased and the type of content is diversified as compared to an analog broadcast environment of the related art. The User Interfaces (UIs) are mostly two-dimensionally configured in an On Screen Display (OSD) manner. However, there is a limitation in the two-dimensional configuration of the UIs. Since information is displayed in a planar fashion, a user feels inconvenience in recognition and use of a UI. For example, if a UI including much information or a UI including a main menu and a sub menu displayed in a planar fashion is provided, the menu may be superimposed on a background image or frames of video content displayed on a main screen of a television set for example, in such a way that all or part of the UI may be either visible or hidden or become unreadable. Therefore, there is a need for a method and a system able to manage and update colors used in the user interface in a smart way, which is automated and easier for the user.
Regarding video display environments, document U.S. Pat. No. 8,872,969 discloses a method of dynamic relative adjustment of a color parameter of at least a portion of a video frame and/or a color parameter of at least a portion of a subtitle associated therewith before being displayed. The method comprises steps of storing data related to a video frame separately from data related to a subtitle of the video frame in a memory of a data processing device, and comparing, through a processor communicatively coupled to the memory, a color parameter of the data related to the video frame to a color parameter of the data related to the subtitle. The method also includes dynamically adjusting a color parameter of at least a portion of the data related to the subtitle and/or a color parameter of at least a portion of the data related to the video frame based on the comparison. Further, the method includes overlaying the data related to the subtitle on the data related to the video frame following the dynamic adjustment prior to rendering thereof on a display unit.

Method and graphic processor for managing colors of a user interface


A bicycle trainer includes a body having two spaced positioning portions for supporting the wheel axle of a bicycle wheel, a damper unit for giving a damping resistance to the bicycle wheel, and a holding fixture mounted at the two positioning portions of the body for securing the bicycle wheel in a non-coaxial manner relative to the axial direction of the wheel axle. Thus, the invention can conveniently, rapidly and steadily secure the bicycle wheel in position.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to bicycle training technology and more particularly, to a bicycle trainer, which provides a holding fixture for conveniently, rapidly and steadily securing a bicycle wheel
2. Description of the Related Art
Bicycle trainer is highly appreciated by bike enthusiasts for the advantage that it enables a bicycle rider to ride a bicycle while it remains stationary, helping the rider achieve the purpose of self-training in an easy way without requiring an expensive bike-style fitness equipment,
A conventional bicycle trainer, as illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,768,782 (hereinafter called as patent 782), mainly comprises two U-shaped support brackets 20, 22 that have the top ends thereof pivotally connected together and the bottom ends kept apart and supported on the ground. The rear wheel 14 of the bicycle is supported between arms of the U-shaped support brackets 20, 22. The two top ends of each of the U-shaped support brackets 20, 22 are respectively provided with a threaded wheel mounting bolt 42 that is disposed in alignment with the wheel axle 48 of the rear wheel 14. The inner end of each mounting bolt 42 is formed with an axle engaging cup 46 which acts to engage and support the protruding axle 48 of the rear wheel 14. The outer perimeter of the rear wheel 14 directly touches the load member 18 that provides resistance to the rear wheel 14. Thus, the U-shaped support brackets 20, 22 lift the rear wheel 14, and the rear wheel 14 engages a load member 18, such that the pedaling of the bicycle by the user causes the rear wheel 14 to rotate the load member 18 to provide resistance and thus exercise to the user.
However, when operating the aforesaid 782 patent or similar bicycle trainer to secure the bicycle wheel, the user needs to hold and slightly lift the bicycle with one hand, and rotate each of the left and right mounting bolts in the axial direction of the wheel axle with the other hand. This mounting procedure is very inconvenient. Further, the two mounting bolts must be fastened to the bicycle wheel tightly. The user can neither pre-position the bicycle wheel, nor accurately control the bicycle wheel clamping tightness. Clamping the bicycle wheel excessively tight can damage the bicycle wheel or the bicycle frame, or the bicycle wheel can fall out of the bicycle trainer if it is loosely clamped, causing troubles and increasing dangers.

Bicycle trainer with a bicycle wheel holding fixture


A system for handling wafers comprising: at least one unload station; at least one intermediate station designed to hold the wafers at an angle; a processing station; and a transfer device configured to move the wafers between the stations. The intermediate station may be configured to receive the wafers in a back-to-back arrangement. An apparatus for handling wafers comprising: on one side, a vacuum gripper configured to grip individual wafers; and, on the other side, a gravity gripper configured to support one or more wafers when positioned beneath the wafers and lifted. A method for handling wafers, comprising: unloading wafers; transferring the wafers to an intermediate station; transferring the wafers from the intermediate station to a processing station; treating the wafers; unloading the wafers from the processing station; and reloading the wafers in a carrier, wherein the wafers are unloaded, transferred and reloaded by a transfer device.

In manufacturing, the handling of thin, fragile materials (herein referred to as "wafers") can be very difficult due to the wastage, both of materials and of time, that can occur if the wafers are broken during the manufacturing process. Wafers may be of various materials, however, one particular example of a wafer is a silicon wafer such as that used in electronics, solar, and other applications.
Solar cell wafers are fragile, thin planar wafers that are typically made out of semiconductor materials such as silicon, GaAs, or the like. In order to increase efficiency and reduce material costs, solar cell wafers are being made thinner and thinner, causing many difficulties in the manufacturing process due to breakage and wastage of the solar cell wafers during handling.
One particular process in the manufacturing of solar cell wafers involves the wafers being loaded into and unloaded from a diffusion furnace for treatment. In this process, it is preferred that only one side of the solar cell wafer to be treated in the diffusion furnace. As such, the solar cell wafers are typically placed back to back ("BTB") such that only one side of each wafer is presented to the environment of the diffusion furnace.
Conventional systems for handling wafers as they are moved into and out of the diffusion furnace tend to be quite complex and bulky and do not use floor space efficiently, including complex systems to accurately position the wafers in a back to back format. For example, some conventional systems use a complex comb structure in a carrier to attempt to accurately position the BTB wafers. The handling of wafers in this way can reduce throughput due to the amount of time required in handling and can still result in relatively large amounts of breakage and wastage of materials due to misalignment of wafers and the like.
As such, there is need for an improved system, apparatus and method of handling wafers and, in particular, for handling solar cell wafers.