The present embodiment relates to a radiation detector having a structure enabling suppression of polarization in a thallium bromide crystalline body and suppression of corrosion of an electrode in the air. The radiation detector comprises a first electrode, a second electrode, and a thallium bromide crystalline body provided between the first and second electrodes. One of the first and the second electrodes includes an alloy layer and a low-resistance metal layer provide on the alloy layer. The alloy layer is comprised of an alloy of metallic thallium and another metal different from the metallic thallium. The low-resistance metal layer has a resistance value lower than a resistance value of the alloy layer and is electrically connected to a pad on a readout circuit while the radiation detector is mounted on the readout circuit.

A radiation detector is a device which detects radiation such as X-rays and gamma rays applicable to a positron emission tomography (PET) device, a single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) device, a gamma camera, a Compton camera, an imaging spectrometer and the like.
As the radiation detector, an example using a thallium halide crystal (for example, thallium bromide, thallium iodide, thallium chloride, and a mixed crystal thereof) is known. As an example, a detector having a parallel plate-shaped configuration in which a thallium bromide (TlBr) crystalline body is provided between a first electrode and a second electrode is known (refer to Patent Literatures 1 and 2). One of the first electrode and the second electrode is used as an anode electrode and the other is used as a cathode electrode. The radiation detector using the TlBr crystalline body is advantageous in that this may be manufactured easily at a low cost and has high sensitivity. Meanwhile, there also is a case where one or more electrodes are further provided between the first electrode and the second electrode in order to control an electric field or electrostatically shield the electric field.
Thallium electrodes comprised of only of thallium (Tl) as component metal are applied to the first electrode and the second electrode of the radiation detector disclosed in Patent Literatures 1 and 2. By using the thallium electrode, polarization of the TlBr crystalline body is suppressed, so that it was considered that long-term stable operation of the radiation detector was possible.


A method and apparatus are provided for constructing tissue from cells or other objects by application of temporally and spatially controlled electric fields. Electric field applicators expose a substrate (32) to the electric field controlled to affect the processing medium (28) to achieve a processing effect on the construction of tissue on the substrate (32). Electrical bias is selected to interact with dipole properties of the medium (28) to control the movement of suspended dielectrophoretic cells or other particles in the medium (28) or at the substrate (32). The motion of suspended particles may be affected to cause suspended particles of different properties to follow different paths in the processing medium (28), which may be used to cause the suspended particles to be sorted. The processing medium (28) and electrical bias may be selected to affect the structure, or orientation, of one or more layers on the substrate (32).

Developments in nanotechnology, the manipulation of matter on the scale of 1 nm to 100 nm, have yielded materials and devices with applicability in medicine, electronics, and energy production, to name a few. Conventionally, there have been two approaches to continued developments in nanotechnology: bottom-up and top-down. Bottom-up approaches arrange nano-components into complex assemblies and have been useful in molecular assembly, atomic force microscopy, and DNA engineering. Top-down approaches create smaller devices by utilizing the influences of larger devices. For example, atomic layer deposition ("ALD") is a process by which semiconductor elements are built at atomic-layer scales.
However, these conventional nanotechnology methods and devices are not readily adaptable to enhancing or suppressing spatio-temporal electric field distributions so as to facilitate desired intercellular interactions. With improved spatial resolution of the electric fields, manipulation of nano-objects may become more reliable and efficient for bio-printing, bio-sensor fabrication, and tissue fabrication.

System and method for tissue construction using an electric field applicator


A hypodermic syringe and method of filling the syringe with an injection fluid. The syringe includes a fluid chamber for retaining an injection fluid and a plunger assembly for expelling fluid from the chamber. The plunger assembly includes a plunger slidably disposed in the fluid chamber for creating positive pressures to cause ejection of a fluid from the chamber and an actuator coupled to the plunger for movement of the actuator between a first position with the actuator released for movement of the actuator through the fluid chamber relative to the plunger and a second position with the actuator in cooperative engagement with the plunger for driving the plunger to create the positive pressures.

The present invention relates in general to the field of hypodermic needles, and in particular, to a hypodermic needle assembly having a prefilled syringe.
Hypodermic syringes having prefilled barrels and prefilled cartridges for use with syringe systems provide an alternative to filling the hypodermic needle on site. Prefilled syringes minimize packaging by eliminating the need for a separate vial of medication. This is of particular importance in the emergency room or ambulance where a variety of equipment must be stored in a limited area. In addition, the step of transferring the medicine from the vial to the syringe is eliminated. Reducing the number of steps required for an injection is of particular importance in the emergency room, hospital, ambulance or other environment where the medicine must be injected as quickly as possible. The large-bore needles used to extract the fluid from the vial are also eliminated, reducing the risks of accidental needle pricks during the handling of the syringe. The risk of contamination of the medicine is also reduced.
With many prefilled syringes, the barrel includes a membrane which seals the liquid within the barrel. The membrane may be ruptured, releasing the fluid for injection, by using a needle assembly to pierce the membrane or by applying sufficient pressure to burst the membrane. Typically, the prefilled syringe is supplied with the plunger projecting from the rear of the barrel, requiring additional space for packaging, shipment and storage of the device. Additional packaging may be required to secure the plunger in the extended position and prevent premature emptying of the barrel. Moreover, care must be taken to prevent damaging the plunger prior to use. Some available syringes include an outer shell which is coupled to a piston head. The fluid is dispensed by sliding the outer shell relative to the barrel to depress the piston head. Although this type of prefilled syringe may be less susceptible to damage, the outer shell must be retained in an extended position until the syringe is used.
Prefilled cartridges provide protection against contamination of the medicine and minimize the space required for storage and shipment of the cartridges since the cannula and plunger elements are separate from the cartridge. However, the overall space occupied by the different components of the syringe assembly is not reduced. Further, the prefilled cartridge must be loaded into a syringe assembly prior to use, requiring an additional step. The risk of contamination may also be increased unless care is taken to protect the critical surfaces of the syringe assembly and/or cartridge from airborne contaminants.
The hypodermic needle is one of the most dangerous tools in modern medicine. Common microorganisms, including deadly viruses, are known to be communicable through infected hypodermic needles. In the urgent environment of ambulances or hospital emergency rooms, used and exposed hypodermic needles present a hazard to medical workers or patients. An accidental stab or scratch produced by such needles can introduce dangerous viruses or other contaminants directly into a person's blood stream. Therefore, there is a need for protecting medical personnel and patients from exposed hypodermic needles.
Many solutions have been proposed to solve the problem. Most involve very complex, spring-loaded mechanisms for automatic needle retraction after injection. These are unsuitable for disposable syringes because of cost considerations. In addition, their intricate construction increases the chances of malfunctioning.
Another group of solutions proposes a manual retraction systems. These tend to be very inconvenient and cumbersome to operate. The number of steps to be performed by the person administering an injection is drastically increased. In addition, manual retraction systems, as well as the automatic ones referred to above, increase the number of parts on the front of the syringe barrel. This limits the range of angles from which the needle can be introduced under the patient's skin. In fact, with all the fixtures and attachments required for safe needle retraction, the operator is restricted to a ninety degree angle of entry. Under this angle the needle penetrates deep under the patient's skin and is frequently hard to withdraw.
Of course, the advantage of a shallower angle of entry has been recognized in the art. Many old-fashioned syringes have a needle-mounting snout located off-center for this very reason. Nonetheless, for technical reasons having to do with the retraction mechanism, no state of the art solution incorporates the concept of shallow entry angle and protection of the hypodermic needle.

Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University


A method of forming a templated casting involves incorporating a liquid feedstock into the channels of a honeycomb substrate to form a feedstock-laden substrate, and directionally solidifying the liquid feedstock within the channels.

The present invention relates generally to the templated growth of porous or non-porous castings, and more specifically to the formation of porous or non-porous castings via directional solidification within a honeycomb substrate.
Porous substrates can be used in a wide variety of applications including catalysis, filtration, membranes, etc. And while numerous processing techniques such as extrusion and foaming have been developed to produce porous and other cellular materials, it remains difficult during processing to precisely control the size, shape, directionality, isotropy (or anisotropy), connectivity and tortuosity of the porosity and/or the cellular structure. An additional challenge in forming cellular materials relates to the ubiquitous use of pore forming agents and the difficulties associated with removing them from the final product.
Non-porous substrates comprising crystalline metals (e.g., Cu) and semiconductors (e.g., Si, GaAs, etc.) can be used in both semiconductor and non-semiconductor applications. For example, ingots of polycrystalline silicon can be prepared for photovoltaic applications via directional solidification in quartz crucibles as an alternative to Czochralski (CZ) growth. In addition to semiconductor materials, directional solidification can also be used to form metallic and ceramic substrates. As used herein, a substrate is a material upon which a process is conducted, or upon which a device or structure is constructed.
Directional solidification relates generally to a series of measures applied to control a liquid-to-solid phase transformation and the attendant formation of a solidified or cast body. Thus, the cast body or cast structure described herein is a solid shape. Directional solidification involves passing a liquid or molten feedstock through a temperature gradient in order to cause freezing (solidification) of the feedstock.
The liquid feedstock can comprise a single-component liquid such as molten silicon or a multi-component liquid such as molten alloys (e.g., silicon-germanium alloys). In turn, multi-component liquid feedstocks can comprise either a single phase (e.g., molten Si—Ge alloys or water-PVA solutions) or multiple phases. An example of a multi-phase liquid feedstock is a dispersion of gas bubbles, immiscible liquid and/or solid particles in one or more liquids. A dispersion can be an emulsion or a colloid.
Directional solidification can be used to form porous or non-porous materials, including metals, semiconductors, ceramics, polymers or composites thereof. Microstructured, cellular materials, for example, can be cast from a multi-component feedstock that comprises a dispersion (i.e., slurry) of particles in a liquid. The process involves solidifying the liquid feedstock, removing the solidified (previously liquid) phase, and optionally densifying the resulting structure. In the case of unidirectional freezing, a porous body can be formed having unidirectional channels (i.e., linear porosity) where the channels are formed from the volume previously occupied by the solidified phase. In turn, non-porous castings can be made from single component or multi-component liquid feedstocks such as, for example, molten silicon or molten metal alloys. Directional solidification can be used as a near net shape forming route.
In both single- and multi-component liquid feedstock systems, in order to control the microstructure and hence the resulting properties of the solidified material, it is important during solidification to maintain a spatially-uniform solidification front (solid-liquid interface). In addition, in multi-component systems it is important to maintain a laterally uniform distribution of particles and/or solute along the solid-liquid interface. These conditions are difficult to achieve in practice due to the presence of density gradient-driven convection in the liquid phase.
Convection in directional solidification results from inevitable thermal gradients within the system. Even in the example of vertically stable density stratification, the radial temperature gradients that are present in the liquid can produce convention currents. The convection currents can generate severe solute segregation as well as non-uniform (i.e., macroscopically-curved) solidification fronts. The solute segregation, in turn, can lead to concentration gradient-driven convection that may assist or oppose thermally driven convection. In the example of particulate-laden feedstocks, the convection currents can sweep the particles along the solid-liquid interface, which can lead to a highly non-uniform particle distribution. This problem will generally become more pronounced as the effective dimension of the liquid increases.
When producing porous castings via directional solidification, other issues that can be encountered, particularly with larger volume castings, are the loss of pore continuity or connectivity during freezing due to nucleation and growth of non-parallel grains and the inadequacy of green body strength in pre-densified samples.
In view of the foregoing, it would be advantageous to develop a method for preparing porous or non-porous castings via directional solidification that reduces thermal and/or solutal convection induced non-homogeneity along the solid-liquid interface, reduces the lack of green body strength in scaled-up samples, and reduces the loss of axial connectivity and the increase in tortuosity in porous castings due to the nucleation, growth and impingement of non-parallel grains.
According to one embodiment, a method of forming a templated casting comprises incorporating a liquid feedstock into the channels of a honeycomb substrate to form a feedstock-laden substrate, and directionally solidifying the liquid feedstock within the channels. The casting can comprise a porous or a non-porous structure.
A porous casting can be formed by solidifying a multi-component feedstock. According to one non-limiting example, the formation of a porous casting comprises incorporating a liquid dispersion into channels of a honeycomb substrate to form a dispersion-laden substrate, the dispersion comprising particles dispersed in a liquid, moving the dispersion-laden substrate into a cooled zone of a solidification apparatus in order to directionally solidify the liquid within the channels, and removing the solidified liquid from within the channels to form a structure that comprises a porous body of the particles within the channels. Optionally, the particles, which can comprise one or more of metallic, semiconducting, ceramic and polymeric particles, can be sintered or impregnated to densify the cast structure. A non-porous casting can be formed by solidifying a single-component or a multi-component feedstock by omitting the act of removing the solidified phase.
In a further embodiment, a templated casting includes a honeycomb substrate having a plurality of channels, and a directionally-ordered cast structure incorporated within the channels. The honeycomb substrate itself can comprise a metallic, semiconducting, ceramic or polymeric material, or mixtures or composites thereof. By way of example, a honeycomb substrate can be formed from compounds such as plaster of Paris (e.g., CaSO4.0.5H2O) or elements such as sulfur. Optionally, the honeycomb substrate can be removed to yield a plurality of directionally-ordered castings of metallic, semiconducting, ceramic or polymeric material, or mixtures or composites thereof.
Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the detailed description which follows, and in part will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from that description or recognized by practicing the invention as described herein, including the detailed description which follows, the claims, as well as the appended drawings.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description present embodiments of the invention, and are intended to provide an overview or framework for understanding the nature and character of the invention as it is claimed. The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated into and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate various embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles and operations of the invention.

Templated growth of porous or non-porous castings


In a method for performing a frequency analysis of an AC voltage signal, in particular in a power mains, an upper limit of the period length of a fundamental oscillation in the AC voltage signal is determined. A sequence of sampling values of the AC voltage signal is obtained over a duration longer than the upper limit of the period length, thereby ensuring that more than a period of the fundamental oscillation is sampled. Selected from the sequence of sampling values is a subset of sampling values, with the subset sampling substantially one period of the fundamental oscillation. At least a portion of the sampling values not included in the subset is altered, and a frequency is calculated based on the obtained sequence of sampling values, the subset of sampling values and the altered portion of the sampling values.

The present invention relates to a method for performing a frequency analysis of an AC voltage signal, and more particularly an AC voltage signal in a power grid. The present invention also relates to a device for performing the method.
Nothing in the following discussion of the state of the art is to be construed as an admission of prior art.
The AC voltage of power grids has typically a nominal frequency (main frequency). However, the actual frequency frequently deviates from this nominal frequency. For monitoring the AC voltage, devices are used that perform a frequency analysis. In general, these devices use a fast Fourier analysis (fast Fourier transform, FFT). However, in the context of this invention, other transformation methods can also be used, which transform variables in the time domain to variables in the frequency domain, such as the discrete Fourier transformation (DFT) or the Laplace transformation. For a fast Fourier analysis as well as for other transformation methods sampling values must be acquired. To this end, the mains frequency is digitized: a momentarily acting hold circuit (sample-and-hold) freezes the AC voltage signal in periodic intervals, with an analog-digital-converter arranged downstream of the hold circuit for digitizing the input signal. The digitized signal is then supplied to a digital signal processor (DSP) capable of computing the fast Fourier transform and/or scaling and filtering the signal, as well as performing other functions. Current approaches for performing an efficient fast Fourier transform acquire a sequence of sampling values exactly for the duration of a fundamental oscillation of the AC voltage signal. Because the frequency of the AC voltage signal varies, the total sampling duration must also be varied. This is typically preformed concurrently with a readjustment of the frequencies, which requires devices with complex oscillator circuits.
It would therefore be desirable and advantageous to provide a less complex and hence also less expensive device for performing a frequency analysis of an AC voltage signal, such as an AC voltage signal in a power mains, which obviates prior art shortcomings and is able to specifically operate efficiently with fluctuating or changing frequencies of the AC grid.

Method and device for performing a frequency analysis of an AC voltage signal, in particular on a power grid


A liquid ejecting device includes a driving waveform signal generating circuit that generates a driving waveform signal, a modulation circuit that performs pulse modulation on the driving waveform signal to generate a modulation signal, a digital power amplifier that amplifies power of the modulation signal to generate a power amplification modulation signal in the form of a pulse wave, a filter that smoothes the power amplification modulation signal in the pulse wave to generate the driving signal, a connection cable that connects the filter to the capacitive load and is provided such that at least one of the filter and the capacitive load is detachable, a connection line information acquiring unit that acquires connection line information associated with the connection cable, and a frequency changing unit that changes a frequency when the modulation circuit performs the pulse modulation on the driving waveform signal, on the basis of the connection line.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a driving technique using a driving signal in a capacitive load such as a piezoelectric element.
2. Related Art
A technique of ejecting a fluid in a pulse to perform cutting or excision of a target is known. For example, in the medical field, as a liquid ejecting device as a surgical tool for cutting or excising a living tissue, it is known that a fluid chamber, a volume of which is changed by driving a volume changing unit, and a nozzle communicating with the fluid chamber are provided, and the fluid is converted into a pulse flow and ejected from the nozzle in a pulse at high speed by supplying the fluid to the fluid chamber and driving the volume changing unit. As an example of the volume changing unit described above, there is an actuator configured by a capacitive load such as a piezoelectric element and operated by applying a driving signal.
In addition, there are a lot of actuators configured by a capacitive load such as a piezoelectric element and operated by applying a driving signal, such as an ejection head mounted on an ink jet printer. To generate the driving signal using an analog amplification circuit, high power is consumed since there is a large electric current flow in the analog amplification circuit. As a result, not only does the power efficiency decrease, but also a circuit board becomes large, the consumed power is changed to heat so a large heat radiation plate is necessary, and the size of the board increases more and more.
A technique is proposed in which the analog driving signal is not directly amplified, a driving waveform signal that is a driving signal reference is subjected to pulse modulation and is converted into a modulation signal, the obtained modulation signal is amplified and then allowed to pass through a low pass filter, to obtain the amplified driving signal (for example, see JP-A-2007-168172). The amplification of the modulation signal may be realized only by switching the ON/OFF switch. The low pass filter may be realized using an LC circuit formed by combining a coil and a capacitor, and thus in principle power is not consumed. For this reason, according to the proposed technique, it is possible to generate the driving signal without consuming high power, and it is possible to miniaturize the circuit board.
In the proposed technique, the low pass filter is configured by the LC circuit, and thus a gain becomes a peak at a resonance frequency of the LC circuit. Generally, the output peak is suppressed by a resistance value of an electrical load or by separately inserting a damping resistor. However, in this method, power is consumed by the resistor. It is proposed that a feedback from an output stage is performed to suppress an output peak (for example, see JP-A-2009-153272). Since a phase of the signal passing through the low pass filter is delayed to the maximal 180°, the output may oscillate when the feedback is performed with the signal of the output stage as it is. The feedback is performed after performing phase lead compensation on the signal of the output stage.
A technique (see JP-A-2005-329710) of performing feedback considering connection line resistance to prevent an operation of the driving circuit from being unstable by an influence of resistance of a connection line from the low pass filter to the capacitive load when the feedback of the signal from the output stage is performed, or a technique (see JP-A-2007-190708) of switching a carrier frequency at the time of pulse modulation according to a waveform of a driving signal to suppress power consumption is proposed.
In the related art of JP-A-2007-168172, JP-A2009-153272, JP-A-2005-329710, and JP-A-2007-190708 described above, there is a problem that a ripple (carrier ripple) of the carrier frequency removed by the low pass filter may be superimposed on the driving signal. For this reason, it is difficult to appropriately drive the actuator that is the capacitive load, particularly, it is very necessary to adjust a depth and a direction of excision in the medical field, and thus it is not allowed that a small ripple (carrier ripple) of the carrier frequency is superimposed on the driving signal.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


An exemplary voltage variance tester includes a first to a third testing circuits each comprising an adjustable power source and an electrical switch; a first to a third signal generators providing a first to a third signals respectively; a connector having a first to a third terminals connected to the first to the third testing circuits respectively for receiving the adjustable power sources, a fourth to a sixth terminals connected to the first to the third signal generators for receiving the first to the third signals, and a seventh terminal; and a control circuit connected to the seventh terminal of the connector for receiving a power on signal to turn on the first to third electrical switch, wherein, voltage variances of the motherboard are tested by adjusting the first to the third adjustable power sources.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to testers, and particularly to a voltage variance tester.
2. Description of Related Art
A typical microprocessor-cored computer system, such as a personal computer or a workstation computer, is turned on and off by a switch device that mechanically connects/disconnects a power supply of the computer system to/from an external voltage source, such as AC 110V. The power supply is connected to the external voltage source and transforms the external voltage into a predetermined DC level, such as +3.3V, ±5V and ±12V, and the computer system is turned on to perform various programs and functions.
As known by a person skilled with computers, power supplies are typically either ATX power supply or BTX power supply. A motherboard of a computer can be coupled to the BTX power supply via a 24-pin BTX power connector. The BTX power supply provides +3.3V, ±5V, ±12V, +5V_STBY (stand by), PS-ON (power supply on) signal and PWROK (power ok/power good) signal to a motherboard of the computer. However, each type of power supply has a unique voltage variance/range centered about its rated output; therefore operators need to test a voltage variance of the motherboard corresponding to the power supply output to make sure the motherboard is compatible with that type of power supply.
What is needed, therefore, is a voltage variance tester which can test voltage variance of a motherboard.

Hong Fu Jin Precision Industry (ShenZhen) Co., Ltd.


Example embodiments provide systems and methods for managing intelligent content queuing from a secondary device for content delivery to a primary device. A content queuing system on the secondary device generates and displays a playlist interface on the secondary device. A selection of a content item to be added to a playlist is received. The content queuing system determines that addition of the content item causes a live content item to overlap with an on-demand content item on the playlist. As a result, the content queuing system creates at least two segments for the on-demand content item. The live content item is positioned between the first and a second segment on the playlist. The first segment is scheduled to end at a start time of the live content item and the second segment is scheduled to begin at an ending time of the live content item.

There is a universe of content available through a television operator's platform including live television and on-demand content (e.g., content stored on a personal video recorder (PVR), content sourced from third parties, Internet streamed videos (e.g., YouTube), and so on) As a result it has become increasingly overwhelming and time consuming to search and discover suitable content. The process of sequential and cyclical content selection and consumption is cumbersome. This select-watch-select-watch, ad infinitum, process takes away from a user's "consumption-momentum" and makes it burdensome for users to quickly navigate, select, and consume multiple content items in an easy manner.
Further still, a user may want to watch a combination of on-demand and live content. However, construction of a playlist to accommodate a mix of on-demand and live content is a complex task. A television remote or television interface does not provide a convenient and user-friendly interface for complex content selection and ordering.

Intelligent content queuing from a secondary device


A tubular anchor including a tubular member (1) having, at its one end, a crown-shaped drilling head (2) and, at its opposite end, a load application element a substantially cylindrical hollow element (7) filled with a mortar mass (4), located inside the tubular member (1), and having, at its end facing in the direction opposite to the setting direction, an opening (11) enabling flow of the mortar mass therethrough, and at least one longitudinal channel (12) communicating the opening (11) with an outlet opening (5) provided in the region of the drilling head (2).

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fastening element such as, e.g., a roof bolt, used primarily in mine and/or tunnel constructions and including a tubular member having, at one of its end facing in a setting direction, a drilling head and at its opposite end facing in a direction opposite to the setting direction, load application means, and having, in a region of the drilling head, at least one outlet opening connecting the longitudinal bore of the tubular member with an outer surface of the body.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Fastening elements of the type described above are generally known. They function primarily for stabilizing walls of hollow spaces such tunnels, galleries and the like. They are used primarily for securing to each other following each other, in a direction transverse to the wall, the wall-forming strata. In many cases, the mechanical characteristics of the layers, which lie in immediate vicinity of the wall surface, in particular, their supporting resistance, changes as a result of formation of a hollow space. Therefore, these layers need be secured to further located, undamaged or unaffected layers or strata.
A fastening element or a roof bolt of the above-described type is disclosed, e.g., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,055,051. The U.S. Patent discloses a roof bolt that is formed of a tubular element provided, at one of its end, with a drilling head and, at its other opposite end, with load application means. The interior of the disclosed roof bolt is partially filled with mortar mass. An exit channel extends through the drilling head. The setting process of the disclosed roof bolt is effected in two steps. In the first step, the roof bolt forms, with the use of an available drilling tool, a bore in the constructional component, in particular, in the ground. The drilled-of and comminuted stone, which is produced upon drilling with the drilling head of the roof bolt, is removed through outlet openings provided in the drilling head and the space between the bore wall and the outer surface of the fastening element. In a second step, a piston, which is provided at an end of the roof bolt facing in the direction opposite to the setting direction, is advanced in the setting direction, pressing out the mortar mass, which fills the interior of the roof bolt, through the openings provided in the drilling head.
One of the drawbacks of the roof bolt disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,055,051 consists in that the setting process has two steps and, therefore, requires use of a special setting tool. The two-step setting process also substantially increases the setting cycle duration.
Moreover, during the drilling step, the amount of the removed and committed material, stone and the like, corresponds to the entire cross-section of the insertable tubular anchor, which adversely affects the output and increases the operational time of the drilling step.
An object of the present invention is to provide a tubular anchor that can be set in a single step with the use of a conventional drilling tool.
This and other objects of the present invention, which will become apparent hereinafter, are achieved by providing in the tubular member substantially cylindrical hollow means filled with a mortar mass, with the cylindrical hollow means having, at its end facing in the direction opposite to the setting direction, an opening enabling flow of the mortar mass therethrough and having an inner diameter corresponding at least to an inner diameter of the drilling head which is formed as a crown bit, and by providing at least one longitudinal channel communicating the flow-enabling opening with the outlet opening provided in the region of the drilling head.
By forming the drilling head as a crown bit, the inner diameter of which at most corresponds to the inner diameter of the mortar mass receiving means, which is formed as a hollow cylinder, the drill core, which is formed during the drilling process can be received in the mortar mass receiving means. The drill core, when extending into the interior of the mortar mass receiving means, applies a pressure to mortar mass. This pressure is used for opening the mortar mass flow-enabling opening formed in the mortar mass receiving means. When the pressure applied to the mortar mass becomes sufficiently high, the flow-enabling opening opens, and the mortar mass can flow into the channel leading to the outlet opening in the region of the drilling head. Due to the rotational movement of the tubular anchor and, in particular of the drilling head, the mortar mass intermixes with the drillings in the region of the outlet opening and is squeezed into a space between the wall of the bore formed in the construction component and the outer circumferential surface of the tubular anchor. Further, separate mortar mass-receiving means permits to store the tubular members separately from the mortar mass which has limited storing properties.
Because the mortar mass is squeezed out by the drill core, the tubular anchor according to the present invention can be set with a conventional drilling tool and does not require the use of any auxiliary means or operational steps in order to be completely set.
Advantageously, the cylindrical hollow means includes two pistons for closing its opposite ends respectively, and a receiving space provided adjacent to the piston, which closes an end of the cylindrical hollow means facing in the direction opposite to the setting direction, for receiving this piston. The mortar mass flow-enabling opening is formed in a wall portion of the cylindrical hollow means defining the piston-receiving space and is spaced from a free end of the piston-receiving space by a distance which corresponds at least to a length of the piston measured in a longitudinal direction of the tubular member. The mortar mass, which is located between the two displaceable pistons, is displaced by the drill core in the direction opposite to the setting direction. With the displaceable mortar mass, the piston, which is located at the end of the mortar mass-receiving means remote from the drilling head, is also displaced into the piston-receiving space, which is formed in the mortar mass-receiving means, until it completely frees the flow-enabling opening. The use of this sealing piston insures that, with a sufficiently high pressure acting on the piston, the flow-enabling opening can be open under any conditions. It is to be also noted that this embodiment of the tubular anchor can be economically produced as a need in the use and, thereby, in manufacture and assembly of a complicated mechanism for freeing the opening is eliminated.
Advantageously, the outer diameter of the drilling head is larger than the largest diameter of the tubular member. This insures free-cutting of an annular slot in which the mortar mass, which is intermixed with drillings, is received.
Preferably, the outer diameter of the mortar mass-receiving means is smaller than the inner diameter of the tubular member, which insures an easy insertion of the receiving means in the tubular member.
Advantageously, the channel leading to the outlet opening, which is located in the region of the drilling head, is formed by a slot extending between the inner wall of the tubular member and the outer surface of the mortar mass-receiving means. During the manufacturer of the tubular member by, e.g., rolling a metal sheet, the slot can be formed in the inner wall of the tubular member by a separate operational step. The process of forming the tubular member is very cost-effective.
Advantageously, the channel is formed as a helically extending slot so that conventional rolling process for producing the tubular member can be used.
Advantageously, at least one hose-like bag is provided in the mortar mass-receiving means for storing the mortar mass therein to facilitate handling of the mortar mass and of the inventive tubular anchor.
The novel features of the present invention, which are considered as characteristic for the invention, are set forth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction its mode of operation, together with additional advantages and objects thereof, with be best understood from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, when read with reference to the accompanying drawings.


A boost system for dual-port SRAM includes a comparator and a boost circuit. The comparator is configured to compare a first row address of a first port and a second row address of a second port, and output a first enable signal. The boost circuit is configured to boost a voltage difference between a first voltage source and a second voltage source according to the first enable signal.

A dual-port SRAM (Static Random Access Memory) includes several cells. Each cell has two independent ports and allows for simultaneous read/write operation. For example, the two ports may simultaneously operate at a read mode or one port operates at a read mode while the other port simultaneously operates at a write mode.
Like reference symbols in the various drawings indicate like elements.

TAIWAN SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING COMPANY LTD.


An imaging optical system for microlithography is used to illuminate an object field. The illumination optical system has a first transmission optical system for guiding illumination light proceeding from a light source. An illumination presetting facet mirror with a plurality of illumination presetting facets is arranged downstream of the first transmission optical system. The illumination presetting facet mirror produces a preset illumination of the object field via an edge shape, which can be illuminated, of the illumination presetting facet mirror and individual tilting angles of the illumination presetting facets. An arrangement of the first transmission optical system and the illumination presetting facet mirror is such that telecentric illumination of the object field results. An optical system according to a further aspect has, between the illumination presetting facet mirror and the object field, an entry pupil plane of a projection optical system, which, together with the illumination optical system, belongs to an optical system for microlithography. In this aspect, the first transmission optical system and the illumination presetting facet mirror are arranged to illuminate the object field adapted to the entry pupil of the projection optical system. In further aspects within an optical system with a projection optical system and an illumination optical system, a large object-image offset or a large intermediate focus-image offset is present in relation to an installation length of the projection optical system. Illumination optical systems and optical systems which satisfy particular efficiency demands with regard to the use of the illumination light result.

An illumination optical system for microlithography is known from US 2006/0132747 A1. The concept of a specular reflector is described therein, in which the position of a facet mirror used to preset illumination is not (in contrast to some other known illumination optical systems) limited to an entry pupil plane a following projection optical system or a plane which is optically conjugated with the entry pupil plane of the following projection optical system.

Illumination optical system and optical systems for microlithography


An absorbent article includes a garment facing surface which includes a first zone of vapor permeability which defines a water vapor transmission rate of from about 100 to about 2500 g/sq.m/24 hr and a second zone of vapor permeability which defines a water vapor transmission rate of at least about 3000 g/sq.m/24 hr. The article may include a substantially liquid impermeable, vapor permeable backsheet, a liquid-permeable topsheet positioned in facing relation with the backsheet, an absorbent body located between the backsheet and topsheet, and a vapor permeable barrier layer located between the absorbent body and the backsheet. The barrier layer is smaller in size than the backsheet. In such a configuration, the first zone of vapor permeability comprises the portion of the backsheet which overlays the barrier layer and the second zone of vapor permeability comprises the portion of the backsheet which extends beyond the barrier layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an absorbent article for absorbing body fluids and exudates, such as urine. More particularly, the present invention relates to absorbent garments, such as disposable diapers and adult incontinence garments, which are configured to absorb body exudates while also helping to provide reduced skin hydration.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many known diaper configurations employ absorbent materials located between a liquid previous topsheet and a vapor and liquid impermeable backsheet. Such backsheets are well suited to prevent the migration of liquid waste from the absorbent materials to the outer garments of a wearer. Unfortunately, the use of liquid and vapor impermeable backsheets can result in a relatively high degree of humidity within the diaper when in use. This may result in relatively high skin hydration levels and may lead to the onset of diaper rash.
In order to reduce the humidity level within diapers, breathable polymer films have been employed as outer covers for absorbent garments, such as disposable diapers. The breathable films are typically constructed with micropores to provide desired levels of liquid impermeability and vapor permeability. Other disposable diaper designs have been arranged to provide some level of breathability at the leg cuff regions of the diaper. Still other disposable diaper designs have been arranged to provide humidity transfer regions in the form of breathable panels in otherwise vapor-impermeable backsheets or to employ perforated regions to help ventilate the garment.
Conventional absorbent articles, such as those described above, have not been completely satisfactory. For example, articles which employ a microporous outer cover can exhibit a cold and clammy feeling when the garment is wetted and moisture is evaporating through the microporous film. The articles which employ perforated films or breathable panels can exhibit excessive leakage of liquids from the article and can excessively soil the wearer's outer garments. In addition, when the absorbent material of the article becomes loaded with liquid, the wet absorbent can block the escape of moisture from the wearers skin. Such absorbent garment designs have not been able to sufficiently reduce the hydration of the wearer's skin. As a result, the wearers skin has remained susceptible to rashes, abrasion and irritation.

Absorbent article having a breathability gradient


An apparatus and method for providing a security keypad are provided. The apparatus for providing a security keypad includes a coordinate generation unit, a keypad output unit, and a key value processing unit. The coordinate generation unit computes a displacement by which a security keypad is to be shifted, and rearranges at least some of keys included in the security keypad by shifting the at least some keys so that the central axis of the security keypad is translated by the displacement. The keypad output unit displays the rearranged security keypad to a user. The key value processing unit processes key values in response to the user's input to the rearranged security keypad, and transfers the processed key values to an application for which the rearranged, security keypad is used.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to technology for providing a security keypad for a handheld terminal through a shift of a keypad and, more particularly, to an apparatus and method for providing a security keypad, which are capable of changing the coordinates of some of keys included in a keypad by shifting the central axis of the security keypad.
2. Description of the Related Art
With a rapid increase in the use of mobile devices, such as smart phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and tablet personal computers (PCs), related applications have been, able to be easily installed and used anywhere through the Internet and open markets. Along with this, the presence of malware or malicious hacking programs disguised as normal applications has also increased, and thus the number of cases where personal information, such as text messages, contact information and location information stored in mobile devices, is leaked is increasing. In particular, if leakage related to financial programs for securities and banking occurs, there is a danger of economic damage because the financial programs deal with important information required for financial transactions, such as personal information, certificates, and passwords. Accordingly, various security measures and methods are provided.
As one of the weak points in the security of financial programs, there is a possibility that a password may be obtained by coordinate hacking. In order to overcome this security problem attributable to coordinate hacking, a method of randomly rearranging the coordinates of all the keys of a keypad is used. In the case of a keypad including a large number of keys, it is difficult for a user to immediately fed a key to be pressed. In general applications currently provided by financial institutions for user convenience provide a QWERTY keypad in which the order of arrangement of keys is maintained in each line of the keypad, but blanks are randomly disposed between the coordinates of the keys. In this case, however, the number of blanks is constant in each line. Accordingly, there is a strong possibility that a password may be leaked through the hacking of several inputs because the keys of a keypad do not considerably deviate from their original locations even when the arrangement of the keys is changed. For this reason, there is a need for a new keypad security method capable of providing both user convenience and the security of personal information in terms of rearrangement of the coordinates of the keys of a keypad.
As a related art, Korean Patent Application Publication No. 2007-0010557 discloses a method for preventing keypad hacking.

Apparatus and method for providing security keypad through shift of keypad

ELECTRONICS AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS RESEARCH INSTITUTE


An assembly includes a first panel and a second panel. Each panel has a foldable frame member having a folded and an unfolded orientation, with a fabric material covering selected portions of the respective frame member to form the respective panel when the respective frame member is in the unfolded orientation. A connection system is provided to removably connect the first and second panels.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to collapsible structures, and in particular, to a system for assembling or otherwise building objects from separate collapsible panels using connectors.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Collapsible structures have recently become popular with both adults and children alike. Examples of such structures are shown and described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,038,812 (Norman), 5,467,794 (Zheng) and 5,560,385 (Zheng). These structures have a plurality of panels that may be twisted and folded to reduce the overall size of the structures to facilitate convenient storage and use. As such, these structures are being enjoyed by many people in many different applications.
Most of these collapsible structures are pre-assembled with the panels connected to adjacent panels by stitching or other non-detachable connections. Therefore, it is not possible to change the configuration of the structure, so the variety of use and play for these structures can be limited.
Thus, there still remains a need for collapsible structures that provide increased variety of play, entertainment value, and utility.


A data output control circuit in a semiconductor memory device includes a driving signal generating unit configured to decode first and second I/O mode signals and first and second address level signals in response to a bank active signal and generate driving signals, and a data output multiplexing unit configured to output data signals of global I/O lines as multiplexing signals in response to the driving signals.

Generally, the trend in electronic components is to process the data with low-power consumption, high performance and high-capacity. The fact is that the user's commands for the high-capacity data processing provoke an increment in power consumption of the electronic device.
To process a huge amount of data at once, the capacity of the input and output buffers, which corresponds to such a huge amount of data, is to be increased. Further, since the data output device of the semiconductor memory has data bus structures such as X8, X16, X32 and so on, the data output device is given a great deal of weight on the amount of power consumption.
Meanwhile, the memory manufacturer designs a scheme capable of supporting all of the data bus structures of X8, X16 and X32 and makes the memory device operate in one of input/output (I/O) modes of X8, X16 and X32 through an option treatment based on the user's demand.
In order to achieve this operation features, the memory device has a data output multiplexer and the data output multiplexer transfers data on global I/O lines (GIO) to a pipe line latch according to address Information and the I/O modes of X8, X16 and X32.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram Illustrating a conventional data output control circuit and FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram illustrating a decoder shown in the conventional data output control circuit of FIG. 1.
Referring to FIG. 1, the conventional data output control circuit includes a decoder 1, which produces driving signals LAY9C<0:3> in response to address level signals AT9 and AT12, and a data output multiplexer 2 which transfers data on global I/O lines to a pipe line latch circuit (not shown) in response to the driving signals LAY9C<0:3>.
Referring to FIG. 2, the decoder 1 decodes the address level signals AT9 and AT12 and produces the driving signals LAY9C<0:3> to drive the data output multiplexer 2. That is, the conventional data output control circuit enables one of the driving signals LAY9C<0:3> to a high level, regardless of a bank active operation.
Accordingly, the conventional data output control circuit has a problem in that current consumption is caused when the data on the global I/O lines are transmitted because the data output multiplexer in a nonselective bank is driven.


The present invention pertains to utilizing a salicide in establishing alignment marks in semiconductor fabrication. A metal layer is formed over exposed portions of a silicon substrate as well as oxide areas formed over bitlines buried within the substrate. The metal layer is treated to react with the exposed portions of the silicon substrate to form salicided areas. The metal layer does not, however, react with the oxide areas. As such, salicided areas are formed adjacent to the oxide areas to provide an enhanced optical contrast when light is shined there-upon. In this manner, the alignment marks can be more readily “seen”. The enhanced optical contrast thus allows the marks to continue to be seen as scaling occurs.

In the semiconductor industry, there is a continuing trend toward higher device densities. To achieve these higher densities there has been, and continues to be, efforts toward scaling down and packing more devices on semiconductor wafers. In order to accomplish higher device packing densities, the respective sizes of features making up these devices have to be reduced. This may include reducing the width and spacing of interconnecting lines and the surface geometry such as the corners and edges of various features.
The requirement of small features with close spacing between adjacent features requires high resolution photolithographic processes. In general, lithography refers to processes for pattern transfer between various media. With regard to semiconductor fabrication, lithography generally relates to the process of transferring patterns which correspond to desired circuit components onto one or more thin films which overlie a substrate.
In particular, a silicon slice (e.g., a wafer) is typically uniformly coated with one or more thin films and a radiation-sensitive material (e.g., a resist) is formed over these films. The coated substrate can be baked to evaporate solvents in the resist composition and to fix the resist coating upon the films and substrate. An imaging source (e.g., light, x-rays, an electron beam) can then be utilized to expose or illuminate selected areas of the surface of the resist material through an intervening master template (e.g., a mask or reticle) to transfer a pattern formed within the template onto the wafer. The resist material is generally a radiation-sensitized coating suitable for receiving a projected image of the subject pattern. Once the image from the intervening master template is projected onto the resist coating, it is indelibly formed therein.
Light projected onto the resist layer during the photolithographic process changes properties (e.g., solubility) of the layer of resist material such that different portions thereof (e.g., illuminated or un-illuminated areas, depending upon the type of resist utilized) can be manipulated in subsequent processing steps. For example, regions of a negative resist become insoluble when illuminated by an exposure source such that the application of a solvent to the resist during a subsequent development stage removes only non-illuminated regions of the resist. The pattern formed in the negative resist layer is, thus, the negative of the pattern defined by opaque regions of the template. By contrast, in a positive resist, illuminated regions of the resist become soluble and are removed via application of a solvent during development. Thus, the pattern formed in the positive resist is a positive image of opaque regions on the template.
By way of example, a cross-sectional side view of a portion of one or more layers of a wafer 100 whereon one or more semiconductor structures are produced is illustrated in the FIGS. 1–6. In FIG. 1, a resist layer 102 is deposited over a thin film 104, such as via spin-coating, for example. The thin film 104 may include, for example, silicon dioxide (SiO2) and overlies a substrate 106 that can comprise silicon, for example. In FIG. 2, the resist layer 102 is selectively exposed to radiation 108 (e.g., ultraviolet (UV) light) via one or more apertures 110 formed within an intervening mask or reticle 112 to generate one or more exposed regions 114 within the resist layer 102.
When the exposed regions 114 are made soluble, a positive image of the mask 112 is produced in the resist layer 102. These features 114 are revealed when a specific solvent or developer is subsequently applied across the wafer 100 as illustrated in FIG. 3. In this situation, the resist material is referred to as a "positive resist". Areas 116 of the film 104 underlying the removed regions 114 of the resist layer 102 may then be subjected to further processing (e.g., etching) to thereby transfer the desired pattern from the mask 112 to the film 104, as illustrated in FIG. 4 (wherein the remaining portions of the resist layer 102 have been stripped away or otherwise removed).
Conversely, when the exposed regions 114 are made insoluble by radiation, a negative image of the mask 112 is produced in the resist layer 102. These features 114 remain when the rest of the resist layer 102 is removed via application of a specific solvent or developer across the wafer 100, as is illustrated in FIG. 5. In this situation, the resist material is referred to as a "negative resist." Revealed areas 118 in the film 104 may then be subjected to further processing (e.g., etching) to thereby transfer into the film 104 desired features 120 from the mask 112, as illustrated in FIG. 6 (wherein the remaining portions of the resist layer 102 have once again been stripped away or otherwise removed).
It can be appreciated that projection lithography is a powerful and important tool in integrated circuit manufacturing, and that to further increase the packing density of integrated circuits, the accuracy with which an image can be positioned upon the surface of a semiconductor substrate and/or one or more thin films formed thereon is of considerable importance. Because integrated circuits are fabricated by patterning a plurality of layers in a particular sequence to generate features that require a particular spatial relationship with respect to one another, each layer must be properly aligned with respect to previously patterned layers. The more accurately layers can be aligned, the more likely it is that packing density can be effectively increased.
Historically, three primary methods have been utilized to optically transfer a pattern to a photoresist covered film. These methods include: contact printing, proximity printing and projection printing and are illustrated in simplified form in FIGS. 7–10, respectively. Each of the methods generally make use of: (1) an illumination source which provides optical energy (e.g., UV light) for transforming the photoresist via exposure, (2) an optical subsystem that focuses the circuit patterns onto the photoresist surface and allows for controlled exposure times, and (3) a movable stage that holds the wafer being exposed.
Contact printing 700, as illustrated in FIG. 7, was the earliest method utilized to produce patterns. Contact printing 700 involves a light source 702, an optical system 704, a mask 706 and a photoresist layer 708 overlying a thin film 710 which, in turn, overlies a semiconductor wafer 720. The mask 706, which contains the desired circuit patterns for transfer to the photoresist layer 708, is positioned (aligned) relative to any existing patterns that already exist on the wafer 720. The mask 706 is then clamped down to the photoresist layer 708, thereby making physical contact with the photoresist layer 708, and exposed with ultraviolet (UV) light from the light source 702. This method provides for an excellent image transfer and good resolution (e.g., good minimum linewidth spacing).
Contact printing can, however, suffer from the direct contact made between the mask 706 and the photoresist layer 708. For example, the repeated contact made between the mask 706 and the photoresist layer 708 in the process can result in defects being generated within the mask 706 which can in turn then be transferred to subsequently processed wafers. To prevent this problem, the masks 706 must be inspected and cleaned regularly which can be disadvantageous, at least, in terms of cost and processing time. In addition, small particles may be caught between the mask 706 and the photoresist layer 708 when affixing the two elements, thereby preventing the desired direct contact between the mask 706 and the photoresist layer 708. This particulate contamination can result in reduced resolution in the area local to the foreign particle. Consequently, contact printing is not common in modern semiconductor fabrication.
Proximity printing 800, as illustrated in FIG. 8, again made use of a light source 802, an optical system 804, a mask 806 and a photoresist layer 808 overlying a thin film 810 which overlies a semiconductor wafer 820. In proximity printing, the mask 806 is placed near, but not in contact with, the surface of the wafer 820. By introducing a gap 822 between the mask 806 and the wafer 820, the defect problem of contact printing is substantially avoided. Unfortunately, as the gap 822 increases, the resolution of the proximity printing system 800 rapidly deteriorates. For example, a 10 micrometer gap with a 400 nanometer exposure (the wavelength of the light source 802) results in a minimum resolution of about 3 micrometers. In addition, proximity printing 800 requires extremely flat masks 806 and wafers 820 in order to prevent gap variations spatially about the wafer 820. Since many integrated circuits today require features of 0.25 micrometers or less, proximity printing 800 is not considered adequate for many modern semiconductor fabrication processes.
The final optical pattern transfer technique of projection printing is a generic term that encompasses various pattern transfer techniques. These techniques, for example, include: (a) projection scanning systems, (b) reduction (e.g., 4× or 10×) step-and-repeat projection systems, and (c) reduction step-and-scan systems. In each system, lens elements or mirrors are utilized to focus the mask image on the wafer surface (containing the photoresist).
Projection scanning systems (often called scanning projection aligners), use a reflective spherical mirror (reflective optics) to project an image onto the wafer surface, as illustrated, for example, in FIG. 9. The system 900 includes a primary mirror 902 and a secondary mirror 904 which are arranged with the mask 906 and the wafer 908 to image the mask pattern onto the photoresist layer which overlies the film on the wafer 908 (the photoresist layer and the thin film are not shown in FIG. 9 for simplicity). A narrow arc of radiation is imaged from the mask 906 to the wafer 908 through a slit (not shown) with light that travels an optical path that reflects the light multiple times. The mask 906 and the wafer 908 are scanned through the arc of radiation by means of a continuous scanning mechanism (not shown). The scanning technique minimizes mirror distortions and aberrations by keeping the imaging illumination in the "sweet spot" of the imaging system 902 and 904.
FIG. 10 illustrates an exemplary reduction step-and-repeat system 1000 (also called a reduction stepper) that utilizes refractive optics (as opposed to reflective optics as illustrated in FIG. 9) to project a mask image onto a photoresist layer which overlies the film on the wafer 1002. It will be appreciated that the photoresist layer and thin film are not shown in FIG. 10 for purposed of simplicity. The reduction stepper 1000 generally includes a mirror 1004, a light source 1006, a filter 1008, a condenser lens system 1010, a reticle 1012 and a reduction lens system 1014. The mirror 1004 behaves as a collecting optics system to direct as much of the light from the light source 1006 (e.g., a mercury-vapor lamp) to the wafer 1002. The filter 1008 is used to limit the light exposure wavelengths to specified frequencies and bandwidth. The condenser system 1010 focuses the radiation through the reticle 1012 and to the reduction lens system 1014 to thereby focus a "masked" radiation exposure onto a limited portion of the wafer 1002, namely onto a single semiconductor die 1016.
Since it is complex and expensive to produce a lens capable of projecting a mask pattern of an entire 200 millimeter or 300 millimeter wafer, the refractive system 1000, as illustrated in FIG. 10, projects an image 1020 only onto a portion of the wafer 1002 corresponding to an individual semiconductor die 1016. This image is then stepped and repeated across the wafer 1002 in order to transfer the pattern to the entire wafer (thus giving rise to the name "steppers"). Consequently, the size of the wafer is no longer a consideration for the system optics.
The reduction stepper system 1000 thus uses the reticle 1012 instead of a mask. Reticles are similar to masks, but differ in that a mask contains a pattern for transfer to the entire wafer in one exposure while a reticle contains a pattern image for a single or several semiconductor die that must be stepped and repeated across the wafer 1002 in order to expose the entire wafer substrate. The terms "mask" and "reticle" are increasingly used interchangeably and are so used hereinafter. Conventional reduction stepper systems such as the system 1000 utilize reticles that contain a pattern that is an enlargement of the desired image on the wafer 1002 to allow more detailed and accurate patterns to be formed therein. Consequently, the reticle pattern 1020 is reduced in size when projected onto the wafer 120 during exposure (thus giving rise to the name "reduction" stepper).
In addition to stepper systems, scanning step and repeat systems (often called "step and scan systems") have become popular, a simplified example of which 1100 is illustrated in FIG. 11. Step and scan systems differ from scanning systems, such as that depicted in FIG. 9 because instead of the entire wafer being scanned with a mask, each die on the wafer is scanned with a reticle and the system then steps across the wafer and scans each die across the wafer. In FIG. 11, for example, a reticle 1102 having a pattern 1104 formed thereon and a substrate subsystem 1106, including a reduction lens 1108, among other things, are positionally fixed with respect to one another, and the reticle/substrate subsystem 1106 are laterally scanned in the X-direction across a slit 1110 aligned with an illumination system 1112 by laterally moving the subsystem 1106. Consequently, in the step and scan system 1100, the entire reticle field is not printed at one time, but rather the portion of the reticle field underneath the slit 1110 is printed and the slit 1110 is scanned across the reticle field by the lateral movement of the reticle/substrate subsystem 1106. In this manner, the exposed portion of the reticle field is always within the same fixed portion of the image field in order to maintain the printing within the "sweet spot" of the imaging optics.
Although step and scan systems constitute an improvement in pattern transfer quality, the scanning process can contribute to pattern transfer errors in one or more directions (e.g., the X-direction)) if the subsystem 1106 positioning is not proper for each scan. For example, if the repeated scans of the subsystem 1106 past the slit 1110 are crooked or misaligned or the position of the subsystem 1106 is rotated slightly from its desired position in the "X-Y" plane, errors may be generated in the transferring of the reticle pattern 1104 to the wafer 1120, and more particularly to one or more die 1122 on the wafer 1120. Furthermore, instability in such scanning systems can lead to errors in pattern transfer.
Accordingly, pattern transfers in semiconductor fabrication generally incorporate some type of alignment mechanism to assist with layer to layer alignment during pattern transfer. One technique that facilitates overlay accuracy involves forming one or more alignment marks or patterns on the underlying substrate and each mask. When the alignment marks or patterns on the substrate and mask are optically aligned, for example, then the remainder of the circuit patterns are assumed to be aligned. Another technique utilizes one or more recesses or other features formed within a semiconductor substrate as alignment marks. For example, FIG. 12 illustrates an enlarged fragmentary cross section of a substrate such as a portion of a silicon wafer 1200 having one or more recesses 1202 formed therein which can serve as alignment marks. The recesses 1202 have respective depths 1204 which are functionally related to an alignment radiation wavelength (e.g., a depth of lambda/4). The predetermined depths 1204 provide a diffraction pattern or other destructive interference phenomena upon reflection of a beam of radiation (e.g., white light) off of the marks 1202 which allows the alignment marks 1202 to be more effectively "seen". In this manner, the alignment marks 1202 exhibit a better reflective contrast than the neighboring regions and are thus more visible.
FIG. 13 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a conventional alignment system 1300 utilizing alignment marks 1302, such as that depicted in FIG. 12. An alignment light source 1304 illuminates the grating or plurality of alignment marks 1302 with radiation 1306 and this radiation 1306 has its diffracted orders 1308 reflect off of the alignment marks 1302 and get captured by a lens 1310 and directed toward a mask 1312. The reflected radiation is used as a signal to detect the alignment between the mask 1312 and substrate 1314 containing the marks 1302. As will become apparent in the discussion that follows, however, conventional alignment mark structures suffer from some disadvantages which prevent alignment accuracy from being maximized. There is thus a need in the art for improved alignment structures, systems and techniques.

Alignment marks with salicided spacers between bitlines for alignment signal improvement


A method of auditory training for hearing impaired persons, wherein a trainee is prompted to arrange a set of melodies based on a musical feature shared by some of the melodies, a hearing aid system (100), and a computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable instructions adapted to carry out a method of auditory training.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of auditory training. The invention also relates a hearing aid system configured to carry out a method of auditory training. Furthermore the invention relates to a computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable instructions carrying out the method when executed in a personal communication device.
Generally a hearing aid system according to the invention is understood as meaning any system which provides an output signal that can be perceived as an acoustic signal by a user or contributes to providing such an output signal and which has means which are used to compensate an individual hearing loss of the user or contribute to compensating the hearing loss of the user or contribute to compensating the hearing loss. A binaural hearing aid system always consists of two hearing aids, one for each ear of the hearing aid user.
Furthermore, auxiliary devices whose main aim is not to compensate for a hearing loss, for example consumer electronic devices (smart phones, tablet computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), MP3 players, televisions, hi-fi systems etc.) may also be considered part of a hearing aid system, provided they have measures for compensating an individual hearing loss or measures for controlling the operation of a hearing aid.
Within the present context a hearing aid can be understood as a small, battery-powered, microelectronic device designed to be worn behind or in the human ear by a hearing-impaired user. Prior to use, the hearing aid is adjusted by a hearing aid fitter according to a prescription. The prescription is based on a hearing test, resulting in a so-called audiogram, of the performance of the hearing-impaired user's unaided hearing. The prescription is developed to reach a setting where the hearing aid will alleviate a hearing loss by amplifying sound at frequencies in those parts of the audible frequency range where the user suffers a hearing deficit. A hearing aid comprises one or more microphones, a battery, a microelectronic circuit comprising a signal processor configured to provide said amplification, and an acoustic output transducer. The signal processor is preferably a digital signal processor (DSP). The hearing aid is enclosed in a casing suitable for fitting behind or in a human ear.
Thus within the present context the term "hearing aid system device" may denote a hearing aid or an auxiliary device.
Auxiliary devices such as e.g. remote controls, smart phones and tablet computers adapted for use with hearing aids are known. They offer a convenient way of operating various user-accessible features of a hearing aid such as volume level and program selection.
Hearing aid systems can compensate for compromised audibility and provide frequency dependent amplification. However, it may be difficult for the hearing aid system to fully compensate all the difficulties that hearing impaired users face due to their limited frequency resolution, impaired temporal processing, maladaptive listening strategies and changes in cognitive function. These skills can however be enhanced with training.
Despite the documented benefit of training, several reports have shown that less than 10% of audiologists offer comprehensive auditory training to patients with hearing impairment, the reasons for the reluctance to offer training is described in the article: "WARNING: Do NOT Add On Aural Rehabilitation or Auditory Training to Your Fitting Procedures", by Sweetow and Henderson Sabes in Hearing Review June 2007, from the 2007 Clinical Research Summit.
Even with training from the audiologist, the training is often not sufficient, because the hearing impaired is unwilling to spend more than a few visits at the audiologist being trained. Thus the offer, from the audiologist, to train the hearing impaired is often refused by the hearing impaired because of the inconvenience of going to the audiologist. To benefit optimally from the hearing training, the training sessions should be followed regularly. Several computer programs working as stand alone, or in a network using e.g. the internet, have been proposed, hereby offering training for the hearing impaired at home.
2. The Prior Art
EP 1912476 B1 discloses a method of training auditory skills of a hearing aid user by means of the following steps performed by a hearing aid: presenting a sound sample, recording and analyzing the response of the hearing aid user to the sound sample, and repeating the training step multiple times, including the steps of presenting different sound samples as well as recording and analyzing within the framework of a training session, and by means of the step of providing feedback, related to the progress in the training success, to the hearing aid user. However, the publication is silent with respect to how the response of the hearing aid user is recorded and evaluated.
A number of computer-assisted auditory training software programs have been proposed, e.g. CASPERSENT, CAST, LACE, etc. These programs include exercises to facilitate the improvement of auditory skills using natural or processed (e.g. frequency filtered or time compressed) speech, environmental sounds, pure tones, or music. These exercises can typically be performed in quiet or in the presence of competing noise.
While these programs provide a convenient and effective means to provide auditory training, there are situations where these existing computer programs do not suffice. First, these programs use speech as part of the training, which render them language-dependent, and the development cost of such a training program can be a major obstacle in language regions where the number of patients potentially benefitting from the program is small. Second, these programs require recording of natural speech as a stimulus. Natural speech is a logical choice when the goal of the training is to improve speech-in-noise performance. However, the selection of the natural speech to be used as stimulus can be a tedious undertaking. Also, the recording of the stimuli can be a time consuming task. Third, depending on the design of the training program, the trainee may find the training tedious and unexciting. More entertaining training programs have been shown to reduce dropout rates, and to improve effectiveness of auditory training.
It is therefore a feature of the present invention to provide a more efficient, reliable and entertaining method of providing auditory training and to provide a hearing aid system for training the auditory skills of a hearing impaired user.

Method of auditory training and a hearing aid system


A method and apparatus of forming a thin film using an organic metal compound gas and oxidizing agents are disclosed. The method includes performing a first film formation process of forming a thin film on an object to be processed using an organic metal compound gas and a first oxidizing agent; performing an annealing process of supplying a second oxidizing agent having stronger oxidizing power than the first oxidizing agent into the reaction chamber while an interior of the reaction chamber is heated to a predetermined temperature; and performing a second film formation process of forming a thin film on the thin film formed in the first thin film formation process using the organic metal compound gas and the second oxidizing agent.

As a method for forming a high-k film (a metal oxide film) such as an AlO layer, a HfO layer, and a ZrO layer, there is proposed atomic layer deposition (ALD) capable of forming an excellent high-k film on an object to be processed, for example, a semiconductor wafer, at a low temperature.
In ALD for forming a high-k film, an organic metal compound gas and an oxidizing agent are alternately supplied, and H2O is used as the oxidizing agent in order to suppress oxidation of an underlying layer. Further, there is ozone (O3) as an oxidizing agent effective for removing organic and inorganic materials in ALD. Thus, in order to form a high quality high-k film having less impurities within the film while suppressing interface oxidation, a stack film prepared by forming a high-k film using H2O as an oxidizing agent for an initial layer, and forming a high-k film using O3 as an oxidizing agent for a main layer has been employed.
However, when the high-k film is formed using O3 immediately after forming the high-k film using H2O, there is a problem in that a high quality high-k film cannot be obtained due to reduction in thickness of the high-k film or deterioration in thickness uniformity thereof.

Method and apparatus for forming thin film


Apparatus for measuring weak magnetic fields includes a cryogenic vessel CR having a domed bottom D for accepting a human head, a plurality of magnetic sensor units 10 mounted upright on the inner surface of the bottom D of the cryogenic vessel CR, an interface device 20 for receiving output signals of the magnetic sensor units 10 through respective lead lines 4, a data processor device 30 for analyzing the output signals of the magnetic sensor units 10 to specify magnetic fields spread in the ambient space about the human head and calculating the activity of a brain B from the magnetic fields, and a display device 40 for displaying the brain activity. Each of the magnetic sensor units 10 is fed along its guide line G through a small opening OP of the cryogenic vessel CR and mounted upright on the bottom D. As the opening OP of the cryogenic vessel CR is relatively small, the evaporation loss of a coolant in the cryogenic vessel CR is minimized and the running cost of the apparatus will be decreased.

The present invention relates to a magnetic measuring apparatus and more specifically, to a magnetic measuring apparatus appropriate for measuring magnetic fields spread in an ambient space about a head (brain), a chest (heart, stomach), an abdomen (liver), a fetus, and so on.
FIG. 33 shows a prior art (U.S. Pat. No. 5,475,306) magnetic measuring apparatus for measuring magnetic fields spread in the ambient space about a human bead.
The magnetic measuring apparatus 500 comprises a cryogenic vessel CR' composed of an inner vessel CRI' and an outer vessel CRO having a domed bottom D for accepting the human head, a lid LD' for closing an opening OP' provided in the top of the cryogenic vessel CR', a multiplicity of magnetic sensor units 50 suspended by pipes PP respectively from the lid LD' so as to be seated directly on the upper surface of the domed bottom D, signal lines 4 for transmission of output signals from their respective magnetic sensor units 50, an interface device 20 connected to the signal lines 4, a data processor device 30 for analyzing the output signals of the magnetic sensor units 50 to specify magnetic fields spread in the ambient space about the head and calculating activity data of a brain B from the magnetic fields, and a display device 40 for displaying the calculated activity data.
The space between the inner vessel CSI' and the outer vessel CRO is filled with a thermal insulating material Dn and air is evacuated therefrom.
Denoted by PA is a packing made of e.g. rubber.
A coolant feed/exhaust double tube ST is provided for feeding to and exhausting a coolant from the cryogenic vessel CR'. The coolant may be a liquid helium (4.2K).
As the prior art magnetic measuring apparatus 500 shown in FIG. 33 has the magnetic sensor units 50 mounted in a suspended arrangement, the opening OP' is formed substantially equal in size to the cross section of a human head.
But when the opening OP' is considerably large (over 10 cm in diameter), it causes a problem of passing of much heat thus increasing the evaporation loss of the coolant and the cost of running.
In addition, there is another problem that the cryogenic vessel CR' cannot have an overhand reducing the opening OP' because the magnetic sensor units 50 are vertically suspended from the lid LD'.
Furthermore, there is the other problem that the domed bottom D of the magnetic measuring apparatus 500 accepts the head of one single test object at a time, thus throughput cannot be increased.

Magnetic measuring apparatus with sensor guide device and method for installing sensors therein