This invention is related to a terminal apparatus that can normally transmit an upstream response signal. A response signal generating unit (212); generates response signals on the basis of a setting rule in which pattern candidates of success or failure in the reception of downstream allocation control information and downstream data are associated with the phase points of response signals and further in which the phase point of one response signal associated with an arbitrary pattern of success or failure in the reception during the second communication has been set to be identical with the phase points of two response signals associated with pattern candidates for which the pattern of success or failure in the reception at PCC during the first communication is identical with the arbitrary pattern and for which all of the receptions of downstream allocation control information have been failed at SCC.

3GPP LTE adopts OFDMA (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access) as a downlink communication scheme. In a radio communication system to which 3GPP LTE is applied, a base station apparatus (hereinafter, abbreviated as "base station") transmits a synchronization signal (i.e., Synchronization Channel: SCH) and broadcast signal (i.e., Broadcast Channel: BCH) using predetermined communication resources. A terminal apparatus (hereinafter abbreviated as "terminal") locates an SCH to secure synchronization with the base station first. After that, the terminal reads BCH information to acquire base station-specific parameters (e.g., frequency bandwidth) (see Non-Patent Literatures 1, 2, and 3).
Upon completion of the acquisition of the base station-specific parameters, the terminal sends a connection request to the base station to thereby establish communication with the base station. The base station transmits control information to the terminal with which communication has been established via a PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control CHannel) as required.
The terminal then makes a "blind decision" on a plurality of control information portions included in the received PDCCH signal. That is, each of the control information portions includes a CRC (Cyclic Redundancy Check) portion and the base station masks this CRC portion with a terminal ID of the transmission target terminal. Therefore, the terminal cannot make a decision on whether the received control information portion is addressed to the terminal or not until the terminal demasks the CRC portion of the received control information portion with the terminal ID of the terminal. In the blind decision, if the demasking result shows that the CRC operation is OK, the control information portion is judged as being addressed to the terminal apparatus.
Furthermore, in 3GPP LTE, ARQ (Automatic Repeat Request) is applied to downlink data from the base station to the terminal. That is, the terminal feeds back a response signal indicative of an error detection result of the downlink data to the base station. The terminal performs a CRC on the downlink data and feeds back ACK (Acknowledgment) when CRC=OK (no error) or NACK (Negative Acknowledgment) when CRC=NO (error) to the base station as a response signal. Here, BPSK (Binary Phase Shift Keying) is used to modulate the response signal (that is, ACK/NACK signal). Furthermore, an uplink control channel such as PUCCH (Physical Uplink Control Channel) is used to feed back the response signal. When the received response signal indicates NACK, the base station transmits retransmission data to the terminal.
Here, the control information transmitted from the base station (that is, downlink allocation control information) contains resource allocation information including resource information or the like allocated to the terminal by the base station. The above-described PDCCH is used to transmit the control information. The PDCCH is formed of one or a plurality of L1/L2 CCHs (L1/L2 Control Channels). Each L1/L2 CCH is formed of one or a plurality of CCEs (Control Channel Elements). That is, the CCE is a base unit when control information is mapped to the PDCCH. Furthermore, when one L1/L2 CCH is formed of a plurality of CCEs, the plurality of CCEs having serial identification numbers (indices) are assigned to the L1/L2 CCH. The base station allocates the L1/L2 CCH to a resource allocation target terminal according to the number of CCEs necessary to notify the resource allocation target terminal of control information. The base station then transmits control information mapped to physical resources corresponding to CCEs of the L1/L2 CCH.
Here, CCEs are associated with component resources of the PUCCH in a one-to-one correspondence. Therefore, the terminal that has received the L1/L2 CCH can implicitly identify the component resources of the PUCCH corresponding to the CCEs constituting the L1/L2 CCH and transmits a response signal to the base station using the identified resources. However, when the L1/L2 CCH occupies a plurality of consecutive CCEs, the terminal transmits a response signal to the base station using one of the plurality of PUCCH component resources corresponding to the plurality of CCEs (e.g., PUCCH component resource corresponding to a CCE having the smallest index). Downlink communication resources are thereby used efficiently.
A plurality of response signals and reference signals transmitted from a plurality of terminals are spread on a time axis (i.e., time domain) using a ZAC (Zero Auto-correlation) sequence (may also be called "base sequence") having a Zero Auto-correlation characteristic and Walsh code sequence or DFT (Discrete Fourier Transform) sequence as shown in FIG. 1, and code-multiplexed within a PUCCH (however, a ZAC sequence having a sequence length of 12 itself may also be called "reference sequence").
In FIG. 1, (W0, W1, W2, W3) represents a Walsh sequence (Walsh code sequence) having a sequence length of 4 and (F0, F1, F2) represents a DFT sequence having a sequence length of 3. As shown in FIG. 1, in the terminal, an ACK or NACK response signal is primary-spread within 1 SC-FDMA symbol on the frequency axis by a ZAC sequence (having a sequence length of 12, may also be referred to as "Base Sequence") first. Next, the primary-spread response signals are associated with W0 to W3 respectively and subjected to IFFT (Inverse Fast Fourier Transform). Furthermore, in the terminal, a ZAC sequence having a sequence length of 12 and serving as a reference signal is associated with F0 to F2 respectively and subjected to IFFT. Thus, the response signal and reference signal spread using the ZAC sequence having a sequence length of 12 on the frequency axis (Frequency domain) and the reference signal are converted to a ZAC sequence having a sequence length of 12 on the time axis through IFFT. This is equivalent to a primary-spread response signal and the reference signal after IFFT further being secondary-spread using a Walsh sequence (sequence length of 4) and a DFT sequence (sequence length of 3).
Response signals from different terminals are spread using ZAC sequences corresponding to different amounts of cyclic shift (cyclic shift indices) or orthogonal code sequences corresponding to different sequence numbers (orthogonal cover indices: OC indices). An orthogonal code sequence is a combination of a Walsh sequence and a DFT sequence. Furthermore, the orthogonal code sequence may also be referred to as "block-wise spreading code sequence." Therefore, the base station can demultiplex a plurality of code-multiplexed response signals, using conventional despreading and correlation processing (see Non-Patent Literature 4).
However, since each terminal makes a blind decision on downlink allocation control information addressed to the terminal apparatus in each subframe (transmission unit time), reception of downlink allocation control information is not always successful on the terminal side. When the terminal fails to receive downlink allocation control information addressed to the terminal in a certain downlink component carrier, the terminal cannot even know whether or not downlink data addressed to the terminal exists in the downlink component carrier. Therefore, when the terminal fails to receive downlink allocation control information in a certain downlink component carrier, the terminal does not generate any response signal for downlink data in the downlink component carrier either. This erroneous case is defined as DTX (Discontinuous transmission of ACK/NACK signals) of response signals in the sense that the terminal does not transmit any response signal.
Furthermore, standardization of 3GPP LTE-advanced for realizing faster communication speed than 3GPP LTE has started. 3GPP LTE-advanced systems (hereinafter may also be referred to as "LTE-A systems") follow 3GPP LTE systems (hereinafter may also be referred to as "LTE systems"). 3GPP LTE-advanced is expected to introduce base stations and terminals communicable at a wideband frequency of 40 MHz or more to realize a downlink transmission rate of a maximum of 1 Gbps or above.
To simultaneously realize an ultra-high-speed communication several times faster than transmission rates in LTE systems and backward compatibility with LTE systems, in LTE-A systems, LTE-A system bands are divided into "component carriers" of 20 MHz or below which is the support bandwidth of LTE systems. That is, the "component carrier" is a band having a width of a maximum of 20 MH and is defined as a base unit of communication band. Furthermore, a "component carrier" in a downlink (hereinafter referred to as "downlink component carrier") may be defined as a band divided by downlink frequency band information in a BCH broadcast from the base station or a band defined by a distribution width in the case where a downlink control channel (PDCCH) is distributed in a frequency domain. Furthermore, a "component carrier" in an uplink (hereinafter referred to as "uplink component carrier") may also be defined as a band divided by uplink frequency band information in a BCH broadcast from the base station or a base unit for a communication band of 20 MHz or below including a PUSCH (Physical Uplink Shared CHannel) region near its center and PUCCHs for LTE at both ends. Furthermore, the "component carrier" in 3GPP LTE-Advanced may be expressed in English as Component Carrier(s), and may also be defined by a physical cell number and carrier frequency number, and may be called "cell."
The LTE-A system supports communication using a band that bundles several component carriers, so-called "carrier aggregation." Throughput requirements for an uplink are generally different from throughput requirements for a downlink. In the LTE-A system, carrier aggregation in which the number of component carriers set for any terminal supporting an LTE-A system (hereinafter referred to as "LTE-A terminal") is different between the uplink and the downlink, so-called "asymmetric carrier aggregation" is also being discussed. Furthermore, the LTE-A system also supports configurations where the numbers of component carriers are asymmetric between the uplink and downlink, and the component carriers have different frequency bandwidths.
FIGS. 2A and 2B are diagrams illustrating asymmetric carrier aggregation and a control sequence applied to individual terminals. FIGS. 2A and 2B show examples where bandwidths and the numbers of component carriers are symmetric between an uplink and a downlink of a base station.
In FIG. 2B, a setting (hereinafter, referred to as a configuration) is made for terminal 1 such that carrier aggregation is performed using two downlink component carriers and one uplink component carrier on the left side, whereas a configuration is made for terminal 2 such that although the two same downlink component carriers as those in terminal 1 are used, one uplink component carrier on the right side is used for uplink communication.
Referring to terminal 1, an LTE-A base station and an LTE-A terminal included in an LTE-A system transmit and receive signals to and from each other according to a sequence diagram illustrated in FIG. 2A. As illustrated in FIG. 2A, (1) terminal 1 is synchronized with the downlink component carrier on the left side when starting communication with the base station, and reads information on the uplink component carrier from a broadcast signal called "SIB2 (system information block type 2)," the uplink component carrier forming a pair with the downlink component carrier on the left side. (2) Using this uplink component carrier, terminal 1 starts communication with the base station by transmitting, for example, a connection request to the base station. (3) Upon determining that a plurality of downlink component carriers need to be assigned to the terminal, the base station instructs the terminal to add the downlink component carriers. However, in this case, the number of uplink component carriers does not increase, and terminal 1 which is an individual terminal starts asymmetric carrier aggregation.
Furthermore, in the above LTE-A system to which carrier aggregation is applied, the terminal may receive a plurality of downlink data portions in a plurality of downlink component carriers at a time. In LTE-A systems, studies are being carried out on a technique of reducing a spreading factor of response signals in a PUCCH (so-called SF (Spreading Factor) reduction) as one of a plurality of response signal transmission methods for the plurality of downlink data portions.
To be more specific, as shown in FIG. 3, two response signals (Symbol 1 and Symbol 2) are generated on the terminal side, the two response signals are spread by Walsh code sequences (W0,0, W0,1) and (W1,0, W1,1) having a sequence length of 2 respectively and arranged on first and second SC-FDMA symbols, and sixth and seventh SC-FDMA symbols respectively. By so doing, even when the terminal receives a plurality of downlink data portions in a plurality of downlink component carriers at a time, the terminal can feed back a plurality of response signals for the plurality of downlink data portions to the base station at a time.

Terminal and response signal transmission method

PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY CORPORATION OF AMERICA


A prealigner (10) employs an X-Y stage (20) and a rotary stage (26) to position and orient a specimen (12) without centering it on the prealigner. In a preferred embodiment, the rotary stage is mounted on the X-Y stage and receives a semiconductor (12) in a substantially arbitrary position and orientation. The prealigner employs the rotary stage and translation in only an X-axis direction to scan the peripheral edge (76) of the wafer across an optical scanning assembly (36) to form a polar coordinate map of the wafer. A microprocessor (162) determines the location and orientation of the wafer from the map and cooperates with a motor drive controller (122) to generate control signals for positioning and orienting the wafer in the preselected alignment without changing the location at which the wafer is held.

Specimen alignment or prealignment systems precisely position and orient articles in automated manufacturing or processing facilities. For example, an alignment system can be used to align semiconductor wafers for testing or processing during the manufacture of integrated circuits. One such wafer alignment system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,457,664 of Judell et al.
The Judell et al. alignment station rotates the wafer about a rotational axis that is perpendicular to the plane of the wafer to scan its generally circular perimeter with a capacitive edge sensor. The station translates the wafer along only one lateral axis to keep the perimeter aligned with the capacitive edge sensor as the wafer is rotated. Based upon information provided by a scan of the perimeter, a microprocessor computes a correction vector representing the displacement between the alignment station rotational axis and the centroid of the wafer.
The alignment station repositions the wafer in accordance with the correction vector to center the wafer centroid on the rotational axis. Specifically, the wafer is rotated about the rotational axis and moved along the one axis of lateral motion until the centroid is approximately aligned with a predetermined centered position of the rotational axis. As a consequence, the rotational axis is temporarily offset from its centered position in accordance with the correction vector.
The alignment station disengages the wafer, returns the rotational axis to its centered position, and then re-engages the wafer. Since the wafer centroid is only approximately centered on the alignment station, the wafer edge is again scanned and the wafer repositioned until its centroid is accurately centered on the rotational axis. The centered wafer is then rotated into a selected orientation and transferred to a wafer characterization station for testing.
A disadvantage of alignment stations of this type is that the wafer must be centered on the axis of rotation preparatory to positioning and orienting the wafer for testing or processing. The reason is that the alignment station uses rotation to both position the wafer centroid and to orient the wafer prior to being transferred. The wafer must be centered, therefore, so that the rotation into the selected orientation does not also change the wafer centroid position.
Another disadvantage is that centering the wafer on the alignment station is a time-consuming process that decreases wafer throughput.
A further disadvantage is that the increased handling of the wafer required to center it can increase wafer contamination, and thereby decrease the yield of integrated circuits formed therefrom.


The invention is a CD109 nucleic acid molecule and its corresponding polypeptide. The invention also includes biologically functional equivalent nucleic acid molecules and polypeptides. The invention also relates to methods of using these nucleic acid sequences and polypeptides in medical diagnosis and treatment and in drug screening.

CD109 is a cell surface antigen that marks primitive progenitor and hematopoietic stem cells and activated platelets and T lymphocytes. To date, the function of CD109 in these cell types has remained largely unknown. While T cell CD109 has previously been implicated in the regulation of antibody inducing T helper cell function, but its role is poorly understood.
To date, no one has been able to isolate and sequence CD109 DNA or protein. There are many reasons for these problems including the very low levels of CD109 gene expression and the corresponding low level of protein expression and activity. Moreover the instability of CD109 in protein extracts, and its association with plasma membranes has contributed to the difficulties surrounding its isolation. Without the DNA and protein sequences, it is impossible to design rational strategies for the modulation of CD109 levels or activity, by modulating gene and protein expression. There is a need to identify these sequences in order to establish methods to modulate CD109 activity. Protein sequence information is important for the elucidation of protein structure and the ultimate design of chemical inhibitors that may modulate CD109 activity in vivo. There is also a need for cells which overexpress CD109 polypeptides or in which gene expression is reduced or blocked.

CD109 nucleic acid molecules, polypeptides and methods of use


A chemical-mechanical polisher (10) includes a mixer section (12) that mixes components of a polishing fluid prior to introducing the polishing fluid into a polishing section (13) of the polisher (10). In one embodiment, components from feed lines (113 and 114) are combined in a manifold (121) and flowed through a static in-line mixer (123) to mix the components to form the polishing fluid. The polishing rate of the polishing fluid is relatively high because the mixing occurs near the point of use. Local concentrations of the components of the polishing fluid near a substrate (134) should be relatively uniform because the polishing fluid is mixed prior to reaching the substrate (134).

Chemical-mechanical polishing is commonly used in semiconductor fabrication for planarization, fabrication of contact or via plugs, or fabrication of in-laid interconnects. In the polishing process, a polishing slurry that has particles may be used. The polishing slurry may mechanically and chemically etch the surface of the substrate or an overlying layer. Although polishing slurries may be formulated in a ready-to-use form, many polishing slurries are formulated as a concentrated form or formulated to keep components separate. A polishing slurry in a ready-to-use form includes a large amount of water. Shipping costs for water is expensive due to its density.
In some polishing slurries, polishing particles may change the pH of the slurry. For example, a tungsten polishing slurry may include an aqueous solution of alumina particles and an acid. Alumina particles have an iso-electric point that is basic that can make the polishing slurry more neutral when exposed to the acid for a period of time. A tungsten polishing slurry may have a polishing rate after 15 days that is about a quarter of the initial polishing rate when the components are first mixed. A similar effect occurs with a polishing slurry that includes an aqueous solution of oxide particles in a base because oxide particles have an iso-electric point that is acidic.
To overcome those problems, the polishing slurry may be made by batch mixing near the point of use or by mixing components on a platen of a polisher. With batch mixing, the polishing slurry may be mixed in a large tank. These tanks may be about 300-340 liters (80-90 gallons) but may have volumes of several hundred liters. For one specific process that is used to remove oxide from semiconductor substrates, about 200 liters (55 gallons) of polishing slurry may polish around 400 wafers. The batch mixing still has the problem of a non-stable pH that translates into a variable polishing rate.
The polishing rate of a tungsten polishing slurry including an aqueous solution of alumina particles and an acid may be about 3100 angstroms per minute just after mixing, about 2000 angstroms per minute about one day after mixing, about 1100 angstroms per minute about three days after mixing, and levels off at about 900 angstroms per minute starting at about 15 days after mixing. Assuming that a polishing can polish about 10 wafers an hour, 400 wafers would take about a day and a half to polish. If the 400 wafers were polished after mixing, the first wafer would polish at about 3100 angstroms per minute, and the last wafer would polish at about 1600 angstroms per minute. This highly variable polishing rate makes process control difficult. Although the polishing rate stabilizes at a polishing rate of about 900 angstroms per minute, this rate is too low for production.
Batch mixing has other problems. The mixing tank has to be cleaned each time the solution is changed. Also, lifting and transporting the components for the slurry is difficult due to their densities. Further, the fluid within the tank has to be maintained such that it remains mixed and prevents formation of a gel. When the additional components are added, they need to be completely mixed with the polishing fluid that already exists within the tank. Even after mixing, the polishing rate may need to be characterized because the tank now includes a mixture of fresh and old polishing slurries.
A plurality of feed lines may be directed to dispense directly on to a platen within a chemical-mechanical polisher. One problem with this method is that the components may not properly mix, thereby forming localized regions that are more concentrated with one component versus the other.

Process for polishing a semiconductor substrate


A backflow valve has a closure gate that is pivotally mounted for movement between an open position in which the closure gate is positioned on a plane substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of a flow passage and a closed position in which the closure gate is positioned transverse to the longitudinal axis. The closure gate has a midsection positioned pivot axis and is unbalanced with greater weight being toward the first end. A rotational stop limits pivotal movement when the closure gate is in the open position. A float is secured to the first end of the closure gate. The greater weight at the first end biases the closure gate by force of gravity against the rotational stop and into the open position. The float causes the closure gate to pivotally move to the closed position in response to liquid rising in the flow passage.

The present invention relates to a backflow valve.
A backflow valve, also known as a backwater valve, is used to prevent a reversal of flow in a flow line. An example of a backflow valve is disclosed in Canadian Patent 2,114,602 and corresponding U.S. Pat. No. 5,406,972 granted to Coscarella et al.
The Coscarella et al reference discloses a backflow valve that has a pivoting closure gate with an open position to accommodate flow in a desired flow direction and a closed position to close off the flow line when there is a reversal of flow. The closure gate is hinged to the bottom of the valve housing. In the open position, flow passes over the closure gate with the closure gate serving as a spillway. Secured to the closure gate is a float. When the level of liquid rises, the float causes the closure gate to rise and the reversed direction of flow pushes the closure gate into the closed position.
The Coscarella et al valve has proven to be an effective backflow valve. The fact that the closure gate in the open position serves as a spillway is not suitable for use with liquids that are highly caustic, leave a residue, or carry debris that can adversely affect the operation of the valve over time.
What is required is an alternative configuration of backflow valve in which the closure gate does not serve as a spillway.
According to the present invention there is provided a backflow valve which includes a valve body with a flow passage extending through the valve body having a longitudinal axis. A closure gate is provided having a first end and a second end. The closure gate is pivotally mounted in the flow passage of the valve body for movement between an open position in which the closure gate is positioned on a plane substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the flow passage and a closed position in which the closure gate is positioned transverse to the longitudinal axis. The closure gate has a midsection positioned pivot axis positioned between the first end and the second end. The closure gate is unbalanced with greater weight being toward the first end. A rotational stop is secured to the valve body to limit pivotal movement when the closure gate is in the open position. The greater weight at the first end of the closure gate biases the closure gate by force of gravity against the rotational stop and into the open position. A float secured to the first end of the closure gate causes the closure gate to pivotally move in response to a rise in liquid in the flow passage, with a reversal of flow pushing the closure gate to the closed position.
The flow lines that backflow valves are used with typically are rated at 50% of their flow capacity. This means that the flow line for liquid passing through the flow passage is generally below the longitudinal axis of the flow passage. With the backflow valve, as described above, in the open position the closure gate sits parallel to and above the flow line. The closure gate is only exposed to the liquid when the level of liquid rises due to a reversal in flow.


A coated heat spreader for a die includes a body and a coating on a surface of the body, wherein the outermost coating is an organic surface protectant. An IC package includes a die thermally coupled to a heat spreader coated with an organic surface protectant. A PCB assembly including a die thermally coupled to a heat spreader coated with an organic surface protectant, where the die is part of an IC package or is directly attached to the PCB. A method of making a coated heat spreader includes coating the organic surface protectant onto a surface of the heat spreader.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to thermal heat spreaders, integrated circuit ("IC") assemblies containing heat spreaders, and methods of making the heat spreaders and assemblies.
2. Related Art
An IC die may be mounted on a substrate to form an IC assembly. For example, a die may be mounted on a package substrate to form an IC package, or the die may be mounted directly to a printed circuit board ("PCB"). To dissipate heat from the die, a heat spreader is typically thermally coupled to the back of the die. Generally, there is a thermal interface material ("TIM") between the die and the heat spreader. Poor adhesion between the TIM and the heat spreader is a common problem.
There is therefore a need to improve adhesion between the heat spreader and the TIM. There also is a need to improve such adhesion in a cost-effective manner.


A memory has an array of memory cells, a word line driver, a sense amplifier, and a sense enable circuit. Each memory cell has a coupling transistor for coupling a storage portion to a bit line. The coupling transistors have an average threshold voltage and a maximum threshold voltage. The word line driver is coupled to the array and is for enabling a selected row of memory cells in the array. The sense amplifier detects a state of a memory cell in the selected row in response to a sense enable signal. The sense enable circuit provides the sense enable signal at a time based on the maximum threshold voltage. This timing enables the sense amplifier sufficiently late for low temperature operation while providing for faster operation at high temperature than would normally be achieved using just the average threshold voltage in providing timing of the sense enable signal.

It is well known that high performance semiconductor integrated circuits are migrating to power supply voltages that are less than one volt. With the migration to lower power supply voltage values, any transistor threshold voltage variations among a circuit's transistors will have a significant impact on the speed and power specification of the circuit. Similarly, fluctuations in the power supply voltage will also negatively affect speed and performance. Within an SRAM (static random access memory) circuit, replica memory cells and bit lines are used to create a reference signal whose delay tracks that of the functioning memory cells and bit lines of the SRAM. The reference signal is used to generate an enable signal for a sense amplifier that controls the timing of when the sense amplifier functions to sense a bit value of a given memory cell. Whether one replica memory cell or a plurality of replica memory cells are used, such replica memory cells are typically implemented with the slowest or worst-case memory cell parameters to ensure that adequate time is provided before a sense amplifier begins sensing. While this design criteria ensures functional operation of the memory, the design criteria also ensures that the sense amplifier will continually operate at a speed of the worst-case operating parameters.
Skilled artisans appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.

Circuit and method for optimizing memory sense amplifier timing


A pre-fabricated electrochemical device having a dense electrolyte disposed between an anode and a cathode preferably deposited as thin films is bonded to a porous electrically conductive support. A second porous electrically conductive support may be bonded to a counter electrode of the electrochemical device. Multiple electrochemical devices may be bonded in parallel to a single porous support, such as a perforated sheet to provide a planar array. Planar arrays may be arranged in a stacked interconnected array. A method of making a supported electrochemical device is disclosed wherein the method includes a step of bonding a pre-fabricated electrochemical device layer to an existing porous metal or porous metal alloy layer.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains generally to solid-state electrochemical devices, and more particularly to an electrochemical device support structure and an illustrative solid oxide fuel cell with exceptional electrochemical performance.
2. Description of Related Art
Solid-state electrochemical devices are becoming increasingly important for a variety of applications including energy generation, oxygen separation, hydrogen separation, coal gasification, and the selective oxidation of hydrocarbons. Fuel cells, for example, hold the promise of an efficient, combustion-less, low pollution technology for generating electricity. Because there is no combustion of fuel involved in the process, fuel cells do not create any of the pollutants that are commonly produced in conventional electricity generation by boilers or furnaces and steam driven turbines. Indeed, water, heat and electricity are the only products of fuel cell systems designed to use hydrogen gas.
Solid-state electrochemical devices are normally cells that include two porous electrodes, the anode and the cathode, and a dense solid electrolyte membrane disposed between the electrodes. In the case of a typical solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC), the anode is exposed to fuel and the cathode is exposed to an oxidant in separate closed systems to avoid any mixing of the fuel and oxidants due to the exothermic reactions that can take place with hydrogen fuel. The electrolyte membrane is normally composed of a ceramic oxygen ion conductor in solid oxide fuel cell applications. The porous anode may be a layer of a ceramic, a metal or, most commonly, a ceramic-metal composite ("cermet") that is in contact with the electrolyte membrane on the fuel side of the cell. The porous cathode is typically a layer of a mixed ionically and electronically-conductive (MIEC) metal oxide on the oxidant side of the cell.
In implementations such as fuel cells and oxygen and syn-gas (H2+CO) generators, the solid membrane is normally an electrolyte composed of a material capable of conducting an ionic species, such as oxygen or hydrogen ions, yet has a low electronic conductivity. In other implementations, such as gas separation devices, the solid membrane is composed of a mixed ionic electronic conducting material ("MIEC"). In either case, the electrolyte/membrane must be dense and pinhole free ("gas-tight") to prevent mixing of the electrochemical reactants. In all of these devices a lower total internal resistance of the cell improves performance.
Electricity is generated in a fuel cell through the electrochemical reaction that occurs between a fuel (typically hydrogen produced from reformed methane) and an oxidant (typically air). This net electrochemical reaction involves charge transfer steps that occur at the interface between the ionically-conductive electrolyte membrane, the electronically-conductive electrode and the vapor phase of the fuel or oxygen.
For example, in the operation of a typical solid oxide fuel cell, a fuel such as hydrogen, methane or carbon monoxide is cycled through the anode side of the cell and the fuel reacts with oxide ions (O−2) from the electrolyte. Examples of possible reactions at the anode that can occur in this setting, depending on the fuel used, are as follows:H2+O−2→H2O+2e−CO+O−2→CO2+2e−CH4+4O−2→2H2O+CO2+8e−
The electrons produced in the electrochemical reactions are deposited with the anode and drawn out of the system. At the cathode, electrons are received by oxygen atoms from the air and converted into oxide ions that are transferred to the electrolyte with the reaction O2+4e−→2O−2 and the cycle continues.
Solid oxide fuel cells normally operate at temperatures between about 900° C. and about 1000° C. The operating temperature of a fuel cell, for example, may be influenced by a number of factors primarily related to reaction efficiency. The principal consideration governing the temperature at which a solid oxide fuel cell or any solid-state electrochemical device is operated is the ionic conductivity of the electrolyte membrane. At appropriate temperatures the oxygen ions easily migrate through the crystal lattice of the electrolyte. Therefore, conventional fuel cells must be operated at a high enough temperature to make the ceramic electrolyte sufficiently ionically conductive for the energy producing reactions to occur efficiently. Other operating temperatures may be used to maximize other reactions for use in gas separators or gas generators.
Another consideration in the determination of operation temperature is the type of fuel used and fuel efficiency. For example, methane is plentiful, inexpensive, and rich in hydrogen, the preferred fuel for the cell. Methane and other hydrocarbons may be reformed to produce hydrogen at a temperature of about 650-950° C. Therefore, it is usually desirable to operate a solid oxide fuel cell at least at the lower end of this temperature range. Waste heat from the fuel cell may be used directly in the reformer to pre-treat the fuel before it enters the fuel cell. Waste heat may also be used to generate steam to drive a generator or the like and improve the overall production efficiency of the system.
Unfortunately, most metals are not stable at the high operating temperatures and oxidizing environment of conventional fuel cells and become converted very quickly to brittle oxides. In solid oxide fuel cells, component durability is most problematic at the air electrode where oxidation can take place. In other solid-state electrochemical devices, such as oxygen generators, both electrodes may be in an oxidizing environment during operation of the device, and so both may face this problem. Accordingly, solid-state electrochemical devices have conventionally been constructed of heat-tolerant ceramic materials, such as La1-xSrxMnyO3-δ (1≧X≧0.05) (0.95≦y≦1.15) ("LSM"), and yttria stabilized zirconia (e.g., (ZrO2)0.92(Y2O3)0.08) ("YSZ"). These materials tend to be expensive and still have a limited life in high temperature and high oxidation conditions.
In addition, the thickness of the solid electrolyte, typically hundreds of microns thick, requires an operating temperature above 900° C. to achieve an acceptable ionic conductivity. However, it has also been observed that the resistance of electrolyte layers that are deposited as very thin films is very low at intermediate temperatures ranging between 500° C. and 800° C. Intermediate operational temperatures will allow the use of comparatively less expensive materials to construct the cell and lower the thermal energy requirements.
Several methods exist for forming thin film electrolytes on ceramic substrates, such as sputtering, tape calendaring, sol-gel deposition and physical vapor deposition techniques. For example, plasma spray deposition of molten electrolyte material on porous device substrates has been proposed, however these plasma sprayed layers are still sufficiently thick (reportedly 30-50 microns) to substantially impact electrolyte conductance and therefore device operating temperature. Furthermore, many of these application methods are complex and expensive techniques and the high operating costs as well as the cost of production equipment present a significant barrier to commercialization.
Electrochemical cells with ceramic electrodes and electrolytes in the art have two basic designs: tubular and planar. Tubular designs have traditionally been more easily implemented than planar designs, and thus have been proposed for commercial applications. However, tubular designs provide less power density than planar designs due to the relatively long current path that results in a substantial resistive power loss that is inherent in the design.
Planar fuel cell designs are theoretically more efficient than tubular designs, but are generally recognized as having significant safety and reliability issues due to the complexity of sealing and manifolding a planar stack. To be stacked, the fuel cells require bipolar interconnects adjacent to each electrode that are electrically, but not ionically, conductive. The interconnects allow current generated in the cells to flow between cells and to be collected for use. These interconnects are typically formed into manifolds through which fuel and air may be supplied to the respective electrodes. Due to the highly exothermic combustion resulting from an uncontrolled mixture of hydrogen and oxygen, it is essential that the interconnect manifolds be well sealed at all edges of the planar cell. Moreover, due to required operating temperatures in excess of 900° C. for conventional devices, the interconnect in contact with the air electrode may not be made of metal due to the occurrence of high temperature corrosion.
Prior designs for solid-state electrochemical planar stack devices have used ceramic materials such as lanthanum chromite to form the interconnects. However, lanthanum chromite is a very expensive material, sometimes accounting for as much as 90% of the cost of a device. In addition, it is a relatively brittle material compared to metals and therefore less than ideal for an application requiring an absolute seal. Lanthanum chromite and similar materials are also significantly less conductive than metal, resulting in resistive losses that reduce the overall efficiency of the fuel cell device. These problems have combined to make current planar stack implementations impractical for commercial applications.
Thus, present solid-state electrochemical devices incorporating conventional designs are expensive to manufacture and may suffer from safety, reliability, and/or efficiency drawbacks. Consequently, the cost of electrical energy production from fuel cells is several times higher than the cost of the same electrical production from fossil fuels.
Accordingly, there is a need to provide electrochemical devices such as solid oxide fuel cells that are capable of operating efficiently at lower temperatures and use less expensive materials and production techniques. A method for reducing the cost of materials and manufacturing while increasing the reliability of solid state electrochemical devices would be of great benefit and, for example, might allow for the commercialization of such devices that have been previously too expensive, inefficient or unreliable to exploit. The present invention satisfies these needs, as well as others, and generally overcomes the deficiencies in conventional devices.

The Regents of the University of California


In response to a user's submission of a set of query terms through an Internet search engine's user interface, the Internet search engine automatically ranks multiple verticals based on the estimated probabilities that those verticals will contain relevant content. After the verticals have been ranked, a set of the highest-ranked verticals is selected. Search results from each of the verticals in the selected set are presented to the user. Thus, the user may obtain a sample from verticals that are the most likely to contain relevant content. The search engine may rank a set of verticals based on historical search result selection data for similar sets of query terms. The historical search result selection data for a set of query terms indicates, for each vertical, the number of times that any user selected a search result from that vertical after conducting a search based on that set of query terms.

An abundance of information is available via the Internet. Users can direct web browser applications, such as Mozilla Firefox, to various Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) in order to view content that is associated with those URLs. In order to assist users in locating certain kinds of content for which the users do not know the associated URLs, various Internet search engines have emerged. Yahoo! is the owner and operator of one of these Internet search engines.
A user can enter a set of query terms into an Internet search engine's user interface. The Internet search engine receives the query terms and searches an index for known content items that are associated with the query terms. The Internet search engine creates a list of content items that are relevant to the submitted query terms. The Internet search engine returns the list to the user.
The earliest Internet search engines returned search results from the Internet as a whole, without any regard to any specific categories into which those search results could fit. As Internet search engines evolved, certain content categories, called "verticals," became recognized. Given the set of all content that is accessible via the Internet, a "vertical" is a subset of that content that satisfies some criteria that are associated with that vertical.
For example, one vertical recognized by the Yahoo! Internet search engine is the "images" vertical. The "images" vertical only consists of Internet-accessible images (e.g., files representing visual content in a format such as GIF, JPEG, bitmap, etc.). The "images" vertical excludes all content that is not image content. Regular Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) web pages are excluded from the "images" vertical, although images embedded within such HTML web pages may be included within the "images" vertical.
The Yahoo! Internet search engine allows a user to specify, in addition to a set of query terms, a specific vertical in which the user would like to conduct a search for content. The verticals from which a user of the Yahoo! Internet search engine may select include "web" (which includes all query-term relevant search results unfiltered by any vertical criteria), "video," "images," "local," "shopping," "answers," "audio," "directory," "jobs," and "news." If a user conducts a search using a particular set of query terms in the "web" vertical, then the user might obtain a much larger but much less focused set of search results than if the user conducted the search using the same particular set of query terms in a more specific vertical such as "images." If the user knows at the outset that the user is specifically interested in images that are relevant to the query terms, then the user might be better off conducting the search in the "images" vertical instead of the "web" vertical.
Unfortunately, many users are unaware of and have never searched verticals other than the very broad and inclusive "web" vertical (which is typically the default vertical searched in the absence of the user's express selection of some other vertical). Other than by using a trial-and-error approach in which the user tries submitting the same query terms in each vertical, a user might not be able to ascertain which of the several verticals is most likely to yield search results in which the user is genuinely interested. Most users are unwilling to employ such an approach. As a result, many users miss finding content in which they would be highly interested, and which they might have found had they taken the time and effort to search a specific vertical.
The approaches described in this section are approaches that could be pursued, but not necessarily approaches that have been previously conceived or pursued. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated, it should not be assumed that any of the approaches described in this section qualify as prior art merely by virtue of their inclusion in this section.


A neural processor apparatus implements a neural network at a low cost and with high efficiency by simultaneously processing a plurality of neurons using the same synaptic inputs. Weight data is sequentially accessed from an external weight RAM memory to minimize space on the IC. The input data and weight data may be configured as either a single, high-resolution input or a plurality of inputs having a lower resolution, whereby the plurality of inputs are processed simultaneously. A dynamic approximation method is implemented using a minimal amount of circuitry to provide high-resolution transformations in accordance with the transfer function of a given neuron model. The neural processor apparatus may be used to implement an entire neural network, or may be implemented using a plurality of devices, each device implementing a predetermined number of neural layers.

1. Field of The Invention
The present invention relates to hardware implementations of real-time neural network systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
Neural network models have been developed in an effort to achieve improved performance in areas such as pattern recognition, classification and image processing. These neural networks, which follow the pattern of biological neural nets, include a plurality of neural layers each having a plurality of neurons. Each of the neurons within a neural layer outputs a response to a weighted sum of inputs. Specifically, a neuron will receive a plurality of inputs, amplify or decrease each input by a corresponding weight, and output a value in accordance with the transfer function of the neuron operating on the weighted sum of inputs. In contrast to microprocessor-based systems which are limited by their von Neumann and sequential architecture, a neural network can perform a variety of non-linear computations at relatively high speeds due to its relatively large degree of parallelism and connectivity.
Despite the appeal of neural networks and their highly-parallel architecture, few low-cost hardware implementations exist for the neural networks because of their inherent requirements, namely a high degree of connectivity and accurate, high-resolution neural response characterizations. One implementation of the neural network executes the neural network using a software-based system. Thus, since the neural network is emulated in software, the hardware implementation still relies upon a microprocessor-based system using a central processing unit having a von Neumann architecture. Thus, the software emulator of the neural network is subject to the limitations of the microprocessor which maintains a von Neumann architecture, thus resulting in a slower speed.
Further limitations in the implementation of neural networks are caused by the high cost of implementing such a highly-connective neural network in hardware. Any attempt to implement a neural network on a semiconductor chip greatly increases the area of the IC, thereby increasing not only the processing time but also the cost to manufacture the integrated circuit. Further, a neural network implemented in hardware becomes less flexible to the learning which is required before any pattern recognition by the neural network can be effective.
A final difficulty with conventional hardware-based neural networks is that if a digital implementation is preferred for greater efficiency, the flexibility in implementing accurate neural response characteristics is limited. For example, it may be desirable that a neuron has a sigmoidal response to the weighted sum of inputs. However, any desire to improve the accuracy of the sigmoidal response function necessitates a higher number of digital bits to represent the digital number, thereby increasing the complexity and the cost of the hardware-based neural network.
It would be desirable to provide an apparatus which provides maximum flexibility for constructing diverse neural networks. It would also be desirable to provide fast network processing times and to minimize the cost of the IC chip by reducing the area of the die.
Further, it would be desirable to provide an apparatus which implements a neural network while enabling flexible learning of the neural network as well as fast, efficient data transfer into the neural network.
Finally, it would be desirable to provide an apparatus which performs complex neuron response functions with high resolution and which is implemented economically.


In a printhead having an element substrate on which a digital circuit including a printing element and a drive circuit for driving the printing element in accordance with input print data, and an analog circuit including a detection circuit for obtaining information, a voltage generation circuit for generating the voltage for driving the analog circuit when the value of the voltage for driving the digital circuit is different from that of the analog circuit is arranged on the element substrate, and when the voltage for driving the digital circuit is actually different from that of the analog circuit, only the voltage for driving the digital circuit is externally supplied except a power supply voltage for the printing element, thereby simplifying the overall arrangement.

In a conventional printing apparatus according to an inkjet scheme using thermal energy, the electrothermal transducer (heater) and a drive circuit therefor in a mounted printhead are formed on a single substrate using a semiconductor process, as disclosed in, e.g., EP A2 532877. A technique of forming, on the same substrate, an element for detecting substrate states such as a substrate temperature, resistance value distribution state, and a variation in characteristic of the drive circuit has also been proposed.
As an example in which a circuit block for detecting a substrate temperature is formed on a single substrate, EP 0980758 A proposes a printhead with a circuit formed on an element substrate, which outputs temperature information as a digital signal. In the circuit arrangement formed on the element substrate, digital circuits such as an inverter or a shift-register and analog circuits such as a comparator are mixed.
Components used for these analog circuits are generally designed for use at a power supply voltage of 5 V to sufficiently exhibit its characteristic. However, an inverter or shift register is a digital circuit and basically operates in accordance with a Hi/Lo pulse. An application pulse for a print information interface of the printhead or heater drive is also a digital signal. Signal transmission/reception to/from an external device is done in accordance with a Hi/Lo logic pulse.
Conventionally, the amplitude of a logic pulse used in these circuits and external signal generation circuits is generally 0 V/5 V. As a result, a single power supply voltage of 5V can be used for both the analog circuits and the digital circuits.
Recently, micropatterning for an MPU (microprocessor) or gate array manufactured by a semiconductor process is becoming more popular, and the power supply voltage to be used also tends to be lower. Even for a digital circuit used in an external signal generation unit of a printhead, a power supply voltage of 3.3 V is becoming popular in recent years.
Consequently, a demand has arisen for a semiconductor substrate for a printhead, which has power supply voltage as low as 3.3 V. A digital circuit portion can be driven at a low voltage by, e.g., micropatterning a transistor in the circuit. However, for an analog circuit portion, it is difficult to reduce the drive voltage without changing the circuit arrangement. To reduce the drive voltage of an analog circuit, the circuit must be re-designed. In addition, use of a specific component is also necessary to prevent the characteristic from degrading.
For this reason, in a case where the power supply voltage for the digital circuit is made to 3,3V, a digital circuit uses a power supply voltage of 3.3 V, and an analog circuit uses a power supply voltage of 5 V. Since different power supply voltages are required, the semiconductor substrate of a printhead should be designed to receive two types of power supply voltages from external circuits. This increases the cost and complexes the system configuration, resulting in disadvantages from the viewpoint of space saving or energy saving (power consumption).

Printhead having digital circuit and analog circuit, and printing apparatus using the same


Methods and apparatus are disclosed for removing catalyst, absorbents and other materials from a reactor, guard bed, or other refinery or petrochemical vessel via a robotic or remotely operated device. A vacuum hose is connected to the device for removing the material from the vessel for ex-situ regeneration or disposal. The device moves around on the surface of the catalyst using motorized screws that grip to the catalyst material. The device is powered by hydraulic, pneumatic or electric motors attached to the frame of the device with supply and return hoses extending in and out of the vessel in line with the vacuum hose.

Catalytic reactors and absorbent dryers are used throughout the oil refining and petrochemical industry primarily to alter the chemistry of hydrocarbon products or to remove particulates. The liquid or gas flows through a catalyst bed which brings about a reaction in the fluid components. Over time the catalyst will become deactivated due to the build-up of coke and other phenomena, which steadily causes a reduction in reaction efficiency. The catalyst needs to be removed for regeneration or replacement which, depending on the service, might be as often as twice per year but typically lines up with scheduled equipment turnarounds every four to five years.
Many reactors require inert conditions throughout the catalyst unloading process due to the risks associated with pyrophoric scale. This refers to finely-divided metal sulphides and reduced metals that oxidize spontaneously in air and can combust leading to fire. Inert conditions are achieved via a constant nitrogen purge through the vessel.
The conventional practice within the industry is to unload catalyst containing hazardous materials in a nitrogen atmosphere using specialty catalyst contractors that are equipped with dedicated fresh air systems. Most catalyst change-outs will require multiple people to be within the reactor using breathing apparatus with at least one person directing the end of a large vacuum hose and the other breaking apart agglomerated sections. The catalyst vacuuming process is a dangerous activity, having led to a number of fatalities resulting from asphyxiation, exposure to heat and falling from heights. If the amount of time that people spend inside the vessel during catalyst change-out can be reduced significantly then the probability of death or injury will also reduce significantly.
An alternative approach to inert entry vacuum unloading is full reactor water flooding however this has a number of drawbacks. The main advantage of water flooding is that it provides an alternative to inert entry. The main disadvantages are that it prevents re-use of the catalyst, adds time to the unloading process and adds significant costs associated with contaminated water handling.

Device for removing catalyst and other material from refinery and petrochemical reactors and other vessels


Apparatus and associated methods relate to a vibrational sensing system (VSS) including an accelerometer and a data processor, which determines an “operational state” of a mechanical drive unit, the processor further employing the “operational state” to gate learning of long-term vibrational data to exclude collection of non-operational data, the long-term data collected to calculate alarm thresholds. For example, vibrations from a target motor are sensed by a coupled accelerometer. Vibrational data from the accelerometer is fed into a data processor which determines the operational state of the motor. The operational state (e.g., on/off indication) may gate data collection such that data is only acquired during on-time, which may advantageously create accurate baselines from which alarm thresholds may be generated, and nuisance alarms may be avoided.

Various mechanical drive units are employed in industry for a variety of reasons. For example, conventional rotary motors may be employed to move products through manufacturing, to move air, to perform various machining such as cutting, drilling, grinding, and to drive various processes such as stirring, lifting and pumping. In some examples, linear motors may be employed to move various cams and shafts, or to perform various machining such as sanding and shaving. Mechanical drive units such as motors and various vibrating machines may perform a variety of other useful tasks. In some examples, electronic control units may control the operational state of machines containing mechanical drive units.
Motors and other machines may produce vibrational motion as a side effect of their operation. Vibrations may be caused by slight imperfections in the components making up the machine or motors. For example, various bearings within rotating motors may contain imperfections or may wear over time. These imperfections may also lead to various vibrational behavior. In some examples, the vibrations may be at the rotational frequency of the motor(s).
Some machines may contain multiple motors running simultaneously or running intermittent duty (cycling on/off). The on/off cycling of motors within a machine may be uncorrelated. In some industries, motors employed on the factory floor(s) may run uninterrupted for hours, and some may be idle for hours. Some motors may be located in remote, difficult-to-access areas.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Vibrational alarms facilitated by determination of motor on-off state in variable-duty multi-motor machines


A window shade is stored on a storage roller mounted beneath a vehicle window opening. A trim panel has a slot through which the window shade may be unwound and raised to a use position shading the window. One or more hooks are attached to the window shade to engage with mating hook retainers at the top of the window opening to retain the window shade in its raised position. The lowered position of the window shade is established by the hook being engaged with a corresponding hook retainer on the trim panel. A finger grip is pivotally mounted on the upper end of the window shade so that the finger grip can have a predetermined pivotal position corresponding to the lowered position of the window shade and a different pivotal position when the window shade is in the raised position.

It is known in vehicles, particularly in the rear door window, to provide a window shade that the occupant may deploy to overlie the inside of the window panel. The window shade may be used to limit the intrusion of the sun into the vehicle or to provide privacy for the vehicle occupant. Such window shades are fashioned of a flexible material such as cloth, vinyl or plastic that is either opaque or translucent. A storage roller is mounted on the vehicle door adjacent the lower edge of the window opening. The storage roller is preferably concealed beneath a trim panel of the vehicle and the window shade can be deployed by lifting the top edge of the window shade upwardly as permitted by unrolling of the flexible window shade material from the storage roller. The window shade is retained in its raised position by having a hook or hooks mounted on the top edge of the window shade for engagement into a mating hook retainer or hook retainers provided at the top of the window opening.
In order to facilitate the raising of the window shade by the occupant, a handle is fixedly attached to the top edge of the window shade and projects towards the seated occupant to be gripped by the occupant. The handle also serves as a stop to limit the lowering movement of the window shade by having the handle engage with the trim panel at the bottom of the window opening.


An isomer, enantiomer, diastereoisomer or tautomer of a compound, represented by formula I:

About 30,000 new cases of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection are estimated to occur in the United States each year (Kolykhalov, A. A.; Mihalik, K.; Feinstone, S. M.; Rice, C. M.; 2000; J. Virol. 74: 2046–2051). HCV is not easily cleared by the hosts' immunological defences; as many as 85% of the people infected with HCV become chronically infected. Many of these persistent infections result in chronic liver disease, including cirrhosis and heptocellular carcinoma (Hoofnagle, J. H.; 1997; Hepatology 26: 15S–20S*). There are an estimated 170 million HCV carriers worldwide, and HCV-associated end-stage liver disease is now the leading cause of liver transplantation. In the United States alone, hepatitis C is responsible for 8,000 to 10,000 deaths annually. Without effective intervention, the number is expected to triple in the next 10 to 20 years. There is no vaccine to prevent HCV infection. Prolonged treatment of chronically infected patients with interferon or interferon and ribavirin is the only currently approved therapy, but it achieves a sustained response in fewer than 50% of cases (Lindsay, K. L.; 1997; Hepatology 26: 71S–77S*, and Reichard, O.; Schvarcz, R.; Weiland, O.; 1997 Hepatology 26: 108S–111S*).
HCV belongs to the family Flaviviridae, genus hepacivirus, which comprises three genera of small enveloped positive-strand RNA viruses (Rice, C. M.; 1996; "Flaviviridae: the viruses and their replication"; pp. 931–960 in Fields Virology; Fields, B. N.; Knipe, D. M.; Howley, P. M. (eds.); Lippincott-Raven Publishers, Philadelphia, Pa.*). The 9.6 kb genome of HCV consists of a long open reading frame (ORF) flanked by 5′ and 3′ non-translated regions (NTR's). The HCV 5′ NTR is 341 nucleotides in length and functions as an internal ribosome entry site for cap-independent translation initiation (Lemon, S. H.; Honda, M.; 1997; Semin. Virol. 8: 274–288). The HCV polyprotein is cleaved co- and post-translationally into at least 10 individual polypeptides (Reed, K. E.; Rice, C. M.; 1999; Curr. Top. Microbiol. Immunol. 242: 55–84*). The structural proteins result from signal peptidases in the N-terminal portion of the polyprotein. Two viral proteases mediate downstream cleavages to produce non-structural (NS) proteins that function as components of the HCV RNA replicase. The NS2–3 protease spans the C-terminal half of the NS2 and the N-terminal one-third of NS3 and catalyses cis cleavage of the NS2/3 site. The same portion of NS3 also encodes the catalytic domain of the NS3–4A serine protease that cleaves at four downstream sites. The C-terminal two-thirds of NS3 is highly conserved amongst HCV isolates, with RNA-binding, RNA-stimulated NTPase, and RNA unwinding activities. Although NS4B and the NS5A phosphoprotein are also likely components of the replicase, their specific roles are unknown. The C-terminal polyprotein cleavage product, NS5B, is the elongation subunit of the HCV replicase possessing RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) activity (Behrens, S. E.; Tomei, L.; DeFrancesco, R.; 1996; EMBO J. 15: 12–22*; and Lohmann, V.; Körner, F.; Herian, U.; Bartenschlager, R.; 1997; J. Virol. 71: 8416–8428*). It has been recently demonstrated that mutations destroying NS5B activity abolish infectivity of RNA in a chimp model (Kolykhalov, A. A.; Mihalik, K.; Feinstone, S. M.; Rice, C. M.; 2000; J. Virol. 74: 2046–2051*).
The development of new and specific anti-HCV treatments is a high priority, and virus-specific functions essential for replication are the most attractive targets for drug development. The absence of RNA dependent RNA polymerases in mammals, and the fact that this enzyme appears to be essential to viral replication, would suggest that the NS5B polymerase is an ideal target for anti-HCV therapeutics. WO 00/06529, WO 00/13708, WO 00/10573, WO 00/18231, WO 01/47883, WO 01/85172, WO 02/04425, WO 03/010140 and WO 03/010141 report inhibitors of NS5B proposed for treatment of HCV.

Abstract: wherein A, B, R2, R3, M1, M2, M3, M4, Y1 and Z are as defined in claim 1, or a salt thereof, as an inhibitor of HCV NS5B polymerase


Simultaneous application of ozone and ultraviolet light (UV185 and UV254) in water to be purified will create hydroxyl radicals, which combination will cause conversion of AS (III) that may be present to As (V), oxidation of inorganic matter such as manganese, sulfur, phosphorus and organic matter and provide virucidal and germicidal effects to purify the water.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the removal of arsenic, iron, phosphorus, sulfur, manganese and other dissolved minerals, whether naturally occurring or byproducts of commercial activities and, more particularly, to conversion of arsenic to arsenate and oxidation of other organic and inorganic matter.
2. Description of Related Prior Art
Arsenic occurs naturally in the environment as a heavy metal in two different forms, arsenite [As (III)] and arsenate [As (V)]. Arsenic is released into water supplies from erosion of rocks and soil. The distribution of arsenic in soil, ground water and surface water has extensively been investigated during the past two decades.
Long term exposure is proven to result in health effects, such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and reproductive problems. Nationally, about three thousand or 5.5% of the nation's 54,000 community water systems and 1,100 (or 5.5%) of the twenty thousand non-transient non-community water systems will need to take measures to lower arsenic in their drinking water. Of the affected systems, 97% serve fewer than 10,000 people. While high concentrations of arsenic are found mostly in the western region of the United States, parts of the mid-west and New England show levels of arsenic that exceed the newly approved U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standard of ten (10) parts per billion (ppb). The western states have more systems greater than ten (10) ppb as compared to the national average. Some systems and part of the mid-west and New England have current arsenic levels that are greater than ten (10) ppb but most systems have arsenic levels that range from two (2) to ten (10) ppb of arsenic.
Jan. 23, 2006 was the EPA drinking water compliance deadline for the Revised Arsenic Standard to ten (10) ppb Maximum Contaminant Limit (MCL). The revised standard was issued in light of the myriad of both the short term and long term health effects of ingested arsenic in drinking water. Short or acute effects can occur within hours or days of exposure. Long or chronic effects occur over many years. Long term exposure to arsenic has been linked to cancer of the bladder, lungs, skin, kidneys, nasal passages, liver and prostate. Short term exposure to high doses of arsenic can cause other adverse health effects, but such effects are unlikely to occur from U.S. public water supplies that are in compliance with the arsenic standard.
A variety of technologies have been developed for arsenic removal. All of the technologies rely on a few basic chemical processes. These include:                1. Oxidation/reduction reactions that reduce (add electrons to) or oxidize (remove electrons from) chemicals and altering their chemical form. These reactions do not remove arsenic from solution but are often used to convert the trivalent form of arsenic (As III) to the pentavalent form (As V). The latter form is much less toxic and is more readily removed via precipitation, ion exchange and adsorption than is the former.        2. Precipitation: causing dissolved arsenic to form a low solubility solid mineral, such as calcium arsenate. This solid can then be removed through sedimentation and filtration. When coagulants are added and form flocculants, other dissolved compounds such as arsenic can become insoluble and form solids which is known as co-precipitation. The solids formed may remain suspended and require removal through solid/liquid separation processes, typically coagulation and filtration.        3. Adsorption and ion exchange: various solid materials, including iron, titanium and aluminum hydroxide flocculants, have a strong affinity for dissolved arsenic. Arsenic is strongly attracted to sorption sites on the surfaces of these solids and is effectively removed from solution. Ion exchange can be considered as a special form of adsorption, though it is often considered separately. Ion exchange involves a reversible displacement of an ion adsorbed into a solid surface by a dissolved ion. Other forms of adsorption involve stronger bonds and are less easily reversed.        4. Solid/liquid separation: precipitation, co-precipitation, adsorption and ion exchange all transfer the contaminant from the dissolved to a solid phase. In some cases the solid is large and fixed (e.g. grains of ion exchange resin) and no solid/liquid separation is required. If the solids are formed in situ (through precipitation or coagulation), they must be separated from the water. Gravity settling (also called sedimentation) can accomplish some of this but filtration is more effective. More commonly, sand filters are used for this purpose.        5. Physical exclusion: some synthetic membranes are permeable to certain dissolved compounds but exclude others. These membranes can act as a molecular filter to remove dissolved arsenic, along with many other dissolved and particulate compounds.        6. Biological removal processes: bacteria can play an important role in catalyzing many of the above processes. Relatively little is known about the potential for biological removal of arsenic from water. While all of these techniques have merit, some of the most effective approaches involve oxidation. In March 2001, Ganesh Ghurye and Dennis Clifford of the University of Houston studied seven different oxidants for the removal of arsenic in an EPA sponsored study (Contract No. 8C-R311-NAEX) entitled "Laboratory Study on the Oxidation of Arsenic III to Arsenic V".Their conclusions were:        Free chlorine: dissolved manganese, dissolved iron, sulfide, and Total Organic Carbon (TOC) slowed the rate of oxidation slightly but essentially complete oxidation of arsenite As (III) to arsonate As (V) was obtained in less than one minute.        Chloramines: preformed monochloramine was ineffective for As (III) oxidation.        Chlorine dioxide: only limited oxidation was achieved with chlorine dioxide.        Permanganate: dissolved manganese, dissolved iron, sulfide and TOC slowed the rate of oxidation slightly but essentially complete oxidation of As (III) to As (V) was obtained in less than one minute.        Ultraviolet (UV) radiation: UV (254 nm) was not very effective.        Oxidizing media: manganese dioxide media showed effectiveness when dissolved oxygen levels were not limiting. Interfering reductants led to incomplete oxidation.        Ozone: in the absence of interfering reductants, such as sulfide and TOC, ozone rapidly oxidized As (III). TOC had a quenching effect at higher TOC levels but the presence of sulfide considerably slowed the oxidation of As (III).
Ghurye and Clifford reported that ozone performed the best provided that sulfides and organic matter were not present in the water as these compounds created an ozone demand that interfered with the ability of ozone to convert the As (III) to As (V). Ozone is much preferred over chlorine and permanganate if the objective is to reduce chemical use.

Apparatus and method for removing arsenic and inorganic compositions from water


A pivot hinge assembly to pivot glass structures such as shower doors. The assembly includes a first hinge member having a pivot pin projecting therefrom and secured thereto. The pin is generally cylindrical but contains two opposing flat surfaces. The pin protrudes into a bore in a central block which joins two flat plates which clamp the glass between them. The block has four bores which contain pressure assemblies to press on the flat surfaces of the pivot pin and bias the hinge assembly to a closed position.

Glass hinge assemblies are usually of the kind shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,079,798 issued Jan. 14, 1992. Such hinge assemblies are placed on the edges of glass doors and are oriented in a vertical plane, to support the weight of the glass doors. A disadvantage of this type of hinge assembly is that it can exert undue stress on the glass, causing it to crack, and in addition it can be difficult to mount the fixed part of the hinge unless there is a sufficient structural support backing up the fixed part of the hinge. In practice, the fixed part of the hinge is usually attached through tile, marble or artificial stone, and unless there is a structural support behind this material, the fixed part of the hinge will not be adequately secured. In addition, the large hinges located along the height of the door are unsightly.
To deal with this kind of problem, in some cases hinges are placed at the bottom and top of a shower door or the like, with their pivot pins extending vertically toward the top and bottom edges of the door, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,035,957 issued Jul. 19, 1977. With the arrangement shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,035,957, the bottom hinge bears the weight of the door as a compressive force. Thus, the door is not hung on its edge, thereby reducing the likelihood that the door will crack. In addition, there is usually a structural support available below the bottom fixed hinge portion, facilitating installation of the hinges. The hinges being at the top and bottom of the door, are somewhat out of the way visually and are usually less unsightly.
A disadvantage of the kind of hinge shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,035,957 is that it has not in the past been possible to provide in a simple way any self closing or detent features for such hinges. In some cases such hinges have been built with friction drums, but these simply make the door stiffer to open and close and do not provide any self closing forces. Therefore, shower doors which use top and bottom hinges have usually employed gravity forces for self closing. However this makes installation of the door more difficult, since it must be oriented at the correct angle, and in addition a stopper is needed on the door, usually in the form of a magnet or latch. This increases the cost.

Pivot hinge assembly for glass structures


An apparatus of programming an output of a programmable power adapter according to the present invention comprises a control circuit. The method according to the present invention sends a signal to a device. A resistor is coupled to the signal to determine the level of the signal. The resistor is installed in the device. The method according to the present invention checks the level of the signal in the programmable power adapter and determines an output voltage of the programmable power adapter in accordance with the level of the signal. The output voltage of the programmable power adapter is coupled to the device to provide a power for a load of the device.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates the programmable power adapter, and more particularly, relates to a method and an apparatus for selecting the output of the programmable power adapter.
Description of the Related Art
The power adapter has been widely used to provide the power source for electronic products. In conventional techniques, one power adapter only provides a specific power source, which cannot provide programmable power sources for different electronic products. Therefore, the present invention provides a programmable power adapter which provides programmable power sources for different electronic products. Further, the present invention provides a method and an apparatus for selecting the output (power source) of the programmable power adapter. This programmable power adapter can be applied to charge the battery of the mobile device.

Method and apparatus for selecting the output of programmable power adapter


A piece of upholstery fabric for covering three-dimensional supports such as vehicle seat bases and seat backs is machine-knitted, preferably in a mainly double jersey structure, with integral tubular portions. These serve as anchorage devices for securing the fabric piece to the support which it is to cover using rods or tapes which are threaded through the tubular portions. The tubular portions may be located at the margins of the fabric piece and also at intermediate positions where the fabric piece needs to be held down, for example in a depression in the support. They may project from a surface of the fabric piece and may be like loops or they may be in the form of tubular hems or a tube lying between front and rear faces of a double jersey structure.

The usual method of manufacturing a vehicle seat cover involves cutting out shaped pieces of woven fabric intended to make the seat cover and subsequently sewing these pieces together to form the base and back covers, fashioning lines being introduced in some areas of the fabric if necessary. It is also necessary to provide anchorage devices at the edges of the base and back covers to enable attachment of the covers to respective cushions. Usually these anchorage devices take the form of hollow sewn hems through which a retaining member such as a metal rod or a tape can be threaded for securing the cover to the seat frame. An example of this type of arrangement is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,811,199.
If the base and/or back cushions comprise bolsters, it is also necessary to provide anchorage devices, usually in the form of open looped flaps, on the undersurface of the cover, in order to conform the cover to the shape of the upper surface of the cushion. U.S. Pat. No. 2,801,682 shows a loop of fabric formed by a sewing operation on the undersurface of a fabric cover for a vehicle seat. This fabric loop provides an attachment point for tensioning tapes which pass through the seat. upholstery and pull the fabric loop down into the upholstery to define an indented bolster line.
The conventional manufacture of vehicle seat covers from woven fabric using cut and sew techniques both for shaping the cover and providing anchorage devices is labour-intensive, time-consuming and therefore very costly. It is also wasteful in fabric usage.
The stretch properties of knitted fabric have been employed in furniture upholstery to provide stretch covers which, for a basic shape of chair or sofa, can accommodate variations in size and shape of the customer's furniture. Belgian Patent No. 668,983 describes such stretch covers which are formed using sewing techniques both for shaping purposes and for providing sewn hems at the cover edges through which a tie cord can be threaded. Stretch covers of this type, knitted in highly stretchable single jersey fabric, are unsuitable for vehicle seat upholstery because they do not approach the standards in appearance or performance expected of conventional woven fabric covers, in particular being susceptible to distortion and bagging in use.
Recently, it has been found possible to knit one-piece upholstery fabrics which, without the need for sewing portions together, have the desired shapes to serve as covers for the base and back cushions of a vehicle seat. An aim of the present invention is to provide such a piece of knitted upholstery fabric in a form which facilitates its attachment to a three-dimensional support, such as a vehicle seat cushion.
Knitted fabric is characterized by intermeshing loops of yarn. Intermeshing of loops occurs along the wales of knitted fabric from course to course and also along the courses from wale to wale and creates integrity of the structure in both directions.


The present disclosure relates to a hydraulic system for a crane with at least one hydraulic circuit, which comprises at least one hydraulic consumer, and a constant pressure network, wherein the at least one hydraulic circuit is coupled with the constant pressure network via at least one pressure reducer, whereby a higher volume flow with low pressure as compared to the constant pressure network can be generated in the hydraulic circuit.

For operating the hydraulic circuit or the hydraulic consumer a corresponding feed pressure is required. In general, a hydraulic pump generates the appropriate feed pressure by sucking in hydraulic fluid from the tank and providing the feed pressure for operating the hydraulic consumer at its outlet.
Depending on the application, a certain pressure level or a defined volume flow is required for the operation of the hydraulic consumer.
Such application exists in operation of a heave compensation device, also referred to as Active Heave Compensation. Here, it is intended to keep the load steady during the hoisting work despite the heave during deep-sea hoisting. Via the compensation device, the actuation of the hoisting winch is intervened in for this purpose.
The object of the present disclosure aims to develop such hydraulic system, in order to optimize the energy balance of the system by targeted measures.
This object is solved by a hydraulic system for a crane with at least one hydraulic circuit and a constant pressure network. At least one hydraulic circuit includes a hydraulic consumer. For optimizing the energy balance of the entire system, it is provided in accordance with the present disclosure that the required feed pressure for the hydraulic consumer is not generated by a feed pump, but instead the at least one hydraulic circuit is coupled with the constant pressure network via at least one pressure reducer.
Such pressure reducer expediently comprises at least one input and at least one output, wherein via the pressure reducer the pressure and/or volume flow present at the respective connecting points is variable.
Via the pressure reducer a low volume flow with high pressure within the constant pressure network can be convertible into a high volume flow with low pressure within the hydraulic circuit. Hence, the use of a feed pump can be omitted, since the required high volume flow in the hydraulic circuit can be supplied exclusively by the pressure reducer. This measure according to the present disclosure is advantageous in particular where a constant pressure network is installed anyway and the use of the pressure reducer renders the integration of an additional pump superfluous.
In an advantageous embodiment, the pressure reducer comprises at least two interconnected pistons with a suitable ratio of the piston surfaces. In particular, the piston with a smaller piston surface is coupled to the constant pressure network, whereas the large piston surface of the second piston is connected with the hydraulic circuit. By a suitable choice of the surface ratio, the conversion ratio and the volume flow to be achieved can selectively be taken into account.
Furthermore, it can be provided that upon reversal of the flow direction in the hydraulic circuit by which the pressure reducer a power output to the constant pressure network becomes possible. For example when a volume flow is generated at the input of the pressure reducer on the side of the hydraulic circuit, the piston unit is shifted in direction of the constant pressure network and on this side generates a low volume flow with high pressure level.
A reversal of the volume flow in the hydraulic circuit becomes possible for example in that a part of the volume flow or pressure is stored in normal operation. For this purpose, at least one pressure accumulator can be arranged in the hydraulic circuit. When the accumulator releases the stored pressure energy, the volume flow in the hydraulic circuit is reversed, so that this pressure energy can be released back to the constant pressure network via the pressure reducer.
At least one pressure storage device can be a fluid storage device, gas storage device or a storage device for other media. For example, the storage device may be an accumulator. When the form of accumulator does not correspond to the hydraulic fluid used, an air-oil actuator can be incorporated before the accumulator. For example, the storage device may be designed as air pressure accumulator and the pressure energy of the hydraulic fluid is convertible into the corresponding air pressure level via the air-oil actuator.
As hydraulic consumer a hydraulic motor expediently can be used, which may be operable in both flow directions. Hence, the hydraulic motor can be operated in a first direction of rotation by the volume flow generated via the pressure reducer and in an opposite direction of rotation via the stored energy of the storage means.
In a particular embodiment of the present disclosure, a crane cable winch, in particular a deep-sea hoisting cable winch, can be driven via the at least one hydraulic circuit or the hydraulic motor. The hydraulic motor is operated for realizing an active heave compensation whose task is to compensate the heave or heave.
By using a pressure reducer, the hydraulic fluid can be pushed back and forth between the same and possibly an arranged accumulator, which is employed in particular in the operating mode Active Heave Compensation or in similar cyclic operating modes. By the hydraulic system according to the present disclosure, the tank circulation rate can be reduced considerably. In addition, the system is characterized by a particularly efficient energy recovery.
The present disclosure furthermore relates to a crane which includes the hydraulic system according to the present disclosure or an advantageous embodiment of the hydraulic system. The advantages and properties of the crane quite obviously correspond to those of the hydraulic system, so that a renewed description will be omitted at this point.
The crane can include a deep-sea hoisting cable winch which is supplied by a hydraulic drive. In particular, a closed hydraulic circuit with at least one hydraulic motor serves to put the hoisting cable winch in rotation for carrying out a winding or unwinding movement. In addition, the crane can comprise a constant pressure network, which can be supplied by a central hydraulic pump and is used for feeding one or more hydraulic consumers, in particular various crane components.
Furthermore, the crane includes a hydraulic circuit according to the hydraulic system in accordance with the present disclosure. The integrated hydraulic motor can be part of a heave compensation device. The winch here is driven separately by the hydraulic motor, in order to be able to compensate the heave during the actual hoisting work.
Further advantages and details of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to two drawings.