A mobile phone has a cover, a body and a hinge. The cover has a first bearing with a first cavity. The body has a second bearing with a second cavity and a locking plate at two opposite corners thereof. The hinge includes a transverse shaft being inserted in the first cavity, a vertical shaft extending perpendicularly from one end of the transverse shaft and being inserted in the second cavity, and a locking mechanism being inserted in the first cavity and fixed on the other end of the transverse shaft. The locking mechanism can lock with the locking plate to make the cover be stacked on the body stably. Furthermore, the cover can be firstly rotated vertically 180 degrees about the transverse shaft and then rotated horizontally 180 degrees about the axis of the vertical shaft to make the cover and the body be arranged side by side.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a hinge, and more particularly, to a hinge adapted to be used in a mobile phone and a mobile phone using the hinge.
2. The Related Art
At present, media mobile phones are popularized. A user can watch a video, play a game and surf Internet by the media mobile phone. In order to carry conveniently for the user, the size of the media mobile phone is often small. Therefore the size of the display panel of the media mobile phone is also small. This is inconvenient for the user to use.
In order to increase the size of the display panel and carry conveniently, a prior media mobile phone disclosed in Pub. No. US2004/0192422 by Watanable et al., published on Sep. 30, 2004, includes a cover and a base. A hinge connects the cover with the base pivotally for opening or closing the media mobile phone. Hence, when the media mobile phone is not in use, the cover is overlapped on the base for being carried conveniently. A display panel is arranged on the cover for increasing its size.
The hinge has a mount. A first transverse shaft and a second transverse shaft extend from opposite sides of the mount, and the two transverse shafts are coupled with the cover pivotally. A vertical shaft extends from the mount perpendicular to the transverse shafts and is supported in the middle of one end of the base rotatably around the center axial thereof.
According to the foregoing description, the transverse shafts only connect with the cover when the cover is stacked on the base, and the cover may shake relatively to the base. As a result, the cover and the base can not be stacked together stably. Furthermore, the transverse shafts and the vertical shaft have a T-shape, the vertical shaft thus can only be fixed in the middle of one end of the base and, as a result, the cover can only be stacked on the base, but can not be opened side by side with the base.


A method for calculating a response time is described. The response time is required in order to direct the attention of a vehicle's driver at the traffic on the road. The driver is monitored by sensors and a state of attentiveness of the driver is ascertained. The state of attentiveness is used to calculate a value, to which an anticipated response time is assigned. Further a method for operating a motor vehicle, a computer program product and a correspondingly equipped motor vehicle are described.

It is known that long drives in a motor car are tiring. Over time a driver's concentration level drops. A decline in concentration may lead to potentially hazardous traffic situations not being recognized or judged correctly. Also traffic situations may be misinterpreted leading to the wrong reaction as regards car control.
Fatigue warning systems are known from the art, which assess the alertness of a driver using a variety of criteria. Among others it is known to detect and electronically evaluate eye, pupil and/or eyelid movements of the driver by means of cameras, and on this basis to draw conclusions as to the driver's state of alertness. A warning can then be emitted in the form of an acoustic signal, a graphical display or vibration of a vehicle interface e.g. the steering wheel.
Furthermore, modern vehicles are frequently equipped with driver assistance systems. Such driver assistance systems may, for example, include an automatic longitudinal speed regulation, frequently called adaptive cruise control, which is capable of automatically maintaining the distance to the preceding motor vehicle. To this end, the assistance system may interact alternately with the accelerator and the brake. Also lane assist systems are frequently installed in current motor vehicles. Lane assistance systems prevent the vehicle from inadvertently leaving the lane by interfering with the steering mechanism. These systems too are contributors to safety.
The afore-mentioned systems ease the burden on the driver, but may contribute to the driver not maintaining his situational awareness of the current traffic conditions on the road.
For some time now work has been going on to develop motor vehicles which are operated completely automatically. Such motor vehicles are intended to drive from a current location of the motor vehicle to a target location without any intervention on the part of the driver, wherein dangerous situations are automatically detected.
It is, however, feasible that for safety reasons in extreme situations, control of the motor vehicle is to be handed over to the driver. It is also feasible that automatic driving could be restricted to certain zones and would not be permitted outside these zones. In urban regions, for example, where the number of road users of all categories is high including motor vehicle drivers, cyclists, pedestrians etc., automatic driving could be prohibited. Then it must be ensured that even with motor vehicles equipped with such automatic systems, drivers must always be in control in such zones.
During times in which the vehicle drives autonomously, the driver of the motor vehicle may occupy himself with other things. For example, a driver might read, listen to music, watch a film or make a telephone call. While such activities are going on, the driver might not pay attention to what is happening on the road. If, however, the driver has to assume control of the motor vehicle, for example when the driver is approaching a self-drive zone or is about to enter a potentially hazardous situation, he or she must be alerted to this fact. Depending on the current activity of the driver, it may take a certain amount of time until he or she has concentrated attention on the traffic and becomes aware of the situation before he or she can take over control of the motor vehicle. Therefore, a warning must be issued in advance in good time.


A surgical clip includes a first clamping arm and a second clamping arm rotatably coupled to each other and prestressed against each other into a closed position by a spring in the rotational direction, a first housing part being formed or arranged on the first clamping arm and a second housing part being formed or arranged on the second clamping arm, the housing parts forming a housing in which the spring is received.

Surgical clips are medical instruments or implants which are temporarily used for pinching off or closing tissue perforations or are employed as vessel clamps for a medical long-term care for e.g. aneurysms. A multitude of different clips is known, for instance in the form of jaw-like clips in which the clamp or clip branches are formed to be curved in longitudinal direction similar to the upper and lower jaw and are coupled to each other at their two ends via a hinge.
Another example is represented by slim, elongated clips similar to conventional pliers, comprising two opposite clamping arms (branches) which are provided with teeth or a fluting and have their ends coupled to each other in the manner of a hinge.
The clips according to the prior art usually have two jaw parts coupled to each other in hinge-like fashion, said jaw parts each forming a clamping portion (in the following also referred to as a clamping arm or branch) and an operating portion. Further, the clips basically comprise a spring assembly which serves for preloading the clip into its closed position and brings about a clamping force which is exerted by the clip branches or clamping arms. There are clips in which the spring assembly is a separate component cooperating with the jaw parts of the clip, as well as clips in which the spring assembly is an integral component of the clip or of the jaw parts.
Aneurysm clips are known in which the branches or clamping arms are preloaded against each other by means of a U-shaped leg spring. The legs of such a leg spring either engage the clamping arms directly from outside or laterally and compress them, or they engage operating portions each prolonging the clamping arms in the longitudinal direction of the clip and compress them or pull them apart, depending on whether the jaw parts intersect or are parallel in the hinge area.
However, the use of a leg spring results in some disadvantages. Leg springs, in particular those comprising an energy storage means which is wound in spiral shape, usually require a comparably expensive and complex manufacture. In particular during the winding process, it has to be ensured that there is no cracking in the spring material. An excessive level of winding the leg spring is to be avoided, too, as otherwise the pressing force between the clamping arms may be reduced. All in all, the manufacture of leg springs requires a high level of precision in order to manufacture instruments whose attributes such as pressing force, durability, operational safety etc. are within a narrow range of tolerance.
A further problem in using leg springs is the provision of a reproducible pretensioning force. The leg spring has to be designed and dimensioned such that a predetermined pretensioning force is acted upon the clamping portions. This is decisive for the achievable maximum closing force. With predefined dimensions of the clip, it may be problematic to achieve the desired closing force which can be obtained at least a lot of times only with high efforts. It may also happen that there is a plastic deformation of the spring area, in particular in the case of a low number of windings or with a pure U-shape of the leg spring, with the number of windings ranging between 0.5 and 2 depending on the available installation space.
As a leg spring is usually arranged so as to be asymmetric relative to the branches of the clip or to its clamping arms, it may disadvantageously happen that frictional forces occur between the branches or clamping arms and the legs of the spring which cooperate with them. This results in a reduction of the maximum achievable closing force. In addition, the asymmetric arrangement may have the effect that the clamping arms of the clip do not open and close in parallel fashion. A further disadvantage is that there usually is only a linear contact between the legs of the spring and the branches.
From DE 10 2011 055 094 A1 an aneurysm clip is known which comprises a first jaw part including a clamping arm, a fork portion being formed on one proximal end region of said clamping arm. The clip further comprises a second jaw part comprising a clamping arm on whose proximal end a spiral spring is formed. The latter is inserted in the fork portion of the first jaw part and guided therein in such a manner that it is coupled to the fork portion in a torque-proof manner. This usage of a spiral spring avoids some of the afore-mentioned disadvantages of leg springs. However, the leg spring comes into contact with body tissue with this sort of clip as well as with the previously described clips, so that the material of the spring has to meet the same demands with respect to body compatibility and hygiene than the material of the jaw parts.

Surgical clip, in particular aneurysm clip


A pump for circulating water includes an upper housing 10 formed with an inlet 11 and an outlet 12 of fluid; a lower housing 20 arranged in a lower side of the upper housing 10, having a space formed therein; an inner housing 30 having an edge part interposed between the upper housing 10 and the lower housing 20, and an impeller receiving space 31 formed in a middle part; an impeller 50 received inside the upper housing 10 and in the impeller receiving space 31 to be rotatably installed; a rotor 60 installed inside an outer circumference of the impeller 50; a spring 65 installed between a lower surface of the impeller and the inner housing; and a stator 70 installed inside the lower housing 20.

In general, the pump for circulating water used for a heating mat, etc. is disclosed in prior art, Korean Patent No. 10-1204344. This patent reference provides a technology of rotating an impeller installed with a rotor by the electromagnetic induction between a stator and the rotor to introduce fluid (water) to the inlet of the lower part of the reservoir, discharging the fluid (water) through a pathway between the wing piece of an impeller body and the upper cover of the impeller by pumping, and delivering the introduced fluid along a discharge line via an outlet to a place of use such as a heating mat, etc. through a connecting line after heating the fluid by a heating means.
In particular, in the prior art, a plurality of discharge holes vertically penetrating the impeller that is interconnected with the flow pathway are formed so that the fluid in the flow pathway formed between the outer surface of the impeller body and the impeller receiving space of the inner housing is discharged upwards.
Therefore, according to the prior art, during the pumping action of the impeller, part of the water (part of the fluid) discharged through the pathway between the wing piece and the impeller upper cover and air included therein are smoothly discharged upwards while being introduced into the flow pathway formed between the outer surface of the impeller body and the impeller receiving space of the inner housing and the discharge holes vertically penetratingly formed through the impeller body. Thus, since cavitation does not occur in the flow pathway even during high speed rotation of the impeller, water is circulated smoothly. Also, since the rise of the impeller is prevented, the vibration or noise can be blocked which is generated from the contact with the inner surface of the upper housing or adjacent parts because of the rise of the impeller.
According to the structure of the prior art, no big problems arise when the impeller operates in a normal state, since the water in the flow pathway is discharged smoothly. However, the pump for circulating water according to the prior art is mainly used for a heating mat. The heating mat is usually used during sleeping. Thus, it is not necessary to circulate water all the time to maintain the temperature at a value pre-set by a user, and when the water is circulated at a temperature higher than the set value, it is required to stop water circulation for a certain period of time to maintain the temperature at the set value.
When the pump for circulating water stops operating for a certain period of time to control water circulation, air may be introduced into the flow pathway again. During the transition state where the pump for circulating water re-operates because of the air, unpleasant noise is generated when the air is discharged from the flow pathway, which is similar to the noise generated when water runs down the drain. This noise disturbs comfortable sleep of the user of the heating mat.
In order to resolve the problem, the present inventors suggest a pump for circulating water with a new structure.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Pump for circulating water to prevent noise during transition state


A stage device includes a table, a first stage movable in a first direction on the table, a first linear motor for driving the first stage, the first linear motor including a movable portion and a stationary portion, a second stage movable in a second direction with respect to the first stage, a second linear motor for driving the second stage, the second linear motor including a movable portion and a stationary portion and a third linear motor for driving the first stage, the third linear motor being disposed between the movable portion of the first linear motor and the first stage.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a stage device for positioning a wafer to be processed or the like in, for example, a semiconductor exposure apparatus, and an exposure apparatus using the stage device, and a method for producing a device.
2. Description of the Related Art
In exposure apparatuses used for producing semiconductors, accurate and quick positioning of, for example, a wafer to be exposed is required. Accordingly, progress is being made in the development of an XY stage (stage device) such as a wafer stage in which a linear motor, serving as a driving section, permits accurate positioning of the wafer and has excellent responsivity.
FIG. 10 is a view showing a general reduction projection type exposure apparatus comprising such components as a wafer stage (XY stage) E used for positioning a wafer W, a projection optical system A disposed thereabove, a reticle stage B, and a light source optical system C. Exposure light from the light source optical system C passes through a reticle on the reticle stage B in order to form an image thereof on the wafer W by means of the projection optical system A, whereby the reticle pattern is transferred onto the wafer W.
The wafer stage E is disposed above a table 110 in order to support the projection optical system A and the reticle stage B, with the body frame D being raised from the table 110. Vibration removal devices H are provided between a base G which supports the table 110 and the floor surface F.
The vibration removal devices H, which flexibly support the table 110, serve to prevent transmission of outside vibration to the wafer stage E and the body frame D.
The position of the wafer stage E is measured using a laser interferometer J, and the measured position is fed back to a control system of the wafer stage E. The light source optical system C is supported by a light source support K which rises directly from a floor surface F.
As shown in FIG. 9, the wafer stage E is an XY stage comprising a Y stage 120 capable of freely reciprocating above the table 110 in the Y-axis direction, an X stage 130 capable of freely reciprocating with respect to the Y stage 120 in the X-axis direction, a pair of Y linear motors 140 for moving the Y stage 120 in the Y-axis direction, and an X linear motor 150 for moving the X stage 130 in the X-axis direction.
The table 110 has an XY guide surface 110a which supports the lower surfaces of the Y stage 120 and the X stage 130 without contacting them through an air pad (not shown) or the like. A Y guide 111 rises from one of the ends in the X-axis direction of the table 110 in order to guide the Y stage 120 in the Y-axis direction. A guide surface 111a of the Y guide 111 and the Y stage 120 are kept separated and apart by means of an air pad (not shown) or the like. Driving both of the Y linear motors 140 causes the Y stage 120 to move above the XY guide surface 110a and along the Y guide 111.
The Y stage 120 is a long frame member comprising a pair of Y sliders 121 and a pair of X guides 122 disposed therebetween. The lower surfaces of the Y sliders 121 face the XY guide surface of the table 110, and are supported without contacting it by means of an air pad (not shown) or the like. One of the Y sliders 121 is longer than the other in the Y-axis direction, with a side surface 121a thereof facing the Y guide surface 111a of the Y guide 111 in order for the slider 121 to be guided without contacting the guide surface 111a through an air pad (not shown) or the like. Each Y slider 121 is integrally connected to a movable or moving element 141 of its associated linear motor 140 by means of a corresponding linking plate 123, and a stator 152 of the X linear motor 150 is fixed to the pair of X guides 122 formed integrally with both of the Y sliders 121.
The X stage 130 is a hollow frame member comprising a pair of top and bottom plates 131 and a pair of side plates 132 disposed at both ends thereof, with both of the X guides 122 of the Y stage 120 and the stator 152 of the X linear motor 150 extending through the hollow portion of the X stage 130. The bottom surface of the bottom plate 131 faces the XY guide surface 110a of the table 110, and is supported without contacting it through an air pad (not shown) or the like. The top surface of the top plate 131 is formed as a surface for holding a wafer (not shown) by attraction.
Inner surfaces 132a of the side plates 132 of the X stage 130 face X guide surfaces 122a corresponding to the outer surfaces of each of the X guides 122 of the Y stage 120 in order to be guided along the guide surfaces 122a without contacting them by means of an air pad (not shown) or the like.
The pair of Y linear motors 140 for moving the Y stage 120 in the Y-axis direction each comprises a moving element 141 and a stator 142. Each moving element 141 is integrally connected to an associated Y slider 121 of the Y stage 120 through its associated linking plate 123, while each stator 142 extends through the opening of its associated Y linear motor. Each stator 142 comprises a row of coils 142a arranged in the Y-axis direction and a support 142b supporting the row of coils 142a. On the other hand, each moving element 141 is a hollow frame member comprising a pair of opposing iron plates 141b for holding multi-polar magnets 141a and a pair of aluminum plates 141c affixed at both ends to its associated pair of iron plates 141b.
Successively switching the direction of current supplied to each of the flat coils of each row of coils 142a of each stator 142 of the Y linear motor 140 produces a thrust in the Y-axis direction in each of the movable elements, causing the Y stage 120 as well as the X stage 130 provided therearound to move in the Y-axis direction.
A movable element 151 of the X linear motor 150, which causes the X stage 130 to move along the X guides 122 of the Y stage 120, is a hollow frame member affixed to the bottom surface of the top plate 131 of the X stage 130. Like the moving element 141 of the Y linear motor 140, the movable element 151 comprises a pair of opposing iron plates for holding a multi-polar magnet 151a and a pair of aluminum plates affixed to both ends of each of the iron plates.
On the other hand, the stator 152 of the X linear motor 150 comprises a row of coils 152a arranged in the X-axis direction and a support 152b for supporting the row of coils 152a. When the direction of current supplied to each of the flat coils of the row of coils 152a is successively switched, each moving element 151 produces a thrust in the X-axis direction, causing the X stage 130 to move along the X guides 122 of the Y stage 120 in the X-axis direction.
The stator 142 of each Y linear motor 140 is integrally connected to the table 110 by fixing the supports 142b supporting their corresponding rows of coils 142a to both ends of the table 110.
However, in this conventional device, as mentioned above, the stator of each Y linear motor is integrally connected to the table so that the reaction force produced as a result of driving each Y linear motor is transmitted to the table. Since the table is supported in a flexible manner through the vibration removal device, the table rocks greatly when a reaction force is exerted thereon, thus changing the reference position of, for example, the laser interferometer which is used to measure the position of the XY stage, resulting in errors in measurements. Such a perturbation on the control system is a great obstacle to achieving quick positioning of the exposure apparatus and improving productivity. In addition, when the projection optical system supported by the table rocks, the exposure apparatus does not permit accurate transfer of the reticle pattern.
Since the stator of the X linear motor is integrally connected to the Y stage, the reaction forced produced in the stator due to the driving of the X linear motor is transmitted from a side surface of each Y slider of the Y stage to the Y guide formed integrally with the table, as a result of which the table rocks greatly, which perturbs the control system, as mentioned above.
In addition, when the X stage or the Y stage moves above the table, the position of the center of gravity of the whole XY stage changes, which tilts the table, thus resulting in such problems as changes in the reference position of the laser interferometer or the like, as mentioned above.

Stage device, exposure apparatus using the same, and device production method


In an internal combustion engine having an electromagnetically driven valve for driving one of an intake valve and an exhasut valve, at least a lubricating oil passage to a head section including a lubricating oil passage to the electromagnetically driven valve is provided independently from other lubricating oil passage such that the lubricating oil for the electromagnetically driven valve is not mixed with the other lubricating oil. A lubricating device is allowed to have a portion where the lubricating oil is commonly used so long as the lubricating oil for the electromagnetically driven valve and the lubricating oil for the other elements are not mixed.

1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to an internal combustion engine and more particularly, to a lubricating oil passage in the internal combustion engine.
2. Description of Related Art
In an internal combustion engine, a cam driven valve has been generally employed for an intake valve and an exhaust valve. Recently, an electromagnetically driven valve has been employed as the intake valve or the exhaust valve in place of the cam driven valve. For example, JP-A-11-36829 discloses a full cam-less structure in which the electromagnetically driven valve is employed as both the intake and the exhaust valves, and lubricating oil is supplied to a portion that slides along with the opening/closing operation of the valve body. JP-A-2001-355417 also discloses the electromagnetically driven valve employed in the internal combustion engine.
The lubricating oil for the intake/exhaust valves is generally supplied from a lubricating oil supply system that supplies the lubricating oil to an engine body such as a piston rod within the cylinder block. If the electromagnetically driven valve is employed in the above-structured internal combustion engine, the drawback may occur as described below.
Required properties of the lubricating oil for the electromagnetically driven valve should be different from those of the lubricating oil supplied to a body of an engine. Accordingly, the common use of the lubricating oil both for the electromagnetically driven valve and the engine body may cause any one of them to be brought into the inappropriate state with respect to its performance. The lubricating oil for the engine body is likely to be degraded under the influence of an operation state of the engine. It is, therefore, not appropriate to use the lubricating oil that has been supplied to the engine body for lubricating the electromagnetically driven valve. In the aforementioned case, that is, the degraded lubricating oil is supplied to the electromagnetically driven valve, it may perform its function inappropriately, thus causing the engine to stop, increasing the power consumption, failing to start the engine at low temperatures, and the like.
JP-A-11-36829 discloses the lubricating oil supply mechanism for supplying the lubricating oil to the portion that slides along with the opening/closing operation of the body of the electromagnetically driven valve in the full cam-less structure. The lubricating oil supply mechanism allows the lubricating oil to be supplied only to the electromagnetically driven valve independently from the supply of the lubricating oil to the engine body.
Meanwhile, in an internal combustion engine with the half cam-less structure having the electromagnetically driven valve as one of the intake or the exhaust valves, and the cam driven valve as the other valve. The above-structured internal combustion engine provides advantageous features of the cost reduction, being substantially equivalent to the fuel efficiency obtained in the full cam-less structure. However, it is necessary to consider the system for supplying two types of the lubricating oil to the cam driven valve and the electromagnetically driven valve as being the intake and the exhaust valves. There is disclosed no lubricating oil supply system employed in the internal combustion engine having the lubricating oil supply device with the half cam-less structure.


This invention discloses novel catalyzed lubricant additives and catalyzed lubricant systems, which contain one or more catalysts, along with optional other additives, wherein the catalysts serve to accelerate the rate and increase the yield of the lubricant bonding reactions between the catalyzed lubricants and the wear surfaces being lubricated.

The present state of the arts are defined and illustrated by many disclosures with respect to the composition, formulation, and performance of lubricant additives, lubricant systems containing solid lubricant additives, the composition and formulation of metal coatings, the composition and formulation of catalysts, and the chemistry and performance of lubricants containing solid lubricant additives, all of which bear some relevance to the invention presented herein. Those disclosures employed as references in this patent application are listed hereinafter.
The references, other than United States Patents, are presented as follows:
L. L. Cao, Y. M. Sun, and L. Q. Zheng, "Chemical Structure Characterization of Boundary Lubrication Film Using X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and Scanning Auger Microprobe Techniques," Wear, 140 (1990), pp 345-357.
Harold Shaub, John Pandosh, Anne Searle, and Stan Sprague, "Mechanism Studies with Special Boundary Lubricant Chemistry," Society of Automotive Engineers, Paper 952475, 1995.
Hal Shaub, John Pandosh, Anne Searle, Stan Sprague, and Martin Treuhaft, "Engine Durability, Emissions and Fuel Economy Studies with Special Boundary Lubricant Chemistry," Society of Automotive Engineers, Paper 941983, 1994.
Keith Perrin, John Pandosh, Anne Searle, Hal Shaub, and Stan Sprague, "Radioactive Tracer Study of Start-Up Wear Versus Steady-State Wear in a 2.3 Liter Engine," Society of Automotive Engineers, Paper 952474, 1995.
The United States Patents which bear particular relevance or are of significant interest with respect to the present patent application are singled out and are cited. See U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,230,654; 2,510,112; 2,993,567; 3,194,762; 3,247,116; 3,314,889; 3,432,431; 3,493,513; 3,505,229; 3,536,624; 3,567,521; 3,592,700; 3,607,747; 3,636,172; 3,640,859; 3,723,317; 3,806,455; 3,909,431; 3,933,656; 3,969,233; 4,029,870; 4,036,718; 4,127,491; 4,224,173; 4,252,678; 4,349,444; 4,465,607; 4,484,954; 4,500,678; 4,584,116; 4,615,917; 4,657,687; 4,770,797; 4,803,005; 4,834,894; 4,857,492; 4,859,357; 4,888,122; 4,892,669; 5,009,963; 5,160,646; 5,350,727; 5,373,986; 5,447,896; 5,460,661.
Properly designed and finished metal wear surfaces exhibit minute ridges or projections which are commonly referred to as "asperities." The asperities are a natural consequence of the metal cutting, machining, and finishing processes. Furthermore, where such wear surfaces are intended to be lubricated with liquid or semisolid lubricants, it is presently a generally accepted belief that the extension of the asperities needs to be approximately 0.1 micrometers (4 micro inches), in order to retain sufficient amounts of liquid or semisolid lubricants to protect against wear. In those cases where the wear surfaces are appropriately designed and are lubricated with liquid or semisolid lubricants, the lubricants will interpose a film between the adjacent wear surfaces and tend to protect against wear. In those instances where the liquid or semisolid film is constantly maintained on the wear surfaces, while the mechanisms being lubricated are in operation, the lubrication regime is referred to as "hydrodynamic lubrication." Hydrodynamic lubrication with properly designed lubricant systems can provide very reliable wear protection for the lubricated wear surfaces. However, in order to achieve a high level of reliability, the liquid or semisolid lubricant film must remain interposed, continuous, and of sufficient thickness between the adjacent wear surfaces, so that direct contact of the wear surfaces is prevented, or at least minimized. The appropriate design of the liquid or semisolid lubricants in providing wear protection will be predicated upon the duty with which the lubricants must contend. The duty may be determined as a function of the adjacent wear surface materials, clearances, the load imposed on the wear surfaces, the relative speed of the wear surfaces, temperatures, pressures, and other related environmental conditions.
In those cases where the wear surfaces requiring lubrication are not submerged in the lubricants, the design of the mechanisms frequently are such that lubrication is dependent upon one or more of the moving wear surfaces dragging, driving, or forcing lubricants into the areas of potential wear. The period that exists following the initial relative movement of the wear surfaces, and prior to the establishment of hydrodynamic lubrication, is referred to as the "boundary period," and the lubrication characteristics that exist during this period are referred to as "boundary lubrication."
The term "boundary" is a term of art in the mechanism and lubrication design fields handed down from an old-time British researcher who once studied journal bearings. He observed that when a shaft ceased rotating within a journal bearing, and came to rest, there was metal-to-metal contact between the shaft and the journal bearing. Thereafter, when the shaft was allowed to begin rotation again, the researcher observed that there was a "boundary period" before the lubricant applied to the journal bearing began to form a film and establish hydrodynamic lubrication.
The term "boundary lubrication," which has its roots in the study conducted by this British researcher, has been used within the Lubrication Industry ever since that time. The term is used to denote the character of lubrication that takes place with respect to adjacent wear surfaces in the time period from start-up until the time at which a continuous film of lubricant is established to effect hydrodynamic lubrication. It also denotes the character of lubrication that takes place from the time of slow down to the point where the lubricant film is lost and relative movement of the adjacent wear surfaces ceases. Boundary lubrication frequently is also associated with mechanisms which are subject to acceleration, including the acceleration due to the abrupt and rapid change of direction while in operation. Presently, the term "boundary lubrication" is often times used to refer to a regime of lubrication that is not entirely hydrodynamic.
The goal of appropriately designed mechanisms, and the programs designed to lubricate those mechanisms, is to establish and maintain a lubricant film between the adjacent wear surfaces of sufficient thickness so as to avoid or at least minimize the contact between the wear surfaces. In addition, it is the goal to minimize the energy required to move the adjacent wear surfaces in the environment of the lubricants. These goals are presently best achieved in the hydrodynamic regime of lubrication by those skilled in the arts of mechanism and lubrication design, by employing lubricants with the lowest possible viscosity permissible, wherein the separation of the adjacent wear surfaces is continuously or satisfactorily maintained.
Unfortunately, all mechanisms requiring lubrication cannot be designed so that they are maintained in a hydrodynamic lubrication regime. This is so for a variety of reasons, such as the reciprocating, or irregular motion of the mechanisms, which results in irregular rates of movement from zero to some maximum value and back to zero all in one cycle of motion. In addition, all lubricated mechanisms must start and stop operation altogether, from time-to-time, which functions produce unsteady state conditions during which periods it is difficult, if not impossible, to maintain hydrodynamic lubrication. Therefore, even though mechanisms may be optimally designed to operate with state of the art hydrodynamic lubrication most of the time, it is probable that the same mechanisms are caused to experience boundary lubrication conditions at various times in their motion or operational cycle, but it is highly probable that the mechanisms will be subjected to boundary lubrication conditions at certain times during their operational life span.
Those knowledgeable of mechanism and lubrication design and operation have long recognized that mechanisms requiring lubrication are prone to suffer a much greater rate of wear during periods of boundary lubrication than during periods of hydrodynamic lubrication, within the present state of the mechanism and lubrication design arts. The relatively high rate of wear during periods of boundary lubrication has been determined to be due to the inordinately high incidence of direct contact between the adjacent wear surfaces. This wear surface contact is most often occasioned by the loss of lubricants due to the mechanisms' acceleration. The acceleration results from simple start-up or shut-down or from rapid change in speed and rapid change in directional movement, such as centrifugal motion, sinusoidal motion, reciprocating motion, etc. This propensity for the loss of lubricant may be exacerbated by decreased lubricant viscosities at elevated operating temperatures, and by the simple gravity drainage of the lubricants away from the wear surfaces of the mechanisms during operation and following shut-down.
Based on the single consideration of minimizing energy dissipation, during hydrodynamic lubrication periods, the state of the lubrication art would mandate the use of the lowest possible viscosity liquid lubricants, that would allow the adjacent wear surfaces to hydroplane past one another, avoiding all direct contact. However, because of the inevitable periods of boundary lubrication, the relatively low viscosity liquid lubricants are known to be inadequate, without other additives, to also minimize the mechanisms' rates of wear. The present state of the art solution to this lubrication dichotomy is to employ relatively low viscosity liquid lubricants with solid lubricants suspended therein, or preferably with finely divided solid lubricant particles combined with liquid or semisolid lubricant bases, and do so in such a manner as to create colloidal systems, stable under all operating conditions.
In addition to the large number of laudable liquid and semisolid lubricants which are presently known to the lubricant art, there are solid lubricants which distinguish themselves by virtue of their relatively low coefficients of friction along with their special structural or special chemical characteristics, or both. Some of the solid lubricants which have found favor, exhibit laminar lattice structures, such as molybdenum disulfide and graphite. These structural features result in relatively low coefficients of friction, when these materials are utilized in lubricant applications. Other solid lubricants such as the various organic polymers, compounds of ethers, compounds of fatty acids and carbon, calcium, barium and lithium fluorides also exhibit relatively low coefficients of friction. In addition, these solid lubricants generally are less influenced than liquid lubricants by the adverse effects of temperature changes, in that they tend to not readily drain or be thrown from the wear surfaces being lubricated. Furthermore, in many cases solid lubricants are adsorbed, absorbed, or chemically bonded to the wear surface, frequently providing satisfactory lubrication when and where liquid lubricants alone would not do so.
The appropriately designed lubricant systems, containing solid lubricants, shall have the solid lubricants evenly distributed throughout the lubricant base media, again, preferably in stable colloidal systems, and the solid particles shall be sufficiently small as to pass readily through all of the lubrication galleries and filters, and easily gain entry to all of the interstices of the mechanisms, which the lubricant systems are designed to lubricate.
The solid lubricants generally employed as additives to liquid or semisolid base lubricants commonly pass through a series of steps whereby they are first adsorbed on the wear surfaces of the mechanisms being lubricated. Thereafter, the solid lubricants are generally absorbed within the wear surfaces, and in some cases the solid lubricants ultimately react and chemically bond to the wear surfaces to form persistent, durable films, which exhibit relatively low coefficients of friction. These three steps are deemed to be part of the comprehensive bonding reaction herein. At such time as the solid lubricants have bonded to the wear surfaces, they are expected to provide adequate lubrication during boundary lubrication periods, sufficient to prevent or reduce wear.
Some of the solid lubricants presently in service and/or proposed for service are: polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE); Teflon.RTM. (PTFE); perfluoropolyether oxide; ethylene polymers; propylene polymers; fluorophenylene polymers; perfluoropolyether; polyol monoesters of fatty acids; amides of fatty acids; sulfurized fats and esters; molybdenum sulfur compounds; metallic soaps of fatty acids; graphite; carbon fluoride; carbon fluoride chloride; barium fluoride; calcium fluoride; and lithium fluoride. It is probable that not all of these solid lubricants are capable of progressing through the three steps cited above to reach the state where the solid lubricants are bonded to the wear surfaces. In fact, solid lubricants can be divided conveniently into two groups: unbonded solid lubricants and bonded solid lubricants.
The unbonded solid lubricants are sometimes directly applied to the surfaces to be lubricated, usually in the form of a powder, and adhere thereto by some degree of mechanical or molecular action. However, the solid lubricants in this category are, by definition, not physically or chemically bonded to the surfaces being treated in such a manner. Consequently, the properties of the solid lubricants and the fact that they are adherent but unbonded will generally serve to define the performance characteristics for any specific application. Since there is no bonding of the solid lubricants to the surfaces, in the case of unbonded solid lubricants, the potential exists, particularly in load-bearing applications, that such lubricants will be extruded from between the adjacent load-bearing wear surfaces and will not remain in position to provide the desired lubrication performance for any significant period of time. For this reason unbonded solid lubricants are considered to be useful for only nonload-bearing applications or applications where "non-stick" properties are being sought, for example cookware surfaces, cling, and stain resistant surfaces, etc.
The bonded solid lubricants are, by the definition employed herein, attached to the desired wear surfaces, generally by virtue of first adsorption, then absorption, followed thereafter by a chemical bond between the solid lubricants and the wear surfaces. The bonding often times can be effected and accelerated, or both, by the use of adhesives, binders, elevated temperatures, and other materials and techniques in appropriate applications. Generally bonded solid lubricants will present different lubrication characteristics, than those lubrication characteristics exhibited by the same solid lubricants prior to the bonding reactions. However, once the bonded lubricants are firmly affixed to the wear surfaces, they will be more persistent and much less likely to be displaced under load-bearing conditions than the unbonded lubricants. The bonded solid lubricants, in almost every case, will present a bonded interface with the lubricated wear surfaces, which will be very shallow, and as a consequence, the bonded lubricants will tend to disappear as the surfaces are subjected to unavoidable wear action, if the solid lubricants are not otherwise continuously replenished.
Irrespective of the mode of lubrication, it is easy to recognize that even under the best of conditions some wear is likely to take place with respect to adjacent wear surfaces, within the present state of the mechanism and lubrication design arts. It is acknowledged that many of the lubricant systems containing solid lubricants are and can be very effective, if the lubricant systems are maintained in good functional condition, and the lubricants are caused to immediately be self-replenishing, if and when removed from the lubricated wear surfaces.
However, it is known by one skilled in the art, that the solid lubricants contained in state of the art lubricant systems, which are subject to bonding with the wear surfaces, are very slow to effect the bond reactions. This is a significant issue, which in fact serves to diminish or maybe even negate the value of these otherwise meritorious lubricant systems in specific applications.
There is extensive literature available to confirm the function and the merits of various solid lubricants containing lubrication systems, including many of the United States Patent references cited herein. In most every case disclosed in the literature, the lubrication qualities and the wear resistance values measured and presented were derived with respect to newly formed solid lubricant films. Furthermore, general familiarity with the chemistry and physics principles involved would tend to validate the observed and reported results. However, in the actual operation of mechanisms lubricated with lubrication systems containing solid lubricants, it is inevitable that eventually both the unbonded and the bonded solid lubricants will disappear due to extrusion, erosion, corrosion, abrasion, scraping, galling, grinding, volatilization, and normal wear unless they are otherwise continuously replenished. Insofar as more solid lubricants are available in the lubricant systems, it is reasonable to expect that the solid lubricants will reestablish themselves, by again adhering or bonding to the exposed wear surfaces. However, it is known that the adhering or bonding reaction generally takes place at a relatively slow pace in the present state of the art lubricant systems. As a matter of fact, it is not unreasonable to expect that the wear surfaces subject to being lubricated with the solid lubricants are devoid of such lubricants a great deal of the time, perhaps more often than not. Nevertheless, the presence of solid lubricants in the state of the art lubricant systems generally produces a lower rate of wear than those lubricant systems with no solid lubricants present.
One of the most popular solid lubricant additives is polytetrafluoroethylene ("PTFE") which is the subject of U.S. Pat. No. 2,230,654. Since the time of U.S. Pat. No. 2,230,654, PTFE has been recognized to be a bondable solid lubricant having superior lubricating properties, primarily because of its exceptionally low coefficient of friction, and its apparent penchant to resist the adherence of other materials. Furthermore, PTFE is highly resistant to most forms of chemical attack.
Based on the research work disclosed earlier by L. L. Cao, et al., it was determined that metallic wear surfaces treated with PTFE resulted in a bonded lubrication film that could be qualitatively divided into four layers, including the outermost layer of PTFE. In fact, an oil containing PTFE was subjected to boundary lubrication conditions and when the test was completed the contacting surfaces of the metal test specimens were analyzed using X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and a Scanning Auger Microprobe. The chemical state of the fluorine in the bonded boundary reaction film was shown to display four different chemical structures. The chemical structures and the related binding energies are shown in TABLE 1.
TABLE 1 ______________________________________ Binding Energy, Description Chemical Structure Designation eV ______________________________________ 1. Outermost Layer (--CF.sub.2 --CF.sub.2 --) Polytetrafluoro- 689.72 ethylene 2. Second Layer In (--CFH--CFH--) Polydifluoro- 688.50 ethylene 3. Third Layer In (--CFH--CH.sub.2 --) Polymonofluoro- 687.45 ethylene 4. Metal Surface FeF.sub.x (x = 2 & 3) Ferrous & Ferric 684.42 Fluoride ______________________________________
It was clearly established that a multilayered boundary lubricant reaction film, with the structural layers cited above, was formed on the metallic surface. The outermost or first layer was composed of a film of PTFE. The second layer was composed of a mixed reaction film, containing a mixture of the chemical structures shown as Items 2, 3, and 4 above. The third layer exhibited a chemical structure in which there was a paucity of fluorine with respect to the second layer. The deepest layer consisted primarily of ferrous and ferric fluoride, along with some microparticles of PTFE. It is evident from the binding energy figures that each of the bonded layers was tightly bound, with the outermost layer exhibiting the greatest binding energy. The innermost layer, or the fourth layer was clearly reacted and had become part of the metallic matrix, even though its binding energy was determined to be slightly less than the other three layers.
The researchers, L. L. Cao, et al., concluded that, "under boundary lubrication, PTFE microparticles not only mechanically reduce friction, but also take part in the chemical reaction and form a multilayer structure of fluorine compounds which play an important role in antifriction and antiwear."
Those skilled in the arts of mechanism and lubrication design, and other students of engine wear behavior have long recognized that engines are prone to suffer a much greater rate of wear during start-up, as opposed to the rate of wear suffered during operation following start-up, with the present state of conventional engine lubricants. The relatively high rate of wear during start-up is attributable to the inordinately high incidence of metal-to-metal contact between the engine's adjacent wear surfaces. The inordinately high incidence of contact is occasioned by inadequate lubrication, sometimes simply due to gravity drainage of the lubricating oil away from the wear surfaces and into the engine oil pan prior to start-up.
Those engine parts having wear surfaces subject to submergence in the lubricating oil are lubricated by a hydrodynamic process which allows the adjacent wear surfaces to "hydroplane" on a film of oil, and hence, it is theoretically possible to almost completely avoid contact between the adjacent wear surfaces. Such are the conditions under which the main crankshaft bearings, the lower connecting rod bearings, and other wear surfaces submerged in the engine oil are allowed to operate. However, other wear surfaces in the engine, not submerged in the lubricating oil, are subject to boundary lubrication and/or some combination of boundary and hydrodynamic lubrication. In the case of boundary lubrication, such as that experienced by the engine piston rings, the wear surfaces are exposed to direct metal-to-metal contact and hence the rate of wear shall be very dependent upon the presence or absence of the appropriate lubricant at the points of potential contact. Realization of the manner in which lubricants function in a typical engine, and/or other mechanisms having adjacent wear surfaces, serves to emphasize the need for improved lubricant systems to enhance boundary lubrication, and consequently to reduce drag and mitigate wear.
The contemporary state of the art lubricant system using PTFE is dependent on the adherence of the PTFE on the lubricated wear surfaces, followed thereafter by metal-to-metal contact of the asperities to generate exceedingly high localized temperatures. These exceedingly high localized temperatures are deemed to be required to promote a chemical bonding reaction between the PTFE and the metallic wear surfaces being lubricated. The obvious shortcoming of this process is that the metal-to-metal contact relied upon to generate the necessary localized high temperatures deemed necessary to promote the bonding reaction, is the same metal-to-metal contact which serves to physically diminish and remove any preexisting lubricant film. That is to say the mechanical metal-to-metal collisions of the adjacent metal wear surfaces with the attendant erosion, corrosion, abrasion, scraping, galling, grinding, normal wear, and lubricant volatilization effects are probably almost as efficient in removing the lubricant film as they are in building the lubricant film. It is because of this inescapable logic and because of the test data presented in the cited references, that it is reasonable to conclude that wear surfaces lubricated with present day state of the art lubricant systems, such as the one discussed herein, are exposed without the benefits of the lubricant film, perhaps as often as they are protected by the film.
Based on the references cited herein and others, there is little or no doubt that many of the presently disclosed lubricant systems, wherein solid lubricants are contained in liquid or semisolid lubricant base materials, have proven to be more effective lubricant systems than the lubricant base materials without the solid lubricant additives. In many instances it was disclosed that the measured boundary lubrication wear rates were reduced in the order of one half, with the application of the typical contemporary lubricant system, cited herein, which system contained PTFE and other additives.

Catalyzed lubricant additives and catalyzed lubricant systems designed to accelerate the lubricant bonding reaction


A junction field effect transistor is described. The transistor is made from a wide bandgap semiconductor material. The device comprises source, channel, drift and drain semiconductor layers, as well as p-type implanted or Schottky gate regions. The source, channel, drift and drain layers can be epitaxially grown. The ohmic contacts to the source, gate, and drain regions can be formed on the same side of the wafer. The devices can have different threshold voltages depending on the vertical channel width and can be implemented for both depletion and enhanced modes of operation for the same channel doping. The devices can be used for digital, analog, and monolithic microwave integrated circuits. Methods for making the transistors and integrated circuits comprising the devices are also described.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to lateral field effect transistors (FETS) with vertical channels, and in particular, to such transistors formed in wide bandgap semiconductor materials. This invention also relates to monolithic integrated circuits comprising these transistors.
2. Background of the Technology
Wide bandgap semiconductor materials (with EG>2 eV) such as silicon carbide (SiC) or Group III nitride compound semiconductors (e.g., gallium nitride GaN) are very attractive for use in high-power, high-temperature, and/or radiation resistant electronics. SiC power rectifiers and RF transistors are now commercially available, and SiC power switches as well as GaN microwave transistors are expected to appear in the commercial market in the near future.
Because of the fundamental differences in material properties and processing technologies, traditional Si or GaAs integrated circuit (IC) technologies such as Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) or Direct Coupled FET Logic (DCFL) cannot in most cases be easily transferred to wide bandgap semiconductor industry. Several attempts at fabricating SiC NMOS and CMOS digital and analog ICs have been reported in the last decade (e.g., [1], [2]). A monolithic CMOS integrated device in SiC and method of fabricating the same have been patented in 2002 [3]. Moreover, recent development of SiC Lateral DMOS Field-Effect Transistors (LDMOSFETs) (e.g., [4], [5]) theoretically allows for the monolithic integration of MOSFET-based control circuitry and power switch for use in Smart Power electronics. However, certain issues limit the use of MOSFET-based SiC integrated circuits in the applications where high temperature and/or radiation tolerance is required. The first such issue is on-state insulator reliability due to much smaller conduction band offset of SiC to SiO2 as compared to that of silicon [6], [7]. This issue becomes even more significant at high temperature and extreme radiation environment. Other issues include: low inversion channel mobility due to high interface state density at the SiC/SiO2 interface and high fixed charge density in the insulator; and significant threshold voltage shift with temperature due to ionization of interface states.
Another transistor candidate for the use in SiC ICs is a Metal Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistor (MESFET). Although SiC MESFET monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICS) have received significant attention in the last decade (e.g., [8]), there have been few published attempts to build SiC MESFET logic and analog circuits (e.g., [9]).
An alternative to the MOSFET and MESFET approaches is the use of lateral JFET-based ICs. An example of a vertical channel JFET employing a recessed gate structure can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,587,712 [10]. An example of a lateral JFET formed in SiC can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,264,713 [11]. Enhanced-mode JFET digital ICs with resistive load have also been reported [12]. JFET based ICs can also be implemented in either complementary (n-type and p-type channels as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,503,782 [13] or enhanced-depletion (n-type channels) forms. SiC JFETs have proven to be radiation tolerant while demonstrating very insignificant threshold voltage shift with temperature [14]. A major deficiency of this approach has been difficulties achieving monolithic integration of low voltage control circuitry with power switches for Smart Power electronics.

Lateral trench field-effect transistors in wide bandgap semiconductor materials, methods of making, and integrated circuits incorporating the transistors


The present invention relates to the use of fluorescently labeled nucleic acid probes to identify and image analytes in a biological sample. In the preferred embodiments, a probe is provided that comprises a target region able to specifically bind an analyte of interest and an initiator region that is able to initiate polymerization of nucleic acid monomers. After contacting a sample with the probe, labeled monomers are provided that form a tethered polymer. Triggered probes and self-quenching monomers can be used to provide active background suppression.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the use of hybridization chain reaction for in situ imaging.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hybridization Chain Reaction (HCR) is a novel method for the triggered chain of hybridization of nucleic acid molecules starting from stable, monomer hairpins or other more complicated nucleic acid structures. HCR is described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/087,937, filed Mar. 22, 2005, which is incorporated herein by reference. In the simplest version of this process, stable monomer hairpins undergo a chain reaction of hybridization events to form a nicked helix when triggered by a nucleic acid initiator strand. The fundamental principle behind HCR is that short loops are resistant to invasion by complementary single-stranded nucleic acids. This stability allows for the storage of potential energy in the form of loops; potential energy is released when a triggered conformational change allows the single-stranded bases in the loops to hybridize with a complementary strand. HCR is described in co-pending provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/556,147 filed on Mar. 25, 2004, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, and one embodiment is illustrated in FIG. 1. A more complex embodiment, quadratic HCR, is shown in FIG. 2.
In situ hybridization methods enable the detailed spatial mapping of genes and mRNAs in normal and pathological tissues, allowing the study of gene expression and regulation in a morphological context from the sub-cellular to the organismal levels. Target nucleic acids are identified via the hybridization of nucleic acid probes that facilitate subsequent imaging by one of a number of methods. Radiolabeled probe molecules provide high sensitivity, but poor spatial resolution and the disadvantage of working with biohazardous materials has motivated the development of several nonradioactive alternatives. In situ biological imaging of an analyte (including not only nucleic acids, but proteins and other molecules and compounds) or multiple analytes can be accomplished by a variety of methods; however, such techniques have limitations, particularly as the number of analytes increases.
Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) methods enable the detailed mapping of transcriptionally active genes from sub-cellular to organismal levels. (Lawrence et al. Cell, 57:493-502, 1989; Kislauskis et al. The Journal of Cell Biology, 123(1):165 172, 1993; Wilkie et al. Current Biology, 9: 1263-1266, 1999; Levsky, et al. Science 297:836-840, 2002; D. Kosman, et al. Science, 305:846, 2004.) Fluorescently-labeled nucleic acid probes are amenable to multiplexing (Levsky, 2002) but provide low sensitivity due to the small number of dyes per probe (Kosman, 2004). Immunological methods employ antibodies to bind haptenated nucleic acid probes which are then detected using fluorescently-labeled secondary antibodies (Kosman, 2004; Hughes et al. BioTechniques, 24(4):530-532, 1998). Some amplification can be achieved by introducing additional layers of labeled antibodies, (P. T. Macechko, et al. J Histochem Cytochem, 45(3):359-363, 1997) but the sensitivity is insufficient for imaging low-abundance mRNAs. Spatially localized signal amplification can be achieved using horseradish peroxidase-labeled antibodies (Wilkie, 1999; Kosman, 2004) or probes (M. P. C. van de Corput et al. J Histochem Cytochem, 46(11):1249-1259, 1998) to catalyze the binding of fluorescent tyramides in the vicinity of the probe. This approach significantly enhances sensitivity, but serial multiplexing results in sample degradation. Similar sensitivities have been achieved using in situ PCR, but the method is more cumbersome and the results are less reproducible. All of the above methods suffer from enhanced background signal due to the nonspecific binding of nucleic acid probes prior to fluorescent labeling or amplification.
Another technique for amplifying a signal from a hybridization event is the branched DNA (bDNA) approach, in which a pre-amplifier strand hybridizes to a portion of the probe, which in turn serves as a nucleation site for the hybridization of a fixed number of multiply-labeled amplifier strands. (Schweitzer et al. Curr Opin Biotechnol, 12:21-27, 2001.; Qian et al. Diagnostic Molecular Pathology, 12(1):1-13, 2003; Collinset al.. Nucleic Acids Res, 25(15):2979-2984, 1997.; Bushnell, et al. Bioinformatics, 15(5):348-355, 1999; Player, et al. J Histochem Cytochem, 49(5):603-611, 2001.)

Hybridization chain reaction amplification for in situ imaging


The present invention relates to a textured yarn (ATY) with different shrinkage and excellent suede effect, wherein at least one or two kinds of two-component composite yarn (effect) yarn having a monofilament fineness are twined around a thermoplastic multifilament yarn (core yarn), forming loops on the surface of the textured yarn.

Typically, methods for preparing a ultra fine synthetic fiber include a direct spinning method and a conjugated spinning method.
In the direct spinning method, since a fiber is directly spun through a spinneret, it is difficult to produce a ultra fine fiber of less than 0.1 denier, and a number of problems occur in a yarn finishing and weaving step.
In contrast, in the conjugated spinning method, a two-component composite yarn is prepared by conjugated-spinning different polymers such as a polyester/polyamide composition or a polyester/copolymer polyester, and thereafter monofilaments (hereinafter, 'fibrils') of a fiber forming component are prepared by being separated and divided from the two-component composite yarn by a physical or chemical treatment in a post-processing process. Therefore, the method is advantageous in that it is easy to produce a ultra fine fiber of less than 0.1 denier, the fiber is easily conjugated with other fibers and the yarn finishing and weaving processability are good since fibrils are separated and divided in the post-processing process.
However, in case of solely using the two-component composite yarn, which is prepared by the conjugated spinning method, in woven or knitted fabrics, the buffability, volume property, drape property and bursting strength are reduced. Particularly, in case of conjugated spinning the polyester/copolymerized polyester composition, because the copolymerized polyester is extracted by weight reduction, a space is generated between fabric weaves and thus significantly degrading the resulting fabrics in volume property, drape property and bursting strength.
To solve the above problem occurred by solely using the ultra fine synthetic fiber or the two-component composite fiber, a method for conjugating the ultra fine synthetic fiber and other fibers has been widely studied.
As the prior art for conjugating a two-component composite fiber and other fibers, Korean Patent Laid-Open No. 1998-55564 and the same No. 1999-24801 disclose methods, as shown in FIG. 2, in which a two-component composite fiber(C) of an undrawn state is drawn and false-twisted, then is fed into an air texturing nozzle(14) at the same overfeed rate (approximately 1 to 5%) along with a high shrinkage yarn(D), and then they are simply tangled (air-interminglied) by an air pressure of 1 to 5 kgf/cm2.
In the present invention, such a interminglied yarn with different shrinkage is hereinafter defined as 'ITY (interlaced yarn)', which is prepared by simply interlacing a core yarn and an effect yarn in the air texturing nozzle under the condition that the core yarn and the effect yarn has the same overfeed rate of less than 5% and an air pressure is less than 5 kgf/cm2, and, as shown in FIG. 4, which consists of the core yarn and the effect yarn simply interlaced at an irregular interval along the lengthwise direction of the yarn. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the ITY has a structure consisting of a compacted portion(b) and a bulky portion(C) formed alternately along the lengthwise direction of the yarn.
The interlaced yarn(ITY) with different shrinkage prepared by the above method has an advantage that it shows an excellent bulkiness due to a difference in shrinkage between the bulky ultra fine fiber and the high shrinkage yarn. And the ITY shows excellent strength and drape property due to thick monofilaments of the high shrinkage yarn used as the core yarn. However, in the above method, since an undrawn, two-component composite yarn that is weak in physical property is solely drawn and false-twisted, the process stability is significantly reduced under a common false twisting condition, and it is impossible to get a textured yarn with excellent bulkiness.
For instance, in case of drawing and false-twisting a two-component composite yarn having polyester as a fiber forming component and copolymerized polyester as an extraction component, since the thermal stability of the copolymerized polyester used as the extraction component decreases, it is inevitable to set a temperature lower than a typical heating temperature, and an enough number of false-twist (twist/unit length) cannot be given.
As the result, the prepared textured yarn with different shrinkage is greatly lowered in bulkiness, that is, crimp ratio(CR %). The crimp ratio is a representative physical property representing the bulkiness and quality of the yarn in the post-processing. Due to the lower crimp ratio, the ultra fine fiber is not sufficiently raised on the surface of the yarn, thus failing in getting the fabrics of excellent quality.
In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H7-126951, a method is described wherein a thermoplastic multifilament yarn (core yarn) and a low shrinkage, two-component composite yarn (effect yarn) are respectively fed into an air texturing nozzle at the same overfeed rate (approximately 1 to 5%), and then are simply interlaced (air-interminglied) by an air pressure of 1 to 5 kgf/cm2, thereby preparing a interminglied yarn(ITY) with different shrinkage.
However, the ITYs prepared by the conventional methods are different in length simply because of the difference in thermal behavior property between two yarns, so they cannot show a good suede effect in the production of woven or knitted fabrics since the dispersabilty of fibrils is lowered though the bulkiness is expressed. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the interminglied yarns with different shrinkage (ITYs) prepared in the conventional methods has the shape where fibrils are simply compacted at a constant interval along the lengthwise direction of the intermingled yarn.
As a result, the concentrated fibrils are not dispersed well after producing a woven or knitted fabric, the length of raised fibers in interminglied (concentrated) portion are different from the length of raised fibers in non-interminglied (unconcentrated) portion and density of the raised fiber is irregular. By this, in the production of woven or knitted fabric, as shown in FIG. 6, raised fibers aggregate to partially expose the bottom of the woven or knitted fabric, and a superior suede effect cannot be shown.
As another conventional method, a method is widely embodied wherein a thermoplastic multifilament (core yarn) and, not a two-component composite yarn, but an ordinary low shrinkage multifilament yarn (effect yarn), are fed into an air texturing nozzle at a different overfeed rate  (approximately 5 to 50%), and then are air-textured by a high air pressure of 6 to 16 kgf/cm2, thereby preparing a textured yarn with different shrinkage.
In the present invention, such a textured yarn with different shrinkage is hereinafter defined as 'ATY (air-textured yarn)', which is prepared by air-texturing a core yarn and an effect yarn in the air texturing nozzle under the condition that the core yarn and the effect yarn has a different overfeed rate of 5 to 50% and an air pressure ranges from 6 to 16 kgf/cm2, and, as shown in FIG. 3, in which the effect yarn twines around the core yarn and loops(a) of the effect yarn are formed on the surface of the textured yarn.
For the thusly prepared ATY, as shown in FIG. 3, although loops are formed on the surface of the textured yarn, because the effect yarn forming the loops is not a two-component composite yarn, namely, a ultra fine fiber, the raised fiber density is low and the fibril dispersion is not occurred in the production of woven or knitted fabric, thereby failing in exhibiting a suede effect.
Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind the above problems occurring in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a textured yarn with different shrinkage (ATY) which can exhibit a superior touch and appearance in the production of woven or knitted fabric because it has a superior fibril dispersability, a high raised fiber density and a uniform raised fiber length after a buffing process.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a textured yarn with different shrinkage which shows an excellent melange effect when being dyed.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a method for preparing a textured yarn with different shrinkage which shows an excellent suede effect.

Textured yarn with different shrinkage and excellent suede effect and method for preparing the same


A dispersal signal generating apparatus which removes a dispersal signal effectively and rapidly from an input video signal. A dispersal signal component is first detected from an input reception signal to which only soft clamping processing has been applied, and a cancel signal is generated in accordance with the thus detected dispersal signal component. After the detection of the dispersal signal, processing of removing the dispersal signal is performed by both of a dispersal canceler and a hard clamp circuit.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a dispersal signal removing apparatus which can remove a dispersal signal from a reception signal which has a dispersal signal component therein.
2. Description of the Relates Art
A signal such as, for example, a video signal which is transmitted by way of a broadcasting satellite or a communication satellite is normally superimposed with an energy dispersal signal (hereinafter referred to merely as dispersal signal) of a triangular waveform in order to disperse the energy of satellite radio waves so that it may not concentrate upon a particular frequency or frequencies within a transmission band. If a dispersal signal remains on a video signal, then it will appear as a plane flicker on a screen. Therefore, it is necessary to remove, upon reception of a video signal, a dispersal signal from the video signal.
A dispersal signal is conventionally removed using a clamp circuit or using both of a clamp circuit and a dispersal canceler. Means for removing a dispersal signal is described first.
When, for example, a MUSE signal is to be broadcast using a broadcasting satellite, such a dispersal signal as shown by a curve (b) in FIG. 8 is superimposed on a MUSE signal shown by another curve (a) in FIG. 8. The dispersal signal is a triangular wave signal which presents its lowest level at the center of a first field of the MUSE signal and presents its highest level at the center of a second field of the MUSE signal, and the difference in frequency between the black and white levels when the MUSE signal is in an FM modulated form is 10.2 MHz while the peak-to-peak difference in frequency of the dispersal signal is 600 KHz. Consequently. the energy dispersal amount is 5.9%.
Meanwhile, a dispersal signal when the MUSE signal is transmitted using a communication satellite is shown by a curve (d) in FIG. 8. In particular, while the difference in frequency between the black and white levels when the MUSE signal is in an FM modulated form is 8.5 MHz, the peak-to-peak difference in frequency of the dispersal signal is 2.2 MHz. Consequently, the energy dispersal amount is 26%.
Thus, when a dispersal signal having such a small amplitude as seen from the curve (b) of FIG. 8 is superimposed on the MUSE signal, the dispersal signal is normally removed using such a clamp circuit 6 as shown in FIG. 9. Referring to FIG. 9, an FM modulated signal of a MUSE signal overlapped with a dispersal signal is first demodulated by an FM demodulator not shown and then supplied from an input terminal 1 to the clamp circuit 6 by way of a buffer amplifier 2. The output of the clamp circuit 6 is supplied to an analog to digital (A/D) converter 12 by way of a buffer amplifier 5, and the output of the analog to digital converter 12 is supplied from an output terminal 13 to a decoder not shown.
The clamp circuit 6 includes a capacitor 7 interposed in series between the buffer amplifiers 2 and 5, and a series circuit of a resistor 8 and an on/off switch 9 connected between a junction between the capacitor 7 and the buffer amplifier 5 and the input terminal 10 to which a clamp voltage which has a level equal to one half a maximum level of the video signal is supplied. The on/off switch 9 is controlled so that it presents an on-state for a period of time of the sample numbers 3 to 9 within a period of a horizontal synchronizing signal (for a HD period) of a MUSE signal shown in FIG. 10 but presents an off-state for any other period of time.
A residual signal which is the output of the clamp circuit 6 when the amplitude of the dispersal signal superimposed on the MUSE signal is 600 KHz in frequency difference upon FM modulation as shown by the curve (b) of FIG. 8 is shown by a curve (c) in FIG. 8. The amplitude of the residual signal corresponds to -52 dB or so when the amplitude from the black level to the white level is 0 dB, and accordingly, such a noise as a plane flicker is not produced on a reproduced image due to a dispersal signal removing action of the clamp circuit 6.
It is to be noted that, when the slope of the dispersal signal x is represented by K as seen from a curve A of FIG. 11, the capacitance of the capacitor 7 of the clamp circuit 6 by C and the resistance of the resistor 8 by R, the residual signal y shown by another curve B in FIG. 11 is given by EQU y=CRK{1-exp(-t/CR)}
On the other hand, when the dispersal signal has a great amplitude (2.2 MHz) as seen from the curve (d) in FIG. 8, the residual signal which is the output of the clamp circuit 6 presents such a waveform as shown by a curve (e) in FIG. 8. The residual signal corresponds to -38 dB or so when the amplitude from the black level to the white level is 0 dB, and accordingly, the residual signal makes a flicker noise which has an influence upon a reproduced image.
When the dispersal signal level is high to a certain degree, a dispersal canceler is used together with a clamp circuit as shown in FIG. 12 in order to remove the dispersal signal.
Referring to FIG. 12, an FM modulated signal of a MUSE signal superimposed with a dispersal signal is demodulated by an FM demodulator not shown and is inputted from an input terminal 1 by way of a buffer amplifier 2 to a dispersal canceler 3 which is formed from a pair of resistors 3A and 3B. The output of the dispersal canceler 3 is inputted to a clamp circuit 6 similar to the clamp circuit 6 shown in FIG. 9 by way of a buffer amplifier 5. The output of the clamp circuit 6 is supplied by way of another buffer amplifier 11 to and digitally coded by an analog to digital converter 12, the output of which is supplied from an output terminal 13 to a decoder not shown.
A cancel signal generating circuit 24 is connected to an end of the resistor 3B of the dispersal canceler 3 remote from the end at which the resistor 3B is connected to a junction between the other resistor 3A and the buffer amplifier 5. The cancel signal generating circuit 24 is constituted from a timing signal generator 34 and an integrating circuit 27 to which a timing signal is supplied from the timing signal generator 34. The integrating circuit 27 is constituted from an operational amplifier 28 having its non-negated input terminal grounded, an input side resistor 29 connected to the negated input terminal of the operational amplifier 28, and a capacitor 30 connected between the output terminal and the negated input terminal of the operational amplifier 28.
In the cancel signal generating circuit 24, a timing signal of a rectangular waveform the phase of which is reversed for each field is generated from the timing signal generator 34 and is supplied to the integrating circuit 27, at which it is integrated to generate a cancel signal which is opposite in phase to the dispersal signal of the triangular waveform described above. The cancel signal thus generated is supplied to the resistor 3B of the dispersal canceler 3. Consequently, the dispersal signal of the input signal is removed completely or attenuated.
While the conventional means for removing a dispersal signal either includes a clamp circuit or includes both of a clamp circuit and a dispersal canceler in this manner, a dispersal signal having a great amplitude cannot be removed effectively by the means which only includes a clamp circuit.
On the other hand, the means including both of a clamp circuit and a dispersal canceler cannot cope with a reception signal having a dispersal signal component having a different frequency or amplitude because the cancel signal is fixed, and accordingly, it has a problem that it is necessary to vary the frequency or amplitude of a cancel signal to be generated, for example, by manual operation depending upon a type of a reception signal.
For example, in the high definition television broadcasting which makes use of a broadcasting satellite, the dispersal signal is a triangular wave signal of 30 Hz and the energy dispersal amount is 5.9%, but in the NTSC broadcasting which employs a broadcasting satellite, the dispersal signal is a triangular wave signal of 15 Hz and the energy dispersal amount is 3.5%. Further, in the high definition television broadcasting which makes use of a communication satellite, the dispersal signal is a triangular wave signal of 30 Hz and the energy dispersal amount is 11 to 26% or so.
Thus, a dispersal signal removing apparatus is demanded which can automatically correspond to any of various dispersal signals and remove or attenuate the dispersal signal at least to such a degree at which a flicker noise on a screen is eliminated.


A display panel includes a base substrate including a pixel area and a peripheral area, a semiconductor layer disposed on a portion of the base substrate, a display element disposed in the pixel area, and a thin film transistor which controls the display element and includes an input electrode, an output electrode and a control electrode, in which the semiconductor layer includes a first portion disposed on the input electrode of the first thin film transistor, a second portion disposed on the output electrode of the first thin film transistor, and a third portion which connects the first portion and the second portion, overlaps the control electrode of the first thin film transistor, and defines a channel of the first thin film transistor.

1. Field
The disclosure relates to a display panel. More particularly, the disclosure relates to a display panel with improved display quality.
2. Description of the Related Art
A display panel includes a plurality of pixels disposed on a base substrate. The base substrate may include a plurality of pixel areas and a peripheral area disposed adjacent to the pixel areas. The pixels may be arranged in the pixel areas, respectively.
Each of the pixels may include a display element and a circuit part that controls the display element. The display element and the circuit part included in a pixel are disposed in a corresponding pixel area of the pixel areas. When viewed in a plan view, an aperture ratio of each pixel area is determined based on a ratio of an area of the display element to an area of the corresponding pixel area. As the circuit part becomes complicated, an area occupied by the circuit part may increase such that the aperture ratio may be lowered.


In accordance with an example embodiment of the present invention, a method is disclosed. A connector plug housing member is provided. A movable member is mounted inside the connector plug housing member. A contact member is provided inside the movable member. The movable member is configured to move between a first position and a second position. The movable member is configured to be connected to ground when the movable member is moved from the first position to the second position.

Electronic devices include many different features, and as electronic devices continue to become more sophisticated, these devices provide an increasing amount of functionality. Many of these devices include connector interfaces allowing for peripheral components to be connected to the device and/or communication to other electronic devices.
As such, features for electronic devices are increasing in number. Thus, the electronic device facilitates a better user experience. Therefore versatile user interface components are needed in order to take full advantage of capabilities of electronic devices.

Method and apparatus for connectivity plug switch


In each of terminal devices, there is stored user profile information on the corresponding device. The user profile information includes data identifying the user, type and name of the device, information regarding a CPU, memory and operating system (OS) provided in the device, and information regarding various data and program stored in the device. When desired musical information data is to be downloaded from a host computer, a request for downloading optimum data is sent to the host computer. This permits efficient loading of data most suitable for system conditions. When data or program is to be loaded from a recording medium, such as a CD-ROM, rather than a communication network, efficient loading is permitted in a similar manner.

The present invention relates generally to information processing systems, and more particularly to an improved information processing system which is capable of efficiently loading various data, such as music data, from a network system, recording medium or the like to a terminal device.
With widespread use of computer networks such as personal computer communication networks and Internet, various communication systems have been built on a global basis which communicate various data and information using communication networks such as telephone line networks. The use of such communication networks permits prompt and easy transmission of various data and information. It has also been getting very popular to process music information by means of a personal computer. In addition to music "sequencer" software, karaoke (singing to recorded music for entertainment) software has been developed which enables karaoke performance using a personal computer. In using such sequencer and karaoke software, how to supply music piece data (particularly those of newly-released music pieces) to users efficiently is a very important issue.
The users are able to obtain desired music data easily and promptly via a communication network. Similarly, a renewed version of various software such as karaoke or tone generating software can be delivered to users promptly via a communication network.
According to the known approach, desired data are downloaded from the network by a user first selecting the data from a data directory of a host system. However, with such an approach, the same data as already furnished or stored in the user (terminal device) tend to be erroneously downloaded in an overlapping manner, or completely irrelevant data may be selected by the user. Further, the known approach requires a cumbersome selecting operation on the part of the user and would inadvertently increase the network traffic to an excessive degree. This would result in waste of money where a pay communication network is utilized. The same problems could occur where data is loaded from a CD-ROM or other recording medium into a personal computer.

Musical information processing system with automatic data transfer


A camera device comprises a first main body, a pivoting component, a second main body, and a camera unit. A first connection member is disposed on the side end of the first main body. One end of the pivoting component is pivotally connected with the first main body. The second main body is pivotally fixed at the other end of the pivoting component, and is electrically connected to the first main body. The camera unit is electrically connected to the second main body. The first connection member of the first main body is first electrically connected with a predetermined electronic device to attach the first main body, and the second main body then rotates relative to the first main body via the pivoting component to adjust the visual angle of the camera unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a camera device and, more particularly, to a highly portable camera device, which provides a predetermined slot for connection with an electronic device, and the visual angle of the camera device can be adjusted for taking pictures according to the position of the camera device provided by the electronic device and the location of the person or object being photographed so that the person or object the user wishes to photograph enters the image-capturing range of the camera device.
2. Description of Related Art
With the continual progress of science and technology, Internet communication has today become an indispensable part of everyday life for most people. As part of this development electronic devices (e.g., notebook computers, desktop computers, video game consoles, PDAs, and mobile phones) have become widely used for writing text, sending and receiving emails and SMS messages, voice communication, and self-contained games. By using camera devices with related software of electronic devices, people can directly perform the functions of network communication, video chatting, video conferencing, and computer gaming. Not only can clear and convenient video effects be provided, but many other situations and uses in the industry can also arise. Therefore, video devices have become indispensable tools in video communication.
Network video communication, however, needs to use camera devices to photograph and process the collected images using the related software of electronic devices, and then transmit the processed images another device over a wireless network, Bluetooth communication, or other similar means. Therefore, it is necessary for camera devices to first connect to an electronic device and then output images via the electronic device. Existent camera devices in the market primarily have a support bracket with a camera sphere disposed thereon. A transmission cable extends from a side end of the camera sphere, and a USB connector is provided at the distal end of the transmission cable. The camera sphere is connected to a corresponding slot on the electronic device so that video captured by the camera sphere can be displayed on the electronic device and then transmitted.
The above conventional camera devices have the following drawbacks in practice:                1. The slot provided on a common electronic device such as a notebook computer is usually located on the side of the electronic device. In order to get a better angle for videoing, the conventional camera device is usually locked on the display screen and its USB connector at the distal end of the transmission cable is inserted into the slot. Because the angle of the video is limited, a conventional camera device cannot be directly inserted into the slot. Rather, it needs to be fixed at a good position for capturing video and is then connected to the electronic device via the transmission cable. The assembly process is very cumbersome, and the long transmission cable can easily interfere with the operation of the electronic device or even cause an entanglement problem, hence resulting in much trouble for the user.        2. Because the conventional camera device needs a support bracket and a transmission cable, it has a large size and is not portable. Moreover, the transmission cable can easily cause entanglements and is subject to breaking. Because the most important feature of a camera device is to provide a real-time video function for various electronic devices of compatible specifications, if the camera device cannot be conveniently carried around by a user for plug-and-play use, the convenience it emphasizes and its market value will be greatly reduced.        3. The installation position of the support bracket needs to be moved to adjust the video-capturing height and angle, causing much inconvenience in use.
Accordingly, the present invention aims to provide a novel camera device to solve the above problems in the prior art.


A lighting/sounding device activated by inflation of a balloon includes a lighting lamp/sounder, a battery, and a housing at least covering the lighting lamp/sounder. The housing includes an inlet end, an outlet end, and an air channel connecting the inlet end and the outlet end to form a through passage for air flow within the housing. The lighting lamp/sounder is provided within the air channel and has a sealing device for sealing off the air channel. When the balloon is not inflated, the lighting lamp/sounder cannot be activated; after the balloon is inflated, a pressure difference generated between inside and outside the balloon pushes the lighting lamp/sounder towards the outer end of the air channel and seals the air channel; and, when the air channel is sealed up, an electric circuit of the lighting lamp/sounder is closed and the lighting lamp/sounder is activated to operate.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to an accessory of a balloon, particularly to a lighting/sounding device for a balloon that operates when the balloon is inflated.
2. Description of Related Arts
Balloons are decorations frequently used in daily life, and people most usually decorate the environment with inflated balloons.
However, the usage is too monotonous to meet diversified needs. So balloons with various special effects have been created, such as luminous balloons, lighting balloon and sounding balloons. Chinese patent application CN200610122541.7, for one, discloses a luminous balloon, which has a lighting effect and is characterized in that an LED lamp is taken as a light source and a light circuit device which supplies power to a silicon photocell is arranged in a plastic shell with an air hole. The luminous balloon has a simple frame, and is convenient to use and suitable not only for being held in hand after being sleeve jointed with a plastic pipe but also for being tied and dragged by a rope to float in the air or ornament the night scene. U.S. Pat. No. 7,344,267 discloses an illuminated toy balloon having an illuminating device and a cylindrical plug with an integrally-formed radially extending integral flange insertable within the balloon neck, wherein the illuminating device is provided within the balloon neck.
Since balloons are usually made of latex, aluminum film or plastic, how to install a lighting/sounding device becomes an important issue for a lighting/sounding balloon. As for the patent U.S. Pat. No. 7,344,267, a lighting device is installed at the neck of the balloon intake nozzle, which would affect inflation and use of the balloon and hence is not convenient enough. Then people think of a way to install a lighting/sounding device inside a balloon by fixing the device onto the balloon wall, such as the structure disclosed by the patent application GB20070004575 wherein a lighting device is fixed onto the inner wall of a balloon, but such a structure has a problem on how to control the lighting/sounding device inside the balloon.
Therefore, a seal sticker described in the patent application WO20110210 has become a key mechanism to control a lighting/sounding device inside a balloon. The disclosed seal sticker is used to disconnect the electric circuit of the lighting device, and the circuit is connected once the seal sticker is withdrawn, thereby controlling a lighting/sounding device to start. However, the seal sticker is not easy to process and install as the seal sticker needs to be inserted into the circuit of the lighting/sounding device, which increases difficulty and cost of processing, and withdrawal and then disposal of the seal sticker are especially a waste of resources and environmentally unfriendly.

Lighting/sounding device activated by inflation of balloon


A method and system for long-term load generation is described.

In performance testing, there is a common practice of examining the speed, durability, and/or reliability of a tested software feature, component, or system. A performance iteration is a single operation or set of multiple operations that is defined to determine performance of the software feature, component, or system. A performance test executes this iteration one or more times to determine the speed, durability, and/or reliability of the software feature, component, or system. The process of executing the iterations is called load generating and the software tool that executes the performance iterations is called a load generator.
Load generators can be used to generate a load to test the functional behavior and measure performance of the tested software feature, component, or system. Load generators can be used to simulate a heavy load on a server, network, or object to test its strength, or to analyze overall performance under different load types. Conventional load generators can test the performance of various types of software features, components, or systems, such as web servers (e.g., Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), HTTP Secure (HTTPS), Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) servers, database servers, Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) servers, Java Message Service (JMS) servers, mail servers (e.g., Post Office Protocol 3 (POP3), POP secure (P0P3S) and Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP), IMAP Secure (IMAPS) servers).
Some conventional load generators can provide a multi-threading framework that allows concurrent sampling by many threads and simultaneous sampling of different functions by separate thread groups. The typical load generating case in a multi-threaded environment performs the following: 1) receives user input that specifies test attributes as a number of concurrent threads that execute iterations, and the number of iterations per thread; 2) runs the load generator; and 3) quantifies the performance of the tested software feature, component, or system. These conventional load generators can be configured with pluggable timers for various load statistics, but do not receive an input to indicate an overall time duration for the performance test. These conventional load generators cannot reliably generate load using multiple concurrent threads during performance testing for long periods of time, such as days, weeks, months, etc. with limited available resources, such as memory.