A ceramic heater having an alumina rod, an alumina based ribbon sintered to the rod, and a platinum resistor element bonded to the ribbon. Additionally, a method of making a ceramic heater having the steps of making a ceramic slurry; combining the ceramic slurry with a binder component to form a slip; depositing the slip onto a carrier film at a controlled thickness such that a deposited slip is formed; heat curing the deposited slip to form a cured slip ribbon; applying a platinum paste onto the ribbon in a specific pattern, the paste forming a platinum resistor element on the ribbon; applying the ribbon with the platinum resistor element onto an alumina rod; and, heating the rod with the ribbon and the platinum resistor element thereon, whereby the ribbon is sintered to the rod and the platinum resistor element is sintered and bonded to the ribbon.

The present invention relates generally to ceramic heaters and more particularly, to a ceramic heater having a platinum heating element which is resistent to oxidation.
Ceramic heaters are generally known in the art. Normally, a ceramic heater will include an insulating portion, a heat generating portion, and electrical lead portions formed integrally with a ceramic body or substrate. The heater element and lead portions are normally formed of a single electrically conductive metal such as an inexpensive non-noble or base metal such as tungsten and molybdenum. However, the heater element and lead portions made of such metals are prone to oxidize during long periods of use at high operating temperatures in oxidizing atmospheres such as air. The oxidation may result in disconnection of the heat generating portion of the ceramic heater and, thus, heater failure.
The art has sought to solve this problem by decreasing the amount of non-noble or base metal used in the ceramic heater. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,952,903 to Shibata et al. (hereinafter xe2x80x9cShibata""3 teaches a ceramic heater including a ceramic body and a heater element formed of a cermet containing a ceramic material and a metal material which principally consists of at least one noble metal; and, including electrical lead portions formed of a metallic material consisting of at least one base metal or formed of a cermet containing ceramic material and metallic material. Shibata mentions the making of the heater element from a noble metal such as platinum or rhodium, but dismisses such use because of costs and the difficulty of bonding a noble metal to a ceramic substrate. The use of such noble metal would overcome the problems associated with oxidation of the metal. Thus, an economic and practical means of using such noble metals would be advantageous to the art of ceramic heaters. For these reasons, there remains room for improvement in the art.
It is an object of this invention to provide adequate binding of noble metals to a ceramic substrate.
It is also an object of this invention to provide a ceramic heater which does not require an outer sheath or cover and which is economical to manufacture.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of making a ceramic heater which provides for the screen printing of the heater element onto a ceramic sheet.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method of making a ceramic heater which does not require a cover layer to protect the heating element.
These and other objects of the invention are achieved by a ceramic heater comprising an alumina rod, an alumina based ribbon sintered to the rod, and a platinum resistor element bonded to the ribbon. These and other objects are also achieved by a method of making a ceramic heater comprising the steps of making a ceramic slurry; combining the ceramic slurry with a binder component to form a slip; depositing the slip onto a carrier film at a controlled thickness such that a deposited slip is formed; heat curing the deposited slip to form a cured slip ribbon; applying a platinum paste onto the ribbon in a specific pattern, the paste forming a platinum resistor element on the ribbon; applying the ribbon with the platinum resistor element onto an alumina rod; and, heating the rod with the ribbon and the platinum resistor element thereon, whereby the ribbon is sintered to the rod and the platinum resistor element is sintered and bonded to the ribbon.

Method of making a ceramic heater with platinum heating element


A process for making ceramic composites includes the steps of: a) forming a polymer composition into a three-dimensional mold; b) filling said three-dimensional mold with one or more ceramic containing compositions; c) heating said filled mold to dry and sinter the ceramic; d) removing at least a portion of said three-dimensional mold thereby forming voids; and e) filling the voids with a second composition which has a piezoelectric coefficient which is substantially different from the piezoelectric coefficient of said ceramic structure. Steps a through e yield a controlled, non-random piezoelectric ceramic composite having 2-3, 3-2 or 3--3 connectivity with respect to the sintered ceramic and the second composition throughout the composite.

Composites are often made to create a beneficial mix of the properties of dissimilar materials that are unobtainable in a single homogenous material. In the field of transducers for example, it can be advantageous to use a piezoelectric ceramic-polymer composite, rather than a monolithic block of of piezoelectric material such as lead zirconate titanate (PZT). Piezoelectric composites consist predominantly of a polarizable phase embedded in a non-polarizable material.
These composites have many advantages over traditional monolithic piezoelectric ceramics including: (i) lower densities resulting in acoustic impedance closer to those of the human body, water, etc., thereby eliminating the need for an acoustic matching layer; (ii) low dielectric constants resulting in a high piezoelectric voltage constant g; and (iii) ease of conformability to the shape of the backing material of the composite. Such composite piezoelectric transducers and methods for their production, are described, for example, in Composite Piezoelectric Transducer; R. E. Newnham et al.; Materials in Engineering, Vol. 2, December 1980, Pages 93-106, which is incorporated herein by reference.
Three composite designs that have been particularly successful are composites with 2-2, 3-3 and 1-3 connectivity, in which piezoelectric ceramic sheets or network or rods are aligned in the poling direction of the composite and embedded in a matrix of a suitable polymer. In the case of the 2-2 composite, both the ceramic and polymer phases are two-dimensionally self-connected throughout the composite. The stiff ceramic phase supports most of the stress applied in the direction of its alignment, yielding a high piezoelectric charge coefficient d, while the composite has a low density and dielectric constant.
In the 3-3 composite, both the ceramic and the polymer phases are continuously self-connected in all three dimensions. The geometry and structure yields a high piezoelectric charge coefficient d and exhibits superior properties over single phase piezoelectrics.
In the 1-3 composite, the ceramic phase is one-dimensionally self-connected through the composite, while the polymer phase is three-dimensionally self-connected. For some applications, the 1-3 composite yields superior properties to those described above for the 2-2 composite due to the lower density and dielectric constant.
A common and convenient method for making 2-2 and 1-3 composites is to start by cutting parallel slots into a monolithic piezoelectric ceramic block. The slots are then filled with a polymer. The aforementioned method is known as the "dice and fill" method and is described in PZT-Epoxy Piezoelectric Transducers: A Simplified Fabrication Procedures, H. P. Savakus et al.; Materials Research Bulletin, Vol. 16, 1981, pages 677-680, which is incorporated herein by reference.
Two common methods for making piezoelectric composites with 3-3 connectivities are the replamine and burned-out plastic spheres, or BURPS, processes. The replamine process is a lost wax method with coral as a starting material. The coral is machined to the desired geometry and then back-filled with wax. After the wax is hardened, the coral skeleton is leached away using hydrochloric acid leaving a wax negative of the original coral template.
The wax negative is back-filled with PZT slurry and dried. The wax is subsequently burned off at a moderate temperature, leaving a coral-type structure of PZT. The structure is then sintered and back-filled with a desired polymer, usually a non-polarizable one, to make the final structure. The structure is then poled using conventional poling or corona discharge technique. The replamine process is described in Flexible Composite Transducers, D. P. Skinner et al.; Materials Research Bulletin, Vol. 13, 1978, pages 599-607 and is herein incorporated by reference.
In the case of the BURPS process, plastic spheres and PZT powders are mixed in an organic binder. After binder burn-out and sintering, a porous PZT skeleton is formed and later back-filled with polymer to form a 3-3 composite. The BURPS process is described in Simplified Fabrication of PZT/Polymer Composites, T. R. Shrout et al.; Materials Research Bulletin, Vol. 14, 1979, pages 1553-1559 which is also incorporated herein by reference.
Although, as mentioned above, piezoelectric composites typically consist of a polarizable phase embedded in a non-polarizable phase, there is a need to develop efficient methods for the manufacture of composites having multiple polarizable and/or non-polarizable phases. Also, there is a need to develop more efficient methods for the manufacture of piezoelectric composites having decreased size and periodicity of the polarizable phase or phases. Composites having these properties have been identified as a key area of transducer development.
Moreover, there has been a drive to create so-called "smart" materials. Smart materials are described in Smart Ceramics; Newnham et al., Ferroelectrics, Vol. 102, pp. 259-266 which is incorporated herein by reference. A smart material senses a change in the environment, and, using a feedback system, makes a useful response. It includes both a sensor phase and an actuator phase. A very smart material can tune its sensor and actuator functions in time and space to optimize its behavior. Tuning of a very smart material can be accomplished by using a multitude of polarizable phases.
It is well recognized in the art that the dice and fill, replamine and BURPS methods of forming composites have several limitations in meeting the above stated needs. For example, in the case of replamine process, the design, volume fraction and the scale of the structure depends on the starting coral template and can not be altered. The BURPS process too, lacks the flexibility of the design and fabrication of a fine scale 3-3 PZT composite structure with a controlled volume fraction.
In all of these processes, varying the ceramic volume content across the composite is not practical. Additionally, these techniques are designed for monolithic ceramics, ruling out the possibility of efficient and effective manufacture of multiphase ceramic composites.
Recently, solid freeform fabrication techniques have been developed for producing three-dimensional articles without the need for molds, dies, or other tooling. One such technique, commercialized by Stratysys.TM., Inc. of Eden Prarie, Minn., builds solid objects layer by layer from polymer/wax compositions by using computer-aided design (CAD) software programs. According to the technique, which is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,121,329 and is incorporated herein by reference, a flexible filament of the polymer/wax composition is fed by a pair or counter rotating rollers into a dispensing head which includes a liquifier and nozzle outlet. Inside the liquifier, the filament softens and melts at a temperature just above its melting point.
As the counter-rotating rollers continue to advance the solid filament into the liquifier, the force of the incoming solid filament extrudes the molten material out from the nozzle where it is deposited on a build platform positioned in close proximity to the dispensing head. The CAD software controls the movement of the dispensing head in the horizontal X-Y plane and controls the movement of the build platform in the Z direction. By controlling the processing variables, the extruded bead, called a "road", can be deposited layer by layer in areas defined from the CAD model, leading to the creation of an object that is a three-dimensional depiction of the CAD model.
Although the fused deposition technique is explained in detail above, other techniques, including, but not limited to, stereolithography, selective laser sintering, sanders prototype, and laminated object manufacturing can be used in this invention. In stereolithography, for example, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,929,402, which is herein incorporated by reference, an ultraviolet ray curable polymer is used as a feed material and a computer controlled and focused beam of ultra violet rays is used to fabricate three dimensional objects.
In selective laser sintering, which is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,938,816 and which is hereby incorporated by reference, a laser curable polymer is used as a feed material and a computer controlled and focused laser beam is used to fabricate three dimensional objects. In Sanders.TM. Prototype technology, an ink jet printing process is used where a thermoplastic polymer is used instead of an ink. Three-dimensional objects are built by depositing layer upon layer of thermoplastic polymer on a computer controlled fixtureless platform.
In Laminated Object Manufacturing (LOM), sheets of paper, polymer, or ceramic materials are deposited on top of each previous layer and a computer controlled laser beam is used to cut the sheet of material to make the three dimensional object.
This invention takes advantage of the aforementioned solid freeform fabrication technology to overcome many of the limitations of electronic ceramic composite manufacturing technology. Moreover, the disclosed invention makes possible the efficient manufacture of such composites with phase geometries that have previously been impossible and/or impractical.

Methods for producing novel ceramic composites

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey


High internal phase emulsions having an internal aqueous phase of greater than 70 percent by volume and an external oil phase comprising a vinyl polymerizable monomer contain a surfactant capable of chemically binding to the polymerizable monomer. Polymeric foams having a high internal phase emulsion stabilizing surfactant chemically bound to the polymeric material and a liquid capacity of from about 70 to 99 percent of its saturated volume can be prepared from such emulsions.

This invention relates to water-in-oil high internal phase emulsions and the porous polymeric materials produced therefrom.
Water-in-oil emulsions are dispersions of discontinuous or discrete water particles commonly referred to as the "internal" aqueous phase in a continuous or "external" oil phase. Emulsions can contain as much and more than 70 volume percent internal phase. These are often referred to as high internal phase emulsions (HIPEs). The volume fraction of the internal aqueous phase in such emulsions can be as high as 90 percent and frequently is as high as 95 percent with some HIPEs being reported as high as 98 percent aqueous phase.
The use of high internal phase emulsions (HIPEs) in forming porous polymeric materials are well known and are described, for example, in Shell Oil Company (Shell) U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,210,104 and 5,200,433; Lever Brothers Company (Lever) U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,536,521 and 4,788,225; and The Procter & Gamble Company (P & G) U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,147,345; 5,331,015; 5,260,345; 5,268,224 and 5,318,554. In the described HIPEs, the external oil phase typically comprises a vinyl polymerizable monomer, such as 2-ethylhexyl acrylate and styrene, and a cross-linking monomer such as divinylbenzene. The internal aqueous phase typically comprises water, a radical initiator (if not in the oil phase) and an electrolyte. To form a stable emulsion, a surfactant is added to the oil phase prior to emulsification. Commonly used emulsion stabilizing surfactants include, for example, nonionic surfactants, such as sorbitan esters (e.g., sorbitan monooleate and sorbitan monolaurate). The resulting emulsion is then subjected to polymerization conditions which are sufficient to polymerize the monomers in the oil phase to form a porous polymer.
HIPE polymerization has gained increasing interest, since polymeric foams having the capacity to absorb relatively high amounts of water and other liquids can be produced. Unfortunately, in many applications, e.g., as absorbents, the emulsion stabilizing surfactant should be removed from the porous polymeric foam prior to use. For example, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,331,015, the surfactant may be an extractable residue which can be removed through post-polymerization rinses. If not removed, the surfactant residue may create a problem when it comes in contact with sensitive human skin.
However, upon removal of the emulsion stabilizing surfactant, the foam generally becomes less hydrophilic. It must then be further treated to render it sufficiently hydrophilic for use as an aqueous fluid absorbent. One suggested method for rendering the foam more hydrophilic involves chemically modifying (i.e., sulfonating or esterifying) the polymeric foam; see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,536,521. In another method, a hydrophilizing component (i.e., salt and/or a residual emulsifier) can be added to the foam; see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,260,345. However, these techniques involve additional costs and/or are often of limited utility.
It would be desirable to provide a water-in-oil HIPE which, when polymerized, would produce a HIPE foam which does not contain a residual surfactant and which does not require a post-polymerization treatment to render it sufficiently hydrophilic to be useful as an absorbent for hydrophilic liquids.

High internal phase emusions and porous materials prepared therefrom


A stator of a dynamo-electric machine includes a cylindrical stator iron core having a plurality of slots arranged in a circumferential direction, and a stator winding composed of a plurality of conductor wires installed in the slots, the stator winding being formed by joining end portions of the plurality of conductor wires extending out of different ones of the slots at the end surface conductor sectional area of an end portion over a predetermined extent in a lengthwise direction from a distal end thereof is smaller than a conductor sectional area of a main portion, and an insulating film covers the main portion and a part of the end portion in the vicinity of the main portion, and a plurality of the conductor wires extending out of the different slots are joined with their end portions arranged properly.

This application is based on Application No. 2000-276403, filed in Japan on Sep. 12, 2000, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a stator of a dynamo-electric machine of, for example, an automotive alternator or the like, and a manufacturing method and a connecting conductor wire for the stator, and a manufacturing method for the connecting conductor wire.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hitherto, a variety of types of electric equipment use diverse types of conductor wires according to individual applications. In some applications, conductor wires are joined together for use.
In such a case, the end portions of conductor wires to be joined are arranged properly, and insulating films formed on the end portions are removed. Then, the stripped end portions are joined, and a new insulating resin is applied to the stripped portions that include the joined portion to complete the joining process of the conductor wires.
Such a joining method, however, has been posing a problem in that the entire distal ends of conductor wires to be joined are melted, requiring high calorie for joining them. There has been another problem in that an increase in heat gain during the joining process causes an increase in the temperature around the end portions of the conductor wires and deteriorates insulating films, with resultant deteriorated insulating properties.
To solve the aforesaid problems, there has been proposed in, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-164043, a conductor wire structure in which the end portions of the conductor wires to be joined are partly cut off to reduce cross-sectional areas of the wires so as to reduce a heat gain during a joining process.
FIG. 19 is a process chart illustrating a conventional process for connecting conductor wires disclosed in, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-164043.
In the conventional process for connecting conductor wires, two conductor wires 100 to be joined are first prepared, and insulating films 116 are removed from the areas around the end portions of the conductor wires 100 (step 1). Then, end portions 112 of the conductor wires 100 from which the insulating films 116 have been removed are partly cut off as illustrated to form cut portions 114 (step 2). Substantially half of the round section of each of the end portions 112 of the conductor wires 100 are cut off by forming the cut portion 114. The cross-sectional area is substantially reduced to half the area connected to the end portion 112. Then, the two conductor wires 100 are disposed in parallel to each other, with their cut portions 114 facing outward, the end portions 112 being arranged properly. Subsequently, the end portions 112 are joined by, for example, tungsten-inert-gas (TIG) welding (step 3). Finally, an insulating resin 120 is newly applied to a joined portion 118 and the area from which the insulating films 116 have been removed (step 4), thus completing the joining process of the two conductor wires 100.
As described above, in the conventional structure of the conductor wire, the end portion 112 of the conductor wire 100 is partly cut off to reduce the conductor sectional area, so that the insulating film 116 of the conductor wire 100 around the cut portion 114 is inevitably damaged. For this reason, after joining the end portions 112 of the conductor wires 100, the insulating resin 120 must be applied to a wide area including the joined portion 118. This has been posing a problem of poor working efficiency and an increase in the volume of the insulating resin 120, causing the joined portion of the conductor wires to bulge out.
The following will describe a case where the conductor wires having the conventional structure are applied to a stator 121 of an alternator.
As shown in FIG. 20, the stator 121 is equipped with a stator iron core 122 and a stator winding 123 composed of conductor wires 124 threaded through slots 122a of the stator iron core 122. In a coil end group 123a of the stator winding 123, joined portions 125, each being composed of welded end portions of two conductor wires 124 with an insulating resin 120 applied thereto, are aligned in two layers adjacently in one row in the radial direction on an end surface of the stator iron core 122, being disposed in two rows in the circumferential direction.
Since the end portions of the conductor wires 124 are partly cut off as in the case of the conductor wires 100 described above, the insulating film 116 around the cut-off area is damaged, causing the conductors to be exposed. The joined parts of the end portions of the conductor wires 124 are aligned adjacently in one row in the radial direction on the end surface of the stator iron core 122, being disposed in two rows in the circumferential direction. Hence, welded portions of the end portions of the conductor wires 124 aligned adjacently in the radial direction are likely to develop short-circuiting. If the insulating resin 120 is applied with a welded portion short-circuited, then the yield of the stator 121 will be reduced.
To prevent the yield from lowering, an inspection for checking the welded portions of the end portions of the conductor wires 124 for a short circuit is performed prior to the application of the insulating resin 120. A rejected workpiece must be subjected to a step for locating a short-circuited spot, then the short circuit must be corrected by separating the short-circuited welded portions in the radial direction by hand.
It is extremely difficult to locate a short-circuited spot. The step for correcting a short circuit requires the manufacturing line of stators be stopped, and is implemented by hand, leading to significantly reduced productivity and increased cost.
Furthermore, since the insulating resin 120 must be applied to a large sectional area in the vicinity of the cut portion, the joined portion 125 bulges out, adding to a radial dimension and a circumferential dimension. This prevents the stator 121 from being made smaller, and adversely affects the multi-row configuration of the joined portions 125.
The present invention has been made with a view toward solving the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a stator of a dynamo-electric machine and a manufacturing method for the same, and a connecting conductor wire and a manufacturing method for the same in which an end portion of a conductor wire is plastically deformed to minimize the chances of damage to an insulating film and to reduce a cross-sectional area of the end portion thereby to reduce heat gain during a joining process and secure good insulating properties. Moreover, the occurrence of short circuits between joined portions will be structurally prevented so as to obviate the need for manual correction of short circuits that used to be necessary in the conventional art, thus allowing higher productivity and lower cost to be achieved.
To this end, according to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a stator of a dynamo-electric machine that is equipped with a cylindrical stator iron core having a plurality of slots arranged in a circumferential direction; and a stator winding composed of a plurality of conductor wires installed in the slots, the stator winding being formed by joining end portions of the plurality of conductor wires extending out of different ones of the slots at the end surface of the stator iron core, wherein the conductor wires are formed such that a conductor sectional area of an end portion over a predetermined extent in a lengthwise direction from a distal end thereof is smaller than a conductor sectional area of a main portion, and an insulating film covers the main portion and a part of the end portion in the vicinity of the main portion; and a plurality of the conductor wires extending out of the different slots are joined with their end portions arranged properly.
In a preferred form, the end portion of each of the conductor wires is formed of a tapered portion having its conductor sectional area continuously reducing from the main portion toward the distal end thereof and a constant-sectional-area portion extending from the tapered portion toward the distal end, the conductor sectional area thereof being kept unchanged.
In another preferred form, the end portions of the conductor wires are eccentric with respect to the main portion in the vicinity of the end portion, and arranged properly so that the end portions of the conductor wires are brought close to each other before they are joined.
In yet another preferred form, the outer peripheral surface of an end portion of the conductor wire at the opposite side from its counterpart has a curved surface when the end portions of the conductor wires are arranged properly.
In still another preferred form, the end portions of the conductor wires are formed to have substantially circular cross sections.
In a further preferred form, the end portions of the conductor wires are formed to have substantially elliptical cross sections.
In another preferred form, both circumferential side surfaces of the end portions of the conductor wires are formed to have a planar shape in a radial direction.
In another preferred form, the circumferential width of the end portion of the conductor wire is set to equal to or smaller than the circumferential width of the main portion.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a manufacturing method for a stator of a dynamo-electric machine having a cylindrical stator iron core having a plurality of slots arranged in a circumferential direction; and a stator winding composed of a plurality of conductor wires installed in the slots, each of the conductor wires being formed such that a conductor sectional area of an end portion over a predetermined extent in a lengthwise direction from a distal end thereof is smaller than a conductor sectional area of a main portion, the main portion and a part of the end portion in the vicinity of the main portion being covered with an insulating film, and the stator winding being formed by joining the end portions of the plurality of conductor wires extending out of different ones of the slots at the end surface of the stator iron core, with their end portions arranged properly, the method including a step for placing a metal block between a pair of the arranged end portions of the conductor wires and an adjoining one of the conductor wires; and a step for joining the pair of the end portions of the conductor wires while pressing the pair of the arranged end portions of the conductor wires against the metal block by a first pressurizing jig.
In a preferred form, the metal block is made of copper or a copper alloy.
In another preferred form, the pair of the arranged end portions of the conductor wires are joined while binding the end portions in the circumferential direction.
In yet another preferred form, the pair of the arranged end portions of the conductor wires are joined by heating them by a non-contact heating source.
In a further preferred form, the non-contact heating source uses an arc or plasma; the first pressurizing jig is metallic; the pair of the arranged end portions of the conductor wires are pressed against the metal block by the first pressurizing jig; the conductor wires adjacent to the pair of the arranged end portions of the conductor wires are also pressed against the metal block by a second pressurizing jig made of metal; and an output terminal of a power source for generating the non-contact heating source is connected to the first and second pressurizing jigs to join the pair of the arranged end portions of the conductor wires.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a manufacturing method for a stator of a dynamo-electric machine having a cylindrical stator iron core having a plurality of slots arranged in a circumferential direction; and a stator winding composed of a plurality of conductor wires installed in the slots, each of the conductor wires being formed such that a conductor sectional area of an end portion over a predetermined extent in a lengthwise direction from a distal end thereof is smaller than a conductor sectional area of a main portion, the main portion and a part of the end portion in the vicinity of the main portion being covered with an insulating film, and the stator winding being formed by joining the end portions of the plurality of conductor wires extending out of different ones of the slots at the end surface of the stator iron core, with their end portions arranged properly, the method including a step for plastically deforming a conductor wire rod, which has been entirely covered with the insulating film, for a predetermined extent thereof in a lengthwise direction from the distal end thereof so as to make the conductor sectional area of the end portion smaller than the conductor sectional area of the main portion; and a step for removing the insulating film from the end portion such that the insulating film remains on a part of the end portion in the vicinity of the main portion to complete the conductor wire.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connecting conductor wire that is formed such that a conductor sectional area of an end portion over a predetermined extent in a lengthwise direction from a distal end thereof is smaller than a conductor sectional area of a main portion, wherein the main portion and a part of the end portion in the vicinity of the main portion are covered with an insulating film.
In a preferred form, the end portion is formed of a tapered portion having its conductor sectional area continuously reducing from the main portion toward the distal end thereof and a constant-sectional-area portion extending from the tapered portion toward the distal end, the conductor sectional area thereof being kept unchanged.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a manufacturing method for a connecting conductor wire, including a step for plastically deforming a conductor wire, which has been covered with the insulating film, for a predetermined extent thereof in a lengthwise direction from the distal end thereof so as to make the conductor sectional area of the end portion smaller than the conductor sectional area of the main portion; and a step for removing the insulating film from the end portion such that the insulating film remains on a part of the end portion in the vicinity of the main portion.

Stator of dynamo-electric machine and manufacturing method therefor


It is an object of the present invention to easily and securely perform the removal operation of contaminant or the like from a wafer housed in a FOUP. To achieve the object, a purging apparatus of the present invention removes contaminant or the like from a wafer by moving a gas supply nozzle along a direction in which wafers are superimposed at the front of an opening while a lid of the FOUP is separated from a body and spraying clean gas on each wafer from the gas supply nozzle.

A process for fabricating a semiconductor device has dealt with the issue of cleanliness required in such processes by forming the whole plant for applying various treatments to a wafer into a clean room. However, because the diameter of a wafer is increased, the above method becomes a problem in cost to obtain the high clean environment. Means for securing a mini-environment (very small environment) space keeping a high cleaning degree has been taken for various treating apparatuses in these several years.
Specifically, instead of increasing the cleaning degree of the entire factory, only insides of treating apparatuses and inside of a storing container (hereafter referred to as pod) during movement between them in a manufacturing process are kept at a high cleaning degree. This pod is referred to as FOUP as described above. Thus, by bringing a small space into a high cleaning degree, the advantage same as the case of forming the whole plant into a clean room is obtained, equipment investment and maintenance cost are reduced, and an efficient production process is realized.
A semiconductor treating apparatus or the like dealing with the so-called mini-environment system actually used is briefly described below. FIG. 15 shows the whole of a semiconductor wafer treating apparatus 50. The semiconductor wafer treating apparatus 50 is mainly constituted of a load port portion 51, a conveying chamber 52, and treating chamber 59. Junctions therebetween are comparted by a load-port-side compartment 55a and cover 58a, and treating-chamber-side compartment 55b and cover 58b. In the conveying chamber 52 in the semiconductor wafer treating apparatus 50, to discharge dust and keep a high cleaning degree, an air flow is generated from the upper portion toward the lower portion of the chamber 52 by a fan (not illustrated) set on the chamber. Thus, dust is continuously discharged toward the lower side.
On the load port portion 51, a pod 2 serving as a container for storing a silicon wafer (hereafter referred to as wafer) or the like is set on a pedestal 53. As previously described, the inside of the conveying chamber 52 is kept at a high cleaning degree in order to treat a wafer 1 and moreover, a robot arm 54 is set to the inside. This robot arm 54 moves the wafer between the inside of the pod 2 and the inside of the treating chamber 59. Various mechanisms for forming a thin film on the surface of the wafer or the like and treating the thin film are generally included in the treating chamber 59 but description of these configurations is omitted because they are not directly related to the present invention.
The pod 2 has a space for storing the wafer 1 which is a product to be treated at the inside and includes a boxy body portion 2a having an opening on any face and a lid 4 for closing the opening. A shelf having a plurality of stages for overlapping wafers 1 in one direction is set in the body portion 2a and wafers 1 mounted on the stages are housed in the pod 2 by making intervals between the wafers 1 constant. In the case of the example shown here, the direction for overlapping the wafers 1 is vertical. An opening 10 is formed at the load port portion 51-side of the conveying chamber 52. The opening 10 is set to a position facing the opening of the pod 2 when the pod 2 is set on the load port portion 51 so as to be close to the opening 10. An opener 3 to be described later is also set nearby the opening 10 in the conveying chamber 52.
FIGS. 16A and 16B show a side sectional view obtained by enlarging the opener-3 portion in a conventional apparatus and a front view viewing the opener 3 from the conveying chamber-52 side. FIG. 17 shows a schematic view of the side cross section of a state in which the lid 4 is removed from the pod 2 by using the opener 3. The opener 3 has a door 6 and a door arm 42. A fixed member 46 is set to the door 6 and the door 6 is rotatably connected to one end of the door arm 42 through the fixed member 46. The other end of the door arm 42 is supported to the front end of a rod 37 which is a part of a pneumatic cylinder 31 rotatably through a pivot 40.
A through-hole is formed between one end of and the other end of the door arm 42. A fulcrum 41 is constituted by the fact that a not-illustrated pin passes through the through-hole and a hole of a fixed portion 39 fixed to a support member 60 of a movable portion 56 for vertically moving the opener 3. Therefore, the door arm 42 becomes rotatable about the fulcrum 41 in accordance with the telescopic motion of the rod 37 due to driving by the cylinder 31. The fulcrum 41 of the door arm 42 is fixed to the support member 60 set to the movable portion 56 which can be vertically moved. The door 6 has holding ports 11a and 11b and is able to hold the lid 4 of the pod 2 by means of vacuum attraction.
To treat the wafer 1 with these configurations, the pod 2 is set on the pedestal 53 so as to be close to the conveying-chamber opening 10 to hold the lid 4 by the door 6. Then, when contracting the rod of the cylinder 31, the door arm 42 moves so as to leave the conveying-chamber opening 10 about the fulcrum 41. The door 6 rotates together with the lid 4 to remove the lid 4 from the pod 2 in accordance with the above operation. The state is shown in FIG. 17. Thereafter, the movable portion 56 is lowered to convey the lid 4 up to a predetermined evacuation position.
The inside of the pod 2 while housing a wafer or the like is filled with dry nitrogen or the like controlled at a high cleaning degree to prevent contaminant, oxidizing gas or the like from entering the pod. However, because the pod also houses a wafer after passing through the treating chamber, a case is considered in which contaminant or the like attaches to the wafer in the treating chamber or the like and this is brought into the pod. When the contaminant or the like is brought into the next treating chamber, a case may occur in which a desired wafer treatment which should be originally performed may not be performed when passing through the treating chamber. Therefore, when moving the wafer from the pod to the conveying chamber, it is necessary to remove the contaminant or the like.
In the case of a conventional FOUP, to deal with the above request, an inlet hole for introducing purging gas into the pod and an outlet hole for discharging the purging gas are formed at the bottom of the FOUP. These inlet and outlet holes are respectively connected with an inlet hole and outlet hole for purging gas set on a support pedestal on which the pod is mounted. As an actual operation, a high-pressure gas controlled at a high cleaning degree is introduced into the pod from the support pedestal side through these inlet holes. At the same time, the gas and contaminant present in the pod are discharged to the outside of the pod through these outlet holes. Contaminant or the like brought into the pod has been removed in accordance with the operation.
However, only by introducing a high-pressure gas from the bottom of the pod, it is considered that a gas flow mainly passes through a portion nearby the outer periphery of a wafer through which gas easily passes. Therefore, it is considered that it is difficult to pass a gas having a sufficient flow rate through the upper and lower faces of individual wafers held by keeping very small intervals. However, contaminant or the like is mainly attached to the upper face or lower face of a wafer and therefore, it is considered that it is difficult to sufficiently remove contaminant or the like by a conventional method.
To securely remove the contaminant from a wafer, the method disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-45933 is proposed. In the case of this method, a space for housing an opener is formed separately from a conveying chamber. The space has a gas supply port at the front upper portion of the opening of a pod. Clean gas is supplied into the pod from the gas supply port and the clean gas circulating through the pod and discharged to the space from the bottom of the pod is exhausted from the bottom of the space. By using the above configuration and thereby circulating the clean gas through the pod, it is possible to more securely remove contaminant or the like, compared with the case of the conventional method.
Moreover, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-251422 discloses a method for introducing clean gas between wafers held in a pod. In the case of this method, a gas introducing channel and a gas discharging channel communicating with groove portions for supporting wafers are formed in the pod. By spraying clean gas on the surface of each wafer through the gas introducing channel and discharging the clean gas containing contaminant or the like through the gas discharging channel, it is possible to more securely remove the contaminant.
In the case of the method disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-45933, an effect can be expected on reduction of humidity and of an oxidizing gas in a pad and prevention of organic contamination to a certain extent. However, it is considered that it is also difficult to effectively replace the gas present between wafers held by keeping very small spaces. Therefore, it is considered that it is also difficult to obtain an effect for removing contaminant attached to the upper and lower faces of a wafer.
According to the method disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-251422, it is considered that it is possible to remove contaminant attached to upper and lower faces of a wafer. However, it is considered that it is difficult to keep the inside diameter of a gas introducing channel at a large value from the viewpoint of an actual configuration. Therefore, a difference occurs in a gas pressures introduced on the surface of a wafer or times introduced at a predetermined pressure at the upstream side and downstream side of the channel and it is considered that the contaminant removal effect depends on a wafer holding position.
Moreover, arrangement of a support pedestal, pod shape, and holes for supplying and discharging clean gas for purging inside of pod is almost standardized in the semiconductor manufacturing business circle. Therefore, the pod disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-251422 requiring a configuration different from the standard has a problem that the pod cannot be shared with a support pedestal generally used at present.


A networked conferencing system is described wherein multiple moderation of conferences is accommodated by permitting a conference moderator to designate one ore more alternate conference moderators. Each alternate moderator has access to at least a subset of conference moderation functions, thereby permitting any alternate moderator to take at least partial control of conference proceedings in the absence of the “main” or “primary” moderator.

The present invention relates to networked conferencing and collaboration systems, particularly synchronous web conference systems.
The rapid growth of networked communications over the last decade, particularly Internet communications, has produced numerous new methods of business communications, e.g, between members of a workgroup. For example, many activities that were previously carried out primarily by face-to-face meetings of team members congregating at a single location in a conference room can now be carried out electronically in "virtual" conference rooms via computer communications mechanisms. The participant in virtual conferences can be quite distant from one another, but communicate quickly, conveniently and effectively. Such virtual conferencing capability is known as "networked conferencing" or "web conferencing".
There are two primary types of web conferencing: synchronous and asynchronous. Asynchronous conferencing does not occur in real-time, but relies on common access to text, video, images and other resources stored on a server. Generally, interaction between participants in asynchronous conferences is not immediate or conversational, but more like letter writing. Examples of mechanisms useful for asynchronous conferencing include: Bulletin Board Systems (BBS), Usenet Newsgroups, E-mail, Group forums (e.g., Yahoo groups), etc.
Synchronous conferencing, by way of contrast, occurs in real-time or near real-time, with a high-degree of immediacy and exhibiting a more conversational style of interaction. Examples of synchronous communications mechanisms useful in synchronous conferencing include: Instant Messaging (IM), video conferencing, Voice over IP (VOIP), streaming audio and/or video, etc.
Most of the "basic", unmoderated synchronous communications mechanisms, such as IM, have a bit of a "free-for-all" feel to them, with many simultaneous cross-conversations going on at once. Most true networked conferencing systems are moderated, whereby a designated moderator controls who can participate and who can "speak" at any given time. In most business settings, the more organized nature of moderated conferencing is greatly preferred. Modern networked conferencing systems also provide security and encryption features so that only authorized participants are able to view the conference materials and discussion.
Moderated conferencing places control over who may present what at any given time in the hands of a moderator typically the individual who arranges, schedules and organizes the conference. The moderator sets up the conference, determines when it will occur, determines who will attend, sends out "invitations", etc. . . . Many conferencing systems also provide advanced scheduling mechanisms to permit the conference to be scheduled around the availability of specific critical participants.
In setting up the networked conference, the moderator sends out "invitations" to participate (e.g., via e-mail or other messaging services). A facility that permits invitees to respond as to whether or not they will participate is often provided so that the moderator knows how many participants can be expected. Typically, the moderator can send out one or more reminders to prospective participants about the upcoming conference.
Networked conferencing systems typically integrate multiple communications mechanisms. For example, a typical conferencing system might permit text messaging, similar to IM, in conjunction with a virtual "whiteboard" whereby a presenter at the conference can transmit images and graphics to participant. There is often a capability for the presenter to perform live "highlighting" and marking on the virtual whiteboard. Other capabilities, such as interactive audio communications (e.g., via VOIP) and/or video images can be included in the conference resources available to participants. Typically, a moderator controls who is a "presenter" at any given time. The presenter is given access to the conference resources by the moderator for the purpose of presenting text, images, etc. to all of the participants.
Typically, the moderator can, "on the fly", promote any participant to be the presenter, thereby allowing that participant to "drive" the conferencing system by controlling the conference resources. Conversely, a presenter whose presentation is completed can be demoted to participant status. The presenter controls exactly what conference participants see on their network-connected computers at any given time. Such networked conferencing generally provides such features as slideshows, desktop sharing, control passing, text messaging, file transfers, etc. Some systems include a "hand-raising" function whereby participants can indicate to the presenter or to the moderator that they have a question or other need to be recognized.
Networked conferencing systems typically employ a client-server architecture whereby each participant's client software (running on the participant's computer or work-station) connects to a conference server. When participant "logs in" to the conference, the participant's identification determines the permissions granted to his client software by the server. Accordingly, when the moderator of a conference logs in, he is given the broadest access rights to control the conference and change other participants' permissions (e.g., to be the presenter, to permit the participant to "speak" publicly to the group, etc.). The conference server controls all communications with the various clients according to a set of permissions granted to the conference participant logged in on that client.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a typical prior-art net-worked conferencing system 100. A web conference server 102 includes conference control services 104 and access control services 106 that govern access to conference resources 108 (e.g., whiteboard functions, images, video streaming, etc.) according to moderator permissions 112, presenter permissions 114, and other permissions 116. The moderator permission 112 are given only to the dedicated moderator, who in addition to the capabilities listed hereinabove (scheduling, inviting, reminding, etc) has the sole ability to convene the conference, adjourn the conference, admit and/or exclude specific participants, designate the presenter, etc. The presenter permissions 114 typically comprise a subset of moderator permissions that permit the presenter to "speak" to the conference, to place images and markings on the "whiteboard", to acknowledge individual participants for questions/answers, etc. However, the presenter generally does not have over-all control of the conference and cannot designate other presenters. The "other" permissions 116 include access rights granted to general conference participants, including ability to view the "whiteboard" and other conference materials, to participate in discussions when appropriate, etc. Presenter permissions 114 can also be separate from the moderator permissions such that only the presenter has access to presentation functions. In such a system, the moderator would have to confer presenter status upon himself to gain direct access to presentation functions.
The conference server 102 communicates with clients 118A, 118B, 118C, 118D, 118E, . . . 118'n' via a communications network 110. The communications network 110 can be a corporate intranet, a wide area LAN, the Internet, or any suitable communications network. When a participant "logs in" via a client 118'x', the participant's login identity determines which set of access permissions apply. Access control services 106 determine, according to those permissions, which aspects of conference services can be controlled by each client 118'x', e.g., by refusing requests for access to unauthorized functions and/or by disabling user interface features that provide access to authorized functions. The moderator's login identity identifies him as the moderator, etc. In FIG. 1, a moderator participant at client 118A is logged in as the moderator, while conference participants at all other clients 118'x' are logged in as participants. The moderator can designate any participant to be a presenter, giving that participant presenter status as defined by the presenter permissions.
A significant problem with present conferencing systems is that a single individual (usually the individual that sets up the conference) is designated as the "moderator". If, when the scheduled conference time arrives, the moderator is unavailable or is unable to access the conference system, the entire conference is delayed. Only the moderator can "convene" the conference. If the moderator steps away when one presenter finishes, the conference may become blocked while waiting for the moderator to designate another presenter or to permit general discussion. At any point, if the moderator becomes unavailable, it is possible that conference progress will cease until the moderator returns.
If moderator is delayed, the conference start may be delayed, with all participants left waiting. In the worst case, when the moderator is completely unavailable or cannot be reached, another person must initiate a new web conference, thereby making that person the moderator of the new conference. That person must quickly send notifications out to all of the participants informing them of the change of venue, wasting a great deal of time and creating the potential for miscommunications.

Multiple moderation for networked conferences

International Business Machines Corporation


An engine system is disclosed. The engine system has an engine block having at least one combustion chamber and at least partially defining a crankcase. The engine system also has an inlet conduit connecting a compressor of a turbocharger with the at least one combustion chamber. The engine system further has an exhaust conduit connecting a turbine of the turbocharger with the combustion chamber and a ventilation conduit connecting the crankcase with the exhaust conduit. The engine system also has a controller in communication with the turbocharger, the controller being configured to adjust the geometry of the turbocharger to maintain a pressure of the crankcase lower than a pressure of the inlet conduit.

A fuel and air mixture is combusted within cylinders of an internal combustion engine. Reciprocating pistons are moved between top dead center and bottom dead center positions within the cylinders by a crankshaft situated in a crankcase of the engine. As each piston moves toward its top dead center position, it compresses the fuel and air mixture. When the compressed mixture combusts, it expands and drives the piston downward toward its bottom dead center position. Combustion within the cylinder releases energy and generates combustion products and by-products, most of which are exhausted from the cylinder into an exhaust system of the engine during the exhaust phase of the combustion cycle. However, some of the combustion products and/or by-products enter into the crankcase by blowing past seal rings around the pistons, and are thus termed "blow-by gases" or simply "blow-by."
Blow-by gases contain contaminants normally found in the engine's exhaust such as, for example, hydrocarbons (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), oxides of nitrogen (NOx), soot, and unburned or partially burned fuel. In addition, because the crankcase is partially filled with lubricating oil being agitated at high temperatures, the blow-by gases may mix with and entrain oil droplets and oil vapor.
As blow-by gases build up in the crankcase, they must be vented to relieve pressure in the crankcase. Some systems vent the blow-by gases directly to the atmosphere. However, the contaminants in blow-by gases may be harmful to the environment. Therefore, emissions concerns make direct atmospheric venting a poor option under most, if not all, operating conditions. To minimize the negative effects on the environment, engine manufacturers have routed crankcase emissions to either the engine intake or to the exhaust line upstream of emission control devices. The result was a new emissions flow path.
Problems arose in routing crankcase emissions to the exhaust line. In some instances, there is a pressure imbalance between the intake system, the exhaust system, and the crankcase. Instead of the crankcase emissions venting through the exhaust system to the tailpipe, the pressure imbalance causes oil and exhaust to flow back into the engine via the crankcase. This blowby of the exhaust/air mixture into the engine cylinder can negatively work against piston movement.
One method that has been implemented by engine manufacturers to prevent an improper balance of exhaust versus crankcase pressures is described by U.S. Patent Application Publication 2007/0084194 (the '194 publication) by Holm, published on Apr. 19, 2007. The '194 publication discloses a crankcase ventilation system including an exhaust gas conduit through which exhaust gas flows from an engine, and a crankcase emissions conduit through which crankcase emissions flow from the engine. The exhaust gas conduit includes a crankcase emissions inlet through which the crankcase emissions flow from the crankcase emissions conduit into the exhaust gas conduit. The exhaust gas conduit includes a reduced portion having a minimum inner diameter, the minimum inner diameter being located downstream of the crankcase emissions inlet for drawing the crankcase emissions through the inner diameter. In this manner, the system of the '194 publication eliminates the pressure imbalance between the exhaust system and the crankcase for certain pre-determined conditions.
Although the system of the '194 publication may be adequate for some situations, it may have limited applicability. Specifically, the reduced portion provides a constant pressure drop in the exhaust conduit. As such, the system of the '194 publication may be unable to adjust to varying pressure conditions between the crankcase and exhaust system. This lack of versatility may render the system of the '194 publication unable to adjust to a variety of pressure conditions, thereby increasing the likelihood of improper engine operation.
The present disclosure is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above.

Engine system routing crankcase gases into exhaust


A fitness garment or suit comprises at least one of a jacket or pants similar to an athletic truing suit. A detachable inner lining support various types of weights in distributed pattern about body portions, generally distributing the total load between joints to provide general fitness training while the user wears the suit throughout the course of their normal activities. The inner lining does not interfere with the drape and feel of the outer garment.

The present invention relates to a weighted fabric material as well as garments made with such material and worn for therapeutic benefits and to increase athletic fitness and health.
There have been many proposals for exercise garments that have removable weights, with the intent to provide either a fitness aid without dedicating time to an exercise routine or as a training aid for athletes. Such garments are believed to facilitate a gradual increase in strength and bone mass as the weight or load carried by the user s gradually increased. However, these designs have not been commercially successful.
Today's lifestyles and working conditions most often compromise the average person's will to engage in and maintain physical exercise programs, the lack of which can lead to long term dysfunctions and health problems.
In modern societies physical fitness is commonly pursued through various repetitive exercises such as weight lifting routines and cardiovascular exercises done for specific time intervals using different devices and machines for strengthening and moving particular parts of the human body. These exercises require discipline as well as an extended and maintained time investment, both of which can be difficult commitments for an individual to make. Moreover, these activities entail prudence the duration and intensity level of the exercise in order to attain a desired level of fitness without incurring injuries particularly when they are not conducted on a regular basis. Physical fitness becomes a serious problem for older people who, as they age and lose their sense of security and physical capability, tend to withdraw to inactivity.
It is a object of the invention to provide an exercise garment that is useful for both general physiological conditioning as well as a training aid that provide the general advantages of being a garment that is easy to wash and maintain, as well as to provide the user with a normal appearance.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide such an exercise garment that is also comfortable to wear.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide such an exercise garment weight loading and weight distribution.
It is a further object to provide such a garment with appropriately placed weights and other strengthening devices to treat specific medical conditions.


Continuously driven machine steering differentials have heretofore been complex for counter-rotating a pair of oppositely located planetary elements. The planetary steering differential includes a differential powered by a transmission input and a planetary gearing mechanism which receives an input from a steering motor for interacting with the outputs to achieve a steering correction.

A large number of machines have been developed which have incorporated either clutch-and-brake steering mechanism or geared steering mechanism. In both of these classifications, however, the drive is discontinuous when making turns. This results in poorer operation of the vehicle than is desired during turns in marginal ground conditions.
Another major group of steering mechanism includes differential mechanisms in which drive is transmitted continuously to both traction elements. The simplest form thereof is a braked differential, but these are rarely used because of relatively large power losses at the steering brake.
Thus, what is desired is a compact steering differential having continuous drive capability to the opposite output members, a relatively simple arrangement having a single steering in power path.
The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems as set forth above.