The method of the invention updates a tree arranged index for an hierarchical file system (HFS). The index includes at least one index value, i.e., an index page, that is logically positioned between an index anchor value and a sequence page. The sequence page includes actual index data. Logical positioning of the index page is determined by one or more pointers. The method initially responds to an index update request by making an update "shadow" copy of (i) a sequence page and (ii) any other index pages, up to and including a root page, that are to be updated in accord with the update request. Thereafter, an index manager updates the shadow copy of the sequence page in accord with the update request. The index manager further updates the root page and each shadowed index page that is present in a path to the updated sequence page to indicate that the path has been updated and includes the most current data. If a cancel or error indication occurs prior to updating of the index path, the shadowed copies of the sequence page, index page and root page are released, enabling the system to return to the non-updated pages. Otherwise, the index manager updates the index anchor value to point to the updated root page, thereby indicating that the index update has been successfully accomplished. Periodically, the new index anchor value, sequence page, index and root pages are written to disk.

A hierarchical file system (HFS) is utilized by many computational systems to enable ready-access to individual files within a large file system. Such systems may include thousands to tens of thousands of files and the search time for any file may become quite large if a linear search technique is utilized through respective addresses. By using a hierarchical index, the search procedure is greatly speeded, allowing rapid access to a desired file.
FIG. 1 illustrates the logical structure of an HFS index array which provides a means for moving from an anchor point 10, through a root page 12 and down through various levels of index pages 14, 16, 18 to a desired record 20. An HFS has between two and many indexes. Each index can be logically viewed as a data structure, commonly called a B-tree. In such a tree, there is one root node 12 that may change in the course of normal updates. Root node 12 may be an only page in the index or may point to other pages, as is most often the case. Any page that points to another page (or pages) is hereafter called an "index" page. Any page that does not point to another page is hereafter called a "sequence" page. A sequence page (e.g., 20) resides at the "end" of a series of pointers within the index and contains the actual data being sought.
During operation of an application program, index updates are required on a continuing basis. An HFS index must be atomically updated to preserve its integrity. Further, if a cancel or other interruption occurs during the course of an update or between two update requests, the system must preserve any prior changes that have been made. Normally, in current implementations of shadowed index operations, each individual update results in a corresponding input/output operation to "harden" the new index data. This avoids the complications of providing code to recover in the case of an error. However, because of the large number of updates which occur during operation of an application program, writes to disk of index changes are often delayed until a period of time has passed, during which a number of updates to the index can occur. At such time, all updates are then written to disk. Until that time, the changed index values/control blocks are maintained in virtual storage.
By delaying the hardening of such index updates to disk, system performance is substantially improved as a result of the decrease in number of time-consuming disk input/output actions that are required. However, by maintaining such changed index records in volatile memory, controls must be implemented to assure a system/data recovery capability in the event of an error or cancel action.
As will be hereafter understood, an index is a key-ordered file of unique index records. The B-tree which is utilized to implement an HFS is divided into two entities, an index set and a sequence set. As shown in FIG. 1, the pages at the lowest level of a B-tree are collectively called the sequence set and contain the actual index records. The higher levels are collectively called the index set and consist of routing nodes (or "pages"). A routing node is a special kind of index record which contains an index key and a pointer to an index page in a next lower level of the same B-tree, i.e., a "down-pointer".
Each index includes a set of attributes which a caller provides when the index is created. These attributes are used to manage the index for the caller. The attributes identify the index and describe the characteristics of the index. A name directory includes pointers to metadata in the attribute data. Metadata is information which identifies a file size, where to find the file, and other characteristics of the file that are required for its access.
To search a hierarchical index, an anchor point 10 indicates the initial point of entry which is root page 12. The root page contains a down pointer to a next lower level index page. The down pointers are followed until the sequence set is reached, at which point, the actual index data can be found. The index manager maintains the integrity of the index throughout the update operation, until the shadow copy is hardened to disk.
In order to enable recovery of data in the event of error or interrupt, the prior art has utilized a method of making mirrored or shadowed copies of user data files. Such a system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,638,509 to Dunphy et al. wherein an index of all data file activity on a computer system is maintained and copies of data files are made so as to enable a user to recreate the state of the computer system at any selected point in time. A data file monitor intercepts all communications between an application and the file system to obtain data file status and activity information. This information is used to identify data files which are transmitted to backup media for storage, along with directory information to be used to later locate and retrieve such data files. Such systems require continued accesses to the back-up media which inhibits system throughput capabilities.
U.S. Pat. 5,664,186 to Bennett et al. describes a file management and backup system, wherein a copy of a file or file system is logically frozen in time while a backup is made. The central idea described in Bennett et al. patent is that a backup copy is made, either to disk or tape, while allowing continued access and updates to the object being backed up. U.S. Pat. No. 5,706,510 to Burgoon describes a system for management of files in a shared file system. During an update of a file, a user obtains a writable copy of a file. When an edited file is entered into a history of the managed file system, a read-only copy of the file remains on the user's disk. When the user updates the file system, the read-only file copy may be replaced with a link which enables access to a current version of the shared file. Rather than viewing a current version of a shared file, the user may wish to maintain a tatic file version by maintaining a link thereto.
It is an object of this invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for enabling a deferral of writing of index data to disk so as to reduce the number of disk I/O's.
It is another object of this invention to provide a method and apparatus for updating index data, while deferring its writing-to-disk, and at the same time, enabling error recovery and cancel protection for any index update that is in process.

Method and apparatus for shadowing a hierarchical file system index structure to enable error recovery

International Business Machines Corporation


A media processing device, controls such that when a medium is transported in the inserting direction by means of transporting means, the media information recorded on the medium is read by a media information read means and stored by recording to memory. Whether or not the medium is ejectable is determined by transporting the medium in the ejecting direction by means of the transporting means. The media information stored in memory is controlled so as to be deleted when it is determined that the medium is not ejectable. In this way, as long as it is not confirmed that the medium is ejectable, the media information recorded in the medium is not output to the host device.

For example, as a medium processing device for reading or writing of medium information from or in a medium in which information is recorded, a card reader has been known in which medium information in a card-shaped medium provided with an information recording part (information recording means) such as a magnetic stripe or an IC chip is read from or written in the card-shaped medium. The card reader is generally mounted on an apparatus or an equipment such as an ATM device (automated teller machine) or a CD machine (cash dispenser).
In recent years, the number of crimes that a third person other than an owner of a card-shaped medium steals the card-shaped medium has been rapidly increased. The third person reads personal identification information recorded in the stolen card-shaped medium to use illegally for performing personal identification or the third person forges a card-shaped medium or the like to illegally use the medium, which has become a major social problem.
Conventionally, a card reader (hereinafter, referred to as a prior art 1) has been proposed which is provided with a card locking device having a pull-out prevention lock mechanism for preventing illegal use of a card-shaped medium by a criminal (see, for example, Patent Literature 1).
In the prior art 1, even when a criminal hinders ejection of a card-shaped medium by a trick which is secretly attached to a card reader and, even when the criminal tries to pull out the card-shaped medium while a user has been left, the pull-out prevention lock mechanism is operated so that a lock tooth bites into the card-shaped medium to lock the card-shaped medium at the position. In this manner, since the card-shaped medium located in the inside of the card reader is locked so as not to be moved, the card-shaped medium is prevented from being illegally pulled out by a criminal. As a result, an illegal use of a card-shaped medium by a criminal is prevented from occurring in advance.

Medium processing device and medium processing method


A first optical head comprising: a laser diode (LD) array, including N LDs having N emitting portions respectively arranged in a line at a predetermined interval, for emitting N laser beams of single mode; an optical system for forming a single spot as a pixel on a recording medium from the N laser beams such that images of the N emitting portions are contracted and overlapped each other; and a driver for driving the N LDs according to a single video signal. A second optical head comprising: M LD arrays, each including N LDs having N emitting portions respectively arranged in a line and emitting N laser beams of single mode from the N emitting portions; an optical system for forming M single spots as M pixels on a recording medium from the M of N laser beams such that images of the N emitting portions of each LD arrays are contracted and overlapped each other on the recording medium; and a driver for driving the M LD arrays according to M video signals respectively. Image recording apparatus having a scanning portion using the first or second optical head are also disclosed. In a third optical head, if some of LDs in one LD array deteriorates, a CPU increases drive current supplied to other LDs to compensate the output power. When the drive current exceed the maximum, the CPU stops the recording operation and indicates information.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an optical head and an image recording apparatus including the same for recording an image on a recording medium using laser light.
2. Description of the Prior Art
An image recording apparatus comprising an optical head including a multi-mode laser diode for emitting a laser beam, a collimating lens system for collimating the laser beam, an objective lens for focusing the collimated laser beam on a recording medium to form a laser beam spot on the recording medium, such as a heat sublimation ink film or a heat melting ink film, and a drive circuit for driving the laser diode in accordance with a video signal to reproduce an image on the recording medium and a scanning mechanism for effecting a scanning operation is known. Another prior art image recording apparatus having a plurality of multi-mode laser diodes for emitting a plurality of laser beams to form a plurality of laser spots, namely, a plurality of pixels, respectively through a similar optical system and through a similar scanning operation is also known.
In these prior art image recording apparatus, because a higher resolution and a higher recording speed are required, a power of the laser diode is increased up to 500 mW. In such a condition, a width of the laser light emitting portion becomes more than 50 .mu.m. Therefore, it is difficult to obtain a small spot on a recording medium, having a high power, for forming each pixel through a general optical system with the multi-mode laser diode.

Optical head and image recording apparatus including the same

Matsushita Graphic Communication Systems, Inc.


Systems, methods, and computer-readable media are disclosed for processing and message padding an input message as well as processing an extended output message (EOM) in a manner that ensures that the input message and the padded message are processed only a single time, thus avoiding generation of an incorrect message digest. In addition, in those scenarios in which multiple padded message blocks are generated, the disclosed systems, methods, and computer-readable media ensure that all of the padded message blocks are processed.

A hash function is a function that can be used to map data of an arbitrary size to data of a fixed size. The values returned by a hash function are typically referred to as hash values. A cryptographic hash function is a special class of hash functions that has certain properties that make it suitable for use in cryptography. In particular, a cryptographic hash function has the property of being a one-way function (i.e., a function which is infeasible to invert). Input data to a cryptographic hash function may be referred to as an input message and the output of the function may be referred to as a message digest.
The Secure Hash Algorithm (SHA) is a family of cryptographic hash functions published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Included among the SHA family of cryptographic hash functions are SHA-0, SHA-1, SHA-2, and SHA-3. The SHA hash functions differ in various aspects such as, for example, the size of the output in bits, the block size in bits, and so forth. Further, multiple variations of a particular SHA hash function may exist. For example, SHA-3 has a number of different variations such as SHA3-256 and SHA3-512 which differ, among other things, in the size of the output that they generate. SHA-3 also includes variants such as SHAKE128 and SHAKE 256 that are extended output functions (XOFs) that produce outputs of arbitrary size.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Message processing using extended output functions

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION


An improved photokeratoscopic method and apparatus for measuring corneal curvature and topography. The principal of parallax is used by generating a reference light point outside of the relevant plane of a ring generator, such that the relative apparent position of the reference light point with respect to the projected light rings provides a calibration reference that varies with distance of a cornea from the photokeratoscope. More particularly, the invention determines the coordinates in space and the tangent angle of the reflection point on the corneal surface of the image of the reference light point. This information defines the actual corneal topography at the reflection point, without making assumptions. These coordinates and tangent angle can be used to determine the actual distance d from the photokeratoscope lens to the apex of the cornea. An exact value of d permits better accuracy in calculating the central corneal radius of curvature and corneal topography. The present invention can be used with any known photokeratoscope geometry, including planar, spherical, or conical ring generators. The algorithm for computing d, and for calculating the central corneal radius of curvature and corneal topography, is shown in pseudocode, and may easily be implemented as a computer program.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to ophthalmic instruments, and more particularly to an improved photokeratoscopic method and apparatus for measuring corneal curvature and topography.
2. Description of Related Art
In recent years, there has been increased interest in instruments that provide a quantitative measurement of corneal topography. This interest is due mainly to developments in surgical procedures that correct refractive errors through modification of the corneal shape. These procedures include radial keratotomy, epikeratophakia, and excimer laser keratectomy.
The most common method of assessing corneal topography is keratoscopy, which involves imaging a pattern of bright concentric circles of light (typically about 20) by reflection from the anterior surface of the cornea. The image of the circles may be interpreted qualitatively, with abnormalities in corneal shape producing a non-circular image. If the images are captured on film or by video imaging, the method is known as photokeratoscopy.
FIG. 1 diagrammatically shows a conventional photokeratoscope. An eye 1 is positioned external of an instrument which comprises (1) a ring generator 3, which may be planar, spherical, or conical, configured to project bright rings of known dimension upon the eye 1 when illuminated from the opposite side of the eye, (2) a light source 5, which is preferably toroidal so as to provide relatively uniform illumination behind the ring generator 3, (3) a lens group 7 for focusing the reflected images of the projected rings received from the eye, and (4) an imaging device 9 for capturing the focused image from the lens group 7. In most modern instruments, the imaging device 9 would digitize the focused image so as to provide a digital image that could be automatically evaluated or provide quantifiable information with the assistance of human intervention. The imaging device 9 may, for example, use a 512.times.512 pixel CCD device, which are commonly available from a number of commercial sources.
FIG. 2 is a close up of an eye 1 and a ring generator 3, showing that ribs or structures 11 around the ring generator (a cone in the example shown in FIG. 2) cause a series of bright light rings 13 to be projected onto the cornea of the eye 1.
Attempts have been made to quantitatively interpret photokeratoscopic images by digitizing the light ring images reflected from a cornea, and using selected equations implemented as computer programs to calculate corneal topography from the size and shape of the light ring images. However, exact calculation is not possible from photokeratoscope data, and many assumptions are made to obtain an estimate of the corneal topography.
A number of references have described such methods. One such reference is entitled "Improved Method for Calculation of Corneal Topography for any Photokeratoscope Geometry", by Paul P. van Saarloos and lan J. Constable, Optometry and Vision Science, Vol. 68, No. 12, pp. 960-965, 1991, the teachings of which are hereby incorporated by reference. The van Saarloos reference teaches a mathematical method for estimating the central corneal radius of curvature and for calculating corneal topography from the radii of the rings in a photokeratoscope image.
FIGS. 3A and 3B are diagrams of the geometry of a conventional photokeratoscope in use with respect to a cornea C. The relevant angles and lengths are indicated, and have the meanings defined in the van Saarloos reference. The van Saarloos equations give a reasonably good approximation of the central corneal radius of curvature and corneal topography by using the measured radii of the rings in a photokeratoscope image and applying the known geometry of a photokeratoscope.
However, one problem with the van Saarloos method and other prior art methods is that, the distance d from the photokeratoscope lens to the apex of the cornea cannot be measured directly. The distance d is used in all equations to calculate corneal topography. Hence, an inaccurate value for d will affect the accuracy of all topographical calculations. The magnification (an hence angle a.sub.i) is also highly dependent on the actual value of d.
The distance d can be approximated if the working distance wd (defined as the distance from the lens group 7 to the plane where an object would be perfectly focused onto the imaging device 9) and the photokeratoscope is focused perfectly. Put another way, d cannot be calculated accurately from wd if the photokeratoscope is not focused perfectly. Unfortunately, achieving perfect focus is often very difficult with present photokeratoscopes.
Accordingly, what is needed is a measurement of the distance d at the time a photokeratoscopic image is recorded. The present invention provides an improved apparatus and method for measuring d, which permits better accuracy than the prior art in calculating the central corneal radius of curvature and corneal topography.


There is provided a projector including a projection control unit which controls a projection of a background window and computes location information of at least one projection window projected on the background window, a performance sensing unit which senses an object performance on the background window and the at least one projection window, a communication unit which communicates with at least one other projector different from the projector, and an information control unit which controls an operation of each of the at least one other projector, the operation corresponding to the object performance.

Currently, new types of input interfaces such as a virtual keyboard, a surface computer, and a multi-touching sensing, have been developed. Along with the development of such input interfaces, a user interface which projects a screen, via a projector, where the input interface is made available and enables a user to operate a computing performance on the screen has been being developed.
When such a user interface is implemented through a portable terminal, users may project each user interface screen via a user's portable terminal, and thereby may conveniently exchange information at any time and place. Accordingly, the development of a new technology which may embody information exchange among users via the user interface screen is needed.

Projector having a communication unit which communicates with at least one other projector different from the projector and multiple projection control method of the projector


A method for producing hot pour product samplers that incorporates the genuine hot pour product through the use of bulk thin film application techniques such as extrusion or spray technology. The method comprises first applying a hot pour product to a base substrate, and then attaching a cover sheet by means of an adhesive or heat-seal die adhesive on either wide-web offset or narrow-web equipment.

Traditionally, hot pour products such as lipsticks have been packaged in containers such as bottles, jars, flasks, boxes, compacts and tubes. Additionally, hot pour products have been molded into various shapes such as a cylindrical shape or a pomade and enclosed in a container which may be of a corresponding different shape than the hot pour product. More recently, hot pour products such as lipsticks and other cosmetics have been placed in sampling devices for use in magazine inserts, postcards, department store catalogs and billing cycles and other sales promotion vehicles, and have been used as store handouts. The sampling devices contain a small quantity of hot pour product or a substance simulating a hot pour product that can be removed and applied to the lips or skin by a consumer.
Hot pour product sampling devices such as for lipsticks are also produced using silk-screen printing such as in U.S. Pat. No. 5,562,112. The silk-screen printing method is relatively economically unfeasible and it requires multiple manufacturing steps to produce a finished product.
A method disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,072,831 provides a transfer layer of a colored heavy, waxy oily material, removable by fingertip and spreadable by skin, in forming an advertising sampler.
However, this sampler is made from a composition which is intended to only mimic the color of the genuine cosmetic product advertised. The sampler does not contain the actual hot pour product advertised.
One method disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,752,496 provides printing a cosmetic onto a substrate using standard printing techniques. This method requires that non-dry cosmetics, i.e., lipstick, first be modified to a dry micro-particulate form. Col. 3, lines 53-55. Second, a carrier is added to the cosmetic to form a slurry of cosmetic. Col. 4, lines 33-35. Finally, this slurry is applied to a substrate.
Another method disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,192,386 teaches application of cosmetics to a treated substrate using screen printing. This sampler does not utilize bulk thin film application, i.e., non-printing technology. A need exists to produce hot pour product samplers using non-printing technology.
A need exists for inexpensive mass producing hot pour product samplers such as lipstick. A need also exists to provide a hot pour product sampler encompassing the actual hot pour product advertised, not another product that mimics the genuine product. Hot pour products typically have a very defined appearance and feel. A need exists to form a hot pour product sampler without having to form a slurry or solid before application of the product. Finally, a need exists to effectively utilize bulk thin film application techniques to produce an economical hot pour product sampler.

Hot pour product sampler and method of making using bulk thin film application techniques


An image forming apparatus which is capable of reading an original, temporarily storing image data in a storage unit, and then transferring the image data to an image forming unit to improve FCOT in forming an image. A memory stores image data output from image reading units. An image forming unit forms an image on a recording medium based on the image data stored in the memory. A first memory output frequency in a first mode in which one side of an original is read and an image is formed on one side of a recording medium is lower than a second memory output frequency in a second mode in which both sides of an original are read and an image is formed both sides of a recording medium.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus which reads an original, temporarily stores image data in a storage unit, and then transfers the image data to an image forming unit to form an image.
Description of the Related Art
There has been proposed an image reading apparatus which conveys an original onto an original platen glass to read images on a front side and a back side of the original at the same time (see U.S. Pat. No. 8,477,387). In this image reading apparatus, a sensor which reads a front side of an original and a sensor which reads a back side of an original are placed in proximity to each other, and it is possible to read an image on a front side and an image on a back side at the same time without inverting an original.
On the other hand, there has been proposed an image forming apparatus which temporarily stores image data, which has been read by an image reading apparatus, in, for example, an image memory, takes the image data from the image memory with predetermined timing, and transfers the image data to an image processing unit which in turn performs image processing (see Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2000-280580).
According to the technique described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,477,387, in a one-sided mode and a double-sided mode, reading productivity is increased by changing image data transfer blank time periods (blank time periods between transfer of originals) according to whether an operating mode is the one-sided mode or the double-sided mode.
The technique described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,477,387, however, has room for improvement because no twists are added to a reading method or the like in the one-sided mode although reading productivity in the double-sided mode is increased.
Lately, it has become possible to reduce the time that elapses before output of a copy image on a first original from an image forming unit is completed after the first original is read (First Copy Output Time; hereafter referred to as "FCOT") is reduced.
This is because when the time that elapses from depression of a copy start button by a user to reading of image data by an image reading unit and printing-out of the image data by an image forming unit is long, this makes the user wait for a long time, and as compared to a case where FCOT is short, total power consumption is high. In the following description, "reduce FCOT" is expressed as "improve FCOT".

Image forming apparatus that improves FCOT


In a fail-safe control device for an electronically controlled automatic transmission to be mounted on a vehicle, a sensor for the number of revolution input to a T/M is newly provided for the electronically controlled automatic transmission, and an actual gear ratio of the T/M is calculated in accordance with the number of revolution input to the T/M and the number of revolution output from the T/M or the car speed. If the calculated actual gear ratio is coincided with the formal gear ratio, it is determined that the state is normal, while if they are not coincided with each other, it is determined that the T/M is in a failure state. As a result of this, failure detection of the T/M is performed. Therefore, in a case when the T/M is in a failure state, a driver can take a measure, for exmple, by performing an emergency control. Furthermore, the occurrence of the failure can be displayed by a detected failure displaying device so that the driver can take a measure such as a repair.

The present invention relates to a fail-safe control of an electronically controlled automatic transmission to be mounted on a vehicle, and, more particularly, to a fail-safe control against failures in the mechanic portion of a transmission (T/M) such as stick valves or slippages of the friction materials or the like.
In the conventional electronically controlled automatic transmission, the signals corresponding to the degree of throttle and the car speed or the output rotational speed of the T/M are used to judge the gear ratio of the T/M and whether the lock-up clutch is turned on or off to control an actuator such as a solenoid installed in the T/M is controlled.
However, in the above-described type of conventional control method, while there is no problem in fail-safe control against electric failures of the sensors or the actuators, it is difficult to perform a sufficient fail-safe control against failures in the mechanical portions of the T/M, for example, stick valves or the slippages of friction materials. Therefore, a further improvement is required for comfortable driving.

Device and method of fail-safe control for electronically controlled automatic transmission


A seat mounting system for an electric vehicle including a longitudinal support beam coupled with a chassis of the vehicle, a front cross beam extending from a right side of a passenger compartment of the vehicle to a left side of the passenger compartment, and a rear cross beam extending from the right side to the left side. A connector is disposed between the longitudinal support beam and both cross beams. The connector couples the longitudinal support beam with both cross beams. At least one seat rail is mounted to the connector and extends across the front cross beam and the rear cross beam. The seat rail is mounted to the connector such that a forward portion of the at least one seat rail extends higher than a rear portion of the at least one seat rail. The seat rail mounts a seat within the passenger compartment.

There are many problems unique to electric vehicles, oftentimes due to the presence of large and/or numerous batteries used to power the electric motor and other components of the vehicle. These batteries are often bulky, and add significant weight to the vehicles. These considerations present challenges in designing a particularly efficient and practical electrical vehicle. Additionally, these batteries may be particularly susceptible to damage during a collision. Damage to a battery may be especially dangerous by presenting a fire and/or corrosive hazard. As such, protecting the batteries from damage remains a difficult challenge unique to the field of electric vehicles.

THUNDER POWER NEW ENERGY VEHICLE DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LIMITED


One embodiment of the present invention is an internal combustion engine system that includes an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger with a compressor and a turbine and a gas flow pathway defined therebetween, one or more pressure sensors to detect pressure along the gas flow pathway, an emission control device structured to receive exhaust from the turbocharger, and a controller responsive to input from the one or more pressure sensors. The controller determines a control signal indicative of turbine outlet temperature as a function of such input, and selectively generates an output signal to adjust temperature of the exhaust provided to the emission control device from the turbocharger in response to the control signal.

The present invention relates to operation of an engine including a turbocharger, and more particularly, but not exclusively relates to determining a signal representative of turbine outlet temperature for an engine turbocharger. In one application, this signal may be used to thermally manage operation of an emission control device. Alternatively or additionally, such a signal may be used differently in other applications.
Control systems for internal combustion engines typically include the input of various engine operating parameters. Some desired input parameters cannot be cost-effectively detected using available sensor technology. For example, direct sensing of extreme temperatures can be undesirable. Nonetheless, temperature inputs are of growing importance in regulating various operations of internal combustion engine systems—especially those directed to emissions control. Thus, there is a continuing demand for further contributions in this area of technology.

Temperature determination technique for a turbocharger


A distributed antenna system for wireless communication inside enclosed areas such as buildings, tunnels, etc., includes an antenna cable and a termination circuit which provides a plurality of termination impedances for the cable, varying as a function of time. The termination circuit may include a diode coupled to the cable at a remote end of the cable and a bias voltage generator coupled to a local end of the cable. Changes in bias voltage alternately forward biases and reverse biases the diode, effectively changing the termination impedance of the antenna cable. As the impedance changes, nodes and regions of high multipath distortion move, so the probability is greatly increased that personnel with remote communication equipment will be able to send and receive good quality signals over the antenna cable at any given location.

In large modern buildings such as office buildings, multiunit residences, etc., there are often large networks of floors, hallways, or tunnels. The hallways or tunnels may run in long, straight paths or may abruptly turn at sharp angles. Buildings are constructed using structural steel supports or metallic wall studs. Also, aircraft and ships often have confined passageways. Such buildings, hallways, or tunnels provide a very challenging environment for wireless communications. Yet, there is a need for practical wireless communication systems which provide two-way communication between a base station, which might be in a particular office cf the building, and portable communication equipment carried by maintenance or security personnel. Preferably, the personnel should be able to use standard portable radio equipment or other standard equipment for wireless electromagnetic (EM) communication.
In order for a wireless communication system to work effectively inside enclosed areas such as hallways or tunnels, two requirements must be met. First, an EM field carrying signals transmitted from the base station to the personnel must have substantially equal field strength for all regions in the areas. Second, the system must be approximately equally sensitive to signals transmitted by the personnel using their portable equipment regardless of the location of the personnel within the enclosed area. These objectives have proven very difficult to realize in practice.
The structural members and other reflective surfaces which were used in construction of the enclosed areas provide a bewildering maze of reflective surfaces for EM radiation. Accordingly, enclosed areas experience multipath distortion, including deep nulls due to factors such as phase cancellation. The distortion and nulls are distributed throughout the enclosed areas. As a practical matter, the complexity of the structure of enclosed areas makes it impossible to predict by analysis where the distortion and nulls will be located. A mere few inches may separate an area of strong, clear reception from a null area in which reception is nearly inaudible. Accordingly, it is impracticable to design a system in which the distortion and nulls may be located in out-of-the-way places.
Conventional communications systems have been used including multiple conventional antennas, multiple feedlines, and power splitters in order to propagate signals around sharp bends or bulkheads and reduce or eliminate nulls. Such systems, however, are disadvantageously complex and expensive, particularly because transmitters and receivers used at the base station and used by the remote personnel must be able to d al with a large standard deviation of signal strength, i.e., from deep nulls up to areas of strong reception.
A simpler and less expensive communication system has been used employing slotted coaxial cable antennas running along hallways or tunnels. A slotted coaxial cable antenna is mechanically simpler and cheaper than other conventional systems, but is still subject to multipath interference effects, including nulls. In order to make the system usable in spite of the distortion and nulls, high power transmitters have been used, so that even nulls are boosted enough that their signals are audible. However, this brings about the additional disadvantage of undesirably high power consumption. The additional power, or "system use factor", may require on the order of 20 dB of additional power for satisfactory signal strength.
A further technique has been used for designing systems for overcoming the problem of distortion and nulls. Two or more distributed antennas having different characteristics are laid throughout the enclosed area. Due to the different characteristics, if a given position in the enclosed area has a null for one antenna, the likelihood is small that another antenna will also have a null there. Communication equipment may be used which alternates on a time division basis between the signals of the antennas, or which has intelligent circuitry for selecting the strongest signal. Thus, the communication problems caused by distortion and nulls are largely eliminated. However, considerable additional cost is still incurred due to the redundant antennas and the more specialized and complex communication equipment.
Therefore, there remains a need for a simple and inexpensive, yet effective, system for wireless communication in enclosed areas.


The invention relates to a process for the biological treatment of essentially solid organic material, such as fruit, vegetable and garden waste, wherein the material is successively treated in a hydrolysis tank and in an anaerobic methane reactor, and at least a part of the solids issuing from the hydrolysis tank is treated in a second anaerobic reactor with at least one a microorganism of the rumen flora of ruminants; the liquid soluble material produced in the second reactor is further treated in the methane reactor. The material is preferably pretreated mechanically in a destructor. The invention furthermore provides an apparatus for carrying out this process.

Several types of treatment systems for solid biological waste are presently being developed. These systems should make it possible, firstly to obtain a stabilized and sanitarily reliable end product which can be used for example as compost or soil improver, and secondly to obtain a volume reduction, making dumping less expensive. The types of waste that can be treated using such treatment systems include:
separately collected fruit, vegetable and garden waste; PA1 the organic fraction of household refuse (RDF or wet fraction) from a household refuse treatment plant; PA1 material withdrawn from auctions; PA1 cuttings of verges, trimming waste and the like; PA1 catering waste.
The biological systems can be divided into aerobic and anaerobic systems. An aerobic system is concerned with conventional composting and improvements thereof. Anaerobic systems can be divided into anaerobic fermentation (30.degree.-40.degree. C.), thermophilic fermentation (55.degree.-65.degree. C.) and two-stage systems. Anaerobic fermentation and thermophilic fermentation are processes wherein the entire waste flow is treated, without differentiating between the residence time for liquids and the residence time for solids in the system. Such systems are mostly single-stage and they can be applied both as a completely mixed system or in a plug stream reactor. A disadvantage of these systems is the relatively long treatment time (residence time) and the resulting necessity of large and expensive equipment.
In a two-stage process as defined in the preamble, the selected residence time of the solid material can be longer than the residence time of the liquid and, moreover, different biological reactions can be carried out in different parts of a plant.
A process according to the preamble is known, for example from European patent applications 37612 and 142873. According to EP-A-37612 solid organic material is subjected to a two-stage anaerobic treatment, whereby the material is decomposed into mainly lower fatty acids and other water soluble substances, carbon dioxide, methane and a residual fraction in the first stage, and the water soluble substances and the fatty acids are treated in a second stage leading to formation of methane and carbon dioxide. According to EP-A-142873 the solid material resulting from the first stage (hydrolysis/acidification) is partly recycled and the liquid is treated in a methane reactor in the second stage.
An advantage of these known systems is the relative simplicity of the necessary equipment and of the execution of the process. A disadvantage, however, is that no advanced degree of degradation and thus no substantial volume reduction can be achieved for many types of waste, and thus the cost of dumping is not notably reduced.
A process for the production of methane from solid vegetable waste, wherein the vegetable material is treated with ciliates (microorganisms such as present in the rumen of ruminants) and methane bacteria in a liquid medium, is known from European patent application 159054. The liquid thus obtained can be treated in a separate anaerobic reactor wherein additional methane is produced. Such a method which is thus based on the use of the rumen flora of ruminants, is also known as the so-called RUDAD system (RUmen Derived Anaerobic Digestion).
The RUDAD system has the advantage that waste also containing components that are difficult to degrade can be degraded to a large extent and can thus be considerably reduced in volume. A disadvantage is however that the process should be carefully controlled and that fluctuations of the quantities and nature of the waste supply as occurring in practice disturb the process stability to the extent that an effective waste degradation is no longer achieved.
The problem of fluctations of the supply could in principle be solved by using a large equalizing buffering tank, but this does not solve the problem of rapid acidification of the easily degradable part of the waste (production of acetic and propionic acid). This acidification not only results in stench and lowering of the pH, but also inhibits the biological processes, in particular of the rumen derived flora, when concentrations become excessively high, irrespective of the pH. Such a high concentration of acid components would require a high circulation rate in order to remove all organic acids produced from the rapidly acidifying material; this would results in very short hydraulic retention times of 2 to 4 hours in the RUDAD reactor, whereas a minimum retention time of 6 hours is necessary in order to maintain the desired biomass population, and the optimal hydraulic retention time is about 12 hours. Thus a stable operation of the RUDAD reactor is not possible.

Process for the biological treatment of solid organic material


A voltage controlled oscillator includes a voltage-to-current converter and a current controlled oscillator, where the voltage-to-current converter is used for converting an input voltage to generate an output current, and the current controlled oscillator is used for generating an output frequency signal according to the output current. In addition, the voltage-to-current converter includes an input terminal, a resistor, a current mirror and a current generating circuit, where the input terminal is for receiving the input voltage; the resistor is coupled to the input terminal; the current mirror is coupled to the resistor, and is used for mirroring a reference current to generate a mirrored current, where the reference current is formed according to at least a current flowing through the resistor; and the current generating circuit is coupled to the current mirror, and is used for generating the output current according to at least the mirrored current.

To extend a frequency range and to cover process, voltage and temperature (PVT) variation, a voltage controlled oscillator usually requires a large gain. The large gain, however, may cause more noise and supply pushing (due to increased sensitivity to the variation of a supply voltage). To solve this problem, one solution provides a set of sub-bands each having smaller gains compared to the voltage controlled oscillator for preventing the noise and supply pushing issues; a disadvantage of this solution, however, is that this technique requires digital calibration that results in greater manufacturing costs. Another type of voltage controlled oscillator with linear input voltage characteristics may have smaller gain and does not use digital calibration; a disadvantage of this solution, however, is that the linear range of this type of voltage controlled oscillator may not cover the full input range.

Voltage-to-current converter and voltage controlled oscillator having voltage-to-current converter


A holder for detachably mounting a glass electric lamp dome which includes a pair of dome holding arms mounted to a lever arm which in turn is pivotally mounted on a base plate. The lever arm and the dome holding arms are actuated by a finger engageable lever formed as part of one of the dome holding arms and having a finger engageable terminus at the end opposite the end attached to the pivot arm. A feature is spring biasing means connecting the base plate and the lever arm to continuously urge the dome holding arms outwardly in dome holding locking position unless the finger engageable dome holding arm is moved inwardly. Another feature is lock means associated with said finger engageable dome holding arm to premit the locking of said mechanism in a dome disengaging position so that the dome can be removed and replaced.

This invention relates generally to releasable mounting means for glass electric lamp globes or domes.
In known releasable retaining holders of the type which are mounted on the ceiling or on a wall, the glass dome is held by means of three or more threaded screws, each of which has to be unthreaded to permit removal and replacement of the glass dome when changing a light bulb.
In prior art arrangements which use mechanisms other than the conventional multi-screw arrangement described above, there have been proposed flat sheet spring retaining means such as in U.S. Pat. No. 3,312,817; a plurality of tilting levers acutuated by the glass dome during installation of the latter as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,903,411; and, dome retaining extending arms actuated by a gear drive as shown in Swedish Patent No. 106,578 as examples.
All of the foregoing arrangements have been unsatisfactory due to mechanical problems, complications of design caused by the requirement for many moving parts, and the absence of a positive locking feature whereby the dome cannot be inadvertently released once it is firmly in place.
Accordingly, it has been an object of this invention to provide a holder for detachably mounting a glass electric lamp dome that can be easily actuated to release or attach the dome and which requires only a few moving parts capable of easy manufacture and assembly and economy by elimination of precision parts or fasteners.
According to this invention, there has been provided a holder for detachably mounting a glass electric lamp dome which includes a pair of dome holding arms mounted to a lever arm which in turn is pivotally mounted on a base plate. The lever arm and the dome holding arms are actuated by a finger engageable lever formed as part of one of the dome holding arms and having a finger engageable terminus at the end opposite the end attached to the pivot arm. A feature of the invention is spring biasing means connecting the base plate and the lever arm to continuously urge the dome holding arms radially outwardly in dome holding locking position unless the finger engageable dome holding arm is moved inwardly. Another feature of the invention is lock means associated with said finger engageable dome holding arm to permit the locking of said mechanism in a dome disengaging position so that the dome can be removed and replaced.
The invention will be more fully described with reference to the drawings.


Apparatus for satisfying heating and cooling demands including a cooling circuit including a mechanical refrigeration unit having a low pressure side and a high pressure side, a heating circuit including a booster compressor for drawing and further compressing refrigerant from the high pressure side of the refrigeration unit, and a heat reclaiming condenser for passing the further compressed refrigerant vapor in heat transfer relation with a heat transfer fluid to heat the fluid and condense the refrigerant vapor. Also disclosed is a control for reducing the vapor flow rate through the booster compressor when the pressure in the high pressure side of the refrigeration unit falls below a predetermined value.

This invention relates generally to methods and apparatus for simultaneously satisfying heating and cooling demands.
Refrigeration apparatus or machines are frequently employed to cool a fluid such as water which is circulated through various rooms or enclosures of a building to cool these areas. Often, the refrigerant of such machines rejects a relatively large amount of heat at the condenser of the machine. This rejected heat is commonly dissipated to the atmosphere, either directly or via a cooling fluid that circulates between the condenser and a cooling tower. Over a period of time, the rejected heat represents a substantial loss of energy, and much attention has been recently directed to reclaiming or recovering this heat to satisfy a heating load or demand.
One general approach to reclaiming this heat is to employ a booster compressor to draw and further compress refrigerant from the condenser of the refrigeration machine. This further compressed vapor is then passed through a separate, heat reclaiming condenser. A heat transfer fluid is circulated through the heat reclaiming condenser in heat transfer relation with the refrigerant passing therethrough. Heat is transferred from the refrigerant to the heat transfer fluid, heating the fluid and condensing the refrigerant. The heated heat transfer fluid may then be used to satisfy a present heating load or the fluid may be stored for later use, and the condensed refrigerant is returned to the cooling circuit for further use therein.
With refrigeration machines having both a cooling circuit and heating circuit as described above, it is desirable to control the heating and cooling circuits to meet varying heating and cooling loads, and it is preferred to control the heating and cooling circuits independent of each other so that variations in one circuit do not affect the other circuit's ability to handle loads placed thereon. However, difficulties arise when the heating and cooling circuits are independently controlled. For example, if the refrigeration machine is called on to simultaneously handle a low cooling load and a high heating load, then the refrigerant flow rate through the cooling circuit is comparatively small and a relatively small amount of vapor is discharged from the compressor of the cooling circuit. At the same time, the refrigerant flow rate through the heating circuit is relatively large and a relatively large portion of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor of the cooling circuit is drawn into the booster compressor and passed through the heating circuit. In fact, under extreme conditions, the refrigerant flow rate through the booster compressor may temporarily exceed the rate at which refrigerant is discharged from the compressor of the cooling circuit. When this occurs, the mass of refrigerant vapor in the condenser of the cooling circuit decreases, decreasing the pressure therein. This, in turn, decreases the pressure at the inlet of the booster compressor. If this pressure falls to a very low level, the temperature of the vapor discharged from the booster compressor may become undesirably high, or the booster compressor may enter what is known as surge conditions wherein there are periodic complete flow reversals in the compressor, destroying the efficiency of the compressor and endangering the integrity of the elements thereof.

Method and apparatus for satisfying heating and cooling demands and control therefor


The shielding status of a security system may be determined based on shielding statuses of individual devices in the security system. The shielding status of each individual device in the security system may be determined based on whether it is in a secured state and is properly functioning. The shielding status of the security system may be determined based on equally or unequally weighted shielding statuses of the individual devices. The shielding status of the security system may be transmitted to a mobile device carried by a user who is outside of the monitored environment. The shielding status of the security system may also be transmitted to the security monitoring company, the device vendor, or the homeowner insurance carrier, which may advertise products or services or provide incentives to the user based on the shielding status of the security system.

A conventional home security systems typically have two states or modes of operations, that is, armed and unarmed. A security system is considered "armed" when each component of the system is operational and set in a secured state, that is, a state in which the component generates a response to an event, such as an intrusion, a movement, a fire, or the presence of smoke or toxic gas. Otherwise, the security system is considered "unarmed."


An axial magnetic field high voltage vacuum interrupter for interrupting the flow of electrical current in high voltage electrical circuits has a housing with a vacuum therein and two switch contacts disposed within the housing. The switch contacts are movable with respect to each other between a first position in which they are in contact with each other and a second position in which they are separated from each other by a space sufficient to interrupt the current flow through them. One or both of the switch contacts comprise a plurality of helically coiled current-carrying bars, an electrically conductive stem portion conductively coupled to the helically coiled bars at one end, and an electrically conductive contact member conductively coupled to the helically coiled bars at another end. Each of the helically coiled bars has a first portion which extends radially outward from the stem portion and a second portion which is helically coiled about an axis substantially parallel with the stem portion.

This invention relates to a new and improved axial magnetic field high voltage vacuum interrupter for interrupting the flow of electrical current in high voltage electrical circuits.
A high voltage vacuum interrupter is a type of circuit breaker or switch that is used to interrupt the flow of large currents. As used herein, the term "high voltage" refers to a voltage greater than 1,000 volts. A high voltage vacuum interrupter is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,568,804 to Elmer Luehring. The vacuum interrupter has a pair of terminals each of which is connected to a respective switch contact, one of which is stationary and one of which is movable. The switch contacts are provided in a vacuum chamber to minimize electrical arcing when the switch contacts are moved away from each other to interrupt the flow of electrical current.
Conventional high voltage vacuum interrupters have a limit to the amount of current they can interrupt due to electrical arcing since larger currents are more likely to cause sustained arcs when the switch contacts are separated. Some high voltage vacuum interrupters have been designed to generate an axial magnetic field to increase the amount of electrical current they can interrupt. The axial magnetic field helps to prevent the formation of a narrow, constricted electrical arc between the two switch contacts, thus increasing the current-interrupting capability of the interrupter.
Axial magnetic field vacuum interrupters typically include switch contacts that are provided with a current carrying tube-shaped copper cylinder having slots cut therein so that the current flows through the cylinder in a helical path to generate the axial magnetic field. One example of such a vacuum interrupter is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,695,687 to Grosse, et al.
Switch contacts produced by cutting slots in a preformed copper cylinder are relatively expensive to produce for a number of reasons. The slotting operation is relatively complicated and requires the use of relatively expensive machining apparatus. The copper cylinder in which the slots are cut is relatively expensive, and the copper removed from the cylinder by the slotting process is wasted. The complicated nature of the slotting procedure also reduces the flexibility to manufacture switch contacts of different sizes and having different electrical characteristics.

Axial magnetic field high voltage vacuum interrupter


A method for calorimetry includes flowing a first fluid through a co-flow reactor microchannel having plural inlets and an outlet, the first fluid flowing through each of the inlets, and measuring transmission of light through a Nano Hole Array (NHA) sensor to obtain a baseline extraordinary optical transmission (EOT) measurement. The flow of the first fluid is stopped, the microchannel is emptied of the first fluid, and the first fluid and a second fluid are passed through the microchannel such that a reaction occurs, the first fluid flowing through a first of the inlets and the second fluid flowing through a second of the inlets. While flowing the first and second fluids, transmission of light through the NHA sensor is measured to obtain a reaction EOT measurement. A calorimetry measurement, indicative of energy released during the reaction, is calculated as a function of the baseline and reaction EOT measurements.

calorimetry is a particularly advantageous method used to study the thermodynamics of binding interactions (e.g., protein-protein interactions, proteins-DNA, drug-protein interactions) of biological and/or pharmaceutical compounds. Calorimetry measures the energy released or absorbed by a reaction over a range of reactant concentrations, and uses this information to determine the thermodynamic properties, stoichiometry, and equilibrium binding constant for the reaction.
Temperature sensors conventionally employed for determining the heat of a chemical reaction in calorimetry studies include thermocouples, thermopiles, and/or thermistors. Other temperature sensing methods include sensors with microfluidic channels and have used changes in optical properties to infer temperature changes in reactions. However, these optical-based temperature-sensing approaches often lack a desired sensitivity for detecting small changes in temperature. In addition, the occurrence of air bubbles in microfluidic channels can have a deleterious effect on optical-based approaches.

Stop-start method in a microfluidic calorimeter


A user programmable device for horizontal gel eletrophoresis is provided. This device can both accurately and programmably control: (a) the angle between electrical field and gel by use of a rotatable gel bed, (b) magnitude of the electrical field, and (c) temperature. The present invention is programmable by a microprocessor-based contol board which sends control signals to: (a) a motor attached to the rotatable gel (b) the source of elecrical potential and (c) Peltier devices attached to the sides of buffer chambers horizontally displaced from the rotatable gel bed. The present invention is particularly appropriate for lowering cost, lowering footprint, reducing heat dissipated, maintaining close tolerances of electric field gradients and temperature, and exploring and using thus far untried modes of electrical field variation. It is thereby suitable for analyzing large linear DNA, open circular DNA and/or DNA-protein complexes. Control of several disks, power supplies and temperature cells by one control board (multiplexing) is an option.

The invention relates to a device and method for programmably controlling electrophoresis performed by use of either invariant or variable (pulsed) fields. More specifically, the present invention is directed toward a programmable control of the direction and magnitude of the electrical field experienced by a particle in a rotatable gel bed. The temperature of the gel bed and sample particles placed therein is also programmably regulated through a thermoelectric chilling device such as a Peltier device. The invention utilizes a user-programmable control board for multiplexing the control of both electric field (magnitude and direction) and temperature during either pulsed field gel (PFG) or invariant field gel electrophoresis. By programming the various conditions that determine the electrophoretic fractionation, the present invention increases the significance and usefulness of electrophoretic analysis of various complex particles such as proteins, peptides, or nucleic acids.
By far the most common method of analyzing particles, such as DNA molecules, is electrophoresis. Molecules or particles having net electrical charges may be analyzed by observing their migration in a gel subjected to the application of electrical fields. The migrations are dependent upon many factors which include but are not limited to the nature of electric fields, the pH of solvents containing the particles, the temperature of the solvent and the characteristics of the particles themselves. By changing the direction and magnitude of the electric field during electrophoresis, the length of DNA molecules which are separable has been increased to between 3.0-6.0 Mb. Thus, changing the direction of electrical field impinging upon the particles and/or the pulse duration and magnitude of the electric field will produce increased separation of either large DNA molecules or, presumably, other particles forming either a random coil or a flexible rod. Changing the direction of the impinging electrical field is typically achieved by either changing the electrical potential on vertical electrodes or rotating the gel in which migratory DNA-type particles are placed. Contained both over and within the gel is an electrically conductive solvent which conducts electrical current that, in the case of a rotating gel, is driven by an electrical potential from electrodes horizontally displaced adjacent the rotating bed. As the bed and particles rotate about a fixed axis, the electrical field angle of incidence upon the particles changes.
Although changing the magnitude and direction of electric fields improves fractionation of larger linear or open-circular DNA particles, there still remains a limit as to the size of particles that can be analyzed. For linear DNA molecules having lengths that exceed 3.0-6.0 Mb, additional procedures are needed. Further, when DNA particles have branches or other types of irregular protrusions (such as proteins, for example), improved control of electrical potential gradient (direction and magnitude) and temperature is needed to fractionate the particle. Oftentimes, when fractionating large particles, it is necessary to increase electrical potential gradients by injecting more power into the electrophoretic device. Increased power causes heat build-up within and across the gel bed thereby adversely affecting electrophoresis readings. A fast and efficient way of dissipating heat away from the particles and gel bed is needed when migrating large particles using higher power input levels.
Not only are conventional devices unable to analyze large linear (>6 Mb) or open-circular (>0.3 Mb) DNA particles, but they also suffer from poor adaptability in analyzing different forms of particles. Each time a different DNA particle is sought for analysis, the apparatus must be changed or retrofitted to accommodate the particular size, shape or composition of that particle. For example, a smaller particle may respond poorly to discontinuous or continuous rotation of the gel bed during electrophoresis. In such a case, it may be desirable to provide unidirectional electrophoresis without changing or retrofitting the electrophoretic apparatus. Still further, it may even be desirable to provide more accurate readings when, for example, performing a highly resonant separation, i.e., one that has a steep dependance on parameters of electrophoresis. In such a case, uniformity and control of both electrical potential gradient and temperature is critical.
Perhaps the greatest difficulty when performing electrophoresis is to perform repetitive tests using the same electric field gradient and temperature for each test. Thus, a need arises for programmably and accurately controlling, preferably with programmable storage and recall, electrophoretic conditions. Furthermore, the electrophoretic device must have the capacity for accurate control during successive tests, such that the conditions remain constant for each test. Current devices are not known for their ability to control temperature and electrical potential; most do not store and recall control parameters for repetitive electrophoresis operations. Further, current devices do not multiplex control of two or more electrophoretic disks or electrophoretic devices, nor can current devices programmably control multiple modes of variation of the electrical field and other control parameters values, for example, a mode can be the temporal sequence of disk rotations and electrical source (magnitude and polarity).

Programmable electrophoresis with integrated and multiplexed control

Board of Regents, The University of Texas System


The embodiments described herein relate to synchronization of data in a shared pool of configurable computer resources. One or more consistency points are created in a source filesystem. A first consistency point is compared with a second consistency point to detect a directory change at the source filesystem, which includes identifying at least one difference between the first and second consistency points. A file level change associated with an established directory at a target filesystem is identified responsive to the detection of the directory change. A link is established between the source filesystem and the target filesystem, and the established directory is updated based on the file level change.

The embodiments described herein relate to data synchronization across cluster filesystems. More specifically, the embodiments described herein relate to tracking changes in a filesystem and replaying the changes to another filesystem using a standard protocol.
In a scalable and writable caching system that caches remote file data, data is fetched from a remote site and updates made at the cache site, also known as the source site, and replayed at the remote site, also known as the target site. It is known that network connectivity between the source and target sites may be subject to temporary disconnects. When a disconnection between the two sites occurs, the source site should still be available for access to data that is previously cached, and as such, the source site continues to support both data and metadata updates. At such time as connectivity between the two sites is restored, the data and metadata updates need to be synchronized to the target site.

Synchronizing updates across cluster filesystems

International Business Machines Corporation


A method of manufacturing semiconductor devices uses a wafer carrier having conditioning units to control internal conditions of the wafer carrier. The wafer carrier stores and carries wafers between manufacturing equipments used in manufacturing processes. For each of the manufacturing processes, the method includes placing the wafer carrier on a load port, transferring the wafers from the wafer carrier into the manufacturing equipment through the load port, changing operating conditions of the conditioning units according to the process or test being carried out by the manufacturing equipment, returning the wafers into the wafer carrier through the load port after the completion of the process or test, and operating the conditioning units according to the changed operating conditions to control the internal conditions until the wafer carrier is carried to the next manufacturing equipment.

This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Applications No. P2001-34156 filed on Feb. 9, 2001 and No. P2001-60581 filed on Mar. 5, 2001, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing semiconductor devices with the use of a wafer carrier having conditioning units. The wafer carrier stores in-process wafers and carries them between manufacturing equipments on a semiconductor device manufacturing line.
2. Description of the Related Art
Semiconductor devices having fine patterns are manufactured in a clean room free of dust. A clean room, however, still contains or produces impurities that affect semiconductor device manufacturing processes. Chemical filters to remove impurities from intake air are therefore employed, and other chemical filters are installed in air conditioners and air circulating systems to remove impurities produced in the clean room.
In-process wafers handled in the clean room are stored and carried in a wafer carrier to prevent dust or impurities from making contact with the wafers. Some semiconductor device manufacturing processes carried out in the clean room leave residues on the wafers which contaminate other wafers when they are stored in the wafer carrier.
To solve this problem, Japanese Patent Laid Open Publication No. 7-94577 discloses a technique of using a vapor removing element having an activated carbon absorption layer to remove chemical vapors (impurities) from a wafer carrier. Ebara Corporation has marketed a wafer carrier xe2x80x9cWafer Carrying Clean Box (trade name)xe2x80x9d having a chemical filter to remove impurities and a fan to circulate air in the wafer carrier.
A semiconductor device manufacturing line includes processes that leave a large amount of residue on wafers. If wafers contaminated with the residues are stored in a wafer carrier, the residues will quickly destroy the chemical filter installed in the wafer carrier.
The wafer carriers in the related art are only capable of maintaining a single operating condition throughout a semiconductor device manufacturing line. In practice, a manufacturing line involves various processes some of which require wafers in a wafer carrier to be at low humidity, some of which require wafers in a wafer carrier to be free of impurities, and some of which require wafers in a wafer carrier both to be free of humidity and impurities. These requirements must be met to improve the quality and yield of semiconductor devices manufactured. The related art are incapable of flexibly meeting such varied requirements.
Ion-impurity removing chemical filters rapidly deteriorate in their performance when environmental humidity drops below 20%. Chemical filters remove ion impurities with difficulty in low humidity.
In this way, the semiconductor device manufacturing line involves processes having various requirements, and the chemical filters dysfunction in low humidity. To properly store and carry wafers through various processes in the semiconductor device manufacturing line in the related art, wafer carriers of different functions must be prepared and changed from one to another depending on processes. This increases the purchasing cost of the wafer carriers. In addition, vacant wafer carriers must be allocated to various semiconductor device processes depending on the characteristics of the wafer carriers and processes, increasing delivery load. These wafer carriers need large storage spaces and must be switched from one to another depending on the process, thus extending manufacturing time.
The wafer carriers require batteries to drive the fans and dehydrate the filters installed in the wafer carriers. The batteries usually last for only about {fraction (1/100)} of the semiconductor device manufacturing time, and therefore, must be recharged. Recharging is troublesome, may delay the manufacturing schedule, and needs a recharging space.
The relative humidity in a clean room is usually maintained at between 30% to 60% for the workability of workers and the performance of chemical filters. The humidity in a clean room promotes the formation of natural oxide films on wafers which corrode the metal wiring formed on the wafers.
According to an aspect of the present invention, a method of manufacturing semiconductor devices uses a wafer carrier having conditioning units to control internal conditions of the wafer carrier. The wafer carrier stores wafers and carries them between manufacturing equipments used in a series of semiconductor device manufacturing processes. For each of the manufacturing processes, the method includes placing the wafer carrier on a load port that automatically opens and closes a lid of the wafer carrier, transferring the wafers from the wafer carrier into the manufacturing equipment through the load port, changing operating conditions of the conditioning units of the wafer carrier according to a process or test being carried out by the manufacturing equipment on the wafers, returning the wafers into the wafer carrier through the load port after the completion of the process or test, and operating the conditioning units according to the changed operating conditions controlling the internal conditions of the wafer carrier until the wafer carrier with the wafers is carried to a manufacturing equipment of the next manufacturing process.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a system of manufacturing semiconductor devices includes manufacturing equipments carrying out a process or test on wafers in a series of manufacturing processes, a wafer carrier storing the wafers and carrying them between the manufacturing equipments, and a managing unit having a memory to store a sequence of the operating conditions for the series of manufacturing processes. The wafer carrier has conditioning units controlling internal conditions of the wafer carrier, and a display displaying a operating conditions of the conditioning units. The managing unit provides instructions to specify the operating conditions of the conditioning units.

Method of manufacturing semiconductor devices with use of wafer carrier having conditioning units


A drilling and/or chipping tool has a locking sleeve (9) axially displaceable through a first axial length (A1) and a second axial length (A2). When the locking sleeve (9) is axially displaced through the first length (A1) a rotationally fixed connection between a tool bit holder (10) and a housing (1) of the tool is interrupted. If the locking sleeve is displaced by the second length (A2) the tool bit holder (10) can be removed from the tool.

The present invention is directed to a drilling and/or chipping tool including a housing, a tool bit holder positioned at the front end of the housing, and a piston guide located within and extending out of the front end of the housing into the tool bit holder. A cap laterally encloses the tool bit holder and is at least partially rotatable relative to it. A locking sleeve is located at the front end of the housing and is axially displaceable against the biasing force of a spring. The piston guide and the tool bit holder are connected together by at least one radially displaceable locking element supported in a through opening in the tool bit holder. The locking element is engageable in at least one recess in the piston guide and the locking element can be radially displaced by axially displacing the locking sleeve.
A drilling and/or chipping tool of the above-mentioned type is disclosed in DE-PS 35 11 491. To enable the alignment of a tool bit inserted into the tool bit holder, the tool bit holder along with the drill bit must be turned in a circumferential direction relative to the piston guide. Turning the tool bit holder can be effected when the locking sleeve has been displaced. Locking elements supported in through openings of the tool bit holder can be shifted or displaced radially outwardly, whereby they no longer seat in the recesses of the piston guide. The tool operator must always take care, however, when axially displacing the locking sleeve, so that the tool bit holder is not pulled off the piston guide, when the locking elements no longer extend into the recesses of the piston guide.


An apparatus for injecting a fluid into the heart and making temperature measurements within the pulmonary artery comprising an elongated flexible tube having a distal end portion, a temperature sensor mounted on the distal end portion, a peripheral wall, at lest one lumen extending longitudinally within the tube and an injectate port opening in the peripheral wall proximally of the temperature sensor. The tube can be advanced through a vein, the right atrium and the right ventricle to place the distal end portion in the pulmonary artery and the injectate port in the right atrium facing generally toward the inferior vena cave. The temperature sensor is oriented on the distal end portion so as to materially reduce the likelihood that it will contact the wall of the pulmonary artery during use.

Thermodilution techniques can be used to measure cardiac output. In thermodilution, a bolus of cold saline injectate is injected into the blood steam and allowed to mix with the blood. The resulting temperature change of the mixture can then be used to calculate cardiac output.
It is known to inject the injectate into the vena cava or the right atrium and, in some cases, the right ventricle and to measure the resulting temperature change with a temperature sensor, such as a thermistor, in the pulmonary artery. These functions are commonly carried out with a thermodilution catheter.
For best results for computing cardiac output, it is only necessary that the injectate mix thoroughly and completely with the flowing blood prior to contacting the thermal sensor. Without proper mixing, the cardiac output computed from the thermal curve will not be reliable.
Theoretically, it is possible to use a fast response catheter and thermodilution techniques to calculate right heart ejection fraction. For the best results in calculating right heart ejection fraction, it is necessary that the injectate enter the right ventricle in an abrupt manner as opposed to a slowly decreasing rate. It is also necessary that this injectate be evenly distributed and well mixed throughout the right ventricular volume prior to ejection into the pulmonary artery. When this is done, the temperature sensed in the pulmonary artery represents the mean right ventricular temperature. The prior art has unsuccessfully sought to meet these conditions by injecting directly into the right ventricle and measuring the resulting thermal curve with a thermal sensor which has a relatively rapid response. The lack of success with this approach lies primarily with the mixing requirement described above. Examination of the thermal curves for this prior art approach indicates that the injectate is not evenly distributed and well mixed throughout the ventricle. In addition, these fast response catheters function poorly for determining cardiac output as a result of streaming (uneven distribution and poor mixing) of the injectate. Also, the probability of inducing arrhythmias, especially premature ventricular contractions, is much higher.
The temperature of the mixture in the pulmonary artery changes with each discharge from the right ventricle in a generally step-wise fashion. In order to use thermodilution techniques successfully for the measurement of right heart ejection fraction, it is necessary to measure the beat-to-beat temperature differences of the mixture. Accordingly, it is desirable to use a fast response thermistor, and one such thermistor is shown in a co-pending application Ser. No. 570,619, of William Webler entitled Apparatus With Fast Response Thermistor and filed on even date herewith. However, the use of a fast response thermistor alone is insufficient due to the tendency of the thermistor to contact the wall of the pulmonary artery. This insulates and shields the thermistor from the flowing mixture and prevents the thermistor from accurately and rapidly measuring the temperature of the mixture.

Right heart ejection fraction and cardiac output catheter


A micro controller which has a first memory in which invertedly enciphered program data is stored, a second memory which stores cipher key data necessary for decoding the password stored in the first memory, a CPU which controls writing data to or reading data from the first and second memories and a unit which descrambles the cipher in the program data stored in the first memory based on the key data stored in the second memory, when the CPU accesses the first memory. The operation of this CPU is based on the program data which is decoded using the descrambling unit, which makes it possible to effectively block decoding or altering of programs and data.

This invention relates to a micro controller and more particularly to micro controllers that are used where security is necessary such as in IC cards and data banks.
In conventional micro controllers, program security was disregarded and the micro controller was operated directly from the program stored in the memory.
In this kind of micro controller, the program stored in memory could easily be decoded or altered and so when used with IC cards or data banks that require a high level of security, maintaining security was not adequate.

Program execution apparatus for ensuring security of a program