A wedge system for creating a tiled surface includes wedge receivers and wedges. Each wedge receiver has a planar element and a hook extending from the planar element in perpendicular relation. The hook is disposed as a tile spacer between a pair of tiles. The planar element is disposed beneath the tiles. Each wedge has a clamping surface and a ribbed gripping surface orientated in angular relation to one another to meet in an edge with the ribs comprising an arcuate arrangement. In use, the wedge extends through the aperture of the wedge receiver such that the clamping surface is positioned in abutting relation against the tiles and the hook is resiliently deformed to provide for a clamped engagement of the tiles between the clamping surface and the planar element, to provide for substantially coplanar relation of the tiles. Further, the gripping surface grips the wedge receiver to resist withdrawal of the wedge and maintain the clamped engagement until the mortar has cured.

It is known to use wedge systems to facilitate the installation of tile.
A known wedge system involves wedges and wedge receivers. Each wedge has a planar surface and a ribbed surface orientated in angular relation to one another to meet in an edge. Each wedge receiver has a planar element and a hook element extending from the planar element in substantially perpendicular relation. The hook element has an aperture defined therein. In use, the tiles are laid in a generally conventional manner. The hook elements are used to space apart the tiles, with the planar elements embedded or laid upon the thin set. Each wedge element is threaded through a respective aperture and pushed forward in the direction of the edge such that the tiles are captured between the planar elements of the wedge receivers and the planar surfaces of the wedges; this causes the tiles to align with one another. The ribbed surface of the wedge receiver provides for a tight and reliable grip. After the mortar has set, the wedges are removed, the hook elements are separated from the planar elements by a mallet and the tiles are grouted in a conventional manner.


Control system for a microscope with a sensor unit, an evaluating unit and at least one drive unit, the sensor unit having at least one movement sensor, is fixed to the microscope and is aligned with the head of the microscope of the user for detecting head movements of the latter. The evaluating unit is constructed for calculating the data received by the sensor unit and for transmitting a control signal to the at least one drive unit, and the at least one drive unit is constructed for driving means set up for adjusting at least one physical characteristic of the microscope.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a control system for the contactless control of parameters relating to a camera or microscope such as e.g. the focus, zoom and position relative to the object.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The problem often arises when handling cameras and microscopes that specific camera or microscope parameters have to be manually changed during the visual control by the eyepiece or viewfinder. This manual intervention generally leads to a deterioration of camera or microscope handling, because it is not only necessary to fix the object, but also the hands have to be observed during the manual manipulation. Particularly, in the case of surgery, a manual change to parameters of the optical aid is not possible because the surgeon already requires both hands for performing the operation and must, therefore, use third parties or other special aids. Such special aids are e.g. sensor systems which permit a contactless influencing of the parameters of a microscope.
Systems are already known which allow a contactless control of the focus and zoom of an optical instrument. U.S. Pat. No. 6,394,602 B1, describes a system for cameras and microscopes which determines the sightline of the user via the eyepiece with a sensor, and controls the camera, telescope or microscope focus or zoom in accordance with the sightline. As the sightline is determined from image information of the retina of the user, such a system is largely independent of the head movements of the user. The disadvantage is that this system is very complicated and the light path of the camera or microscope must be modified, and consequently, leads to a lower object image quality. Moreover, the eye naturally performs jerking movements which influence the evaluation of the image information and can lead to undesired results. However, the long term fixing of an image point leads to rapid fatigue and represents a major disadvantage, particularly, when working on microscopes.
Systems are also known which permit a contactless control of the positioning of a microscope relative to the object. U.S. Pat. No. 5,345,087, describes a system for the contactless, spatial positioning of surgical microscopes. For this purpose, the head of the user and the eyepiece of the microscope are provided with an additional transmission and reception unit whose mutual, relative positioning determine the position of the microscope in space. The disadvantage is that for determining the position, in addition to the modification of the microscope, elements must be fixed to the user which, as a result of incorrect manipulation, can represent a source of error, unnecessarily increase the costs of such a system, and which are uncomfortable to wear for a long time.
The problem of the invention is to develop a different, simple and reliable system for the contactless control of a microscope.


The present invention provides a continuous method of preparing a liquid extract of cereal grain by comminuting cereal grain at a rate of at least 100 kg of dry cereal grain per hour and extracting the comminuted cereal grain with a liquid, said method comprising:                continuously combining cereal grain with a liquid;        continuously disintegrating the grain particles contained within the liquid by colliding freely suspended grain particles with one or more rotating blades, thereby producing a milled suspension;        continuously transferring at least a part of the milled suspension, optionally after further treatment, to a separation device for separation into spent grain and liquid extract;wherein the one or more rotating blades are rotating at a tip speed of at least 10 m/s; the total mechanical energy transferred into the milled suspension by the one or more rotating blades is in the range of 5-1000 kJ per kg of dry cereal grain; and the distance between a tip of said one or more rotating blades and the axis of rotation is in the range of 2-25 cm.

In the brewing industry milling of raw materials prior to mashing in for wort production is usually done by one of the following techniques:                dry milling by roller mill        dry milling by hammer mill        wet milling by steeping and roller mill        conditioned milling (similar to dry milling by roller mill, except that malt moisture level is raised slightly to make the husks of the grains more pliable.        dispersion pump milling
Each of these operations has its advantages and drawbacks in terms of extract yield, oxygen pick-up, separation performance on mash separation, effect on downstream processing, enzymatic performance of grist (mashing time), hygienic aspects, power consumption, dust explosion risks, extraction of tannins from husks, filtration run-off etc.
Wet milling has become less popular due to some major disadvantages associated with this kind of milling technique, notably long residence time distributions for the mash and insufficient milling of poorly modified malts. However, wet milling also has some significant advantages over dry milling. Increased safety regulations with respect to dust explosion risks, for instance, necessitate preventive measures that have driven up the cost of dry milling operations. Wet milling techniques obviously do not require such measures.
The inventors have investigated dispersion pump technology as a possible alternative to dry milling. However, the abrasion of the stator rotor combination due to non-malt particles was found to result in high maintenance costs and unreliable performance.
Hence, there is a need for a milling technique that combines the advantages of wet milling (no dust, minimal safety precautions, simple equipment, low capital expenditure) with the simplicity of e.g. the hammer mill process.

Method of preparing a liquid extract of cereal grain and apparatus suitable for use in such method

Abstract: The invention also provides a system for comprising a milling apparatus and a separation device suitable for use in the aforementioned method.

Abstract: The present method and system offer several advantages, including savings on capital expenditure and maintenance, short milling times and hygienic design.


A method of operating a security system using a vehicle and preventing access to a vehicle system and to a vehicle garage may entail monitoring a security condition of the vehicle with a vehicle electronic control unit (“ECU”). Upon detecting an unsecure condition, such as a vibration, an alarm may sound and then the ECU may deactivate a vehicle system, such as a navigation system, to prevent access to personal or business addresses. Further, devices such as garage door openers in the vehicle and an in-garage, garage door opener may be disabled by satellite, cell tower, wire or direct wireless communication between the ECU and the device to be disabled. Silencing the vehicle alarm and reactivating all garage door openers and the navigation system may be accomplished by turning a key within an exterior vehicle lock or entering a code into the navigation system.

The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art. Many vehicles are equipped with features, such as a navigation system and an automatic garage door opener, that provide convenience to the vehicle driver. The navigation system, for example, permits the driver to input a destination address into the navigation system that then provides instructions to the driver to guide the driver from the current vehicle location to the destination address. The navigation system may also provide the added convenience of permitting the driver to store destination addresses for future repeat use and quickly retrieve the stored information. The stored addresses may include often-used addresses, like a home address or a place of business address.
The garage door opener permits the driver to remotely open a garage door from inside the vehicle by simply pushing a button. Some vehicles provide added convenience by incorporating a programmable garage door opener into a passenger compartment of the vehicle, such as a built-in opener.
While these features provide convenience, an unauthorized driver, particularly a vehicle thief, can also use the navigation system and garage door opener features to gain access to a home or business. For example, the unauthorized driver may first gain access to the vehicle and access the home address information stored in the navigation system. The unauthorized driver may then use the navigation system to guide him or her directly to the address and home associated with the vehicle. Once at the home, the unauthorized driver may open the garage door with the garage door opener to gain access to the garage and then perhaps to the home interior through an unlocked access door of the home. It is desirable, therefore, to have a system that detects unauthorized access to the vehicle and restricts access to address specific information stored within the vehicle, and vehicle devices, when unauthorized vehicle access has been detected.

Security for navigation system and garage door opener


The present invention includes the identification and isolation of a nucleic acid molecule encoding a dibasic amino acid processing endoprotease from CD4+ T-lymphocytes as well as a protein encoded by that nucleic acid molecule. The present invention also includes related nucleic acid molecules and proteins encoded by such nucleic acid molecules as well as recombinant molecules and recombinant cells that include nucleic acid molecules of the present invention. The present invention also includes use of such nucleic acid molecules and proteins to develop therapeutic compositions that enhance or inhibit dibasic amino acid processing endoprotease activity.

A number of enveloped viruses, including retroviruses, hepatitis viruses, herpes viruses, orthomyxoviruses and paramyxoviruses, produce precursor envelope glycoproteins that require cleavage by a cellular dibasic amino acid processing endoprotease as one step in the process of envelope glycoprotein maturation. As precursor envelope glycoproteins are being synthesized, they are directed into the host cell secretory pathway for transport to the cell surface. As the precursor proteins move through the pathway, they are subjected to a variety of post-translational events including glycosylation and proteolytic cleavage (see, for example, Stein et al., 1990, J. Biol. Chem. 265, 2640-2649). The precursor human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) envelope protein gp160, for example, is co-translationally glycosylated and subsequently cleaved into gp120 and gp41 by a cellular dibasic amino acid processing endoprotease that apparently is localized in the Golgi apparatus. The gp120 and gp41 proteins are further glycosylated prior to reaching the infected cell surface. Cleavage of the HIV gp160 protein has been shown to be necessary for membrane fusion, syncytium formation and viral infectivity (see, for example, McCune et al., 1988, Cell 53, 55-67; Kowalski et al., 1987, Science 237, 1351-1355).
Although the genes encoding several dibasic amino acid processing endoproteases (also referred to as subtilisin-like protein convertases) have been isolated (see, for example, Barr, 1991, Cell 66, 1-3; Hakes et al., 1991, Endocrinology 129, 3053-3063; Kiefer et al., 1991, DNA and Cell Biology 10, 757-769; Lusson et al., 1993, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 90, 6691-6695; Steiner et al., 1992, J. Biol. Chem. 267, 23435-23438, Nakagawa et al., 1993, J. Biochem. 113, 132-135; Nakagawa et al., 1993, FEBS Lett. 327, 165-171), a number of cellular dibasic amino acid processing endoproteases remain to be identified, including CD4+ T-lymphocyte dibasic amino acid processing endoproteases responsible for cleaving the precursor envelope proteins of lentiviruses and lymphotropic viruses into envelope proteins, such as the enzyme that cleaves HIV gp160 into gp120 and gp41 in vivo. There is a need to identify cellular dibasic amino acid processing endoproteases that are responsible for in vivo cleavage of targeted substrates. Investigators have shown, for example, that the extent of proteolytic cleavage is a function of the sequence of amino acids at the dibasic amino acid processing site and of the dibasic amino acid processing endoprotease for hormones such as insulin and renin (see, for example, Oda et al., 1991, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Comm. 179, 1181-1186; Thim et al., 1986, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 83, 6766-6770.
Nucleoside analogs are currently in use as antiviral drugs, particularly for treating retroviral infections as the analogs can inhibit the ability of the retroviral reverse transcriptase enzyme to make a DNA copy of the incoming viral RNA. For example, HIV infections are being treated with AZT (3'-azidothymidine), ddI (2'3'-dideoxyinosine), ddC (2'3'-dideoxycytidine), and d4T (didehydrothymidine). Nucleoside analogs, however, have short half-lives and can exhibit substantial side effects. In addition, viruses often develop resistance to the nucleoside analog within a short period time of its administration.
Non-nucleoside inhibitors of HIV reverse transcriptase, such as TIBO (tetrahydro-imidazo(4,5,1-jk)(1,4)-benzodiazepin-2(1H)-one), BI-RG-587 (11-cyclopropyl-7-methyldipyrido-(2,3-b:3'3'-f)1,4-diazepin-6H-5-one), pyridones, and bis(heteroaryl)piperazines, are also being developed and tested. Since these compounds are highly selective for the HIV reverse transcriptase enzyme, they apparently cause less severe side effects than do nucleoside analogs. Decreased sensitivity of HIV to these agents, however, also develops rapidly.
The HIV-encoded aspartyl protease that processes the gag and gag/pol polyproteins to yield the mature structural proteins and enzymes required for virion formation (p24, p17, p15, reverse transcriptase) has also been targeted as an enzyme against which to design antiviral agents. HIV protease inhibitors, at least theoretically, can inhibit HIV production by chronically infected cells and, as such, have an advantage over reverse transcriptase inhibitors that apparently can only block replication if added to cells before HIV infection. Peptide-based substrate analogs are being prepared and tested. One persistent drawback of HIV protease inhibitors is the emergence of HIV strains that are resistant to the inhibitor being administered.
Other strategies for inhibiting HIV infection that are being pursued include inhibition of other HIV-encoded proteins such as Tat, Rev, and integrase; blocking entry of the virus into the cell by, for example, soluble CD4 receptor molecules; targeted delivery of toxins to HIV-infected cells; inhibition of viral functions using antisense technology; and immune constitution protocols. Although several of these technologies are at the early stages of development, clinical trials conducted using some of these technologies have been disappointing. For a recent review of present and future strategies to treat HIV infection, see Johnston et al., 1993, Science 260, 1286-1293.
Most assays used to test antiviral drugs are either in vitro or mammalian cell culture assays, many relying on the use of infectious virus. Mammalian cell culture assays are usually costly, complex, time-consuming, and potentially dangerous if infectious virus is used. Recently, a Drosophila cell-based assay was developed for screening inhibitors of the HIV Rev protein. For a review of methods to identify HIV inhibitors, see Johnston et al., ibid.
Thus, there remains a need to identify antiviral drugs with improved efficacy that have fewer side effects than known drugs and against which an infected host is less likely to develop resistance. A preferred class of inhibitors to identify are those that can be used to treat infectious diseases, such as HIV infections, in which proliferation of the infectious agent depends on dibasic amino acid processing endoprotease cleavage. In order to identify such drugs in a rapid and straightforward manner, an improved assay is required that is less complex, less expensive, less time-consuming, and more selective than currently used methods. There is also a need to identify CD4+ T-lymphocyte dibasic amino acid processing endoproteases, such as the enzyme that cleaves HIV gp160 in vivo, in order to identify specific inhibitors having greater selectivity and, hence, fewer side effects.

CD4+ T-lymphocyte proteases and genes encoding said proteases


A method of automatically configuring a port of a network element comprises the steps of discovering information that identifies or describes a second network element that is coupled to a port of a first network element; associating the port with a port role definition selected from a plurality of port role definitions based on the discovered information; retrieving one or more configuration settings that are associated with the selected port role definition; and applying the one or more configuration settings to the port.

The approaches described in this section could be pursued, but are not necessarily approaches that have been previously conceived or pursued. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated herein, the approaches described in this section are not prior art to the claims in this application and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
In computer networks, network elements such as routers, switches and others are responsible for moving packetized information within the network and directing the information to end station devices. Information arriving at or sent from a network element is communicated using one or more ports. A port may have a direct physical association with a chassis connector that terminates a network cable. Additionally or alternatively, port(s) may have a logical association with a connector.
The role that a port plays in a network element, or the identity of the neighbor of the port, can dictate a specific configuration for that port. For example, the configuration of a switch port that is connected to a PC might be very different than the configuration of the same port when connected to a business-critical server. As another hypothetical example, the configuration of the port might be different if a WAN link to a distant router is attached as opposed to a lab router connected via a LAN. To configure the port correctly, network administrators need to know the role of a port or the identity of the device to which it is attached.
At present, acquiring such knowledge is a manual process. The manual process is time-consuming and requires manual record-keeping. Further, if an end station device is changed, a port connected to that device may require re-configuration to account for differences in the new end station device. Currently, this requires manual intervention by an administrator, which is costly.
The Cisco Networking Services (CNS) solution from Cisco Systems, Inc. can discover information about the physical setup of modular routers including what kind of ports are present; however, CNS does not determine information about which devices are connected to the ports that it has discovered.
In one related approach, an "Auto-Configuration" mechanism uses a Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) server to load a configuration to a network switch. The Cisco Intelligent Engine 2100 (IE 2100) uses a similar approach, but transfers configuration information using HTTP. However, both of these approaches impose configuration challenges relating to proper configuration of the associated servers, and impose higher costs for servers on their users. Further, while the IE2100 can dynamically create a configuration for a device based on the types of ports discovered, it cannot do so based on what devices are connected to the ports.
In another approach, a network switch or router stores one or more role-based macro configuration templates. Each template is associated with a LAN switch role, such as "access," "distribution," or "core." The templates apply particular configuration commands to interfaces of the switch depending on the associated role of the switch port. However, this approach does not discover devices that are connected to ports of the switch in the network, and does not determine what role is played by devices that are connected to ports of the switch. The network administrator is required to use a separate manual process to perform any such discovery and role determination, with the associated burden of keeping appropriate records and responding to changes manually as the changes occur. The approach also does not automatically apply a different configuration to each port based on determining the role of a connected device.
In another approach, RADIUS attribute-value pairs may be used to provision services on sessions based on the identity of a user; in this context, a session is defined by information specifying a port and a user for a period of time. For example, a user dials in to an access router, PPP authentication is performed via RADIUS, and the RADIUS reply contains configuration parameters for a port that are applied by the access router. When the connection terminates, a default configuration is restored to the port. However, this approach does not establish a port configuration based on the type of device coupled to the port or the role played by the port with respect to the device.
Thus, there is a need in this field for an improved automated way to configure ports of network elements based on discovering what devices are connected to the ports and what roles the ports or devices have in the network.

Method and apparatus providing role-based configuration of a port of a network element


Document retrieval through assertion analysis on entities and document fragments is disclosed. A document is received. Logical structures and entities are extracted from the document by parsing the document. For an entity in the extracted entities, an object representing the entity is created, an assertion made in the document associated with the entity is determined, and the assertion is linked to the object representing the entity. A logical structure from the extracted logical structures and content of the logical structure containing the assertion are identified and linked to the object representing the entity.

The present application relates generally to computers and computer applications, and more particularly to search engines and document discovery.
Creating technical and scientific documents include finding related work which support the topics and reasoning presented in the documents being created. While computerized tools such as search engines can perform keyword searches in finding such related work, those keyword searches alone may not be able to find related work that reflect or support the reasoning or assertion advanced by an author in a document.

International Business Machines Corporation


An adhesive sheet comprising (1) a backing, and (2) an adhesive layer having at least one topologically microstructured surface comprising a plurality of pegs, optionally containing one or more beads, substantially uniformly distributed and protruding outwardly from the adhesive layer, wherein the pegs have essentially flat tops that comprise less than 25% of the total surface contact area of the adhesive layer, and have a height of at least 15 .mu.m.

Pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA) sheets, films and tapes are often difficult to apply to a substrate in a precise location and without air entrapment, primarily due to preadhesion or "quick stick" behavior of the PSA. This is particularly true for "aggressive" PSAs that have high bond strengths and/or low temperature tack properties. Several methods and configurations have been developed to make application of PSA films and tapes easier.
For example, application aids such as detergent and water are commonly used to eliminate preadhesion. Formulations vary, but typically include water, a surfactant or lubricant, and a solvent (generally an alcohol) that speeds bond formation and drying. The liquids tend to form a film between the adhesive and substrate, thus preventing contact and preadhesion. Unfortunately, the liquid is difficult to remove and removal of the liquid is seldom complete. Additionally, most application aids affect the adhesive properties and prevent rapid formation of a strong bond between adhesive and substrate. The application aids may also mar or stain substrate surfaces.
Dry application aids, such as particles, powders or talcs are also useful in preventing preadhesion (See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,376,151 and 4,556,595). While these techniques make application very easy and provide for easy positioning and repositioning, formation of a strong adhesive bond to the substrate is slow, typically requiring contact of 1 to 7 days.
Discontinuous coatings of nontacky materials projecting from the adhesive surface have also been used to prevent preadhesion of the PSA during application. Although these articles can be placed against a substrate and freely moved over the substrate surface, the articles lack any means for weakly and temporarily bonding the adhesive to the substrate prior to permanently bonding the article to the substrate. These adhesive films and tapes have no adhesion when placed lightly against the substrate surface. Such coatings include patterned polymer coatings, particles, and films (See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,554,835; 4,023,570; 4,054,697; 4,151,319; and U.K. Patent No. 1,541,311).
CONTROLTAC brand adhesives use a random distribution of hollow glass microspheres partially embedded in the adhesive as a means to prevent contact and preadhesion (See U.S. Pat. No. 3,331,279). Alternatively, U.S. Pat. No. 3,314,838 describes a similar configuration in which the tops of the hollow microspheres protruding from the adhesive surface are coated by a thin layer of PSA. Pressure application crushes the microspheres permitting the adhesive to contact the substrate and form a strong bond instantly.
Other methods of dealing with preadhesion include formation of brittle plastic projections on a PSA surface (See U.S. Pat. No. 3,301,741), or small discrete clumps of particles protruding from the adhesive surface (See EPO 0 429 269 A1). In the last example, the particles could be tacky adhesive microspheres, thus providing weak bonding to a substrate when applied using light pressure and strong bonding when applied using higher pressures. However, this multi-adhesive construction is generally more difficult to prepare.
Microsphere and patterned adhesives have also been reported that exhibit repositionable properties (See U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,691,140 and 4,166,152). Deformable microspheres, such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,735,837 impart a rough or pebble-like surface and repositionable bond. In all these cases, the adhesive films readily form weak, repositionable bonds to a substrate, but do not form a strong, permanent bond.
Topologically structured adhesives have also been described. For example, relatively large scale embossing of an adhesive has been described to permanently reduce the PSA/substrate contact area and hence the bonding strength of the PSA (See EPO 0 279 579). Various adhesive layer topologies include concave and convex v-grooves or hemispheres, and other three dimensional shapes. In general, these topologies provide adhesive sheets, films and tapes with lower peel adhesion values in comparison with smooth surfaced adhesives. In many cases, the topologically structured adhesives also display a change in adhesion with increasing contact time.
The adhesive articles described herein above exhibit various types of positionable and repositionable behavior. Particles added to or applied over an adhesive to change its surface properties tend to alter the bulk adhesive properties. The articles generally suffer from problems of poor release liner attachment, poor aging, handling and bonding characteristics. In sign graphic applications, they tend to be difficult to print without destroying the positionable behavior of the construction. Furthermore, when adhesive articles are prepared using clear films and applied to clear substrates, particles (when pressed against the substrate) are large enough to be seen and result in visual imperfection, particularly, in backlit sign graphic applications.

Positionable and repositionable adhesive articles

Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company


A micro-duct cable includes a center member and a plurality of buffer tubes surrounding the center member. A plurality of fibers are disposed in each of the plurality of buffer tubes. Each of the plurality of buffer tubes contains greater than or equal to 24 fibers. The micro-duct cable further includes a cable jacket surrounding the plurality of buffer tubes and the center member. A maximum outer diameter of the cable is less than 13 millimeters and a modulus of elasticity of the cable is greater than or equal to 800 kpsi.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure is related to an ultra-high density fiber optic micro-duct cable, and more particularly, to a cable which may include 288 fibers and which is configured to be inserted in a micro-duct having an inner diameter of 13 mm or less, and that is capable of withstanding high tensile and compressive loads and extreme temperature ranges.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the demand for bandwidth needed to support communications devices continues to increase, fiber networks continue to grow and expand. An existing method for installing fiber optic cables is to blow or jet the cable into a micro-duct. In these cases, the micro-duct limits the cable construction that can be installed. To overcome this, manufacturers have developed small diameter, lightweight cables with high fiber density for use in the ducts. However, as noted in Telcordia's Generic Requirements for Optical Fiber and Optical Fiber Cable (GR-20, Issue 4), "The small size of the micro-duct cables results in generally lower tensile strength, crush resistance, and the like." As such, technicians must take special care while installing traditional duct cables. Further, existing constructions of high fiber count cables often have a limited operating temperature range, so they are not suitable in extreme temperature environments. While some high count constructions are commercially available, their construction limits the operating performance, specifically the tensile load, compression resistance and operating temperature ranges.

Ultra-high fiber density micro-duct cable with extreme operating performance


A plurality of quantum dots each have a shell. The quantum dots are embedded in an organic matrix. At least the quantum dots and the organic matrix are photoconductive semiconductors. The shell of each quantum dot is arranged as a tunneling barrier to require a charge carrier (an electron or a hole) at a base of the tunneling barrier in the organic matrix to perform quantum mechanical tunneling to reach the respective quantum dot. A first quantum state in each quantum dot is between a lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) and a highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) of the organic matrix. Wave functions of the first quantum state of the plurality of quantum dots may overlap to form an intermediate band.

Optoelectronic devices rely on the optical and electronic properties of materials to either produce or detect electromagnetic radiation electronically or to generate electricity from ambient electromagnetic radiation.
Photosensitive optoelectronic devices convert electromagnetic radiation into an electrical signal or electricity. Solar cells, also called photovoltaic ("PV") devices, are a type of photosensitive optoelectronic device that is specifically used to generate electrical power. Photoconductor cells are a type of photosensitive optoelectronic device that are used in conjunction with signal detection circuitry which monitors the resistance of the device to detect changes due to absorbed light. Photodetectors, which may receive an applied bias voltage, are a type of photosensitive optoelectronic device that are used in conjunction with current detecting circuits which measures the current generated when the photodetector is exposed to electromagnetic radiation.
These three classes of photosensitive optoelectronic devices may be distinguished according to whether a rectifying junction as defined below is present and also according to whether the device is operated with an external applied voltage, also known as a bias or bias voltage. A photoconductor cell does not have a rectifying junction and is normally operated with a bias. A PV device has at least one rectifying junction and is operated with no bias. A photodetector has at least one rectifying junction and is usually but not always operated with a bias.
As used herein, the term "rectifying" denotes, inter alia, that an interface has an asymmetric conduction characteristic, i.e., the interface supports electronic charge transport preferably in one direction. The term "photoconductive" generally relates to the process in which electromagnetic radiant energy is absorbed and thereby converted to excitation energy of electric charge carriers so that the carriers can conduct (i.e., transport) electric charge in a material. The term "photoconductive material" refers to semiconductor materials which are utilized for their property of absorbing electromagnetic radiation to generate electric charge carriers. There may be intervening layers, unless it is specified that the first layer is "in physical contact with" or "in direct contact with" the second layer.
When electromagnetic radiation of an appropriate energy is incident upon an organic semiconductor material, a photon can be absorbed to produce an excited state. In organic photoconductive materials, the generated excited molecular state is generally believed to be an "exciton," i.e., an electron-hole pair in a bound state which is transported as a quasi-particle. An exciton can have an appreciable life-time before geminate recombination ("quenching"), which refers to the original electron and hole recombining with each other (as opposed to recombination with holes or electrons from other pairs). To produce a photocurrent, the electron and hole forming the exciton are typically separated at a rectifying junction.
Excitons also form in inorganic semiconductors. However, the Coulomb interaction between electrons and holes in inorganic materials is weaker than in organic materials, such that the electron and hole may disassociate in inorganic materials before reaching a rectifying junction.
In the case of photosensitive devices, the rectifying junction is referred to as a photovoltaic heterojunction. To produce internally generated electric fields at the photovoltaic heterojunction which occupy a substantial volume, the usual method is to juxtapose two layers of material with appropriately selected semi-conductive properties, especially with respect to their distribution of energy states.
Types of organic photovoltaic heterojunctions include a donor-acceptor heterojunction formed at an interface of a donor material and an acceptor material, and a Schottky-barrier heterojunction formed at the interface of a organic photoconductive material and a metal. Types of inorganic photovoltaic heterojunctions include a p-n heterojunction formed at an interface of a p-type doped material and an n-type doped material, and a Schottky-barrier heterojunction formed at the interface of an inorganic photoconductive material and a metal. A photovoltaic heterojunction can also be formed at an interface between an inorganic material and an organic material.
In organic photovoltaic heterojunctions, the materials forming the heterojunctions have been denoted as being donors or acceptors. In the context of organic materials, the terms "donor" and "acceptor" refer to the relative positions of the Highest Occupied Molecular Orbital ("HOMO") and Lowest Unoccupied Molecular Orbital ("LUMO") energy levels of two contacting but different organic materials. If the LUMO energy level of one material in contact with another is lower, then that material is an acceptor. Otherwise it is a donor. It is energetically favorable, in the absence of an external bias, for electrons at a donor-acceptor junction to move into the acceptor material.
Organic semiconductors and insulators may have additional discrete molecular orbitals below the HOMO and above the LUMO, typically identified as HOMO−1, HOMO−2, LUMO+1, LUMO+2, etc.
The use of "donor" and "acceptor" with organic materials has a different meaning than with inorganic materials. In the context of organic materials, the terms "donor" and "acceptor" refer to the relative positions of the HOMO and LUMO energy levels of two contacting but different materials. This is in contrast to the use of these terms in the inorganic context, where "donor" and "acceptor" may refer to types of dopant atoms that may be used to create inorganic n- and p- types layers, respectively.
One common feature of semiconductors and insulators is a "band gap." The band gap is the energy difference between the highest energy level filled with electrons and the lowest energy level that is ordinarily empty. In an inorganic semiconductor or inorganic insulator, this energy difference is the difference between the valence band edge EV (top of the valence band) and the conduction band edge EC (bottom of the conduction band). In an organic semiconductor or organic insulator, this energy difference is the difference between the HOMO and the LUMO. The band gap of a pure material is devoid of energy states where electrons and holes can exist. The only available carriers for conduction are the electrons and holes which have enough energy to be excited across the band gap. In general, semiconductors have a relatively small band gap in comparison to insulators.
In terms of an energy band/level model, excitation of a valence band electron in an inorganic semiconductor into the conduction band creates carriers; that is, electrons are charge carriers when on the conduction band side of the band gap, and holes are charge carriers when on the valence band side of the band gap. Likewise, for organic semiconductors, electrons are charge carriers when on the unoccupied molecular orbital side of the band gap, and holes are charge carriers when on the occupied molecular orbital side of the band gap. Put more succinctly, electrons are carriers above the band gap, and holes are carriers below the band gap.
As used herein, a first energy level is "above," "greater than," or "higher than" a second energy level if the first energy level is closer to the vacuum energy level. A higher HOMO energy level corresponds to an ionization potential ("IP") having a smaller absolute energy relative to a vacuum level. Similarly, a higher LUMO energy level corresponds to an electron affinity ("EA") having a smaller absolute energy relative to vacuum level. On a conventional energy level diagram, with the vacuum level at the top, the LUMO energy level of a material is higher than the HOMO energy level of the same material.
As is the convention with energy band diagrams, it is energetically favorable for electrons to move to a lower energy level, whereas it is energetically favorable for holes to move to a higher energy level (which is a lower potential energy for a hole, but is higher relative to an energy band diagram). Put more succinctly, electrons fall down whereas holes fall up.
Carrier mobility is a significant property in inorganic and organic semiconductors. Mobility measures the ease with which a charge carrier can move through a conducting material in response to an electric field. In the context of photosensitive devices, a material that conducts preferentially by electrons due to a high electron mobility may be referred to as an electron transport material. A material that conducts preferentially by holes due to a high hole mobility may be referred to as a hole transport material. A layer that conducts preferentially by electrons, due to mobility and/or position in the device, may be referred to as an electron transport layer ("ETL"). A layer that conducts preferentially by holes, due to mobility and/or position in the device, may be referred to as a hole transport layer ("HTL"). Preferably, but not necessarily, an acceptor material (organic) and an n-type material (inorganic) are electron transport materials; and a donor material (organic) and a p-type material (inorganic) are hole transport materials. In comparison to semiconductors, insulators generally provide poor carrier mobility.
As used herein, the term "organic" includes polymeric materials as well as small molecule organic materials that may be used to fabricate organic opto-electronic devices. "Small molecule" refers to any organic material that is not a polymer, and "small molecules" may actually be quite large. Small molecules may include repeat units in some circumstances. For example, using a long chain alkyl group as a substituent does not remove a molecule from the "small molecule" class. Small molecules may also be incorporated into polymers, for example as a pendent group on a polymer backbone or as a part of the backbone. Small molecules may also serve as the core moiety of a dendrimer, which consists of a series of chemical shells built on the core moiety. The core moiety of a dendrimer may be a fluorescent or phosphorescent small molecule emitter. A dendrimer may be a "small molecule." In general, a small molecule has a defined chemical formula with a molecular weight that is the same from molecule to molecule, whereas a polymer has a defined chemical formula with a molecular weight that may vary from molecule to molecule. As used herein, "organic" includes metal complexes of hydrocarbyl and heteroatom-substituted hydrocarbyl ligands.
For additional background explanation and description of the state of the art for organic photosensitive devices, including their general construction, characteristics, materials, and features, U.S. Pat. No. 6,657,378 to Forrest et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,580,027 to Forrest et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 6,352,777 to Bulovic et al. are incorporated herein by reference.

Intermediate-band photosensitive device with quantum dots having tunneling barrier embedded in organic matrix


A fuse structure, a method for fabricating the fuse structure and a method for programming a fuse within the fuse structure each use a fuse material layer that is used as a fuse, and located upon a monocrystalline semiconductor material layer in turn located over a substrate. At least part of the monocrystalline semiconductor material layer is separated from the substrate by a gap. Use of the monocrystalline semiconductor material layer, as well as the gap, provides for enhanced uniformity and reproducibility when programming the fuse.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to fuse structures within microelectronic structures. More particularly, the invention relates to enhanced performance fuse structures within microelectronic structures.
2. Description of the Related Art
In addition to transistors, resistors, capacitors and diodes, semiconductor structures and semiconductor circuits often include fuses. Fuses within semiconductor circuits are desirable insofar as fuses provide an efficient means for severing a portion of a semiconductor circuit that may be otherwise defective and unoperational. In particular, fuses are often useful in severing portions of memory array circuits that are otherwise defective and unoperational. Fuses may also be used to electrically trim various semiconductor circuit components, such as variable resistance semiconductor circuit components.
Although fuses are essential within semiconductor circuit fabrication, fuses are nonetheless not entirely without problems. In particular, while providing a means for severing portions of a semiconductor circuit that are defective and unoperational, fuses may not under all circumstances themselves operate efficiently absent defects. For example, in some instances fuses do not always readily program efficiently, particularly under circumstances where a programming current and/or a programming voltage is desired to be low. In some other instances, fuses that have apparently been programmed may nonetheless allow flow of an undesirably high, albeit reduced, current.
Fuses and fuse structures having desirable properties are known in the semiconductor fabrication art.
For example, Kikuchi et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,908,692, teaches a semiconductor device that includes a low resistance fuse with desirable programming properties. Within the semiconductor device, the low resistance fuse comprises a high melting point metal silicide material.
In addition, LaFleur et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 5,903,041, teaches an integrated fuse and antifuse structure with enhanced performance for use within a semiconductor structure. The integrated fuse and antifuse structure includes an air gap proximate to a fuse portion thereof.
Further, Arndt et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 6,274,440, teaches a fuse structure that may be fabricated with enhanced process efficiency within a semiconductor structure. The fuse structure includes a gate conductor stack that is located within a gap within the semiconductor structure.
Still further, Kothandaraman et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 6,624,499, teaches a system for programming a silicide fuse with enhanced efficiency within a semiconductor structure. To effect the enhanced efficiency, the system provides a temperature gradient to the silicide fuse when programming the silicide fuse.
Still yet further, Bertin et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 6,633,055 teaches a fuse that may be readily fabricated within a semiconductor structure. This particular fuse may be fabricated from a conductor layer within the semiconductor structure, to provide the fuse that is proximate with a gap.
Still yet further, Anderson et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 6,972,472, teaches yet another fuse structure that may be fabricated within a semiconductor structure. This particular fuse structure includes a fuse element that rises above an insulator layer and is separated from the insulator layer by a gap.
Finally, Kothandaraman et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 7,242,072, teaches yet another fuse structure that may be fabricated within a semiconductor structure. This particular fuse structure uses a crystalline semiconductor layer as a fuse layer substrate.
Since fuses and fuse structures are likely to be of considerable continued importance as semiconductor technology advances, desirable are fuses and fuse structures with enhanced performance for use within semiconductor structures. Such enhanced performance is particularly desired under circumstances where a low fuse programming current is desired.

Fuse structure including monocrystalline semiconductor material layer and gap


The invention teaches a hinged clip (10) comprising two arms (22), each arm having a free end (34) and an extension forming the other end, resilient bias means urging the free ends together, the extensions being movable towards one another against the force of the resilient bias means to separate the said free ends characterised in that the resilient bias means is non-removably secured to each arm. An edge protector for an article (14) having sides (16) joined by an edge (12) is also taught, as is the method of manufacture and use.

Hinged clips are in widespread use, having arms with free ends resiliently biassed together and between which an article can be gripped, the other ends of the arms being squeezable towards one another so as to separate the free ends to permit release of the article. One use for a hinged clip is to self-secure to the edge of all article, to help protect the article edge from damage.
During or following manufacture, it is customary for several articles as referred to above to be laid horizontal and stacked one above another; alternatively they can be stacked on one edge, so as to be upstanding. The articles in the stack typically await removal to the next manufacturing stage or transfer into store ready for delivery to a customer.
During storage and transportation in particular, the peripheral edges of at least some articles of a stack can be damaged, reducing the value and perhaps utility of those damaged articles.
Even during subsequent delivery to a stockist or to the final customer, whether of a single article or of a stack of articles, article edges can be damaged.
It is desirable that the edge protector be of a material and design permitting a friction grip i.e. to the article opposed sides joined by the edge, so as to prevent inadvertent loss of the edge protector, as during single article transfer between locations, and so as to negate the need for separate attachments (which themselves may damage the article sides). Thus a hinged clip could provide a suitable edge protector.
If articles are manufactured in anticipation of later sales, then they are likely to be stacked in long-term storage. Using an edge protector having a (friction-grip) part which can be trapped between the sides of adjacent articles will however act to hold the article sides apart; if the friction-grip part is thick, fewer articles can be stacked in the height available, so that it is desirable that the edge protector be of "U-section" with at least the arms of the "U" formed from a single thickness material.
It will be understood that although a desired edge protector shape may readily nowadays be formed from a plastics material e.g moulded polystyrene or polyethylene, users are increasingly conscious of the environmental implications and the public reaction to long-term disposal problems, particularly for "one trip" packaging materials, and users have for some years been actively seeking environmentally acceptable alternatives. Further, in a technical area in which recycled or recyclable materials may easily be employed, many manufacturers and users are increasingly resisting the use of materials which are not and/or may not be recycled.

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One disclosed method of processing gene sequence data includes the steps of reading gene sequence data corresponding to a gene sequence and coding sequence data corresponding to a plurality of coding sequences within the gene sequence; identifying and storing, by following a set of primer selection rules, primer pair data within the gene sequence data for one of the coding sequences; repeating the acts of identifying and storing such that primer pair data are obtained for each sequence of the plurality of coding sequences; and simultaneously amplifying the plurality of coding sequences in gene sequences from three or more of individuals using the identified pairs of primer sequences. The set of primer selection rules include a rule specifying that all of the primer pair data for the plurality of coding sequences be obtained for a predetermined annealing temperature, which allows for the subsequent simultaneous amplification of sequences from hundreds of individuals in a single amplification run.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the processing of gene sequence data with use of a computer, and more particularly to efficient high-throughput processing of gene sequence data to obtain reliable single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data and haplotype data.
2. Description of the Related Art
Bioinformatics is a field in which genes are analyzed with the use of software. A gene is an ordered sequence of nucleotides that is located at a particular position on a particular chromosome and encodes a specific functional product A gene could be several thousand nucleotide base pairs long and, although 99% of the sequences are identical between people, forces of nature continuously pressure the DNA to change.
From generation to generation, systematic processes tend to create genetic equilibria while genetic sampling or dispersive forces create genetic diversity. Through these forces, a variant or unusual change can become not so unusual—it will eventually find some equilibrium frequency in that population. This is a function of natural selection pressures, random genetic drift, and other variables. Over the course of time, this process happens many times and primary groups having a certain polymorphism (or "harmless" mutation) can give rise to secondary groups that have this polymorphism, and tertiary, and so on. Such a polymorphism may be referred to as a single nucleotide polymorphism or "SNP" (pronounced "snip"). Among individuals of different groups, the gene sequence of several thousand nucleotide base pairs long could be different at 5 or 10 positions, not just one.
Founder effects have had a strong influence on our modern day population structure. Since systematic processes, such as mutation and genetic drift, occur more frequently per generation than dispersive process, such as recombination, the combinations of polymorphisms in the gene sequence are fewer than what one would expect from random distributions of the polymorphic sequence among individuals. That is, gene sequence variants are not random distributions but are rather clustered into "haplotypes," which are strings of polymorphism that describe a multi-component variant of a given gene.
To illustrate, assume there are 10 positions of variation in a gene that is 2000 nucleotide bases long in a certain limited human population. The nucleotide base identifier letters (e.g., G, C, A, and T) can be read and analyzed, and given a "0" for a normal or common letter at the position and a "1" for an abnormal or uncommon letter. If this is done for ten people, for example, the following strings of sequence for the polymorphic positions might be obtained:
Person 1:1000100000Person 2:0000000000Person 3:1000100000Person 4:1111100000Person 5:0000000000Person 6:0000000000Person 7:1000100000Person 8:1000100000Person 9:0100000001Person 10:1000100100
This list is typical of that which would be found in nature. As shown above, the "1000100000" haplotype is present four times out of ten, the "0000000000" haplotype is present three times out of ten, and the "1000100100" haplotype is present one time out of ten. If this analysis is done for a large enough population, one could define all of the haplotypes in the population. The numbers would be far fewer than that expected from a multinominal probability distribution of allele combinations.
The field of bioinformatics has played an important role in the analysis and understanding of genes. The human genome database, for example, has many files of very long sequences that together constitute (at least a rough draft of) the human genome. This database was constructed from five donors and is rich in a horizontal sense from base one to base one billion. Unfortunately, however, little can be learned from this data about how people genetically differ from one another. Although some public or private databases contain gene sequence data from many different donors or even contain certain polymorphism data, these polymorphism data are unreliable. Such polymorphism data may identify SNPs that are not even SNPs at all, which may be due to the initial use of unreliable data and/or the lack of proper qualification of such data.
In order to discover new SNPs in genes, one must sequence DNA from hundreds of individuals for each of these genes. Typically, a sequence for a given person is about 500 letters long. By comparing the sequences from many different people, DNA base differences can be noticed in about 0.1%–1.0% of the positions, and these represent candidate SNPs that can be used in screens whose role is to determine the relationship between traits and gene "flavors" in the population. The technical problem inherent to this process of discovery is that more than 1.0% of the letters are different between people in actual experiments because of sequencing artifacts, unreliable data (caused by limitations in the sequencing chemistry, namely that the quality goes down as the sequence gets longer) or software errors.
For example, if the error rate is 3% and 500 people with 500 bases of sequence each are being screened, there are (0.03)(500)=15 sites of variation within the sequence. If the average frequency of each variant is 5%, and 500 people are being screened, there are (0.05)(0.03)(500)(500)=375 sequence discrepancies in the data set which represent letters that are potentially different in one person from other people. Finding the "good ones" or true SNPs in these 375 letters is a daunting task because each of them must be visually inspected for quality, or subject to software that measures this quality inefficiently.
Furthermore, one must first amplify regions of the human genome from many different people before comparing the sequences to one another. To amplify these regions, a map of a gene is drawn and addresses around the regions of the gene are isolated so that the parts of the gene can be read. These regions of the gene may be referred to as coding sequences and the addresses around these regions may be referred to as primer sequences. More specifically, a primer is a single-stranded oligonucleotide that binds, via complementary pairing, to DNA or RNA single-stranded molecules and serves for the priming of polymerases working on both DNA and RNA.
Conventional primer design programs that identify primer sequences have existed for years, but they are not suitable for efficient high-throughput data processing of genomic (very large) sequence data. Some examples of conventional primer design programs are Lasergene available from DNAStar Inc. and GenoMax available from Informax, Inc. Basically, conventional primer design programs pick the best primer pairs within a given sequence and provide many alternates from which the user selects to accomplish a particular objective.
Efficient high-throughput reliable methods are becoming critical for quickly obtaining and analyzing large amounts of genetic information for the development of new treatments and medicines. However, the conventional primer design programs are not equipped for high-throughput processing. For example, they cannot efficiently handle large sequences of data having multiple regions of interest and require a manual separation of larger design tasks into their component tasks. Such a manual method would be very time consuming for multiple regions of interest in one large sequence. The output data from these programs are also insufficient, as they bear a loose association to the actual positions provided with the input sequence. Finally, although it is important to obtain a large amount of data for accurate assessment, it is relatively expensive to perform amplification over several runs for a large number of sequences. In other words, one large amplification is less expensive to run than several smaller ones covering the same genetic region. Because there are constraints on the upper size limit, several economic and technical variables should be considered when designing such an experiment.
Accordingly, what are needed are methods and apparatus for use in efficient high-throughput processing of gene sequence data for obtaining reliable high-quality SNP and hapolotype data.

Efficient methods and apparatus for high-throughput processing of gene sequence data


A landing gear assembly comprises a first leg member adapted to couple to a vehicle frame member, and a second member operably coupled to the first leg member and moveable between a raised storage position and a lowered in-use position. The landing gear assembly further comprises a flexible member operably coupled with the drive mechanism and the second leg, such that the drive mechanism extends the flexible member and moves the second leg from the storage position to the in-use position, and wherein the flexible member is adapted to support a weight exerted on the first and second legs. In certain embodiments disclosed herein, the flexible member comprises a ribbon constructed of natural fibers. Other embodiments comprise additional pulleys and flexible members adapted to raise the second leg member from the in-use position to the raised storage position.

The present invention relates to a no-lube telescoping, or sliding, landing gear utilizing high strength synthetic, or natural fiber ribbons or strands as support for extending or lifting an apparatus.
Landing gears are generally designed to have a gear system that motivates a landing portion to the ground thereby supporting an apparatus such as a trailer. Oftentimes these landing systems require frequent maintenance, including the addition of lubricants, to function properly. Additionally, to support high-weight loads, strong, heavy gearing mechanisms are required.
Thus, a landing gear that is lighter and stronger and functions properly without a lubricant is desired.
These and other features, advantages and objects of the present invention will be further understood and appreciated by those skilled in the art by reference to the following specification, and appended drawings.


A delay locked loop circuit for conserving power on a semiconductor chip is provided. The circuit includes a delay chain circuit responsive to a clock input signal for generating an output clock signal having a selectively adjustable delay at an output circuit; a feedback loop circuit connects to and controls said delay chain circuit; and a pre-divider circuit connected to said delay chain circuit, wherein said pre-divider circuit is configured to disable the delay chain circuit when the output clock signal is inactive and the memory device is in an idle state (i.e., all banks closed).

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to semiconductor memories and more particularly, to an improved delay locked loop (DLL) circuit design for power conservation that synchronizes a system clock with data output lines.
2. Description of the Related Art
Semiconductor memories, such as synchronous dynamic random access memories (SDRAMs), rambus DRAM, a synclink DRAM and Double Data Rate (DDR-SDRAM) memories, typically include delay lock loop (DLL) circuits. DLLs function to cancel on-chip amplification, signal processing and buffering delays. DLLs also improve input/output timing margins, the output from which include a latency adjusted read clock signal. A xe2x80x9creadxe2x80x9d operation in DDR-SDRAMs are designed such that signal transitions present on output data lines (DQs) are synchronized to transitions of the system clock. The DLL circuit requires significant additional current to power the memory device, where lowest power requirements are desirable. When using a DLL circuit to generate this latency adjusted read clock output signal, the DLL typically operates at either the same or twice the system clock depending upon the design, this can lead to a significant power requirement. Recent concerns have brought about many ways of reducing this power demand. Most of these approaches include a trade-off between power and resulting accuracy of the latency adjusted clock. One solution to reduce power requirements is to update the DLL less frequently, which in turn reduces the accuracy of the read clock. This is accomplished by placing a divider in front of the update/control circuitry, thus forcing the control circuitry to operate at a lower frequency and reducing power usage.
There are many types of DLL""s formed from analog, digital or a combination of analog and digital circuits that provide control to an adjustable delay line. The xe2x80x9crealxe2x80x9d on-chip delays for which the DLL is designed to null-out is conventionally xe2x80x9cmodeledxe2x80x9d as a delay block which is placed within the DLL""s feedback path. The mimic delay block is constructed in such a manner as to match the total delay of the xe2x80x9crealxe2x80x9d on chip delays associated with component elements such as, an input receiver, signal processing/data path circuits, output driver, package, on chip RC wire and associated buffering.
FIGS. 1-4 are not necessarily prior art and may not be generally known to those ordinarily skilled in the art at the time of filing of the invention. These figures are provided to illustrate the state in the art and may not be well known. As shown in FIG. 1, conventional memory chips using the xe2x80x9cmodeledxe2x80x9d delay (i.e., mimic 40) often use an inverter chain or similar techniques to account for delays. The accuracy or ability of the mimic block 10 to match the xe2x80x9crealxe2x80x9d delay is an important parameter since it directly effects the final phase alignment between the transitions edges of the clock signal VCLK (inputs) and the DQ (outputs) signals.
The task of the DLL circuit is to generate an on-chip signal, which is precisely adjusted in time such that, when said signal is used by subsequent on chip circuits (i.e., data path first-in-first-out buffer+OCD) the desired aforementioned edge aligned phase relationship is achieved between VCLK (in) and DQ (out). The DLL generated output signal meeting these requirements will hence forth be refereed to as the xe2x80x9clatency adjusted read clock signal.xe2x80x9d
A generalized form of a digital DLL is shown in FIG. 1. External differential signals CLK/CLKb are connected to Input circuit 10. Input 10 receives and amplifies the crossing of differential signals CLK/CLKb and outputs a reference clock (Ref_clk) signal. The operation of the control circuit 60 is synchronous with the Ref_clk signal. Ref_clk is connected to the input of delay chain 20 and phase detector 50. Ref_clk is further delayed by a delay circuit (delay chain) 20 and passed to output driver circuit 30. The resulting signal is split inside of output 30 into two signals. The first of the two signals resulting from the split is buffered and becomes an output of DLL 5 called xe2x80x9clatency adjusted read clock,xe2x80x9d that can be part of a DRAM memory chip. The second signal from the split becomes an input to the mimic circuit 40. The output signal of mimic circuit 40 is the feedback clock (Fb_Clk) signal.
Other components include a phase detector circuit 50 for detecting a phase difference between the reference clock signal (ref_clk) and a feedback clock signal (Fb_clk). A delay control circuit 60 receives as an input signal, the output of the phase detector circuit 50. The delay control circuit 60 includes logic circuitry, which processes instructions from the phase detector. The phase detector 50 indicates whether the Fb_clk signal leads or lags the Ref_clk signal in time. Depending on the design, the phase detector may also indicate the extent to which the lead/lag condition exists. This relationship is communicated to control circuit 60, which in turn provides instruction to the delay chain 20 to increase or decrease its input-to-output propagation delay in order to compensate for the lead/lag condition present at the phase detector. This inspection and correction process continues until the DLL""s closed loop system has properly adjusted the total propagation time of the delay chain 20 in such a manner that Ref_clk and Fb_clk signals are perfectly aligned at the phase detector 50. Once the DLL converges on a solution, the DLL is said to be xe2x80x9clocked,xe2x80x9d and at other times, it remains xe2x80x9cunlockedxe2x80x9d. Assuming that mimic circuit 40 accurately reflects the delay for which the DLL is to remove, such a system will produce a latency adjusted read clock that can be used to control other on-chip data processing circuit and ultimately produce DQ signal outputs which are synchronized/aligned with the external CLK signals.
DLL circuits have also been implemented using a divider circuit 70 to reduce power and update DLL states less frequently, as shown in FIG. 2. One problem with this design is that only the delay line""s control circuit 60 is operated at a reduced rate/power, leaving the phase detector 50 mimic circuit 40, and delay chain 20 operating at the original higher rate/power levels. Another problem with this architecture is that the maximum operational frequency for which the DLL can sustain is limited. When the reference clock is used to change the operating state pointer of the delay chain circuit and the same reference clock signal propagates through the delay chain circuit, the pointer must update before the reference clock changes states. In other words, as the frequency is increased, the changing of the pointer for the delay chain effects the reference clock being propagated through the delay chain (line). The term xe2x80x9cpointerxe2x80x9d herein is defined as a digital (or analog) informational state from the control circuit 60 which produces a unique amount of propagation delay within the delay chain/line 20. That is, the control 60 is xe2x80x9cpointingxe2x80x9d to a location/state for which the delay line is complying and producing a unique amount of propagation delay.
Another form of DLL architecture is shown in FIG. 3 that uses the output of the delay chain (line) 20 as the clock signal for the control circuit 60. This architecture enables a higher frequency of operation since the length of the delay chain (line) 20 is of no consequence. Yet another DLL design (FIG. 4) uses this higher frequency DLL architecture and includes an additional divider circuit (post-divider 90) in the feedback path. The introduction of the post-divider circuit 90 reduces the power consumption in the control circuit 60, mimic 50 and phase detector 40. However, since the maximum frequency is determined by the propagation delay from the output of the delay chain (line) to when the pointers change, any increase in propagation delay such as adding a post-divider 90 will decrease the maximum frequency of operation that the DLL can sustain. To eliminate this unwanted reduction in frequency, a xe2x80x9cfastxe2x80x9d update clock (Fast_Int_clk) for control 60 is extracted prior to the post-divider 90 is provided.
Prior teachings that reduce power consumption in DLL circuits include U.S. Pat. No. 6,066,969, which is incorporated by reference, discloses the use of two delay chain (line) circuits. One delay line circuit is used in the feedback/control loop and the other is used as a delay line for the main output path. A divider circuit is used only before one of these two delay lines, (i.e., the one used in the feedback/control loop). In this design, only the feedback/control loop and associated delay line benefit from reduced power usage using the pre-divider circuit disclosed, whereas power usage in the other (main) delay line does not achieve similar results.
Other DLL designs using circuits to reduce power requirements of the control circuits that include phase detector circuits and the mimic circuits include techniques that update less often using a divider circuit (FIGS. 4) that reduces the frequency of the control logic""s clock. Yet others use a control signal that instructs the DLL control circuits to perform updates at periodic intervals. This control signal is normally activated with a timer or operating mode of the DRAM.
Problems associated with these DLL design, as discussed above, include that the delay chain (line) circuitry 20 still consumes significant power, even though the update rates have been reduced while using these techniques. Indeed, the delay chain (line) 20 still operates at one to two times the external clock frequency. Therefore. a need still exists for addressing this aspect of the DLL circuits for improved power conservation, which the present invention addresses.
With the invention disclosed below, power used by the delay chain (line) circuitry 20 in a DLL is reduced by idling the latency adjusted read clock when it is not needed for a particular mode of SDRAM operation. Many modes of operation exist for a SDRAM that are well known in the art. For example, when a memory bank within a SDRAM is precharged, the status of the bank is commonly referred to as closed. If all the banks are closed the entire memory is said to be in an idle mode of operation. In the idle mode, data can not flow in the data path since a xe2x80x9creadxe2x80x9d command cannot be transmitted until a xe2x80x9cbank activatexe2x80x9d command is transmitted, which opens a bank. At least one bank must be open before the read command can be transmitted. When an external device to the DLL such as the memory has idled the output of the DLL, the latency adjusted read clock is unnecessary. Thus, during this idle state, additional power savings can be achieved by altering the frequency of operation within the delay chain (line) 20.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide an architecture for a device that reduces the power consumed by a digital DLL circuit when the memory device is in an idle state (all banks closed).
The invention provides a DLL circuit that incorporates a pre-divider circuit before a delay chain (line) circuit to reduce the frequency of a clock signal that propagates through the delay line circuit, hence reducing power consumption. The pre-divider circuit is only activated while the latency adjusted read clock signal is not in use as is the case when all memory banks are closed (idle). This allows the DLL to operate at lower power consumption levels without reducing the maximum operating frequency achievable by the overall DLL circuit.
The invention provides a delay lock loop circuit for conserving power on a semiconductor chip having a delay chain circuit and is responsive to a clock input signal which generates an output clock signal having a selectively adjustable delay at an output circuit; a feedback loop circuit connects to and controls the delay chain circuit; and a pre-divider circuit is also connected to the delay chain circuit. The pre-divider circuit is configured to alter the frequency of operation in the delay chain circuit when the output clock signal is not required at full rate.

Pre-divider architecture for low power in a digital delay locked loop

International Business Machines Corporation


An exerciser includes a base frame having first and second ends and including two parallel beams, a foot post, a seat post, and a supporting member. An axle is rotationally mounted to the first end of the base frame between the parallel beams. Each beam includes a track adjacent to the second end of the base frame. The foot post has a lower end securely mounted to the axle to pivot therewith and an upper end to which a pair of foot rests are provided. A fixed beam extends outwardly from the foot post toward to the second end of base frame and has a distal end. The seat post includes a lower end securely attached to the axle to pivot therewith and an upper end for mounting a seat thereon. A mediate section of the supporting member is pivoted at an underside thereof to the distal end of the fixed beam, while an upper side of the mediate section of the supporting member is in pivotal connection with the seat post to allow pivotal movements therebetween. A pair of handgrips are mounted on a top section of the supporting member. A rod is mounted to a bottom section of the supporting member and has two ends. A roller is rotationally mounted to each end of the rod and is movably received in an associated track in each beam.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an exerciser which provides an exercise similar to horse riding.
2. Description of related art
Various types of exercisers have been developed, such as simple hand exercisers, leg exercisers, and multifunction exercisers having resistance means, allowing the user to exercise different muscles of his body. The present invention provides a particular exerciser in which the user may have a feeling like horse-riding.

Liu Pao Village, Ta Ya Hsiang, Taichung Hsien


A color filter array includes a plurality of filters, each having one of a plurality of types of spectral sensitivity and being disposed at the location of a corresponding one of a plurality of pixels. The filters of a predetermined type selected from among the plurality of types are arranged at the locations of the pixels in a checkered pattern, and the filters of some or all of the other types are randomly arranged at the pixel locations at which the filters of the predetermined type are not present.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a color filter array, an imaging device, and an image processing unit used for an image capturing apparatus, such as a digital camera using a solid-state imaging device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Single-plate color image capturing apparatuses that include an image processing unit are known. In the image capturing apparatuses, a color filter is bonded to each of a plurality of pixels of a single-plate solid-state imaging device and the image processing unit allocates all colors to the position of each pixel using a mosaic image of colors captured by the imaging device.
In such image capturing apparatuses using a single-plate solid-state imaging device, only a single spectral sensitivity is obtained. Accordingly, in general, to obtain a color image, different color filters are bonded to a plurality of pixels so as to be arranged in a specific pattern. In the captured image, each pixel provides only one color. Therefore, in terms of colors, a mosaic image is generated. However, by interpolating the color of a pixel using color information that can be obtained from the adjacent pixels, an image in which each pixel has a full color can be generated. Such an interpolating process is referred to as a "color separation process" or a "demosaic process".
For most of the single-plate color image capturing apparatuses, as a color filter arrangement, a Bayer array format described in Bryce E. Bayer, U.S. Pat. No. 3,971,065 entitled "COLOR IMAGING ARRAY" is used. As shown in FIG. 1, in this arrangement, G color filters are arranged in a checkered pattern so that the density of the G color filters is twice that of R color filters or B color filters. Accordingly, in most methods of interpolating a color of a pixel, a G color having a large amount of information and a strong relation to the brightness of light is interpolated to all the pixels first, and subsequently, R and B colors are interpolated using the G color as a reference.
For example, in the method described in Ozawa, Akiyama, Satoh, Nagahara and Miura, U.S. Pat. No. 4,716,455 entitled "Chrominance Signal Interpolation Device for a Color Camera," on ground that a ratio of a low-frequency component of each color in a local region is substantially constant, G color is allocated to all of the pixels. Thereafter, an average of a ratio of R color to G color and an average of a ratio of B color to G color of the adjacent pixels are multiplied by the G color of a pixel of interest. Thus, unknown color components are estimated.
In addition, in this interpolation method, on ground that the G color filters are arranged in a checkered pattern, the resolutions in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction can be increased.
For example, Japanese Patent No. 2931520 entitled "Color Separation Circuit of Single-plate Color Video Camera" describes a technique in which a correlation value at the position of an interpolated pixel in a horizontal direction or in a vertical direction is computed. Two interpolation values obtained by processing means appropriate when the correlation in the horizontal direction is strong and processing means appropriate when the correlation in the vertical direction is strong are mixed using the correlation value.
According to the above-described techniques, in a single-plate color image capturing apparatus, the R, G, and B colors can be allocated to positions of all the pixels for high-resolution display.
However, since each color is discretely sampled, aliasing (overlap of a high-frequency component with lower frequency components) occurs when a captured image contains a high-frequency component having a frequency higher than the Nyquist frequency, and therefore, a color different from an original color is estimated.
This color is referred to as a "false color". The false color is noticeable when a color filter arrangement in which color filters are regularly arranged is used, since a significant overlap occurs in a specific spatial frequency range. Once a false color is generated, it cannot be determined whether a color is an original color having an original low frequency or the false color caused by the overlap of a high-frequency component. Therefore, the false color cannot be removed by using a frequency filter.
Accordingly, to reduce the occurrence of a false color, known single-plate color image capturing apparatuses need to include an optical low-pass filter disposed in front of the imaging device so as to remove a high-frequency component in advance. However, the optical low-pass filter does not have a sharp cut-off capability for the Nyquist frequency. Therefore, if the single-plate color image capturing apparatuses attempt to completely prevent the occurrence of the false color, low-frequency components having a frequency lower than the Nyquist frequency could also be cut off.
In addition, in the Bayer arrangement, the Nyquist frequency of the R signal or the B signal is lower than that of the G signal. Accordingly, an optical low-pass filter suitable for the Nyquist frequency of the R channel or the B channel decreases the resolution of the G channel.
In practical applications, since a decrease in resolution is not allowed, complete removal of the false color is difficult. Furthermore, the installation of an optical low-pass filter prevents miniaturization and cost reduction of the image capturing apparatus.
Additionally, in contrast to the Bayer arrangement of three RGB color filters, the fidelity and the dynamic range of colors can be increased by using a filter arrangement of four colors or more.
For accurate color reproduction, a method using a large number of filters each transmitting light only in a narrow wavelength range, as shown in FIG. 2A, is more suitable than a method using a small number of filters each transmitting light in a wide wavelength range, as shown in FIG. 2C.
For an increase in the dynamic range, a method using a plurality of filters that have different transmittances but transmit light in the same wavelength range, as shown in FIG. 2B, is more suitable than a method using the filters shown in FIG. 2C.
However, the Bayer arrangement is still widely used. This is because as the number of pixels for one color is decreased, the resolution of that color channel deteriorates, and therefore, a false color easily occurs.
To solve this problem, technology has been invented in which the regularity of the color filter arrangement is reduced in order to reduce the occurrence of a false color.
More precisely, this technology solves the following problem. That is, a false color is visually noticeable and removal of the false color is difficult if most of the false colors occur in a specific spatial frequency range.
Similarly, as used herein, the reduction in the occurrence of a false color refers to the reduction in the occurrence of a false color concentrated in a specific spatial frequency range.
In a pseudo-random Bayer arrangement introduced by FillFactory, Belgium, (this document is available at http://www.fillfactory.com/htm/technology/htm/rgbfaq.htm), G color filters are arranged in a checkered pattern. In addition, at positions other than those of the G color filters, R and B color filters are pseudo-randomly arranged. This arrangement is referred to as a "three-color G-checkered pseudo-random arrangement".
Additionally, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-316169 describes a six-color random arrangement in which four sides or four corners of a pixel of interest are adjacent to filters of six colors.
Furthermore, Mutze, Ulrich, Dr., EP Patent Publication No. 0,804,037 entitled "Process and system for generating a full color image or multispectral image from the image data of a CCD image sensor with a mosaic color filter" describes an arrangement including a five-color 3-by-3 repetition pattern and a pseudo-random pattern.
All of the above-described arrangements include a random pattern. In addition, the two arrangements described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-316169 and EP Patent Publication No. 0,804,037, (A2) employ filters of more than three colors.
Because of the random pattern in the arrangements, the false color is dispersed in a variety of spatial frequency ranges, and therefore, the false color is not noticeable. In addition, the increase in the number of filters improves the dynamic range and the performance of the color reproduction.
However, although the pseudo-random Bayer arrangement introduced by FillFactory has a pseudo-random pattern, only the positions at which a false color occurs in the spatial frequency range are slightly different from those in the Bayer arrangement. This is because the frequency of the repetition is low. Therefore, in practice, the pseudo-random Bayer arrangement reduces the occurrence of a false color little. In addition, since the pseudo-random Bayer arrangement is a three-color filter arrangement, the performance of color reproduction and the dynamic range are substantially the same as those of the Bayer arrangement.
Since the two arrangements described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-316169 and EP Patent Publication No. 0,804,037, (A2) employ a stronger random pattern than the Bayer arrangement or the pseudo-random Bayer arrangement, the occurrence of a false color is reduced compared with the pseudo-random Bayer arrangement or the pseudo-random Bayer arrangement. However, since, in the two arrangements, all the color filters are randomly arranged, the resolution is decreased compared with that of the Bayer arrangement or the pseudo-random Bayer arrangement.
In general, in color separation processes, one color signal is interpolated with a high resolution first. Thereafter, the other color signals are interpolated using that color signal as a reference. Accordingly, compared with the Bayer arrangement or the pseudo-random Bayer arrangement in which G color filters are arranged in a checkered pattern and a correlation process described in Japanese Patent No. 2931520 is used, it is very difficult for the arrangements described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-316169 and EP Patent Publication No. 0,804,037, (A2) to generate a reference color. Consequently, the reproducible frequency range is significantly different for the position of each pixel.
Furthermore, since the arrangements described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-316169 and EP Patent Publication No. 0,804,037, (A2) increase the number of colors compared with the Bayer arrangement, the number of pixels for one color is reduced. This results in a further decrease in resolution.
Still furthermore, in general, to read a signal out of a solid-state imaging device at high speed, the signals from the pixels are thinned out (dumped) or summed. The dumping and summing processes are cyclically executed. Accordingly, if a random filter arrangement is used, a filter pattern after dumping may be changed from the original pattern or signals from different pixels may be summed.
As noted above, while a random pattern in the filter arrangement and the increase in the number of colors reduce the occurrence of a false color and increase the dynamic range and the performance of color reproduction, the random pattern and the increase in the number of colors decrease the resolution and cause an unsuccessful operation of dumping and summing the signals from the pixels.

Color filter array, imaging device, and image processing unit