Profiling data for a consumer can be generated from one or more of the consumer's own financial records. The profiling data can be provided by the consumer him or herself through use of one or more computing devices subject to terms, conditions, rules, and/or other parameters set by the consumer. The profiling data may be provided to one or more interested parties in exchange for value, with the exchange negotiated by one or more software agents acting on behalf of the consumer. The profiling data may be provided in a manner such that it is accessible only in a manner specified by the consumer. For instance, profiling data may be subject to digital rights management or other restrictions such that the receiving party or parties may only access the data for a limited time.

Various efforts have been made or proposed to determine consumer preference and demographic information through tracking consumer behavior and/or inferring behavior by analyzing financial data such as transaction records. For example, companies such as credit-card issuers have analyzed their vast stores of purchase records of consumers in order to determine spending habits. As another example, merchants such as grocery stores offer discount cards which may be used by the merchant to track the cardholder's grocery buying habits. As another example, consumer behavior may be tracked by devices used by the consumer, such as set-top boxes that provide information about the consumer's television viewing habits and computer applications that provide information about the consumer's Internet viewing habits (e.g., sites visited, etc.).
However, such efforts may suffer from several types of drawbacks. For instance, consumers concerned about privacy may avoid the use of services that track their behavior and/or otherwise aggregate consumer data. Another possible drawback includes the accuracy of information. For instance, in an effort to alleviate privacy concerns, some proposed systems generate a "profile" of a consumer that does not include any raw information (such as purchase records). However, such a profile is (at least) a level of abstraction away from the actual consumer's behavior and may be inaccurate.
A need remains for methods and systems that provide information about a user, such as a consumer, in a manner that is accurate but also respects the consumer's privacy and other interests in the information.

Automated real-time secure user data sourcing


A particulate inorganic mixed oxide comprising: aluminum; zirconium; cerium; lanthanum and an additional element selected from the group consisting of neodymium and praseodymium, wherein the inorganic mixed oxide has at least 80% of primary particles with article diameters of 100 nm or less, and at least a part of the primary particles have an enriched surface region where the additional element is locally increased in a surface layer portion thereof.

Conventionally, various catalysts for purification of exhaust gas have been used for the purpose of purification of exhaust gas emitted from internal combustion engines and the like. Such catalysts for purification of exhaust gas are used under conditions of high temperature. For this reason, such catalysts for purification of exhaust gas are desired to have such a high level of heat resistance that the catalytic activity can be kept high even after long-time use at a high temperature. In this connection, in order to cause such catalysts for purification of exhaust gas to exhibit a higher heat resistance, various supports and the like have been studied.
For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2006-36556 (Document 1) discloses a particulate inorganic oxide comprising: an aluminum oxide; a metal oxide forming no composite oxide with the aluminum oxide; and an additional element which is at least one of rare earth elements and alkaline earth elements. In the inorganic oxide, content of the aluminum oxide is 15 to 40% by mole relative to a total amount of aluminum in the aluminum oxide, a metal element in the metal oxide and the additional element. In the inorganic oxide, at least 80% of primary particles of the inorganic oxide have a particle diameter of 100 nm or less. In the inorganic oxide, at least a part of the primary particles have an enriched surface region where a content of the additional element is locally increased in a surface layer portion thereof. Document 1 also discloses a catalyst for purification of exhaust gas obtained by supporting rhodium on the inorganic oxide.
Moreover, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2006-35019 (Document 2) discloses a particulate inorganic oxide comprising: an aluminum oxide, a metal oxide forming no composite oxide with the aluminum oxide; and an additional element which is at least one of rare earth elements and alkaline earth elements, the inorganic oxide having secondary particles formed through aggregation of primary particles. In the inorganic oxide, at least a part of the secondary particles contain multiple first primary particles and multiple second primary particles, the first primary particles containing the aluminum oxide and the additional element and having a particle diameter of 100 nm or less, the second primary particles containing the metal oxide and the additional element and having a particle diameter of 100 nm or less. In the inorganic oxide, at least a part of the first and second primary particles have an enriched surface region where a content of the additional element is locally increased in a surface layer portion thereof. Document 2 also discloses a catalyst for purification of exhaust gas obtained by supporting rhodium on the inorganic oxide.
Moreover, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2006-55836 (Document 3) discloses a particulate inorganic oxide comprising: an aluminum oxide; a metal oxide forming no composite oxide with the aluminum oxide; and an additional element which is at least one of rare earth elements and alkaline earth elements. In the inorganic oxide, a content of the additional element is, in terms of amount of an oxide thereof, 1.5 to 5.6% by mole relative to a total amount of the additional element, aluminum in the aluminum oxide, and a metal element in the metal oxide. In the inorganic oxide, at least 80% of primary particles of the inorganic oxide have a particle diameter of 100 nm or less. In the inorganic oxide, at least a part of the primary particles have an enriched surface region where the content of the additional element is locally increased in a surface layer portion thereof. Document 3 also discloses a catalyst for purification of exhaust gas obtained by supporting rhodium on the inorganic oxide.
However, such catalysts for purification of exhaust gas as described in Documents 1 to 3 are not necessarily satisfactory in terms of well-balanced exhibition of an oxygen storage capability (OSC performance), a HC-reforming performance and a NOx purification performance.

Inorganic mixed oxide and catalyst for purification of exhaust gas using the same


This invention regards a method and an arrangement for attenuating undesirable high amplitude output sound of an acoustic system 2 by injecting a canceling sound produced by a controller 10 and radiated by a loudspeaker 12. The controller 10 has a nonlinear transfer behavior between the control input 20 provided with the sensed input noise and the output 26 connected to the loudspeaker 12. The architecture of the nonlinear controller 10 is directly derived from an acoustic model describing the nonlinear sound propagation in the acoustic system 2. The control architecture can be implemented in a digital signal processor with a minimum of elements and improves the efficiency of the active attenuation so that the fundamental and the nonlinear distortions of the sound can be canceled and the output noise level is lower than by using a linear control system.

Active acoustic attenuation involves injecting a secondary sound to destructively interfere with and cancel a primary sound. Describing the primary sound by the unwanted pressure fluctuation p.sub.P (x, t)) then the secondary pressure fluctuation p.sub.s (x, t) has to be equal in magnitude and in opposite phase (180.degree.), to obtain a total pressure fluctuation p(x,t)=p.sub.s (x, t)+p.sub.P (x, t)=0. The generation of the required secondary sound requires an accurate model of the transformation that the primary sound undergoes as it propagates along the path to the source of the secondary sound.


A vehicle body structure includes a perimeter frame including laterally spaced right and left side rails of tubular construction and front and rear bumper rails of tubular construction extending between the side rails. A structural tunnel extends longitudinally of the vehicle midway between the side rails and has front and rear ends. The structural tunnel includes an inverted U-shaped channel having vertically depending the first and second legs, and a close-out plate which extends horizontally between the legs. First and second front shear walls extend forwardly and diagonally from the first and second legs at the front of the tunnel to the respective right and left side rails of the perimeter frame. Similarly, first and second rear shear walls extend generally rearward and diagonally from the first and second legs at the rear end of the tunnel to the respective left and right side rails of the perimeter frame. Reinforcement plates are welded along side the front shear walls and the rear shear walls to additionally connect the legs of the structural tunnel with the right and left side rails. Right and left rear pillars are attached respectively to the right and left side rails of the perimeter frames, and right and left seat back shear walls extend laterally between the rear ends of the tunnel and the right and left pillars. The body structure is additionally stiffened by reinforcing brackets which extend between the front and rear shear walls and the perimeter frames.

It is well known that motor vehicles are constructed of welded together structural components. In the design of such vehicle body structure it is desirable to provide high strength and stiffness while at the same time minimizing the weight of the vehicle body. The present invention provides a new and improved vehicle body structure which is particularly designed to maximize the torsional stiffness of the vehicle, minimize the weight of the vehicle, and is particularly suited to an open roof vehicle.


The present invention relates to an automated feed assembly for use with a pack seal tester. The automated feed assembly receives a plurality of cigarette packs into a testing column for advancement control of the packs to the tester. The automated feed assembly adjusts the flow of cigarette packs within the testing column through the use of a first, second and third push and hold mechanism which work in conjunction with a first and a second stop mechanism, all of which work in conjunction with each other to orderly advance the packs to a plunger and vacuum source for testing the seal strength of the cigarette pack seal.

1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an automated feed assembly for use with a manually-operated pack seal tester. More particularly, the present invention relates to an automated feed assembly for use with a manually-operated pack seal tester, wherein a plurality of sealed packs are stacked therein and advanced therethrough under the influence of gravity.
2. Description of the Related Art
Packages of cigarettes are often wrapped with a transparent film of polyethylene or other similar material to preserve freshness of the cigarettes contained therein. The manufacturing, assembly and wrapping of the cigarette packages is oftentimes performed at high rates of speed. It is therefore imperative that the wrapped cigarette packages be closely monitored to ensure that they conform to preselected quality control standards.
One such specification, such as, for example, the integrity of the freshness seal provided by the wrapping, is monitored by an operator's periodically removing a sample cigarette package from those being produced and testing the seal integrity with a manual pack seal tester. Typically, a small perforation is made through the wrapping and a vacuum is drawn therethrough so that an interior region of the wrapping is subjected to an inwardly-directed vacuum having a predetermined force. The sample cigarette package passes the quality control test if the wrapping withstands the force of the vacuum and is not destroyed thereby. It is therefore desirable to provide an automated feed assembly for feeding a plurality of packages of wrapped cigarettes to a pack seal tester.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,991,879 to Innocenti teaches a sealed-package wrapper end tester having mechanical plungers to transport cigarette packages between two parallel channel systems along a horizontal panel. However, it is further desirable to provide an automated feed assembly for feeding a plurality of packages of wrapped cigarettes to a pack seal tester, wherein the plurality of cigarette packages are vertically advanced through the automated test assembly under the influence of gravity.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,814,072 to Von Wichert, et al., teaches an apparatus for intermittently moving a plurality of stacks of cigarette packages along a horizontal path, wherein the stacks are fed onto the horizontal path by a vertical elevator assembly. However, it is further desirable to provide an automated feed assembly for feeding a plurality of packages of wrapped cigarettes to a pack seal tester, wherein the automated feed assembly includes an automated testing apparatus attached thereto.

Automated feed assembly for use with a pack seal tester


A semiconductor integrated circuit comprising a first circuit block including an oscillation circuit considered to be a noise generator and a second circuit block including circuits considered to be easily affected by a noise generated by the oscillation circuit, being most likely led to a malfunction are created on a single semiconductor substrate with the first and second circuit blocks separated from each other. To put it more concretely, the first and second circuit blocks are respectively created in a first island area and a second island area on the surface of the semiconductor substrate. The first and second island areas are each enclosed by an insulating isolation band. A low-resistance semiconductor area is created in a base area excluding locations occupied by active elements in the first and second island areas and is connected to a stable voltage terminal.

The present invention relates to a technology of reducing cross talk in a semiconductor integrated circuit and a technology effectively applicable to a signal-processing LSI (or a large-scale semiconductor integrated circuit) for receiving and processing signals in a plurality of different frequency bands. More particularly, the present invention relates to a technology effectively applicable to a radio-communication LSI employed typically in a hand phone for processing a signal received by adoption of a super-heterodyne technique.
As a radio-communication system adopted in a hand phone, there is known a radio-communication system embracing the super-heterodyne technique as shown in FIG. 11. In the radio-communication system shown in FIG. 11, reference numeral 100 denotes an antenna for receiving a signal wave and reference numeral 101 denotes a reception/transmission changeover switch. Reference numeral 110 denotes a reception-system circuit for amplifying the signal received by the antenna 100 and demodulating the amplified signal. Reference numeral 120 denotes a transmission-system circuit for modulating a signal to be transmitted through the antenna 100 and converting the frequency of the signal. Reference numeral 130 is an oscillation-system circuit for generating a local oscillation signal required by the reception-system circuit 110 and the transmission-system circuit 120. Reference numeral 140 denotes a base-band-signal-processing circuit for carried out processing such as extraction of audio data from a signal received by the antenna 100 and conversion of the audio data into a train of voltage pulses. Reference numeral 150 is a system controller including a microcomputer for totally controlling the entire radio-communication system. The transmission/reception changeover switch 101 is controlled by a control signal TX/RX output by the system controller 150 to switch the mode of the radio-communication system from reception to transmission and vice versa.
The reception-system circuit 110 comprises a band-limiting filter (FLT) 111, a low-noise amplification circuit (LNA) 112, a down-conversion mixer (MIX) 113, a band-pass filter (BPF) 114, a programmable-gain amplifier (PGA) 115 and a demodulator (DeMOD) 116. The FLT 111 is typically an SAW filter for removing unnecessary waves from a signal received by the antenna 100. The LNA 112 is an amplifier for amplifying a signal passing through the band-limiting filter (FLT) 111. The MIX 113 is a converter for down-converting the frequency of the signal amplified by the amplification circuit (LNA) 112 into an intermediate frequency by mixing the signal with the local oscillation signal generated by the oscillation-system circuit 130. The BPF 114 is a filter for passing through a signal having the frequency corresponding to a difference in frequency between the signal amplified by the amplification circuit (LNA) 112 and the local oscillation signal. The programmable-gain amplifier (PGA) 115 is an amplifier capable of controlling a gain at which a signal output by the band-pass filter (BPF) 114 is amplified thereby to a desired level. The DeMOD 116 is a demodulator for modulating the signal with the amplitude thereof adjusted by the programmable-gain amplifier (PGA) 115 to a desired level into a base-band signal (I/Q).
The transmission-system circuit 120 comprises a modulator (MOD) 121, an up-conversion mixer (U-MIX) 122 and a power amplifier (PA) 123. The MOD 121 is a modulator for modulating a signal to be transmitted into an RF (radio frequency) signal. The signal to be transmitted is received from the base-band-signal-processing circuit 140 as a base-band signal (I/Q). The mixer (U-MIX) 122 is a converter for up-converting the frequency of the signal obtained as a result of modulation by the modulator (MOD) 121 into a desired transmission frequency by mixing the modulated signal with the local oscillation signal generated by the oscillation-system circuit 130. The PA 123 is an amplifier for amplifying the power of the signal to be transmitted after the frequency conversion prior to a transmission by way of the antenna 100.
The oscillation-system circuit 130 comprises a radio-frequency voltage-controlled oscillation circuit (RFVCO) 132, an intermediate-frequency voltage-controlled oscillation circuit (IFVCO) 131, a synthesizer (SYN) 133 and a buffer (BFF) 134. The RFVCO 132 is a voltage-controlled oscillation circuit for generating an RF (radio frequency) signal used in the down-conversion mixer (MIX) 113 and the up-conversion mixer (U-MIX) 122. On the other hand, the intermediate-frequency voltage-controlled oscillation circuit (IFVCO) 131 is a voltage-controlled oscillation circuit for generating an IF (intermediate frequency) signal, that is, a signal with a fixed frequency, required by the demodulator (DeMOD) 116 and the modulator (MOD) 121. The SYN 133 is a synthesizer for generating control voltages applied to the radio-frequency voltage-controlled oscillation circuit (RFVCO) 132 and the intermediate-frequency voltage-controlled oscillation circuit (IFVCO) 131 respectively. The control voltage applied to each of the VCO 131 and VCO 132 is generated in accordance with a difference in phase between a feedback signal generated by the VCO 131 and VCO 13 and a reference signal TCXO generated by an oscillation circuit employing a crystal oscillator exhibiting characteristics of high frequency precision and little temperature dependence. The difference in phase is obtained as a result of comparing the feedback signal with the reference signal TCXO. The BFF 134 is a buffer for supplying an oscillation signal generated by the RFVCO 132 to the down-conversion mixer (MIX) 113 employed in the reception-system circuit 110 and the up-conversion mixer (U-MIX) 122 employed in the transmission-system circuit 120 by proper distribution. It should be noted that the synthesizer (SYN) 133 and the radio-frequency voltage-controlled oscillation circuit (RFVCO) 132 constitute a closed-loop circuit known as a PLL (Phase Locked Loop) circuit. Similarly, the synthesizer (SYN) 133 and the intermediate-frequency voltage-controlled oscillation circuit (IFVCO) 131 constitute another closed-loop circuit also known as a PLL (Phase Locked Loop) circuit.
The radio-communication system shown in FIG. 11 comprises about 10 IC chips each implemented as a semiconductor integrated circuit. The IC chips are units of integration implementing the circuit blocks 112, 113, 115, 116 and so on. If the radio-communication system for processing transmitted and received signals comprises a plurality of IC chips, the number of components rises, inevitably increasing an area for mounting the components. For a portable electronic device such as a hand phone, however, a small size and low power consumption are mandatory requirements. Thus, reduction of the component count is a technological challenge of importance.
In order to reduce the number of components such as ICs composing the radio-communication system of a hand phone, inventors of the present invention developed an LSI allowing some of several circuit blocks shown in FIG. 11 to be integrated into a single semiconductor chip. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a layout of circuit blocks initially considered to be put in the LSI. Circuit blocks of FIG. 12 identical with those shown in FIG. 11 are denoted by the same reference numerals as the latter. A comparison of FIG. 11 with FIG. 12 clearly indicates that circuit blocks shown in FIG. 12 are merely laid out along flows of received and transmitted signals as is the case with those shown in FIG. 11.
By simply arranging the circuit blocks into a layout on a semiconductor chip as shown in FIG. 12, however, a result of an interference-wave test clearly indicated a deteriorating CN (component to noise) ratio. To put it concretely, the result of the test indicated that, when an interference wave with an interfering frequency was introduced at xe2x88x9226 dB to a desired signal input through the antenna at xe2x88x9299 dB, the CN ratio deteriorated, causing a bit error rate to exceed a desirable level.
In order to solve the problem described above, the inventors of the present invention studied causes of the deterioration of the CN ratio accompanying introduction of an interference wave. Results of the study are explained as follows.
FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a frequency distribution of an interference wave and a desired wave with a deteriorated CN ratio caused by introduction of the interference wave. In FIG. 13, notations fW and fB denote a desired wave (or a received wave) and an interference wave respectively whereas notation fRELO denotes the RF (radio frequency) local oscillation signal to be mixed with the received signal (or the desired signal) in the down-conversion mixer (MIX) 113 shown in FIG. 12. Notation fIFW denotes a desired wave obtained as a result of frequency down conversion by mixing the RF local oscillation signal with the received signal. Notation fIFLO is an IF (intermediate frequency) signal generated by the intermediate-frequency voltage-controlled (IFVCO) 131. The frequency of the signal fIFLO is an intermediate frequency of typically 540 MHz.
Assume that the frequency of the desired wave fW is 940 MHz and the frequency of the RF local oscillation signal fRFLO is 1,165 MHz. In this case, in the down-conversion mixer (MIX) 113 converts the desired wave fW into the signal fIFW with an intermediate frequency of 225 MHz (=1,165 MHz xe2x88x92940 MHz). In this state, when an interference wave fB with a frequency of 935 MHz is received, noise components fN1 and fN2 appear as shown in FIG. 13.
The band-pass filter (BPF) 114 is capable of removing the noise component fN1 but not the noise component fN2. This is because the noise component fN2 has all but the same frequency as the signal fIFW""s intermediate frequency of 225 MHz obtained as a result of the down conversion by the down-conversion mixer (MIX) 113. From this consideration, the deterioration of the CN ratio is thought to be caused by the noise component fN2. As shown in FIG. 12, the intermediate-frequency voltage-controlled oscillation circuit (IFVCO) 131 is put in the same LSI as the down-conversion mixer (MIX) 113. In this case, it is feared that a noise caused by cross talk propagates from the intermediate-frequency voltage-controlled oscillation circuit (IFVCO) 131 to the down-conversion mixer (MIX) 113 through a semiconductor substrate, causing the CN ratio to deteriorate.
In order to solve the problem described above, the inventors of the present invention conceive that a noise component is a spurious noise obtained as result of mixing the interference wave, the local oscillation signals and the intermediate-frequency signals or mixing higher harmonics of the interference wave, the local oscillation signals and the intermediate-frequency signals. That is, the frequency fN of a noise component can be expressed as follows:
fN=A*fRFLOxc2x1B*fIFLOxc2x1C*fB
where the symbols A, B and C are each an integer whereas the symbol * denotes a multiplication operator. If 1,165 MHz, 540 MHz and 935 MHz are substituted for the RF local oscillation frequency fRFLO, the IF local oscillation frequency fIFLO and the interference-wave frequency fB respectively whereas xe2x88x922, 3 and 1 are substituted for the integers A, B and C respectively in the above equation, the intermediate frequency fN of the noise component is found to be 225 MHz. That is, the inventors of the present invention came to a conclusion that a noise component is indeed an intermediate-frequency spurious noise obtained as result of a synthesis of the interference wave, the local oscillation signals and the intermediate-frequency signals or a synthesis of higher harmonics of the interference wave, the local oscillation signals and the intermediate-frequency signals. At a development stage, the inventors of the present invention thought that, by mounting an LSI comprising circuit blocks like the ones shown in FIG. 12 on an SOI (Silicon on Insulator) substrate, it would be possible to reduce noise caused by cross talk propagating through the substrate. The inventors of the present invention also discovered, however, that the spurious noise could not be sufficiently reduced by merely using an SOI substrate.
In addition, as an application of the LSI described above, a signal-processing circuit to be used in a radio communication system adopting a single super-heterodyne technique has been assumed. If a double super-heterodyne technique is adopted, however, the number of local oscillation signals used in down conversion rises, increasing the number of mixing combinations of the local oscillation signals and the desired signal (received signal) or mixing combinations of higher harmonics of the local oscillation signals and the desired signal. An increased number of such combinations may result in more spurious noises giving rise to a problem of concern that there are more frequent cases in which the frequency of a spurious noise happens to almost coincide with the frequency of a signal obtained as a result a down conversion of a received signal, causing the CN ratio to deteriorate. It should be noted that the double super-heterodyne technique is a method whereby an intermediate-frequency signal obtained as a result of a down conversion of a received signal is further subjected to another down conversion by using a second mixer to generate a signal with en even lower frequency.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a signal-processing semiconductor integrated circuit that is used in a radio-communication system for signal processing to convert the frequency of a received signal (or a desired signal) into a lower frequency by mixing the received signal with a local oscillation signal, and is capable of reducing a CN ratio""s deterioration caused by a spurious noise.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a semiconductor integrated circuit for radio communication capable of reducing deterioration of a CN ratio.
The above and other objects of the present invention as well as novel features thereof will become apparent from a careful study of this specification with reference to accompanying diagrams.
An outline of representatives of the present invention disclosed in this specification is described as follows.
In a semiconductor integrated circuit obtained as a result of formation of a first circuit block and a second circuit block on a semiconductor substrate, the first and second circuit blocks are created respectively in a first island area and a second island area on the surface of the semiconductor substrate wherein the first and second island areas are each enclosed by an insulating isolation band; a semiconductor area having a resistance lower than a base-substance area is created on the base-substance area, which is an area excluding a region for forming active elements on the first island area and excluding a region for forming active elements on the second island area; and the semiconductor area having a relatively low resistance is connected to a voltage terminal.
Since the insulating isolation band for electrically separating the first and second circuit blocks from each other functions as capacitors at high frequencies, the circuit blocks appear to be connected to each other by the capacitors. By virtue of the arrangement described above, however, the coupling capacitance between the first and second circuit blocks decreases since the coupling capacitors are connected to each other in series. Thus, the number of cross-talk components propagating from the first circuit block to the second circuit block can be reduced. As a result, bad effects of noises can also be decreased as well.
In addition, it is desirable to form a relatively-low-resistance semiconductor area for separating the first and second circuit blocks from each other in parallel to mutually interfacing boundaries on the first and second island areas in a region between the first and second island areas and to connect the relatively-low-resistance semiconductor area to a voltage terminal wherein the resistance of the relatively-low-resistance semiconductor area for separating the first and second circuit blocks is made lower than the resistance of the region between the first and second island areas. In this way, the electric potential of a semiconductor base substance between the first and second circuit blocks is fixedly firmed, making it difficult for a noise to propagate from the first circuit block to the second one.
Furthermore, the first circuit block includes an oscillation circuit, and a third island area enclosed by an insulating isolation band is created in a region between the first and second island areas. In the third island area, there is created a third circuit block, which is a collection of circuits pertaining to neither a category of circuits each considered to be most likely a noise generator nor a category of circuits each possibly malfunctioning due to propagation of a noise. In addition, a semiconductor area having a resistance lower than a base-substance area is created on a base-substance area, which is an area excluding a region for forming active elements on the third island area, and is connected to a voltage terminal. In this way, the third island area, in which the third circuit block is formed, executes functions similar to the relatively-low-resistance semiconductor area for separating the first and second block circuits from each other. As a result, the electric potential of a semiconductor base substance between the first and second circuit blocks is fixedly firmed, making it difficult for a noise to propagate from the first circuit block to the second one.
Moreover, the semiconductor substrate is an SOI substrate in which a semiconductor layer is created on a support substrate, being separated from the support substrate by an insulating layer. The island areas described above are formed on the semiconductor layer. It is preferable to create the insulating isolation band described above by having the band penetrate the semiconductor layer to the insulating layer. In this way, a semiconductor area including a circuit considered to be most likely a noise generator is cut off from a semiconductor area including a circuit easily hurt by a bad effect of a noise, being most likely led to a malfunction by the insulating isolation band. As a result, the quantity of noise and the number of noises propagating through the semiconductor base substance can be reduced.
In addition, the active elements described above are each a vertical-type bipolar transistor with the collector thereof implemented by a relatively-low-resistance embedded semiconductor region formed by embedding the region in the semiconductor layer. It is preferable to create the relatively-low-resistance embedded semiconductor region by using the same process as the semiconductor area as described above. As a result, a noise-proof semiconductor integrated circuit can be implemented without a need to newly add a process.
To put it concretely, a configuration of a signal-processing semiconductor integrated circuit includes:
a first oscillation circuit for generating a first oscillation signal;
a second oscillation circuit for generating a second oscillation signal;
an oscillation control circuit for generating control voltages applied to the first and second oscillation circuits respectively;
a first mixer circuit for converting the frequency of a signal received by an antenna by mixing the received signal with the first oscillation signal;
an amplification circuit for amplifying a signal with a frequency obtained as a result of frequency conversion carried out by the first mixer circuit;
a demodulation circuit for demodulating a signal obtained as a result of amplification carried out by the amplification circuit; and
a second mixer circuit for converting the frequency of a signal to be transmitted by the antenna by mixing the signal to be transmitted with the second oscillation signal,
wherein at least a first group of circuits and a second group of circuits are mounted on a semiconductor substrate by separating them from each other where the first group of circuits comprises the first mixer circuit and the first oscillation circuit whereas the second group of circuits comprises the second oscillation circuit, the amplification circuit and the demodulation circuit. As a result, it is possible to prevent the CN ratio in the first mixer from deteriorating due to a spurious noise generated by the second oscillation circuit.
If there are further provided a modulation circuit for generating the to-be-transmitted signal to be mixed by the second mixer with the second oscillation signal, and a control circuit for controlling internal components of the signal-processing semiconductor integrated circuit, in addition to the separation of the first group of circuits comprising the first mixer circuit and the first oscillation circuit from the second group of circuits comprising the second oscillation circuit, the amplification circuit and the demodulation circuit, it is desirable to place one of the second mixer circuit, the oscillation control circuit, the modulation circuit and the control circuit or any combination of the second mixer circuit, the oscillation control circuit, the modulation circuit and the control circuit between the first group of circuits and the second group of circuits. In this way, it is possible reduce the amount of wasted space and to reduce the deterioration of the CN caused by a spurious noise.
If there is further provided a third mixer circuit for converting the frequency of a signal generated as a result of the frequency conversion carried out by the first mixer circuit by mixing the signal with the second oscillation signal generated by the second oscillation circuit in a second-stage frequency conversion, it is preferable to separate the first group of circuits comprising the first mixer circuit and the first oscillation circuit from a third group of circuits comprising the second oscillation circuit, the amplification circuit, the demodulation circuit and the third mixer circuit. In this case, it is also nice to place one of the second mixer circuit, the oscillation control circuit, the modulation circuit and the control circuit or any combination of the second mixer circuit, the oscillation control circuit, the modulation circuit and the control circuit between the first group of circuits and the third group of circuits. In this way, even for a signal-processing LSI employed in a radio-communication system adopting the double super-heterodyne technique, it is possible to reduce the amount of wasted space on the semiconductor substrate and to reduce the deterioration of the CN caused by a spurious noise.

Signal processing semiconductor integrated circuit device


A processing system includes a processor and a temperature security module coupled to provide a temperature tamper signal to the processor. The temperature security module includes a shelf mode trim value, an operating mode trim value, and a programmable temperature trim value. One of the programmable temperature trim value, the shelf mode trim value, and the operating mode trim value, is used based on a deployment mode of the processing system to set a temperature monitor trim value.

Field
This disclosure relates generally to data processing systems, and more specifically, to data processing systems with temperature monitoring for security.
Related Art
System on Chip (SoC) manufacturers typically guarantee proper operation within a specified temperature range. Outside this temperature range, the SoC may no longer operate correctly and may be susceptible to hackers. For example, if the temperature of an SoC is lowered to be lower than the operating temperature range, the contents of the memory may be accessed by unsecure software since device operation is not guaranteed in that range. Therefore, SoCs may include temperature monitors which indicate when a temperature of the SoC has reached a temperature outside of the specified temperature range. If the temperature has reached a lower or higher temperature than the specified range, a signal is generated which may be used to indicate that the SoC was possibly hacked. However, the temperature ranges provided by a manufacturer are typically fixed and they may therefore not be suitable for a customer's needs. If the ranges are incorrect, the signal may not provide an effective way to indicate a possible hacking of the SoC. For example, the signal may provide too many false positives. Therefore, a need exists for improved temperature-based tamper detection.

Data processing system with temperature monitoring for security


A first synchronizing sleeve (21) is provided in a second main shaft (5) and a first idling gear (12a) is connected to the second main shaft (5) by the first synchronizing sleeve (21) to transmit a driving force to a first sub-shaft (6) or a second sub-shaft (7) or a second synchronizing sleeve (22) is provided in the second sub-shaft (7) to transmit the driving force to a second idling gear (11b) or a third idling gear (13c) and the driving forces respectively transmitted thereto and shifted are output to a differential gear (110) by a first fixed gear (14a) fixedly provided in the second sub-shaft (7).

As a transmission of a vehicle, a mechanical automatic transmission in which a torque converter is not used is known. In the mechanical automatic transmission, operation (select and shift) of a gearbox and disconnection and connection of a clutch in a manual transmission are actuated by an actuator to enable automatic gear shifting that does not require a torque converter. In the transmission, for example, as described in Patent Literature 1, a gear group fixedly provided in first and second sub-input shafts coaxial with a main input shaft and a gear group supported by first and second output shafts and connected to the first and second output shafts by first and second meshing synchronization devices are meshed with each other, and first sub-shaft first and second gears supported by a first sub-shaft and connectable to each other by a third meshing coupling mechanism are respectively meshed with two gears of the first output shaft to establish at least forward six positions of gear positions and reduce an axial-direction dimension of the transmission.

MITSUBISHI JIDOSHA KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA


Disclosed are a spherical reflective screen for displaying an image and a method for manufacturing the screen. The screen has a spherical surface with a radius of curvature of a circle drawn centering around a point, and a focal length of the screen is the same as a projection length of a projector so that the projector is located at a focal point of the screen, thus allowing the image formed by means of light projected from the projector to be straightly reflected on the screen but ambient light to be diffused to the outside. A frictional surface and diffusing lines are simultaneously formed on an aluminum foil by rubbing the double-layered aluminum foils together in one direction, therefore, viewing angle and resolution of the screen are improved two times or more.

As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional diffusion type plane diffusing screen 10 is configured such that light incident on the screen 10 is diffused in all directions. An image formed on the screen 10 is even, but has a reflectivity of 1% (generally, referred to as "1 gain"), thus being dark. Since the light incident on the screen 10 is diffused in all directions, the screen 10 acts on light from all directions. Accordingly, the screen 10 has a reduced resolution due to ambient light from all directions.
As shown in FIG. 2, a plane reflective screen 20 with an improved surface reflectivity is configured such that light projected from a projector is incident on the screen 20 at an incident angle (∠A) and then reflected from the screen 20 at a reflection angle (∠B) same as the incident angle (∠A), thus allowing a viewer to watch an image formed on the screen 2 in the range of C obtained by the reverse angle of the reflection angle (∠B).
That is, a hot spot is formed in the range of C. As shown in FIG. 2, the image displayed on the screen 2 is bright only at a central portion, but is dark at other peripheral portions, thus being invisible at the peripheral portions. In case that the surface reflectivity of the screen 2 is increased, the hot spot become brighter. On the other hand, in case that the surface reflectivity of the screen 2 is decreased, the hot spot will becomes darker and enlarger.
Further, in case that the surface reflectivity of the screen 2 is high, a screen having a non-spherical shape cannot display an image with even luminance, thus displaying uneven spots thereon. Further, since the screen having a non-spherical shape does not form an exact focus, this non-spherical screen cannot be used in a device requiring a high luminance.
However, all spherical screens cannot increase the luminance of screens. Only when a spherical screen comprises an optical element such as lens and a reflective surface, a screen can obtain an image with even luminance and high reflectivity over the whole surface of the screen.
Accordingly, there is required a method for forming an optical constitution and a surface reflectivity suitable for the structure of the screen.
Further, since the luminance of a screen is inversely proportional to the viewing angle of a screen, when a screen displays an image with a high luminance, the viewing angle of the screen is narrowed. The screen with the narrowed viewing angle cannot be effectively operated. Accordingly, there is required a spherical screen, which can display an image with a high luminance at a wider viewing angle.

Spherical reflective screen with focus and method for manufacturing the same


A data output driving circuit for a semiconductor apparatus can include a code multiplier configured to multiply a received first code by a multiplication factor determined in response to a control signal and generating a second code; a signal line configured to transmit the second code; and a plurality of data output drivers commonly connected to the signal line and changed in an impedance thereof in response to the second code.

1. Technical Field
The embodiments described herein relate to a semiconductor apparatus, and more particularly, to a data output is driving circuit for a semiconductor apparatus.
2. Related Art
FIG. 1 is block diagram illustrating a conventional data output driving circuit for a semiconductor apparatus according to one embodiment. As can be seen, FIG. 1 includes a driver block 10, a multiplexer 20 and a controller 30.
The multiplexer 20 is configured to receive clock signals 'RCLKDO' and 'FCLKDO' and 2 bit parallel data 'RDO' and 'FDO' and to output 1 bit serial data 'UPDO' and 'DNDO'.
The controller 30 is configured to receive a code signal 'EMRS' output from an extended mode register set (EMRS) to determine a driver strength, i.e., an impedance, an on-die termination enable signal 'ODTEN' and a driver off signal 'DOFF' and to output driver select signals 'PU<0:3>' and 'PD<0:3>'.
The driver block 10 includes a pull-up driver block 11 and a pull-down driver block 12.
FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of the pull-up driver block of FIG. 1. As can be seen, the pull-up driver block 11 has four pull-up drivers PU60Ω, PU120Ω, PU240Ω and PU240Ω. Each of the pull-up drivers PU60Ω, PU120Ω, PU240Ω and PU240Ω is composed of a pre-driver PDRV and a main driver MDRV.
The pre-driver PDRV of the pull-up driver PU60Ω receives a one bit serial data 'UPDO', a driver select signal 'PU<3>' and on-die termination codes 'PCODE<0:5>', and outputs control codes 'UPCODE3<0:5>'. The main driver MDRV of the pull-up driver PU60Ω has a plurality of transistors of which the sources are connected with power terminals and the gates receive the control codes 'UPCODE3<0:5>', and a plurality of resistors. One end of each of the resistors is connected with the drains of the plurality of transistors and the other end of each of the resistors is connected with one another.
The basic configurations of the pull-up drivers PU120Ω, PU240Ω and PU240Ω are the same as the pull-up driver PU60Ω. In this regard, if the impedances of the pull-up drivers are different from one another, the pull-up drivers are configured such that the transistors and the resistors constituting the main drivers thereof have different widths and resistances. The resistances of the resistors constituting a main driver MDRV increase in proportion to an impedance, and the widths of the transistors constituting the main driver MDRV decrease in inverse proportion to the impedance.
That is to say, referring to FIG. 2, when compared to the pull-up driver PU60Ω, the pull-up driver PU120Ω is configured such that the resistances of the resistors thereof increase two times and the widths of the transistors thereof decrease to one half. Also, when compared to the pull-up driver PU120Ω, the pull-up driver PU240Ω is configured such that the resistances of the resistors thereof increase two times and the widths of the transistors thereof decrease to one half.
The transistor WP has a basic width, the transistor WP/8 has a width corresponding to ⅛ of the width of the transistor WP, and the transistor WP*16 has a width corresponding to 16 times of the width of the transistor WP. In addition, the resistor RP has a basic resistance and the resistor RP*128 has a resistance corresponding to 128 times of the resistance of the resistor RP.
FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram of the pull-down driver block of FIG. 1 and the pull-down driver block 12 has four pull-down drivers PD60Ω, PD120Ω, PD240Ω and PD240Ω. Each of the pull-down drivers PD60Ω, PD120Ω, PD240Ω and PD240Ω is composed of a pre-driver PDRV and a main driver MDRV.
The pre-driver PDRV of the pull-down driver PD60Ω receives a one bit serial data 'DNDO', a driver select signal 'PD<3>' and on-die termination codes 'NCODE<0:5>', and outputs control codes 'DNCODE3<0:5>'. The main driver MDRV of the pull-down driver PD60Ω has a plurality of transistors of which the sources are connected with ground terminals and the gates receive the control codes 'DNCODE3<0:5>' and a plurality of resistors of which one ends are connected with the drains of the plurality of transistors and the other ends are connected with one another.
The basic configurations of the pull-down drivers PD120Ω, PD240Ω and PD240Ω are the same as the pull-down driver PD60Ω. In this regard, if the impedances of the pull-down drivers are different from one another, the pull-down drivers are configured such that the transistors and the resistors constituting the main drivers thereof have different widths and resistances. The principle for configuring these pull-down drivers is the same as that for configuring the pull-up drivers shown in FIG. 2. The transistor WN has a basic width, the transistor WN/8 has a width corresponding to ⅛ of the width of the transistor WN, and the transistor WN*16 has a width corresponding to 16 times of the width of the transistor WN. In addition, the resistor RN has a basic resistance and the resistor RN*128 has a resistance corresponding to 128 times of the resistance of the resistor RN.
The operation of the conventional data output driving circuit of a semiconductor apparatus, configured as described above, will be described below.
The multiplexer 20 converts the 2 bit parallel data 'RDO' and 'FDO' into the 1 bit serial data 'UPDO' and 'DNDO' in response to the clock signals 'RCLKDO' and 'FCLKDO' and outputs the converted data.
The code signal 'EMRS' for determining the strength of the driver block 10 is output from the extended mode register set (EMRS).
The controller 30 determines the operation mode of the driver block 10 based on the on-die termination enable signal 'ODTEN' and the driver off signal 'DOFF', and outputs the driver select signals 'PU<0:3>' and 'PD<0:3>' to conform to the determined operation mode.
When data input operation is implemented in a semiconductor apparatus, the driver off signal 'DOFF' is deactivated, and the on-die termination enable signal 'ODTEN' is activated. According to this, the controller 30 activates only the driver select signals 'PU<0:3>' between the driver select signals 'PU<0:3>' and 'PD<0:3>' such that on-die termination operation can be implemented through the driver block 10, and thereby allows only the pull-up driver block 11 of the driver block 10 to operate.
In the driver block 10, an on-die termination strength, that is, an impedance is determined in response to the on-die termination codes 'PCODE<0:5>' and 'NCODE<0:5>'.
When data output operation is implemented in the semiconductor apparatus, both the driver off signal 'DOFF' and the on-die termination enable signal 'ODTEN' are deactivated. According to this, the controller 30 activates all the driver select signals 'PU<0:3>' and 'PD<0:3>' such that the data output operation can be implemented through the driver block 10, and thereby allows both the pull-up driver block 11 and the pull-down driver block 12 of the driver block 10 to operate.
In the driver block 10, the strengths, that is, the driving impedances of the pull-up driver block 11 and the pull-down driver block 12 are determined in response to the driver select signals 'PU<0:3>' and 'PD<0:3>' output from the controller 30. The driver block 10 drives and outputs the data 'UPDO' and 'DNDO' with the determined impedances.
For example, in order to obtain the strength of 30Ω, all the pull-up drivers PU60Ω, PU120Ω, PU240Ω and PU240Ω are enabled. If all the pull-up drivers PU60Ω, PU120Ω, PU240Ω and PU240Ω are enabled, according to the parallel connection principle of resistors, the strength is calculated as 1/(1/60+1/120+1/240+1/240)=240/8=30Ω.
In addition, in order to obtain the strength of 40Ω, the pull-up drivers PU60Ω and PU120Ω are enabled among the pull-up drivers PU60Ω, PU120Ω, PU240Ω and PU240Ω. If the pull-up drivers PU60Ω and PU120Ω are enabled, according to the parallel connection principle of resistors, the strength is calculated as 1/(1/60+1/120)=120/3=40Ω.
When data input and output operations are not implemented in the semiconductor apparatus, the driver off signal 'DOFF' is activated, and the on-die termination enable signal 'ODTEN' is inactivated. According to this, the controller 30 inactivates all the driver select signals 'PU<0:3>' and 'PD<0:3>' such that both the pull-up driver block 11 and the pull-down driver block 12 of the driver block 10 do not operate.
As can be readily understood from the above description, the conventional data output driving circuit of a semiconductor apparatus has the plurality of drivers so as to obtain various driver strengths and on-die termination strengths. Specifically, in the case of the 120Ω and 240Ω drivers, since they occupy larger areas than the 60Ω driver, the area occupied by the data output driving circuit increases in the entire area of the semiconductor apparatus, whereby a layout margin decreases.

Data output driving circuit of semiconductor apparatus


A method and apparatus for operating a frequency division multiplexing (FDM) transmitter within a common communication channel is disclosed. The carrier frequency for each separate channel is adjusted for minimizing intermodulation interference. The system randomly allocates each separate channel within the available bandwidth to provide an initial set of separate channel allocation and corresponding carrier frequencies. Thereafter carrier to intermodulation ratio (C/IM) on each channel is measured and the worst channel with the lowest carrier to intermodulation ratio (C/IM) is removed. The system then repeatedly inserts a channel in available unoccupied bandwidth to produce the largest minimum carrier to intermodulation ratio (C/IM). The deletion and insertion continues until no improvement in minimum carrier to intermodulation ratio (C/IM) can be achieved for said random allocation of separate channels. The selected set of separate channel allocations is further fine-tuned by deleting the worst channel with minimum carrier to intermodulation ratio (C/IM) and deleting one other channel from said separate channel allocations to provide a particular dual channel deletion. The system then repeatedly inserts two channels in available unoccupied bandwidth which produces the largest minimum carrier to intermodulation ratio (C/IM). The system continues on dual deletion and insertion until no improvement in minimum carrier to intermodulation ratio (C/IM) can be achieved for said random allocation of separate channels. The carrier frequencies are then tuned according to said set of separate channel allocation.

A common technique for combining many independent signals so that they can be transmitted over a common communication channel is frequency division multiplexing (FDM).
The common communication channel contains a bandwidth which exceeds the required bandwidth of signals to be transmitted. Therefore individual signals to be transmitted can be multiplexed up in frequency such that the spectrum of the signals may fall within the common communication channel bandwidth. The channel carrier for each signal to be transmitted is chosen such that the resultant modulated signals occupy adjacent, nonoverlapping frequency bands or channels. The composition signal made up of the sum of individual modulated signals, is then transmitted within the common communication channel bandwidth.
Frequency division multiplexing (FDM) is typically used in satellite broadcasting. A common and serious problem in frequency division multiplexing (FDM) is intermodulation interference. Intermodulation interference is due to the amplitude nonlinearity of high-power amplifiers, such as travelling-wave tube amplifiers or klystron amplifiers. In order to derive the maximum power from the amplifiers in a satellite the amplifiers are operated near their saturation regions. The effect of intermodulation interference is to produce signals at a frequency which is the sum or difference of multiples of two or more original or desired frequencies. For example, the mixing of signals at frequencies f.sub.1 and f.sub.2 might produce energy at the frequency f.sub.1 +f.sub.2. This derived signal would interfere with a signal intended to be transmitted at the frequency f.sub.1 +f.sub.2.
Among all intermodulations, the third order is the most severe. Hence there is a need to provide an apparatus and method to plan the frequency of the various signal carriers to be transmitted over a predetermined bandwidth while minimizing third order intermodulation.
Prior systems for adjusting a frequency plan concentrated in intermodulation-free carrier frequency plans or assignment. Since an intermodulation-free carrier frequency plan is rarely achievable, it is more practical to search for a carrier frequency plan which minimizes the worst intermodulation interference level across the channels.
A method for deriving sub-optimal carrier frequency plan for large number of channels has been suggested by Okinaka, et al., Intermodulation Interference-Minimum Frequency Assignment for Satellite SCPC System, IEEE Trans. Commun. Vol. 32 No. 4, pp. 462-468 (April 1984). According to the article the system, after an initial frequency plan is set, successively deletes a channel such that a large reduction in the worst intermodulation interference results. The system then inserts a channel in a new frequency location which produces a smaller worst intermodulation interference result. The process of deletion and insertion is continued until no reduction in the worst intermodulation interference results.
One effect of the Okinaka, et al. approach is the reduction of the intermodulation computation. However, this approach can only find a sub-optimal plan whose performance may be poor. For a satellite system when the number of channels per transponder is not large (for example, 10), it is possible to search more sub-optimal frequency plans and select a plan with the best performance.
The problems of determining an optimal carrier frequency plan is even more difficult when individual signals to be transmitted occupy different bandwidths. Furthermore, for systems where the channels occupy a significant portion of the transponder bandwidth the problem becomes even more acute.
Therefore, there is a need for an optimal carrier frequency planning system wherein carrier frequencies are derived and utilized to minimize intermodulation noise.

Apparatus and method for optimal frequency planning in frequency division multiplexing transmissions


Computer-stored text, such as numerical information, is processed by a word list generator to develop a word list corresponding to those words that are to be spoken by the system. The word list generator assigns a prosodic environment state or token to each entry in the list. The prosodic environment identifies how the word functions in its current prosodic context. Different intonations are applied based on the prosodic environment. Next, the preceding and adjacent words are examined to determine how each word may need to be pronounced differently, based on the ending phoneme of the preceding word and the beginning phoneme of the following word. Using this phonological information along with the prosodic information, a sample list is generated by accessing a dictionary of stored samples. The sample list is then serially played through suitable digital-to-analog conversion circuitry to generate the text-to-speech output. The result is a natural, human-like reading, complete with appropriate intonation changes suitable to the context of the text material.

The present invention relates generally to text-to-speech (TTS) reading systems. More particularly, the invention relates to a concatenative reading system that produces high quality, naturally articulated speech by taking into account the prosodic environment of the words to be concatenated and also the phonological features of adjacent words to provide natural-sounding intonation. The system is particularly useful in reading numbers in tables, spreadsheets and the like.
In the process of data entry into a computer from written records, proofreading is a tiring and time-consuming task. The data entry operator must constantly shift the eyes between the computer screen and the paper originals. Sometimes, if two people are available, they can share the proofreading task: one person reading the data out loud from the paper originals and the other checking the entry on the computer screen.
This process of proofreading data entry can be facilitated through use of a speech synthesis system. Such a system allows the operator to keep the eyes on the paper originals while listening to what has been entered. The operator does not need another person to read the data from the paper originals because the speech synthesis system handles this aspect. Thus the operator can work alone. However, current speech synthesis systems are fatiguing to use, because speech quality is poor, lacking natural-sounding phrasing and intonation. User fatigue leads to errors. Hence current speech synthesis systems have proven deficient for critical proofreading applications. User fatigue is particularly prevalent in number reading systems, where a monotonous tone and poor phrasing leads to many errors.
The present invention provides a reading system that has a very natural voice with which the data entry operator can work without fatigue. The reading system employs a concatenative technique whereby digitally recorded speech samples are concatenated or joined together to produce the speech output. The invention achieves a more life-like output by incorporating two variables of natural speech: (1) prosodic or intonational variation and (2) variation due to coarticulation of each word's initial and final phonemes with the final and initial phonemes of adjacent words. For each use of a word, a set of prosodic and segmental environment rules are applied to select a contextually appropriate digital sample. The result is a much more natural sounding synthesized speech that does not induce fatigue. Operators using the system thus enjoy a much lower error rate.
The system of the invention captures what a human speaker does while proofreading. It reads numbers in a column or row, using a nonfinal intonation for all but the last entry. This intonation gives the listener a cue that the current number is not the final one in the column or row. This contextual cue is extremely helpful in proofreading, as the user is cued when the final number in the column or row is reached. This information is very valuable in detecting insertion and deletion errors, where the text on the computer screen and the text on the paper originals do not have the same number of entries due to data entry error.
The invention comprises a high-quality concatenative reading system for converting an input string into a sequence for subsequent audible synthesis. The invention includes a dictionary of words stored in a computer-readable storage medium and a word list generator coupled to the dictionary. The word list generator is receptive of the input string for building and storing entries in a word list within the computer's memory. The word list generator builds the word list from words stored in the dictionary to correspond to the input string. The generator has a set of stored rules for adding numeric placeholder words that correspond to integers in the input string. Thus the word list generator will insert the appropriate numeric placeholders so that the integer number "1,243" will be pronounced "one thousand, two hundred forty-three."
The word list generator further includes a list of prosodic environment tokens that represent a plurality of intonation types. The word list generator assigns at least one of the prosodic environment tokens to at least some of the word list entries. The preferred embodiment assigns a prosodic environment token to each of the words in the word list.
The reading system also includes a database of speech samples stored in computer-readable memory. A phonological feature analyzer analyzes the word entries in the word list to determine the prosodic environment of those words. Specifically, the preferred embodiment consults a phonological feature table to determine what each word begins with and ends with. These features are compared with adjacent words to determine the phonological environment of each word. In natural speech, phonemes are pronounced differently in different phonological contexts. The adjacent phonemes affect how a phoneme will sound when spoken. In this case, the invention concentrates on the beginning and ending phonemes, altering the pronunciation based on the words that precede and follow each word entry.
Using the word list constructed by the word list generator, together with the prosodic environment information and phonological feature information, the reading system constructs a sample list from the database of speech samples. The sample list represents the actual sampled data that are concatenated to supply the sequence for audible synthesis. The sample list may be output through a digital-to-analog converter to produce an audible signal that may be amplified and played through a suitable speaker system.
For a more complete understanding of the invention, its objects and advantages, reference may be had to the following specification and to the accompanying drawings.

High quality concatenative reading system

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A hair removal apparatus is described having a trimmer (4), whereby the trimmer (4) has at least two cutting parts (7, 8) each having rows of teeth drivable individually relative to one another, and having at least one wet shaver unit (21), which has at least one sharp-edged razor blade (22). The wet shaver unit (21) is arranged on a carrying element (19) that is guided movably on the housing (1). The carrying element is adjustable by the user in at least two different positions through a corresponding switching movement. The first position is a storage position of the wet shaver unit and the second position allows simultaneous removal of hair by the trimmer (4) which is leading in the direction of use (P) and the trailing wet shaver unit (21).

Such a hair removal apparatus is known, for example, from WO 2005/102623 A2 because this document discloses an essentially known wet shaver, on which an electrically drivable trimmer is also mounted. This trimmer is displaceably or pivotably mounted on the handle of the wet shaver. The trimmer may be moved approximately between a storage position and a use position, such that the trimmer in the use position comes to lie above the wet shaver, so that the wet shaver is not within the field of vision of the user when in use.


The first remaining amount holding unit stores the remaining amount of sheet detected by the remaining amount detection unit before a sheet adding operation to the sheet stacking surface. The second remaining amount holding unit stores the remaining amount of sheet detected by the remaining amount detection unit after the sheet adding operation to the sheet stacking surface. The determination unit determines a sheet adding position based on the respective remaining amount of sheet stored in the first remaining amount holding unit and the second remaining amount holding unit. The feeding speed control unit changes a sheet feeding speed of the pickup roller based on the sheet adding position determined by the determination unit and the sheet remaining amount detected by the remaining amount detection unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to a sheet supply device for supplying a sheet like a paper, and an image forming apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Sheet supply devices are widely used by the image forming apparatus like copying machines, facsimile machines, scanners, and multifunction apparatus. Using the sheet supply device, the sheets like papers to which an original image is transferred are conveyed one by one to a position to form the image thereon, whereby the image forming apparatus can print each image successively.
It is configured in the sheet supply device that a sheet bundle is allowed to touch a pickup roller, in order that a plurality of sheets stacked onto a tray is fed one by one. A thickness of sheet bundle depends on the number of sheets stacked on the tray. Accordingly, a distance between a sheet stacking surface and the pickup roller should be adjusted according to the thickness of sheet bundle, in order to allow the sheet bundle to properly touch the pickup roller. A lifting plate liftably mounted to the sheet stacking surface can be used for such adjustment. In the sheet supply device, the sheet bundle on the lifting plate is pushed up by the lifting plate, and the sheet bundle is allowed to touch the pickup roller, and then the sheet touching the pickup roller is sent out one by one.
In the above sheet supply device, when the temperature or moisture environment changes in the image forming apparatus or when members are worn out by use, there is a possibility that sheet feeding troubles like no paper feeding and double feeding occurs due to the change of the ideal conditions for feeding the sheets. As the apparatus that has settled such problem, there is an image forming apparatus wherein the speed of the pickup roller is adjusted based on a comparison result between a conveyance time for conveying a preceding sheet and a standard conveyance time recorded in advance. In this image forming apparatus, when the sheet conveyance time gets long due to the occurrence of skid, the skid of a following sheet can be suppressed by reducing the speed of the pickup roller.
It sometimes occurs that user of the image forming apparatus wishes to use a different kind of sheet instead of the sheets set in the sheet supply device. At this time, he uses his desired sheets without replace all the sheets set in the sheet supply device with his desired sheets but adding his desired sheets to the sheets set in the sheet supply device. In order not to include his undesired sheet in the output sheets on such condition, there is an image forming apparatus wherein the added sheets and the preset sheets are managed separately.
When all the sheets on the tray are sent out by the sheet conveying, a sheet set sensor for detecting the sheets on the tray does not detect any sheets (a detection state of no sheet), and the sheets must be set. In the latest image forming apparatus, when the state of no sheet is detected, the user is not requested to set the sheets, but a display provided to the apparatus displays a remaining amount of sheet. In some of those apparatus, when the remaining amount of sheets gets small, the display displays a warning message to draw an attention from the user. By promoting the user to set the sheets just before the state of no sheet, the running-out of sheets can be prevented in the middle of the job processing.
As described above, in case of the image forming apparatus for promoting the user to set the sheets just before the state of no sheet, the user confirms the message and sets the same kind of sheets as necessary. In this case, if the sheet bundle is remaining on the tray, it occurs that another sheet bundle is added on the remained sheet bundle in such state. In case of such sheet addition, an air layer is produced at a paper adding position, that is, a position between a highest surface of the remaining sheet bundle and an undermost surface of the added sheet bundle. The frictional force between those surfaces becomes small as compared with the frictional force between the adjacent sheets. Therefore, when the sheet near and on the paper adding position is sent out, it sometimes occurs that one sheet is not fed out, but plural sheets on the paper adding position are separated from the paper adding position, and they are sent out by the pickup roller. In this case, the feeding failure occurs.
The feeding failure cannot be eliminated even if the foregoing method for adjusting the speed of the pickup roller is applied, because the preceding sheet has been fed normally. In case of the method for managing the added sheets and the preset sheets separately, the paper adding position can be managed, but the occurrence of the feeding failure cannot be recognized, and the feeding trouble cannot be settled. Moreover, the method of managing the added sheets separately assumes that the different kind of sheet is added, and it is not configured so as to separately manage the same kind of sheet, therefore it is difficult to use the method.

Sheet supply device and image forming apparatus


A device may determine an application shortcut and a set of specified conditions, where the application shortcut is to be presented on a home screen of a user device when the set of specified conditions is satisfied. The device may determine a set of current conditions associated with the user device, and may present the application shortcut on the home screen of the user device based on the set of current conditions satisfying the set of specified conditions.

Users of mobile devices, such as smart phones, often have a large number of applications stored on the mobile devices. An application, also known as application software, is computer software designed to help users perform specific tasks. For example, an application may display weather conditions, may deliver news stories, may provide sports scores, may provide restaurant reviews, etc.


To provide a pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet for dicing which inhibits the generation of fibrous scraps and has good expandability. A pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet for dicing, which comprises a pressure-sensitive adhesive layer disposed on at least one surface of a base material, wherein the base material contains a polymer having a random copolymer block, and wherein the random copolymer block contains a block (I) containing, as a main constitutional unit, a constitution unit represented by the following structural formula (A) and a block (II) containing, as a main constitutional unit, a constitutional unit represented by the following structural formula (B)—(CH2—CH2—CH2—CH2)—  (A)

Conventionally, a semiconductor wafer made of silicon, gallium, arsenic or the like is produced in a state having a large diameter, then cut and separated (diced) into small element pieces, and further transferred to a mounting step. In this case, the semiconductor wafer is subjected to respective steps of a dicing step, a washing step, an expanding step, a pickup step and a mounting step in a state where the semiconductor wafer is stuck onto the pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet and retained thereby. As the above-mentioned pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet, there has been generally used a sheet in which an acrylic adhesive of about 1 to 200 μm in thickness is applied onto a base material composed of a plastic film.
The above-mentioned dicing step is usually performed using a round blade (dicing blade) which moves with rotating. In that case, cutting with the round blade is performed so that the blade reaches an inside of the base material of the pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet for dicing which retains the semiconductor package. At this time, when cutting is performed into the inside of the base material of the pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet, the plastic film itself as the base material generates fibrous scraps thereof. When the fibrous scraps are adhered to a side of a semiconductor chip, the semiconductor chip is mounted in a state where the fibrous scraps are adhered. As a result, the fibrous scraps have caused a problem of a significant reduction in quality of an electronic circuit.
As a means for solving such a problem, for example, JP-A-5-156214 (patent document 1) proposes a wafer sticking sheet using an ethylene-methacrylate copolymer as a base material. However, although this wafer sticking sheet inhibits the generation of fibrous scraps in some degree, it does not satisfy a level which is endurable in the dicing step performed for obtaining further highly reliable semiconductor devices.
Further, JP-A-5-211234 (patent document 2) discloses a pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet for wafer sticking using a polyolefinic film irradiated with an electron ray or a γ-ray at 1 to 80 MRad as a base material film. However, in this pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet for wafer sticking, the damage of the base material film caused by the radiation is extensive, and it is difficult to obtain a film excellent in appearance. Moreover, a great deal of cost is required in the production of the base material film.
Furthermore, JP-A-2003-257893 (patent document 3) discloses a pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet for dicing using a base material film which contains an olefinic thermoplastic elastomer containing propylene and ethylene and/or an α-olefin having 4 to 8 carbon atoms as polymerization components and having a melting point peak temperature of 120° C. to 170° C., and an ethylenic polymer containing ethylene as a main polymerization component. However, this pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet for dicing has the trade-off relation that the occurrence of whiskers can be reduced by an increase in the ratio of propylene contained in the base material film, whereas expandability is deteriorated. Namely, the above-mentioned constitution can inhibit the occurrence of fibrous scraps, but it is necessary to sacrifice expandability to some degree.
Furthermore, as a means for solving the problem of expandability, for example, JP-A-2-215528 (patent document 4) discloses a multilayer film for dicing in which a thermoplastic resin having rubber elasticity and an ethylenic resin layer are laminated with each other through a pressure-sensitive adhesive layer or directly. Further, it is described that the thermoplastic resin having rubber elasticity is a polybutene-1, polyurethane or polyester elastomer, or a saturated thermoplastic elastomer having a crystallinity of 5% to 50% and an average molecular weight of 80,000 or more, which is obtained by hydrogenating a 1,2-polybutadiene, styrene-butadiene-styrene or styrene-isoprene-styrene block copolymer. However, although this multilayer film for dicing improves expandability, a lot of fibrous scraps are generated in dicing. Accordingly, it is difficult to produce a semiconductor chip which secures high reliability.
Patent Document 1: JP-A-5-156214
Patent Document 2: JP-A-5-211234
Patent Document 3: JP-A-2003-257893
Patent Document 4: JP-A-2-215528

Pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet for dicing and method for processing processed material using the same


A slurry distributor for use in a continuous manufacturing process includes an inlet opening and a shaped duct adapted to receive a flow of slurry provided at the inlet opening. The shaped duct has a parabolic guide surface adapted to redirect the flow of slurry. An outlet opening in fluid communication with the shaped duct is adapted to discharge the flow of slurry from the slurry distributor.

The present disclosure relates to continuous board manufacturing processes and, more particularly, to an apparatus, system and method for the distribution of an aqueous gypsum slurry.
In a typical continuous gypsum manufacturing process, for example, a process such as those used to manufacture wallboard, water, calcined gypsum (i.e., stucco) and other additives as desired are combined and mixed in a pin mixer. Aqueous foam can be injected either in the mixer or outside the mixer to control the dry board density. Stucco is in the form of calcium sulfate hemihydrate and/or calcium sulfate anhydrite. The slurry is deposited onto a continuously advancing paper web moving on a conveyor. The slurry is allowed to spread over the advancing web of cover sheet material before a second web of cover sheet material is applied to cover the slurry and form a sandwich structure of a continuous wallboard preform, which is subjected to forming, such as at a conventional forming station, to obtain a desired thickness. The calcined gypsum reacts with the water in the preform and sets as the conveyor moves the preform down a manufacturing line. The preform is cut into segments at a point along the line where the preform has set sufficiently, flipped over, dried (e.g., in a kiln) to drive off excess water, and processed to provide the final wallboard product of desired dimensions.
The weight proportion of water relative to stucco that is mixed is referred to in the art as the "water-stucco ratio" (WSR). In the continuous wallboard production process industry, it is strongly desired to reduce the WSR to enhance manufacturing efficiency, for example, by reducing the energy required to dry the final products. However, a reduction of the WSR is not easily attainable. For example, slurry compositions having a higher water content have a lower viscosity, which can help spread the slurry across the width of the cover sheet web as it advances toward the forming station.
Prior apparatus and methods for addressing some of the operational problems associated with the production of gypsum wallboard are disclosed in commonly-assigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,683,635; 5,643,510; 6,494,609; 6,874,930; 7,007,914; and 7,296,919, which are incorporated herein by reference.


An individual propelled catamaran watercraft with sloping sides and sloping channel adapted for supporting an individual without flipping and having a draft of no more than 3 inches.

Fishing boats traditionally are standard monohull designs, such as those used for bass boats, Boston Whalers™ or standard rowboats. With a monohull designs, fishermen cannot stand up in the boat without flipping over the boat or simply falling out of the boat.
A need exists for a safer boat with a different hull design in which a fisherman can stand up in during fishing.
Metal bass boats, and wooden boats and thick hulled fiberglass boats, like Boston Whalers' are also heavy, and require at least two people to lift the boat onto a car top due to the weight. Boston Whalers can only be trailered because they are heavy. A need exists for a lightweight boat that can be car topped, and be safe for fishing while standing up.
Traditional fishing boats use a draft of between 6 inches and 20 inches, such as Boston Whalers. A need has existed for a fishing vessel, or similar vessel which can float over endangered plant life, such as sea grass in Florida, with a draft of only a few inches without harming the plant life, yet enable a fisherman to stand up on the craft, safely without flipping over.
The present embodiments meet these needs.
The present embodiments are detailed below with reference to the listed Figures.


A cylindrical lock includes inner and outer chassis, inner and outer spindles, and first and second actuating members. One of the first and second actuating members is selectively and rotatably received in the outer spindle. Each of the first and second actuating members includes a limiting groove having first and second groove sections with different arcs in a circumferential direction about a longitudinal axis. A driving member is rotatably received in one of the first and second actuating members. The driving member has a leg movable in the outer spindle between first and second positions along the longitudinal axis and received in one of the first and second groove sections. A driving device is received in the inner spindle. The cylindrical lock has two modes corresponding to selective use of the first and second actuating members to provide locking/unlocking states through supply or not supply of electricity to the driving device.

The present invention relates to a cylindrical lock with automatic electronic locking function and, more particularly, to a cylindrical lock that can cooperate with a burglarproof system and a remote control device to proceed with locking/unlocking operation and that can be converted between differing types through simple replacement or adding/removal of a component.
There is a wide variety of locks having differing structures to provide different functions for different locations and to provide various options for the users. Cylindrical locks also have many types, such as cylindrical locks with a freely rotatable outer handle when in a locked state and cylindrical locks that can be remotely locked/unlocked by a remote control. The components of a type of the cylindrical lock are often different from those of another type in structure and are, thus, not interchangeable, even though the cylindrical locks are manufactured by the same manufacturer. Thus, the manufacturer has to prepare many spare components for various cylindrical locks. Furthermore, the assembling procedures and/or assembling techniques of the various cylindrical locks are different, leading to low yield.
Thus, a need exists for a cylindrical lock that can cooperate with a burglarproof system and a remote control device to proceed with locking/unlocking operation and that can be converted between differing types through simple replacement or adding/removal of a component.

Cylindrical lock with automatic electronic locking function


A cable system has a cable connecting a base device and a travelling body, functions of the cable at least including transmission of signals, a reel device disposed on the travelling body, the reel device having a reel onto which the cable is to be wound, a motor that drives the reel and a rotation sensor that detects a rotation of the reel, a motor controller that controls the motor of the reel device; and an acceleration sensor that is disposed in the traveling body and detects an acceleration in a vertical direction, the motor controller basically opening a motor drive circuit for driving the motor or bringing a supply current to the motor to zero when it is determined that the reel is rotated in an unreeling direction for unreeling the cable based on sensed information from the rotation sensor.

It is a known art to remotely control the motion of a crawler-type travelling body by using a remote controller (base device). A crawler-type travelling body is provided with a video camera. Image signals from the video camera are transmitted to a remote controller. An operator operates the remote controller while monitoring the motion of the crawler-type travelling body with a display monitor that accompanies the remote controller. Remote control signals from the remote controller are transmitted to the crawler-type travelling body to make the crawler-type travelling body turn or move forward, backward, or otherwise.
Systems for transmitting the image signals and the remote control signals include a wireless system and a wired system. A wired system is usually adopted when a crawler-type travelling body is used in a place where radio signals are not easily received such as in a building with winding passages and under the water. In the wired system, a crawler-type travelling body and a remote controller are connected with a long cable. Signal transmission wires are included in the cable. Feeder wires as power lines may also be included in the cable as necessary.
A robot for rescue operation or exploration may work in a site inside a building. Sometimes, an operator has to control a controller at a place distanced from the site by 100 meters or more, sometimes as far as 1000 meters, due to poisons, radiation, explosion risk and other risks that prevent him from getting closer to the site. Wired crawler-type travelling bodies are predominantly adopted for such robots.
In the wired crawler-type travelling body mentioned above, a reel for winding a cable therearound may be disposed in a base station where an operator is stationed, or may be disposed in the crawler-type travelling body.
In a case where a reel is disposed in a base station, when a crawler-type travelling body heads for a site a long distance away, it is required that the crawler-type travelling body unreel a cable from the reel in the base station and move drawing the long cable. This may cause too much load to the crawler-type travelling body.
To avoid such a situation, it is appropriate to dispose a reel on a crawler-type travelling body when a base station is a long distance away from a site. In this case, a cable is unreeled as the crawler-type travelling body is moved, and therefore, the load may be limited. It is preferable that a power line that tends to be heavy is not included in the cable but only a signal transmission wire that is thin, light-weight and strong is included in the cable.
However, when a reel is disposed on a crawler-type travelling body as mentioned above, a thin and long cable may be would around the reel. This may lead to a problem that the cable may become slack and hook onto a part of the crawler-type travelling body or the cable may get tangled, becoming unable to transmit signals, and as a result, making the crawler-type travelling body immovable.
Patent Document 1 to be identified later discloses a reel device disposed on a crawler-type travelling body. The reel device includes a reel around which a cable is wound, a motor connected to the reel and a rotation sensor that detects rotation of the reel.
In Patent Document 1, the motor is controlled by a motor controller basically as follows. When the crawler-type travelling body is moved in a direction (forward) away from the remote controller (base station) and the rotation of the reel in an unreeling direction is detected by the rotation sensor, the motor is made free, allowing the cable to be smoothly unreeled from the reel device, thereby preventing the cable from becoming too tense and from providing resistance against the forward movement of the crawler-type travelling body.
When the crawler-type travelling body is moved in a direction (backward) toward the remote controller, the motor is activated to reel the cable onto the reel, thereby preventing the cable from becoming slack.
The basic control as mentioned above alone may cause inconvenience. For example, when the crawler-type travelling body is moving forward, the motor is made free and the cable is allowed to unreel. In this condition, if the crawler-type travelling body is stopped suddenly, the reel will keep rotating due to the inertia, causing the cable to be unreeled more than necessary and to become slack.
To solve this problem, Patent Document 1 discloses an acceleration sensor that detects acceleration in a front-rear direction disposed in a crawler-type travelling body. When the crawler-type travelling body is stopped suddenly while moving forward as mentioned above, the motor is activated to rotate the reel in a reeling direction to reel the cable in response to the acceleration in a backward direction detected by the acceleration sensor.


An emulsion layer containing silver halide grains reduction-sensitized by an ascorbic acid or at least one of its derivatives and containing a nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compound having a mercapto group is formed on a support.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a silver halide photographic light-sensitive material and, more particularly, to a silver halide color photographic light-sensitive material having high sensitivity, producing low fog, and having good storage stability.
2. Description of the Related Art
Basic properties required for a photographic silver halide emulsion are high sensitivity, low fogging density, and fine graininess.
In order to increase the sensitivity of an emulsion, (1) to increase the number of photons absorbed by a single grain, (2) to increase the efficiency of converting photoelectrons generated by light absorption into a silver cluster (latent image), and (3) to increase developability for effectively utilizing the obtained latent image, are required. Increasing the size increases the number of photons absorbed by a single grain but degrades graininess. Increasing the development activity is an effective means of increasing the sensitivity. In the case of parallel development such as color development, however, the graininess is generally degraded. In order to increase the sensitivity without degrading graininess, it is most preferable to increase the efficiency of converting photoelectrons into a latent image, i.e., increase a quantum efficiency. In order to increase the quantum efficiency, a low-efficiency process such as recombination and latent image dispersion must be minimized. It is known that a reduction sensitization method of forming a small silver nucleus without development activity inside or on the surface of a silver halide grain is effective to prevent recombination.
The method of reduction sensitization has been studied for a long time. Carroll, Lowe et al., and Fallens et al. disclose that a tin compound, a polyamine compound, and a thiourea dioxide-based compound are effective as a reduction sensitizer in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,487,850 and 2,512,925 and British Patent 789,823, respectively. Collier compares properties of silver nuclei formed by various reduction sensitization methods in "Photographic Science and Engineering", Vol. 23, P. 113 (1979). She adopted methods of dimethylamineborane, stannous chloride, hydrazine, high-pH ripening, and low-pAg ripening. Reduction sensitization methods are also disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,518,698, 3,201,254, 3,411,917, 3,779,777, and 3,930,867. Not only selection of a reduction sensitizer but also improvements in a reduction sensitization method are described in JP-B-57-33572 and JP-B-58-1410 ("JP-B-" means examined Japanese patent application). In these disclosures, conventional reduction sensitizers are enumerated, and ascorbic acid is included therein. In these disclosures, however, a compound such as thiourea dioxide is considered to be preferable, and thiourea dioxide, silver ripening, and hydrazine are exemplified. Therefore, preferable properties of an ascorbic acid compound as a reduction sensitizer have not been yet found. A method of using the ascorbic acid compound is disclosed in JP-A-57-179835 ("JP-A" means unexamined published Japanese patent application). Techniques of improving storage stability of a reduction-sensitized emulsion are disclosed in JP-A-57-82831 and JP-A-60-178445, but improvements have not reached a sufficient level.
Regardless of the number of studies as described above, an increase in sensitivity is insufficient as compared with that obtained in hydrogen sensitization in which a light-sensitive material is subjected to a vacuum and then treated with hydrogen gas. This is reported by Moisar et al. in "Journal of Imaging Science", Vol. 29, P. 233 (1985). A demand has also arisen for improvements in storage stability of a light-sensitive material containing a reduction-sensitized emulsion.
As described above, the conventional techniques of reduction sensitization are insufficient to satisfy a recent demand for a photographic light-sensitive material with high sensitivity and high image quality. In addition, an emulsion prepared by these sensitization techniques have poor storage stability.

Silver halide photographic light-sensitive material