Disclosed are methods and systems for estimating a reticle bias state for a process system, that include computing a difference between control data provided to the process system and error data based on a process system output(s), and estimating the reticle bias state based on weighted measures associated with the control data, the weighted measures being based on the number of data points included in the difference. The methods and systems include associating the reticle bias state estimate with a first quality factor, computing at least one weighted measure based on a number of data elements associated with the reticle, using the weighted measure(s) to provide a computed reticle bias state estimate and an associated computed quality factor, and, comparing the computed quality factor with the first quality factor to determine whether to update the reticle bias state estimate with the computed reticle bias state estimate.

(1) Field
The disclosed methods and systems relate generally to control techniques, and more particularly to control systems for materials manufacturing processes such as semiconductor manufacturing processes.
(2) Description of Relevant Art
Lithography is a process used in semiconductor manufacturing to transfer a circuit pattern from a photomask or reticle to a semiconductor wafer, or more specifically, to transfer the photomask pattern to a layer of resist that has been deposited on the wafer surface, where the resist is sensitive to irradiation. Different types of lithography can be based on the wavelength of the radiation used to expose the resist. For example, photolithography, otherwise known as optical lithography, uses ultraviolet (UV) radiation and a corresponding UV-sensitive resist. Ion beam lithography uses a resist sensitive to an ion beam, electron beam lithography uses a resist film sensitive to a scanning beam of electrons to deposit energy therein, and X-ray lithography uses a resist sensitive to X-rays.
Photolithography employs a photomask that can be understood to be a quartz plate that is transparent to UV radiation and includes a master copy of an integrated circuit that is often a microscopic integrated circuit. The photomask can be used to block resist exposure to select areas using chrome opaque areas.
A stepper is a resist exposure tool used in many photolithography systems to expose part of the wafer or resist in a given exposure. Systems employing a stepper can require a "step-and-repeat" process to expose the entire wafer as desired. A scanner is another type of resist exposure tool used in photolithography systems to expose part of the wafer or resist in a given exposure. Systems employing a scanner can require a "step-and-scan" process to expose the entire wafer as desired. In the aforementioned systems, overlay can be understood as the superposition of the pattern on the mask to a reference pattern previously created on the wafer surface. Related to overlay is alignment, which can be understood to be including positioning, or aligning, the mask or reticle relative to markers or targets on the wafer, prior to the exposure. Accordingly, to achieve proper exposure, overlay and alignment, among other parameters, must be properly controlled.
As the demand for smaller and more complex circuits increases, there is similarly increased demand for monitoring and hence improving overlay and alignment errors. Contributing to such errors can be the x-alignment of the wafer, the y-alignment of the wafer, the scale error or ratio of desired to actual stage movement in the x and y directions, the rotational error of the wafer, the reticle magnification error, and the reticle rotation error, among others.
To reduce these errors, it may be desirable to estimate reticle bias states related to overlay and critical dimension.

Methods and systems for estimating reticle bias states

International Business Machines Corporation


A reversible transducer connector allows the connector to be inserted within the receptacle in more than one orientation. The electrical connections between the receptacle and connector are reprogrammed based on the orientation. The connector is inserted in two or more stages, such as using zero-insertion or magnetic retention in a first stage to identify the connector and using an automated engagement to engage remaining channel connections in a second stage for use. Doors for protecting the connector and/or receptacle may be opened and/or closed magnetically.

The present invention relates to transducer connectors. In particular, a transducer is releasably connected to a system.
In medical diagnostic ultrasound, an imaging system has one or more receptacles. Detachable ultrasound probe assemblies are connected to the receptacles. For the probe assembly, a transducer array is housed in a hand-held probe. The hand-held probe is connected through a cable to a connector. The connector electrically and mechanically releasably connects to the ultrasound system. The user can select different ultrasound probes for different examinations and connect the selected probe to the ultrasound imaging system. Using beamformers and other circuitry in the ultrasound imaging system, an image is generated through the transmission and reception of acoustic energy by the connected transducer probe.
To place the connector into one of the receptacles, the user forces the connector into the receptacle. The connector must be aligned in a specific manner with the receptacle, which may result in the cable extending in an undesired or inconvenient direction and may be difficult to align given the positioning of the receptacle on the imaging system.
The force, a mechanical latch, or automatic latch holds the connector in place in the receptacle for use. When disconnecting the transducer assembly, the user releases the latch and/or applies sufficient force to remove the connector from the receptacle. It may be difficult for the user to apply the force in the required direction. Any latching may be difficult given the user's position relative to the receptacle.


A fixing device comprises a rotatable fixing member to apply heat to a recording medium bearing an unfixed image thereon, a heat source to heat the fixing member, and a rotatable pressing member pressing against the fixing member forming a nip therebetween. A driving source rotates and drives the fixing member and the pressing member. An overheat safety device has a relay to open and close a power supply path connected to the heat source. A temperature detector is connected to both the relay and the control unit to detect temperature of the fixing member. The overheat safety device turns off the relay and cuts off power supply to the heat source when the fixing member is overheated. The fixing member is allowed to radiate heat and cool down when the temperature detected by the temperature detector is more than a prescribed level.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a fixing device and an image forming apparatus incorporating the fixing device.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a fixing device used in various image forming apparatuses, such as a copier, a printer, a facsimile machine, a multifunctional machine, etc., that which employs a thin-walled fixing belt consisting of a metal substrate and an elastic rubber layer or the like is known. The low heat capacity thin-walled fixing belt greatly reduces energy consumed for heating thereof, and a warm-up time (e.g., reload time) can be shortened. A time to first print (i.e., a time period from receiving a printing request to ejecting a sheet via preparing and conducting printing based thereon) can also be shortened.
As this type of a conventional fixing device, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2007-334205 (JP-2007-334205-A) discloses a device that includes an endless belt (e.g., an fixing belt) 100, a pipe-shaped metal heat conductor 200 disposed inside a loop of the endless belt 100, a heat source 300 disposed in the metal heat conductor 200, and a pressing roller 400 contacting the metal heat conductor 200 via the endless belt 100 forming a nip N thereon as shown in FIG. 15. The endless belt 100 is driven and rotated when the pressing roller 400 rotates. The metal heat conductor 200 guides and allows the endless belt 100 to travel at this moment. Since the endless belt 100 is heated by the heater 300 via the metal heat conductor 200, the entire endless belt 100 can be heated. Thus, the time to first print from a heat standby state can be reduced and moreover the problem of insufficient heat during high speed rotation can be resolved.
Further, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2007-233011 (JP-2007-233011-A) also proposes a fixing device that directly (i.e., not via the metal heat conductor) heats the endless belt to further enhance energy efficiency and the time to fast print as shown in FIG. 16.
Further, the pipe-shaped metal heat conductor is sometimes omitted from inside the loop of the endless belt 100, and instead, a nip formation member 500 having a sheet plate shape is provided facing the pressing roller 400. Consequently, since the endless belt 100 can be partially directly heated by the heat source 300 other than a nip formation section of the nip formation member 500, heat transfer efficiency can be greatly improved, thereby reducing power consumption. Because of this, the time to first print from a heating standby state can be further reduced, achieving cost reduction due to omission of the metal heat conductor.
Due to a malfunction or the like (e.g., a system error) of the image forming apparatus, there is a risk that a heat source of the above-described fixing device overheats damaging the fixing belt. To prevent this, a thermostat with a bimetallic strip or the like is provided in the fixing device as a safety device. However, when the temperature of the fixing belt exceeds a prescribed level, power to the heat source is shut off by the thermostat, and a control unit senses a malfunction and stops rotation of the fixing belt, shutting the machine shut down.
However, as shown in FIG. 16, since the heat capacity of the fixing belt is small, the heated fixing belt heats up quickly when heated directly. At the same time, however, the bimetal thermostat has low responsiveness. Consequently, a time lag develops from the time when the fixing belt is overheated to the time when power to the heat source is actually shut off, by which time the fixing belt is likely to have been damaged already.
To prevent this possibility, the thermostat of the safety device can be replaced with a temperature sensor, such as a thermistor, etc. However, such a sensor detects even slight variations in the temperature of the fixing belt, possibly causing the control unit to mistakenly interpret transitory fixing belt temperature overshoots as system malfunctions and shut down the machine even though the machine is operating normally. Frequent shutdowns can be a nuisance. In such a situation, the thermostat can be cooled by a cooling device, such as a fan, etc., but such a configuration increases the cost and the size of the apparatus.

Fixing device and image forming apparatus incorporating same


A penetrator for penetrating a stopper sealing an opening in a container. The penetrator includes a stamped piece of sheet material formed to define a shank having a length. A groove extends along the length of the shank. The shank has a pointed distal. The stamped piece of sheet material further includes a bearing plate extending from the shank at a proximal end opposite the distal end of the shank.

Many pharmaceutical products are delivered to pharmacies in sealed containers such as glass or plastic vials, glass or plastic bottles, and flexible bags. Such containers can contain a powdered or lyophilized formulation of a pharmaceutical product that must be reconstituted prior to administration to a patient. In addition, such containers can contain a solution or suspension formulation of a pharmaceutical product that can be withdrawn from the container and administered directly to a patient, for example, by parenteral administration.
Most pharmaceutical vials are sealed by a pierceable stopper which is press-fit into the mouth of the vial to thereby isolate the contents of the vial from the vial's external environment. In order to access the pharmaceutical product within the vial, it is necessary either to pierce the stopper or to remove the stopper from the vial. However, removal of the stopper results in exposure of the pharmaceutical product to the external environment, thereby compromising the sterility and/or stability of the pharmaceutical product within the vial. For this reason, it often is preferable to access the pharmaceutical product by piercing the stopper.
A conventional syringe can be used to add a diluent to the vial and/or to withdraw liquid from the vial. The syringe has a hollow cannula or needle which is pushed through the stopper and into communication with the liquid. The syringe plunger can be depressed to dispense a diluent into the vial or pulled outwardly to draw liquid from the vial into the syringe.
The piercing of vial stoppers typically has been achieved through the use of sharp, small-bored needles. Standard hypodermic syringe needles are particularly useful for this purpose because they allow the pharmaceutical product to be aseptically withdrawn from the vial and parenterally administered directly to a patient using a single device, thereby minimizing risk of contamination of the pharmaceutical product.
While the above-described conventional system has long been used with satisfactory results, it is not without disadvantages. A fundamental disadvantage is the necessity of using a syringe with a sharp needle. This exposes the medical professional to the possibility of being accidently pricked by the syringe needle. In addition to the undesirable injury resulting from such an accidental needle prick, there may be a risk of contamination of the needle by the medical professional. If the medical professional violates safe procedures and continues to use a contaminated syringe to withdraw the liquid medicament from the vial and administer it to a patient, there is a risk of transmitting the contaminant to the patient.
In addition, if the syringe needle is used to inject the liquid medicament into a patient, there is a danger that the medical professional could accidentally be pricked by the needle following the injection of the patient. This could expose the medical professional to contamination from the patient, especially pathogens carried in blood.
In many cases it is necessary to clean the outer surface of the vial stopper prior to piercing in order to reduce the risk of infection to the patient. This requires the medical professional to perform two distinct steps in order to withdraw the pharmaceutical product from the vial.
It would be desirable to provide an improved closure system that would permit withdrawal of liquid medicament from a closed vial without requiring the use of a syringe having an exposed, sharp needle.
It would also be advantageous to provide such an improved system which can provide simple and rapid access to the liquid medicament contained within the vial.
Preferably, such an improved system should accommodate current product designs and manufacturing techniques to as great an extent as possible. Also, it would be desirable if such an improved system could be employed with conventional, luer lock syringes. Further, such an improved system should preferably accommodate the design of components that can be manufactured at very low cost, with mass production techniques, with low product reject rates, and with high reliability.
Additionally, it would be desirable if the improved design could be easily operated to establish a reliable communication between the syringe or other luer lock transfer device and the liquid medicament in the vial in a way that would minimize the possibility of interrupted withdrawal flow or reduced withdrawal flow.
Further, it would be beneficial if such an improved design could provide evidence of tampering.
The present invention provides an improved container stopper penetrator, a novel process for making a penetrator, and an improved container cap assembly with an integral stopper penetrator which can accommodate designs having the above-discussed benefits and features.

Container cap assembly having an enclosed penetrator


Polypeptide produced from human stromal cell line, the process for the preparation of the polypeptide, DNA encoding the polypeptide, vector carrying the DNA, host cell transformed by the vector, antibody of the polypeptide, and pharmaceutical composition containing the polypeptide or the antibody.

It is known that bone marrow stromal cells form bone marrow micro environment of immunologic, hematopoietic system etc, and they produce and secret essential factors to induce of proliferation and differentiation of stem cells, e.g. IL-7, SCF, IL-11, M-CSF, G-CSF, GM-CSF, IL-6, TGF-β, LIF etc. It is also made clear that a certain bone marrow stromal cells are related to bone metabolism (Kenneth Dorshkind Annu. Rev. Immunol. 8, 111-137. 1990). However, roles of stromal cell are not reconstituted completely from only isolated factors yet. It may suggest that existence of any factors which are not isolated yet.


This invention provides kits, devices, and methods for the detection of antibodies that recognize one or more proteins and/or antigens from porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV). The antibodies may be in a biological fluid of a PRRSV infected or at risk subject. The invention may be advantageously applied to both the diagnosis and prevention of PRRSV infection.

A major cause of economic losses in the U.S. swine industry is porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus, or PRRSV. PRRSV is the causative agent of reproductive failure and respiratory disorders in pigs. The economic losses associated with PRRS are mainly due to its involvement in abortion in pregnant females and respiratory disease complex (PRDC) in growing pigs. Different control measures including the use of vaccine and management change have been practiced. See U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,940, for example. Despite routine vaccination, however, it is not uncommon for outbreaks of PRRSV to occur on swine farms.
The outbreaks are most commonly due to the failure of bio-security measures. Poor detection of PRRSV infected replacement gilts into herds has been a common source of bio-security failure. These problems may be prevented if a simple and inexpensive method to test for PRRSV infection was available on farms. Such a method may also be applied to testing whether sows are producing negative weaned pigs and during acclimatization procedures.
In order to test PRRSV antibody, veterinarians should collect blood samples and send them to a veterinary diagnostic laboratory. At present, ELISA, indirect fluorescent antibody test and immunoperoxidase monolayer assay are common laboratory methods to detect anti-PRRSV antibody. However, these methods require expensive equipment and trained laboratory techniques. Using these techniques, at least 3 days including mailing time are required to obtain a result. In addition, swine farmers have to incur costs for collecting samples and shipping them to a diagnostic laboratory. A field-based, simple and rapid test for the detection of PRRSV antibodies would be very useful in laboratories of veterinary clinics or corporate swine farms. Eradication of the disease using PRRSV vaccine has not been routinely successful at the farm level. Methods such as total depopulation and repopulation have shown to be effective for on-farm eradication. However, such methods cannot be used in every farm and is relatively expensive to perform.
Moreover, such methods are dependent upon detection of PRRSV. The nucleic acid sequences and encoded proteins of some PRRSV strains have been described. The detection of PRRSV via tissue samples, including lung tissue, has also been discussed (see WO 96/06619), which is consistent with the observation that PRRSV preferentially replicates in alveolar lung macrophages. After infection by the oronasal route, PRRSV replicated in lung macrophages proceed to the lung lymph nodes and then to different organs via blood stream.
Citation of documents herein is not intended as an admission that any is pertinent prior art. All statements as to the date or representation as to the contents of documents is based on the information available to the applicant and does not constitute any admission as to the correctness of the dates or contents of the documents.


A golf ball or similar game ball is made by providing an ionomer cover and a polyurethane top coat and uniting them with a special primer. First, a cover made of thermoplastic ionomer is provided. The cover is primed with a primer composition consisting essentially of from about 90% by weight to about 96% by weight of a water-borne dispersion of acrylic resin or polyurethane resin or both and from about 4% to about 10% by weight of a polyfunctional aziridine. The primed surface of the cover is coated with a polyurethane top coat. The polyurethane top coat is applied to the primed surface, forming an outer coating or top coat. Finally, the polyurethane top coat is cured while it remains in adherent relation to the primed surface. As a result, the golf ball polyurethane top coat is tightly adhered to the cover of the ball.

The present invention relates to a method for finishing a game ball which has a primer covered by a polyurethane top coat forming the outer surface of the ball. The invention particularly pertains to a method for finishing a golf ball.
A primer is used as an interface between the cover and top coat of a golf ball to improve the adhesion between them. In the past, such primers have included from about 1% to about 3% by weight of a polyfunctional aziridine crosslinker. These proportions of the crosslinker are the crosslinker manufacturer's recommendations to promote adhesion of the primer to substrates. U.S. Pat. No. 4,278,578 ("the '578 patent"), issued to Carpenter, teaches latices containing polyfunctional aziridines. The '578 patent indicates that the use of more than 3% aziridine is not beneficial to coating properties (column 3, lines 21-25).
The present inventors have discovered that the degree of adhesion promoted by the recommended amounts of the polyaziridine cross-linker is not optimal in a primer for adhering the polyurethane top coat to the thermoplastic ionomer resin materials of the type used in golf ball cover compositions.
One complicating factor respecting the use of a primer to join the cover and the polyurethane top coat of a golf ball is that golf balls are intended to be used outdoors under severe conditions at a wide variety of temperatures. Golf balls must be capable of withstanding sunlight and occasional immersion in water traps or puddles, and preferably should be resistant to extended immersion in water, as when they are lost in a water trap, recovered later, and ultimately returned to service. Golf balls are severely jarred, and thus flexed, every time they are hit with a golf club.
Golf balls are not regarded as perishable. They are not stored at a controlled temperature or humidity, and thus can be exposed to wide variations in ambient conditions for a substantial period before they are used, even for the first time. All these conditions require superior adhesion of the polyurethane top coat to the cover of the ball, and yet make it difficult to maintain even adequate adhesion.

Method of finishing a golf ball or the like


A device for supplying electrical power including one or more photovoltaic panels. An example device includes a primary battery electrically coupled to the photovoltaic panels. An electric motor is electrically coupled to either or both of the primary battery and the photovoltaic panels. A generator is mechanically coupled to the electric motor. A positive bus bar and negative bus bar are electrically coupled to the generator. At least one secondary battery is electrically coupled to the bus bars. At least one electrical outlet electrically coupled to the positive bus bar and negative bus bar. Electrical energy is stored in the at least one secondary battery when the supply from the generator exceeds the demand on the at least one electrical outlet. Electrical energy is discharged from the at least one secondary battery when the demand from the at least one electrical outlet exceeds the supply from the generator.

During power failures, homes and other buildings experience a need for backup electricity. Off-grid buildings, and vehicles such as recreational vehicles (RVs), experience this need as an ongoing issue. Solar panels are not able to provide electricity when there is insufficient sunlight (e.g., at night or during cloudiness). Therefore, backup power is typically provided by gasoline or diesel generators. These generators may also be used to charge batteries, which can be used to supply DC power for lighting and automotive use, or which can be attached to an inverter to supply 110-volt AC power for household use.

Solar electric hybrid backup power system


Embodiments include apparatuses, methods, and systems for computer assisted or autonomous driving. An apparatus may include a storage and a safety operation controller disposed in a computer assisted or autonomous driving vehicle. The storage may store a safety operation configuration and a list of safety operations to be performed on one or more device components. The safety operation configuration and the list of safety operations may be provided by a first party. The safety operation configuration may be used to configure selected ones of the list of safety operations by a second party different from the first party to obtain configured safety operations to be performed on the one or more device components. The safety operation controller may perform the configured safety operations on the one or more device components. Other embodiments may also be described and claimed.

The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Unless otherwise indicated herein, the materials described in this section are not prior art to the claims in this application and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
Functional safety is an important consideration for computer assisted or autonomous driving vehicles and many other applications. Various standard bodies, e.g., the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), have developed standards for the computer assisted or autonomous driving vehicle industry. For example, the ISO 26262 standard, titled "Road vehicles—Functional safety," is an international standard for functional safety of electrical and/or electronic systems in computer assisted or autonomous driving vehicles. The ISO 26262 standard may specify various safety levels, e.g., Automotive Safety Integrity Level (ASIL) A, B, C or D. Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) may have the flexibility to meet the various ASIL levels of the ISO 26262 standard. The flexibility for the OEMs may post challenges for product providers to meet the different ASIL levels of the ISO 26262 standard.

Safety operation configuration for computer assisted vehicle


A braking system may include a first brake, a parking brake, a warning system, and a control system. A parking brake system may allow an operator to selectively engage the parking brake. The control system may include a first brake detector that indicates when the first brake is engaged, a parking brake detector that indicates when the parking brake is engaged, and a door state detector that indicates when a door open. The control system may selectively activate a portion of the parking brake system when the first brake is engaged, activate the warning system when the door is open and the parking brake is engaged, and activate the warning system when the door is open, the parking brake is engaged, and the first brake is engaged. A speed sensor may be used to prevent the parking brake from engaging above a predetermined speed.

A parking brake is used to engage a portion of a drivetrain of a vehicle to substantially prevent or inhibit movement of the vehicle when parked. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,997,521 relates to a brake system for a vehicle having a parking brake system, a service brake system, and a braking control system. The braking control system is adapted to receive a parking brake signal and a speed signal. When the parking brake signal is received, if the speed signal is greater than a certain value, then the service brake may be engaged. In some instances both the service brake and the parking brake may be engaged if the speed signal is greater than a certain value and/or the parking brake may be engaged if the speed signal is below a certain value.
In another example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,370,449 relates to a parking brake system for applying a hydraulic parking brake using a dual solenoid valve. The dual solenoid valve is configured to move from a park position to a gear select position. When in the park position, pressure is removed from the parking brake to apply the parking brake. An electronic control unit is configured to receive a parking select signal, a speed <3 MPH signal, and sense the pressure in the hydraulic line. If the speed <3 MPH signal and the park select signal are received, the solenoid valve is activated to remove pressure and apply the parking brake. If the speed <3 MPH is not received, then a warning device may be energized. If the ignition is off and park has not been selected, then a park lamp may blink for a period of time. If the ignition is off, but the pressure in the hydraulic line is still high after a period of time, the warning device may be energized.
In still another example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,630,489 relates to a parking brake control system for automating the engagement of spring-applied, pressure-released parking brakes when the vehicle is parked and for preventing the parking brakes from engaging when the vehicle is in motion or not in neutral.
In yet another example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,758,298 relates to a bus door/service brake interlock system. The interlock system includes a foot valve assembly to apply the service brakes when warning lights are activated, the vehicle door is open, and a minimum speed is met. An alarm may be activated when low pressure is detected.
In a further example, U.K. Patent Number GB 2453562 relates to a pneumatic braking system. When pressure is not applied, the parking brake and handbrake systems remain applied and the service brake is not activated. A reset valve is manually operated by an operator to pressurize the pneumatic system once the vehicle is started. When the system is pressurized, the handbrake may be released. A door valve and alarm valve are provided to sound a horn when the door is opened and the parking brake is not applied. The horn remains on even if the door is closed and can only be deactivated by applying the service brake.


A triacylglycerol-based wax, which can be used in candle making, is provided. The triacylglycerol-based material is predominantly includes a triacylglycerol stock which has a fatty acid profile has no more than about 25 wt. % fatty acids having less than 18 carbon atoms. In addition, the fatty acid profile of the triacylglycerol typically includes at least about 50 wt. % 18:1 fatty acid and no more than about 25 wt. % 18:0 fatty acid. In another embodiment, the triacylglycerol-based material is characterized in part by an Iodine Value of about 60 to about 75. For applications such as candles, the wax commonly includes a hydrogenated vegetable oil and palmitic acid. Candles formed from triacylglycerol-based material and methods of producing the candles are also provided.

Candles have been known and used for illumination since early civilization. For years, beeswax was has been in common usage as a natural wax for candles, cosmetics and sealing waxes for food preservation. A typical candle is formed of a solid or semi-solid body of combustible waxy material, such as paraffin wax or beeswax, and contains an combustible fibrous wick embedded within the waxy material. When the wick of a candle is lit, the generated heat melts the solid wax, and the resulting liquid flows up the wick by capillary action and is combusted. At present, although many advanced illuminating devices are available, candles are still popularly used for decoration or on a special situation as a holiday.
Over one hundred years ago, paraffin came into existence, parallel with the development of the petroleum refining industry. Paraffin was introduced as a bountiful and low cost alternative to beeswax which has become more and more costly and in more and more scarce supply. Paraffin is simply the leftover residue from refining gasoline and motor oils. Paraffin is presently the primary industrial wax for the following three uses: candles, cosmetics and sealing waxes.
Conventional candles are made from a wax material, such as paraffin. Such candles typically emit a smoke and can produce a bad smell when burning. Many people can not accept such smell. In addition, a small amount of particles ("particulates") are often created when the candle burns. These particles may affect the health of a human when breathed in. Paraffin soot particles are similar to particles given off by burning diesel fuel, which include a number of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons that have been deemed toxic air contaminants.
In addition to these issues, paraffin wax is diminishing in supply as consumer demand increases. New petroleum technology does not produce by-product petro-waxes. This decrease in supply requires importation of petroleum waxes. This coincides with a huge ($2.5 billion) decorative candle market in the U.S. that is growing at about 15% per year.
There is a strong consumer need and demand for alternative natural waxes as an option to toxic paraffin waxes that can be produced at a rate that is cost competitive with toxic paraffin. Accordingly, it would be advantageous to have other materials which can be used to form clean burning base materials for forming candles. If possible, such materials would preferably be biodegradable and be derived from renewable raw materials. The candle base materials should preferably have physical characteristics, e.g., in terms of melting point, hardness and/or malleability, that permit the material to be readily formed into candles having a pleasing appearance and/or feel to the touch, as well as having desirable olfactory properties.

Triacylglycerol-based alternative to paraffin wax


An engine control method and an engine control system that can inhibit the emission of NOx and reduce noise are provided. An engine control method in which an engine 2 is caused to perform diffusion combustion at normal times and switched from diffusion combustion to premixed combustion when an engine load is low, wherein when the engine 2 is switched from the diffusion combustion to the premixed combustion, an oxygen concentration in an intake air of the engine 2 is found and when the found oxygen concentration exceeds a threshold of NOx generation oxygen concentration that has been set in advance, switching from the diffusion combustion to a fuel injection mode of the premixed combustion is stopped, and when the found oxygen concentration then becomes equal to or less than the threshold of NOx generation oxygen concentration, switching is performed to the premixed combustion.

A novel combustion mode called premixed combustion (referred to hereinbelow as PCI combustion) has recently been suggested. In this system, fuel injection is carried out at a timing earlier than that for usual diesel combustion (referred to hereinbelow as diffusion combustion) and mixing of fuel and air is substantially enhanced to improve the engine exhaust gas. In the PCI combustion, exhaust gas recirculation (referred to hereinbelow as EGR) is performed with a high EGR ratio to obtain a low-oxygen atmosphere, thereby suppressing preignition and thus realizing low-NOx and low-SOOT (soot) combustion.
PCI combustion is typically limited to low-load operation regions. Accordingly, a combustion control method is known by which switching between the diffusion combustion and PCI combustion is performed according to the engine operation region.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2002-327638 suggests a diesel engine in which switching between PCI combustion and diffusion combustion is performed according to the operation region.
In the diesel engine described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2002-327638, when switching is performed from diffusion combustion to PCI combustion, a control is performed to forcibly change the amount of air (amount of oxygen) so as to obtain an optimum amount of air for PCI combustion.

Engine control method and engine control system


A latching handleset assembly includes a handle, a trigger, and a latch driver. The handle has a handle portion and a top mounting portion that extends from an escutcheon. The top mounting portion has a top surface and a bottom that is at least partially obscured by the handle portion. The trigger includes an exterior end located along the bottom of the top mounting portion and an interior end extending into the escutcheon. The trigger is pivotable about a pivot point positioned within the escutcheon. The latch driver is movable between a neutral position and a latch actuating position in response to actuation of the trigger.

Door handlesets and locks are commonly installed in residential and commercial settings. The handlesets include a latch assembly that is actuatable by a mechanism. Latch assemblies are used for maintaining a door in a closed position using a bolt that moves between extended and retracted positions. In existing latches, the bolt is actively pulled between the extended and retracted positions. This pulling of the bolt is often the result of turning a door knob or a latch of the handleset. In the existing latches, the latches are spring-latches, which means that the latch is spring loaded all the time, and the latch is only retracted when the user operates the knob or the thumbpiece mounted on the face of the handleset.
The pushing and pulling of the bolt may also be accomplished by the actuation of a trigger. Some triggers require actuation with the thumb and require significant push force. The thumbpieces are also a separate piece located above the handle of the handlesets, which is visually unappealing.


A method, system, and program product for modifying a high performance multi-write database is provided. The method includes registering data pages configured for reading by a first node within a buffer pool structure of a database. Share lock functionality is enabled. The share lock functionality is disabled after the first node has completed reading the data pages and the data pages are registered with respect to a second node for writing functionality. A notification indicating that a group of data pages has expired is generated and transmitted to the second node. Exclusive lock functionality for allowing the second node to read and modify the data pages is enabled and after the modification the exclusive lock functionality is disabled. Reading functionality is enabled for the first and second nodes to read the group of data pages from a high performance cache structure of the buffer pool structure.

The present invention relates generally to a method for modifying a multi-write database and in particular to a method and associated system for improving database technology associated with enabling software functionality for ready and modifying data pages associated with a plurality of nodes with respect to a high performance cache structure of a buffer pool structure.


Disclosed are a method of casting heterogeneous materials and a casting produced manufactured by the same. The method may include disposing a lost foam on a cavity of a mold as the cavity being formed in a shape corresponding to a shape of a casting product; injecting a first molten metal through a low-pressure molten metal ingate formed in the mold to form a low-pressure casting portion of the casting product; and injecting a second molten metal through a gravity molten metal ingate formed in the mold to form a gravity casting portion of the casting product.

Vehicle parts and the like, which are made of heterogeneous materials, have many advantages compared to parts made of a single material because they make it possible to reduce weight of the vehicle parts themselves as well as a finished vehicle and to reduce the cost.
For example, in a cylinder head, a lower section thereof which is subject to high thermal load is made of an aluminum alloy material whereas an upper section thereof which is subjected to heavy abrasion is made of a bakelite polymer material so that its function can be more enhanced while lightening its weight.
In the related art, in order to manufacture a casting product of heterogeneous materials, such as a cylinder head, two pieces of different materials have been manufactured by separate different processes respectively and then by joining the separate parts together. Therefore, process may be disadvantageous and bonding strength of the two pieces of heterogeneous materials may not be sufficient.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for assisting understanding of the background of the disclosure and it may therefore contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known to those who have ordinary skill in the art.

Method of casting heterogeneous materials and a casting product manufactured thereby


A system for coding images, and more particularly, to a system for compressing images to a reduced number of bits by employing a Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) in combination with a visual model.

The present invention relates to a system for coding images, and more particularly, to a system for compressing images to a reduced number of bits by employing a Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) in combination with a visual model.
There has been significant development in the compression of digital information for digital images. The effective compression of digital information is important to maintain sufficient quality of the digital image while at the same time reducing the amount of data required for representing the digital image. The transmission of the digital images has gained particular importance in television systems and Internet based transmission. If the digital images include a relatively large number of bits to represent the digital images, a significant burden is placed on the infrastructure of communication networks involved with the creation, transmission, and re-creation of digital images. For this reason, there is a need to compress digital images to a smaller number of bits, by reducing redundancy and "invisible" image components of the images themselves.
Still image compression techniques, such as JPEG, compress digital information for digital images. As in digital compression for the transmission of digital video, JPEG compression includes a tradeoff between file size and compressed image quality. For example, JPEG compression is extensively used in digital cameras, Internet based applications, and databases containing digital images.
Many of the image compression techniques, such as JPEG and MPEG, include a transform coding algorithm for the digital image, wherein the image is divided into blocks of pixels. For example, each block of pixels may be an 8×8 or 16×16 block of pixels. Each block of pixels then undergoes a two dimensional transform to produce a two dimensional array of transform coefficients. For many image coding applications, a Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) is utilized to provide an orthogonal transform. After the block of pixels undergoes a Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT), the resulting transform coefficients are subject to compression by thresholding and quantization operations. Thresholding involves setting all coefficients whose magnitude is smaller than a threshold value equal to zero, whereas quantization involves scaling a coefficient by step size and rounding off to the nearest integer.
Commonly, the quantization of each DCT coefficient is determined by an entry in a quantization matrix (Q-table). A quantization matrix includes a plurality of values that is used to group a set of values together. For example, a quantization matrix may be used to group the values from 0 to 3 into group 1, values from 3-6 into group 2, and values from 6-9 into group 3. It is this matrix that is primarily responsible for the perceived image quality and the bit rate of the transmission of the image. The perceived image quality is important because the human visual system can only tolerate a certain amount of image degradation without significantly observing a noticeable error. Therefore, certain images can tolerate significant degregration and thus be significantly compressed, whereas other images cannot tolerate significant degradation and should not be significantly compressed.
Some systems include computing a single DCT quantization matrix based on human sensitivity. One such system is based on a mathematical formula for the human contrast sensitivity function, scaled for viewing distance and display resolution, as taught in U.S. Pat. No. 4,780,716. Another such system is based on a formula for the visibility of individual DCT basic functions, as a function of viewing distance, display resolution, and display luminance. The formula is disclosed in both a first article entitled "Luminance-Model-Based DCT Quantization For Color Image Compression" of A. J. Ahumada et al. published in 1992 in the Human Vision, Visual Processing, and Digital Display III Proc. SPIE 1666, Paper 32, and a second technical article entitled "An Improved Detection Model for DCT Coefficient Quantization" of H. A. Peterson, et al., published in 1993, in Human Vision, Visual Processing and Digital Display VI Proc. SPIE. Vol. 1913 pages 191-201. The techniques described in the '761 patent and the two technical articles do not adapt the quantization matrix to the image being compressed.

Image compression using a color visual model


A transmitting apparatus is provided. The transmitting apparatus includes a segmenter configured to segment Layer 1 (L1) signaling; and an encoder configured to perform Low-Density Parity Check (LDPC) encoding with respect to each of the segmented L1 signalings, and the encoder punctures parity bits from LDPC parity bits added by the LDPC encoding as many as bits of a predetermined group unit.

In the information-oriented society of the 21st century, broadcasting communication services are entering the era of digitization, multi-channel, broadband, and high quality. In particular, as high-quality digital television (TV), portable multimedia player (PMP), and portable broadcasting apparatuses have been increasingly used in recent years, there is an increasing demand for digital broadcasting services that are able to support various receiving methods.
Digital Video Broadcasting-Terrestrial version 2 (DVB-T2) is the terrestrial digital broadcasting standard that was established to improve performances of the DVB-T in the DVB group to live up to such a demand. The DVB-T2 increases transmission efficiency while maintaining compatibility with the DVB-T, and adopts MPEG-4 Advanced Video Coding (AVC) as a compression method, adds 256-Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) to an existing modulation method, adds 1K, 4K, 16K, and 32K to the transmission mode, and adopts Low-Density Parity-Check (LDPC) codes of high efficiency for Forward Error Correction (FEC).
There is a need for a method for transmitting signals more effectively using the DVB-T2 standard described above.

Transmitting apparatus, receiving apparatus, and signal processing method thereof


Examples provide a system for generating document-based responses to user provided queries. The response generation component creates a set of generated utterances based on text associated with a set of sentences in at least one document. Each utterance in the set of generated utterances is assigned an intent. A filter component identifies at least one utterance from the set of generated utterances having a same intent as a user-provided utterance to form a set of filtered utterances. A selection component identifies one or more utterance(s) from the set of filtered utterances having a shortest distance from the user-provided utterance. If more than one utterance is identified, a weighted summarization response is output to the user based on a predefined answer to each utterance in the selected set of utterances.

A chatbot is a software component designed to respond to user input to simulate conversations and/or provide information to users. Current chatbots require a programmer to manually enter all possible questions or utterances that other users of the chatbot might input into the chatbot. The programmer also manually provides all the various responses to the utterances for the chatbot to output/return to the user in response. Chatbots typically are trained using a substantial volume of manually created data (utterances) to enable the system to response to user questions. If the chatbot is not provided with a sufficient number of possible utterances and answers/responses to the utterances, the chatbot may be unable to provide a meaningful response to all user queries. Moreover, manually creating training data frequently requires review of large quantities of policy documents and other domain-specific information. This can be a labor-intensive, time consuming and tedious process for human users.

Document-based response generation system


The present invention relates to methods of making and using and compositions of metal nanoparticles formed by green chemistry synthetic techniques. For example, the present invention relates to metal nanoparticles formed with solutions of plant extracts and use of these metal nanoparticles in removing contaminants from soil and groundwater and other contaminated sites. In some embodiments, the invention comprises methods of making and using compositions of metal nanoparticles formed using green chemistry techniques.

Nanoparticles are particles ranging in size from 1 nm to 1 micron in diameter. "Nano" is a prefix which means one billionth (10−9) part of something (Meridian Webster Dictionary). In recent years, the field of nanoparticles has grown due to their unique properties. Many industries utilize nanoparticles, for example the electronics industry, medical science, material science, and environmental science. Noble metal nanoparticles have found widespread use in several technological applications and various wet chemical methods have been reported. See, X. Wang and Y. Li, Chem. Commun., 2007, 2901; Y. Sun and Y. Xia, Science, 2002, 298, 2176; J. Chen, J. M. McLellan, A. Siekkinen, Y. Xiong, Z-Y Li and Y. Xia, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2006, 128, 14776; J. W. Stone, P. N. Sisco, E. C. Goldsmith, S. C. Baxter and C. J. Murphy, NanoLett., 2007, 7, 116; B. Wiley, Y. Sun and Y. Xia, Acc. Chem. Res., 2007, 40, 1067.
There is great interest in synthesizing metal and semiconductor nanoparticles due to their extraordinary properties, which differ from those of the corresponding bulk material. An example of a nanoparticle is nanoscale zero valent iron (nZVI). Generally, nanoparticles are synthesized in three ways: physically by crushing larger particles, chemically by precipitation, and through gas condensation. Chemical generation is highly varied and can incorporate laser pyrolysis, flame synthesis, combustion, and sol gel approaches. See, U.S. Pat. No. 6,881,490 (Apr. 19, 2005) N. Kambe, Y. D. Blum, B. Chaloner-Gill, S. Chiruvolu, S. Kumar, D. B. MacQueen. Polymer-inorganic particle composites; J. Du, B. Han, Z. Liu and Y. Liu, Cryst. Growth and Design, 2007, 7, 900; B. Wiley, T. Herricks, Y. Sun and Y. Xia, Nano Lett., 2004, 4, 2057; C. J. Murphy, A. M. Gole, S. E. Hunyadi and C. J. Orendorff, Inorg. Chem., 2006, 45, 7544; B. J. Wiley, Y. Chen, J. M. McLellan, Y. Xiong, Z-Y. Li, D. Ginger, and Y. Xia, Nanoletters, 2007, 4, 1032; Y. Xiong, H. Cai, B. J. Wiley, J. Wang, M. J. Kim and Y. Xia, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2007, 129, 3665; J. Fang, H. You, P. Kong, Y. Yi., X. Song, and B. Ding, Cryst. Growth and Design, 2007, 7, 864; A. Narayan, L. Landstrom and M. Boman, Appl. Surf. Sci., 2003, 137, 208; H. Song, R. M. Rioux, J. D. Hoefelmeyer, R. Komor, K. Niesz, M. Grass, P. Yang and G. A. Somorjai, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2006, 128, 3027; C. C. Wang, D. H. Chen and T. C. Huang, Colloids Surf., A 2001, 189, 145. Examples of mechanical processes for producing nanoparticles include mechanical attrition (e.g., ball milling), crushing of sponge iron powder, and thermal quenching. Examples of chemical processes for producing nanoparticles include precipitation techniques, sol-gel processes, and inverse-micelle methods. Other chemical or chemically-related processes include gas condensation methods, evaporation techniques, gas anti-solvent recrystallization techniques, precipitation with a compressed fluid anti-solvent, and generation of particles from gas saturated solutions. The commercial significance of nanoparticles is limited by the nanoparticle synthesis process, which is generally energy intensive or requires toxic chemical solvents and is costly.

Green synthesis of nanometals using plant extracts and use thereof


Disclosed is a cloud VR device for MTP latency reduction. The cloud VR device includes a movement start detection unit detecting a movement start of a client virtual reality (VR) terminal, a Judder improvement unit predicting an orientation of the client VR terminal according to the movement start and providing the predicted orientation to a cloud VR server, a video encoding processing unit encoding a video image according to the predicted orientation through the cloud VR server and receiving the encoded video image, and a video image playback unit playing the encoded video image through the client virtual reality (VR) terminal.

The present disclosure relates to a cloud VR technology, and more particularly, to a cloud VR device for motion-to-photon (MTP) latency reduction capable of improving problems caused by a time difference that occurs while information generated from a user is being transmitted back to the user via a cloud system.
Recently, virtual reality (VR) devices have appeared, but are not widely spread like smartphones due to problems such as high price, low resolution that hinders a sense of immersion, and a lack of VR content.
In particular, physical discomfort such as dizziness that may occur due to a discrepancy between a user's head movement and a visible VR video may be a problem that needs to be resolved.
To solve this problem, motion-to-photon (MTP) redundancy needs to be reduced to be within 10 to 20 ms. To achieve this, there are technical difficulties in a wireless environment (for example, WiFi, mobile network, or the like).

Cloud VR device for motion-to-photon (MTP) latency reduction


This disclosure relates to a planter device, and in some implementations, a planter for providing water to a plant and its method of use. The planter device may optionally include a double-walled vessel comprising a plurality of supporting sidewalls. In some embodiments, the inner and outer supporting sidewalls may be connected to one another by a supporting bridge.

Planters are useful devices for retaining plants of various types, supporting them, and in some instances providing a basin of water for the plant. Planters may retain plants for a variety of reasons, including for decorative purposes around the home, for growing of vegetables, or providing food for local wildlife. Planters may also be used for a number of other utilitarian applications. As one example, planters supporting carnivorous plant may be used as a method of controlling the population of flies in areas where flies congregate, such as in barns or around other livestock. Some types of plants, including for example, carnivorous plants and water lilies, have a significant requirement for water in order to grow. As such, various planters may provide a basin for water for the plant to draw from to reduce the frequency at which additional water must be added to the planter and to ensure sufficient water is present for adequate plant health and growth. However, in some cases, the presence of an open water basin can provide a breeding ground for other pests, such as mosquito larvae, which may prove undesirable, particularly if the planter is located close to humans or other animals. To reduce the availability of open water for mosquito larvae, certain planters may include a moisture wicking system to draw water from a basin to the plant, but for water-hungry plants this may not provide adequate moisture for growth and overall plant health.


The present invention relates to a sheet structure for electrical insulation or flame resistance comprising a barrier ply having a mica-rich face and a mica-poor face and a reinforcing ply containing a saturable backing layer attached to the mica-poor face of the barrier ply.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sheet structure for electrical insulation or flame resistance comprising a barrier ply having a mica-rich face and a mica-poor face and a reinforcing ply containing a saturable backing layer attached to the mica-poor face of the barrier ply.
2. Description of the Related Art
The use of a mica-based sheets and tapes as an electrical insulating and flame barrier material is well known in the art. Such sheets and tapes typically consist of mica paper glued to a backing of reinforcing material.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,286,010, 4,769,276, 6,103,382, 6,153,301, and European Patent Application 0 373 137 A2, disclose the preparation and use of mica sheets and tapes in electrical insulation and flame protection applications. However, mica tapes produced by gluing mica paper to a backing reinforcement have limitations because the glue must be compatible with saturating resins that are commonly applied to the tapes in a subsequent step. The glue must also be thermally stable for extended periods of time. For example, a widely-used combination of backing glass cloth and epoxy resin as a glue limits the end-use temperature of the insulating tape to 180° C., as well as to the possible resins that may be used in the impregnation step (one normally must use the same epoxy resin). Also, the process of gluing of many resins usually involves continuous solvent-based processes and all the technological and safety complications related to dealing with volatile organics (ventilation, recuperation of the solvent and etc.).
An aramid-mica blended paper, made from a homogeneous blend of m-aramid fiber, m-aramid fibrids, and mica is manufactured by DuPont under trade name NOMEX® paper type 418. Such papers are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,312,561. Because of superior mechanical properties vs. mica paper, tapes from NOMEX® 418 paper can be used without any backing reinforcement. However, 30-60 weight percent of organic (aramid) components in this barrier material limit its possible corona resistance or voltage endurance. Another limitation is that during vacuum-pressure impregnation of an item insulated with a tape based on this paper, it is necessary to rotate this item until the resin is completely cured because the tape is not readily saturable, that is the tape has no component that can hold uncured resin.
A two-ply paper has also been disclosed in which one ply consists of mica and another ply can consists of aramid, glass, polyester or other fibrous components (Russian Pat. 2051434, 1996). These papers do not have the necessary reinforcement and are relatively weak in sheet form and do not make acceptable narrow-width tapes.
What is needed is a sheet structure containing a high concentration of mica that can be made into tapes and easily saturated with a resin and that has sufficient mechanical properties for use in electrical insulation and flame retardant structures.

Process of attaching reinforcing ply to ply containing mica-rich and mica-poor faces


A method of fabricating an electronic device and a resulting electronic device. The method includes forming a pad oxide layer on a substrate, forming a silicon nitride layer over the pad oxide layer, and forming a top oxide layer over the silicon nitride layer. A first dopant region is then formed in a first portion of the substrate. A first portion of the top oxide layer is removed; a remaining portion of the top oxide layer is used to align a second dopant mask and a second dopant region is formed. An annealing step drives-in the dopants but oxygen diffusion to the substrate is limited by the silicon nitride layer; the silicon nitride layer thereby assures that the uppermost surface of the silicon is substantially planar in an area proximate to the dopant regions after the annealing step.

The electronics industry continues to rely upon advances in semiconductor technology to realize higher-functioning devices in more compact areas. For many applications, realizing higher-functioning devices requires integrating a large number of electronic devices into a single integrated circuit die. As the number of electronic devices per given area of a semiconductor wafer increases, manufacturing processes employed become more difficult.
An important subject of ongoing research in the semiconductor industry is a reduction in the dimensions of devices used in integrated circuits. Planar transistors such as metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) transistors are particularly suited to use in high density integrated circuits. As a size of MOS transistors and other active devices decreases, dimensions of source/drain/gate electrodes, and a channel region of each device, must decrease commensurately.
A MOS transistor suitable to control the gating and amplification of high speed signals must have a low parasitic capacitance, low parasitic resistance, and a breakdown voltage larger than the signals which are carried. These performance parameters represent design trade-offs well known to those skilled in the art of MOS transistor fabrication.
When fabricating MOS transistors, source and drain electrodes are typically heavily doped to reduce a parasitic resistance of the device. While doping improves conductance, it concurrently increases parasitic capacitance and lowers breakdown voltages. Many prior art devices interpose lightly doped drain (LDD) regions on either side of the channel region (i.e., between the channel region and the source/drain electrodes). LDD regions permit MOS devices to develop adequate breakdown voltages. However, LDD regions also increase the resistance between the source and drain when the transistor is turned on. This increased parasitic resistance degrades the switching speed and current carrying capabilities of the transistor. The necessity of LDD regions also adds process steps to fabrication which negatively affect cost, reliability, and device size.
Most prior art MOS transistors have channel regions that are substantially the same size as an overlying gate electrode. The channel region size and shape is a direct result of implanting dopants in silicon underlying the gate electrode to form source/drain electrodes and LDD regions, after the deposition of the gate electrode. The wide channel region formed in such a process contributes undesirable characteristics to a transistor's performance. It is commonly acknowledged that the drain current is inversely proportional to the length of the channel.
DDMOS (double diffused metal oxide semiconductor) transistors are well known as a type of MOSFET using diffusions to form the transistor regions, with a typical application being as a power transistor. Such devices enjoy widespread use in such applications such as automobile electrical systems, power supplies, and power management applications.
In a DDMOS transistor, a channel length is determined by the higher rate of diffusion of the P body region dopant (typically boron) compared to the N+ source region dopant (typically arsenic or phosphorus). The channel, as defined by the body region, overlies a lightly doped drift region. DDMOS transistors can have very short channels and typically may not depend exclusively on photolithography to determine channel length. Such DDMOS transistors have good punch-through control because of the heavily doped P body shield. The lightly doped drift region minimizes the voltage drop across the channel region by maintaining a uniform electric field to achieve a velocity saturation. The field near the drain region is the same as in the drift region so that avalanche breakdown, multiplication, and oxide charging effects are lessened as compared to conventional MOSFETs.
In another type of DMOS transistor, a trench is used to form a gate structure. These transistor devices are typically formed on <100> oriented silicon substrates (wafers), using an anisotropic etch to form the trench. When etched into <100> silicon, the trench has 54.7 degree sidewall slopes. A doping distribution is the same as the DDMOS transistor described supra. One channel is located on either side of the etched trench. The device has a common drain contact at the bottom portion of the substrate. Since many devices can be connected in parallel, DMOS transistors can handle high current and high power so are suitable for power switching applications as described previously.
In fabricating these various prior art devices, many different processes have been used over the years. These processes are generally deep diffusion processes. It is well known to form such transistors having a trench in the substrate, the trench being lined with a thin oxide layer and filled with a conductive polysilicon to form the transistor gate structure. However, many of the electrical properties of the device can be adversely affected by physical surface discontinuities in the region of the channel.
With reference to FIG. 1A, a cross-sectional view of a prior art MOS device 100A includes a silicon substrate 101, an oxide isolation layer 103, a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) layer 105, an implanted nwell 107A, and a partially etched chemical vapor deposition (CVD) deposited oxide layer 109A. The oxide layer 109A is produced by methods well known in the art. The oxide layer 109A is an implant mask used to locate the implanted nwell 107A in areas only where the oxide layer 109A is thin (i.e., the thinner portion of the oxide layer 109A is an implantation window); the thicker portions of the oxide layer 109A prevent dopant material diffusion. After the implant step, a drive-in (i.e., anneal) step further diffuses the implanted dopant material deeper into the SOI layer 105 and reduces lattice damage of the silicon caused by implantation. The drive-in step requires the MOS device 100A to be subjected to an elevated temperature (e.g., 1100° C. or more). As a result of the elevated temperature, additional thermally-grown silicon dioxide is formed at an interface of the oxide layer 109A/SOI layer 105. Thermal growth techniques combine oxygen with underlying silicon (i.e., the SOI layer 105). Mechanisms for thermal oxide growth are well understood with 44% of the underlying SOI layer 105 being consumed to form the added silicon dioxide. Since the thermally-grown oxide results from oxygen diffusing through the overlying and already existing oxide layer 109A, the oxide grows much faster in the thin portions of the oxide layer 109A. The faster growth causes silicon underlying the implant window to be consumed at a faster rate as well. The increased silicon consumption produces a silicon step 111 resulting in a non-planar surface of the SOI layer 105.
FIG. 1B, indicating a portion of a nearly completed MOS device 100B, includes a driven-in nwell 107B, a planarized oxide layer 109B, an implanted pwell 113, a threshold enhancing implant region 115, an n-type lightly doped drain (NLDD) implant region 117, and a polysilicon layer 119. FIG. 1B highlights the fact that the silicon step 111 remains throughout all subsequent processing steps. Various electrical properties of the MOS device 100B are degraded as a result of the surface of the SOI layer 105 not being uniform in thickness. Even more detrimentally to device performance, contemporary fabrication techniques produce the silicon step 111 precisely in the channel region of the MOS device 100B.
Therefore, what is needed is an economical and effective method to produce an MOS device while eliminating the deleterious electrical effects of surface discontinuities produced during processing.

DMOS device with sealed channel processing


A drill bit is provided that in one embodiment may include a blade profile having a cone section and one or more cutters on the cone section configured to retract from an extended position when an applied load on the drill bit reaches or exceeds a selected threshold. The drill bit is less aggressive when the cutters are in the retracted position compared to when the cutters are in the extended position.

1. Field of the Disclosure
This disclosure relates generally to drill bits and systems for using the same for drilling wellbores.
2. Background Of The Art
Oil wells (also referred to as "wellbores" or "boreholes") are drilled with a drill string that includes a tubular member having a drilling assembly (also referred to as the "drilling assembly" or "bottomhole assembly" or "BHA") which includes a drill bit attached to the bottom end thereof. The drill bit is rotated by rotating the drill string from a surface location and/or by a drilling motor (also referred to as the "mud motor") in the BHA to disintegrate the rock formation to drill the wellbore. The BHA includes devices and sensors for providing information about a variety of parameters relating to downhole operations, including tool face control of the BHA. A large number of wellbores are contoured and may include one or more vertical sections, straight inclined sections and curved sections (up or down). The weight-on-bit (WOB) applied on the drill bit while drilling a curved section (up or down) is often increased and the drill bit rotation speed (RPM) decreased as compared to the WOB and RPM used while drilling a vertical or straight inclined section. Control of the tool face is an important parameter for drilling smooth curved sections. A relatively aggressive drill bit (high cutter depth of cut) is generally desirable for drilling vertical or straight sections while a relatively less aggressive drill bit (low cutter depth of cut) is often desirable for drilling curved sections. The drill bits, however, are typically designed with cutters having the same depth of cut, i.e., a constant aggressiveness.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a drill bit that will exhibit less aggressiveness during drilling of a curved section of a wellbore and more aggressiveness during drilling of a straight section of the wellbore.


A method for evaluating a photo mask comprises preparing a photo mask including a unit drawing pattern, finding a dimensional variation relating to the photo mask, the dimensional variation including first and second dimensional variations, the first dimensional variation occurring due to a positional displacement and size mismatch of the unit drawing pattern in the photo mask and the second dimensional variation occurring due to etching and development relating to a manufacturing of the photo mask, estimating a deteriorated amount of an exposure latitude occurring due to the dimensional variation of the photo mask using the dimensional variation and a degree of influence of the dimensional variation for the exposure latitude, and judging quality of the photo mask by comparing the deteriorated amount of the exposure latitude and an allowable deteriorated amount of the exposure latitude.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for evaluating a photo mask for use in a semiconductor process and method for manufacturing a semiconductor device.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, stricter dimensional accuracy of a photo mask has been rapidly required. For example, the dimensional uniformity in the photo mask area is required to be below 10 nm. In the manufacturing process of the photo masks, many more items are checked to decide whether manufactured photo masks are good or failure. If, therefore, even one of these checking items does not satisfy their specification, the manufactured photo mask is rejected as being failure. Under such a stricter accuracy thus sought, a high accuracy manufacturing technique has been progressed, but the manufacturing yield is becoming poor.
It is necessary to satisfy the specification of the photo mask in order to obtain a desired exposure latitude in a wafer exposure process where the photo mask is used In a conventional photo mask specification it has been determined that, even if respective checking items have their values all reach the limit value of the specification, it is possible to obtain a desired exposure latitude.
There is really a very rare case that all the checking items of a practical photo mask have their values reach the limit values of the specification. There are in reality more cases that, even if some checking items of the photo masks exceed the values of the specification, others fall within the values of the specification with some margin.
Such photo masks are treated as being failure. In this case, however, it is considered that, in them, there exist some photo masks capable of obtaining a desired exposure latitude, that is, some photo masks involving no real problem in their mass production.
The reason is as follows. That is, even in the case where some photo masks have their checking items exceed the specification value while others have their checking items fall within the specification value, if a decreased exposure latitude caused by checking items which exceeds the specification values is made smaller than an increased exposure latitude caused by checking items which fall within the specification value with some margin, then it is possible to obtain a desired exposure latitude as a whole.
By the way, there is JPN PAT APPLN KOKAI PUBLICATION NO. 2002-260285 as the prior art. This prior art shows a dimensional variation of the photo masks and their average value as well as the use of a phase shift mask merely described in connection with the transmittivity and phase difference. However, this is not adequate as to make a decision whether the photomask is good or failure. There is a risk that a good mask will be decided as being failure. This involves a fall in manufacturing yield of photo masks, thus presenting a problem.
Further, the dimensional variation now under consideration includes a global dimensional variance occurring on a whole area of a photo mask (reticule) and a local dimensional variation occurring at a very small area. Between them, a different influence is exerted on the exposure latitude.
In the conventional photo mask evaluation method, no distinction is given between the global variation and the local variation and the deteriorated amount of the exposure latitude is evaluated with the same extent of influence. In the case where the extent of difference of the local variation exerted on the exposure latitude is smaller (vice versa) than that of the global variation, overestimation is involved on the deteriorated amount of the exposure latitude. Therefore, there is a risk that a good photo mask will be decided as being an failure one. This involves a lower manufacturing yield of photo masks.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method for evaluating photo mask and method for manufacturing semiconductor device


A four port antenna decoupling network which has only two negative capacitors and four or more positive capacitors and a method of improving low frequency receiving performance of two element and four element antenna arrays using one or more wideband decoupling circuits wherein each of said wideband decoupling circuits contain a maximum of two non-Foster components, the two non-Foster components preferably simulating negative capacitors.

Non-Foster circuit elements, such as negative capacitors and inductors, have been studied for many years as a means to extend the bandwidth of antennas to the low frequency (i.e., small antenna) regime. An example is: G. Skahill, R. M. Rudish, and J. A. Piero, Apparatus and method for broadband matching of electrically small antennas, U.S. Pat. No. 6,121,940.
There have been some publications that report simple inter-element coupling using non-Foster elements, such as: R. C. Hansen, "Wideband Dipole Arrays using wideband coupling," IEEE Microwave and optical tech letters, vol. 38, no. 6, 2003. In this paper Hansen simulates a planar array of dipole elements whose ends are connected with lumped negative inductors. The simulated results show high array gain over a broad bandwidth. This approach does not attempt to decouple and impedance match the antenna modes.
Mode decoupling networks have been reported in the literature as a means to improve the performance of antenna arrays when the inter-element spacing drops below half a wavelength. Examples of decoupling networks may be found in: C. Volmer, et. al, "Broadband decoupling and matching of a superdirective two port antenna array," IEEE antennas and propagation letters, vol 7, 2008; and J. C. Coetzee, et. al., "port decoupling for small arrays by means of an eigenmode feed network," IEEE trans. On antennas and propagation, vol 56, no. 6 June 2008. These papers do not consider Non-Foster circuit elements to extend the performance bandwidth.

Broadband non-Foster decoupling networks for superdirective antenna arrays


A traction device has a pliable securing portion configured to connect the traction device to footwear. A traction portion forms a barrier between the outsole of footwear and a surface. A retainer having retainer ends is configured to be retained by a compartment within the securing portion. A portion of at least one link of the traction portion is configured to connect to a retainer within a compartment when a portion of the link is received by an opening in the wall surface of the compartment. At least one traction portion is configured to be removable from the traction device. At least one retainer end is removable. When the retainer end is removed from the retainer, the retainer can then receive a replaceable traction device or a traction portion can be removed from the traction device. The wall surface of the compartment can have a plurality of openings.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates, generally, to a traction device for footwear. More particularly, it relates to a traction device having a pliable securing portion configured to conform around a user's footwear.
2. Background Art
Traction devices for footwear currently being manufactured can span the length of the outsole of a shoe. The Yaktrack Walk Traction system has a securing portion connected to the perimeter of a shoe and has a traction portion being a metal coil overlapping a length of thermal plastic elastomer material covering a substantial portion of the outsole of a shoe. When the traction portion spans the entire length of the outsole of a shoe, it requires more material to manufacture, which can be costly. Additionally, damage can occur to the perimeter of a shoe when the securing portion of a traction device rubs against the shoe material. Thus, there is a need for a traction device that can be connected to a portion of a user's footwear without having to be in contact with the entire perimeter of a shoe.
Currently, Kako Icetrekkers Traction System, Diamond Grip can be attached to the perimeter of a shoe with a rubber harness. This system utilizes a plurality of steel alloy projections connected to a cable configured to overlay the heel portion and the forefoot portion of the outsole of a shoe. This traction device can be bulky and heavy for a user to walk with which may result in a user tripping and become injured. It would be more desirable for a traction device for footwear to be lighter in weight and less bulky.
However, in view of the prior art considered as a whole at the time the present invention was made, it was not obvious to those of ordinary skill in the pertinent art how the identified needs could be fulfilled.


The invention relates to a transparent, biaxially oriented polyester film composed of at least one base layer (B) which comprises at least 80% by weight of thermoplastic polyester, and of, applied to this base layer (B), a transparent, high-gloss outer layer (A). The outer layer (A) of the invention comprises a specific pigment system which provides improved winding of the film and leads to a highly transparent film with a high-gloss surface (A). The invention further relates to a process for producing the film. The film may be used as a packaging film, in particular for metalizing or for ceramic coating, or for applications in the industrial sector, e.g. as a substrate for stamping films, and in particular to its use on high-speed packaging machinery.

The invention relates to a transparent, biaxially oriented polyester film made from at least one base layer (B) which comprises at least 80% by weight of thermoplastic polyester, and from, applied to this base layer (B), at least one transparent outer layer (A). The invention further relates to a process for producing the film and to the use of the film.
The outer layer (A) comprises a specific pigment system which provides improved winding of the film and leads to a highly transparent film with a high-gloss surface (A). The film has very high suitability for use as packaging film (in particular for metalizing or for ceramic coating) and for applications in the industrial sector (e.g. as a substrate for stamping films).
In the packaging industry there is a high level of demand for highly transparent and high-gloss plastic films, e.g. biaxially oriented polypropylene films or biaxially oriented polyester films. These highly transparent, high-gloss films have a characteristic appearance and give the packaging, for example, an appearance which is particularly attractive and therefore particularly effective for promotional purposes. The problem with films subject to high requirements for the optical properties of the film is, inter alia, their windability, which does not always meet the requirements set, in particular if the machine rolls are processed to give wide customer rolls of high running length.
The prior art shows how the optical properties, in particular the glass and the haze, of biaxially oriented polyester films can be improved.
EP-A-0 347 646 describes a biaxially oriented polyester film which has at least one outer layer (A) which comprises a concentration of from 0.5 to 50% of a filler, the diameter of this filler being in a particular ratio to the thickness of the outer layer. The outer layer also has a certain thickness and a certain degree of crystallization, which is determined with the aid of Raman spectroscopy. The topography of the outer layer A makes the film particularly suitable for magnetic recording tapes. The specification gives no information concerning the transparency of the film or the gloss achieved on the outer layer A. A film produced as in EP 347 646 did not have the desired transparency, nor the desired glossy surface. The gloss of this surface and the haze of the film are outside the range claimed in this specification.
EP-A-0 514 129 describes a transparent multilayer film which encompasses a primary layer substrate made from polymer material which has, at least on one of its surfaces, a secondary layer made from polymer material and having glass beads and silicon dioxide particles at particular concentrations and in particular size distribution. The arrangement of the secondary layer may be on one side or on both sides of the primary layer substrate. The film improves haze and processing properties, but the specification teaches nothing concerning improvement of the gloss and of the windability of the film.
EP-A-0 604 057 describes a transparent multilayer film which encompasses a primary layer substrate made from polymer material and substantially free from fillers, and having, at least on one of its surfaces, a secondary layer which is made from polymer material and which comprises a concentration of from 100 to 1000 ppm of silicone resin with a median particle diameter of from 1.5 to 12.5 μm. A disadvantage of the silicone particles is that these are comparatively expensive and do not represent an acceptable solution for the packaging market. In addition, films equipped with pigments of this type tend to telescope on winding. Nor does that specification give any indication at all as to how the topography of such a film is to be adjusted for simultaneous improvement of gloss and windability.
DE-A-16 94 404 describes a laminate with a plurality of layers of an oriented crystalizable thermoplastic film, in which at least one of the outer layers comprises an additive. The additives are conventional inert inorganic or organic particles which, in the case of the inert particles such as SiO2, are added at a concentration of from 1 to 25% by weight to the outer layers. The particle size here is from 2 to 20 μm. The laminates may be metalized with aluminum for decorative purposes or used for magnetic tapes. Although the teaching of this specification enables the processing properties of the film to be improved, the specification gives no teaching concerning improvements of gloss and of the windability of the film.
EP-B-0 061 769 describes a magnetic recording medium composed of a biaxially oriented polyester film and of a thin magnetic metallic layer on the surface A of the polyester film. Where appropriate, there is also a lubricant layer present on the other surface B of the polyester film. The film is characterized in that the coated surface A                a) has an average roughness Ra (peak to valley value) of not more than 5 nm (60 nm),        b) the number of the protrusions with a height of from 0.27 to 0.54 μm is from 0 to 0.2/mm2, and        c) is free from protrusions with a height greater than 0.54 μm.
A disadvantage of the film is that the surface A tends to block, and the film therefore lacks good processability. The specification gives no teaching concerning the gloss of the film or its haze or windability.
EP-B-0 088 635 describes a coextruded biaxially oriented polyester film with at least two layers, of which one layer A is composed of thermoplastic resin and one layer B comprises thermoplastic resin and fine particles. The film is characterized in that the surface roughness Ra of the outer surface of the layer A is less than 5 nm, and in that the outer surface of the layer B either                i) is a surface with surface roughness Ra of from 5 to 40 nm and has a large number of depressions and a large number of protrusions, these having a particular arrangement, or        ii) is a surface which has protrusions formed on a flat plane, its surface being covered by a layer C which is composed of a lubricant and which has a surface roughness Ra of from 5 to 40 nm.
A disadvantage of the film surface A is that it blocks against itself and against certain other surfaces (e.g. rubber rolls). The film cannot be processed cost-effectively, and in particular during vacuum-metalizing the high blocking tendency of the film gives it a tendency toward break-offs, and this can be associated with major cost-effectiveness problems. The film is not suitable for the object set. In addition, the film has unsatisfactory haze.
EP-B-0 502 745 describes a coextruded biaxially oriented polyester film with at least three layers, of which an outer layer A                a) comprises inorganic particles with a mean primary particle size D in the range from 1 to 100 nm and complying with the equation D<T<200·D, where T is the thickness of layer A,        b) comprises particles B with a mean primary particle size D1 in the range from 0.3 to 2 μm and with a primary particle size distribution having a relative standard deviation of not more than 0.6, and        c) where the mean primary particle size D of the particles A is smaller than the mean primary particle size D1 of the particles B.
The teaching of this specification in particular improves the processing performance of the film. The specification gives no teaching concerning improvement of the gloss of the film, or of its haze or windability.
It was then an object of the present invention to provide a coextruded, biaxially oriented polyester film which has very good optical properties and in particular has very high gloss and very low haze. The film should, furthermore, be very easy to wind, in particular when the machine roll is processed to give wide customer rolls of high running length. In addition, the film is intended to be very easy to produce and to process and to provide a good oxygen barrier after metalizing or after coating with oxidic materials. In summary, the object was to provide a film with the following combination of features:                high gloss        low haze        good winding        low oxygen transmission of the film after metalizing or after coating with oxidic materials        low coefficients of friction.
The gloss of the film is intended to be greater than 170, and the haze lower than 2.5%. The film is intended to be very easy to wind, and this means in particular that there are to all intents and purposes no longitudinal corrugations in customer rolls produced from a machine roll. This applies in particular when these are wide customer rolls of high running length. It is intended that less than 1.0 cm3 of oxygen per square meter and per day will diffuse through the metalized film when it is subjected to air at a pressure of 1 bar. In respect of other properties, the quality of the film is intended to be at least equal to that of the known packaging films of this type. The film is also intended to be simple and cost-effective to produce, and to be very easy to process on conventional machinery. The coefficient of friction on both surfaces is intended to be less than 0.6.
A further intention is to ensure that cut material arising during film production can be reintroduced to the manufacturing process as regrind in amounts of up to 60% by weight, based on the total weight of the film, without any resultant significant adverse effect on the physical or optical properties of the film.

Multilayer transparent, biaxially oriented polyester film


According to an embodiment, a memory interface that includes n number of channels and writes data subjected to an error correction encoding process having capable of correcting t symbols, n number of first error correction decoding units that perform an error correction decoding process of correcting s (s<t) symbols on read data, and a second error correction decoding units that perform an error correction decoding process of correcting t symbols on read data from which an error is detected after the error correction decoding process of correcting s symbols.

Typically, regarding codes having a high error correction capability (and high code rate), a decoding process thereof becomes complicated. Moreover, the number of errors to be generated varies, so that there is a demand to achieve both exertion of a high error correction capability in a case of a large number of errors and completion of correction with a simple decoding process in a case of a small number of errors. In response to this demand, there are known a technology of performing a multiple error correction encoding and a technology of adaptively switching a decoding method.
In the technology of performing a multiple error correction encoding and the technology of adaptively switching a decoding method, typically, there are problems such as that a process becomes complicated or a circuit scale increases.

Memory controller, semiconductor storage device, and decoding method


A CE device for, e.g., displaying the time can incorporate an accelerometer to provide various features and enhancements. For example, tilting of the housing as sensed by the accelerometer may be used for controlling a volume output by an audio display, and/or for controlling a position of a screen cursor relative to underlying presentation on a visual display, and/or for controlling motion of a virtual object presented on the visual display; and/or for rotating a presentation on the visual display to always be oriented up and/or for determining that a person has tapped the housing based on signals from the accelerometer and in response thereto presenting an image of a rotatable object on the display.

A wide variety of CE devices such as wireless telephones, digital clocks, etc. leverage digital processing to provide a multiplicity of useful features to users. The present application understands that such devices may be further enhanced by incorporating accelerometer principles.
As understood herein, compact technology known as microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) has been used to establish an accelerometer which, among other things, can measure acceleration above and below the gravitational constant. Essentially, an accelerometer measures acceleration in all three spatial dimensions (e.g., along all three linear Cartesian axes), and the acceleration of an object such as a CE device in space may be correlated to the object's orientation, motion, and to detect taps on the object.
For instance, present principles understand that once an initial orientation is established, acceleration signals may be used to determine if an object is changing its orientation. As also recognized herein, a tap on an object can be sensed using an accelerometer because another object colliding with the accelerometer-bearing object causes a deceleration, e.g., a tap came from the +Z direction relative to the accelerometer makes an impact in the −Z direction. There are several variations to the above properties including tilt, shake, and free fall, but essentially these variations fit into one or more of the three main properties.

Accelerometer-based touchscreen user interface