A Candidate Isolation System (CIS) detects subscribers of phone call services as candidates to be surveillance targets. A Voice Matching System (VMS) then decides whether or not a given candidate Communication Terminals (CTs) should be tracked by determining, using speaker recognition techniques, whether the subscriber operating the candidate CT is a known target subscriber. The CIS receives from the network call event data that relate to CTs in the network. The CIS detects candidate CTs using a unique candidate isolation process, which applies predefined selection criteria to the received call events data.

Various techniques are used for recognizing subscribers of telephone networks, for various purposes, such as authorized eavesdropping and location tracking of mobile subscribers. The subscribers are usually recognized according to their telephone identifiers in the network. Common identifiers in cellular networks are International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), Mobile Subscriber Integrated Services Digital Network Number (MSISDN) and International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI).
Text-independent speaker identification techniques are described, for example, by Reynolds and Rose, in "Robust Text-Independent Speaker Identification using Gaussian Mixture Speaker Models," IEEE Transactions on Speech and Audio Processing, volume 3, no. 1, January, 1995, and by Monte et al., in "Text Independent Speaker Identification on Noisy Environments by Means of Self Organizing Maps," Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on Spoken Language (ICSLP), October, 1996, which are incorporated herein by reference.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

System and method for communication terminal surveillance based on speaker recognition


A sync detect circuit is comprised of two serial data registers (40) and (42), each for storing a single word. A plurality of current sources in current source banks (44) and (46) are operable to convert the bits in the stored sync word to a differential current domain. Depending upon the logic state, the currents are added on two lines (50) and (52). When the differential current falls below a predetermined limit, a frame sync signal is generated to latch the next and following words into a data latch (34). These are then transferred out to a system upon the generation of a system data clock.

Serial data streams are typically transmitted over a single wire data bus. For a synchronous transmission, the first step required is extraction of a bit clock therefrom. In some systems, the bit clock itself is transmitted over a separate line or bus, such that the data reception is synchronized with respect to each clock edge associated with a bit. However, most data is transmitted in groups of bits, each group of bits constituting a single data word. Typically, a data word is eight bits long, which constitutes a byte, or nine bits long to accommodate some line coding or error correction overhead. Although the data is received in a synchronous manner, such that each bit can be recognized, it is still difficult to determine the byte boundary or frame boundary. This would require a separate frame clock.
In data storage devices, such as magnetic hard disks or CD ROMs, data must be extracted from the media, which is typically a mechanical spinning media, in a synchronous fashion. The method typically utilized to synchronize the overall operation of the system is to store at least one byte of synchronizing data at the beginning of each sector in the disk such that the serial data can be loaded into a serial shift register and the contents of that serial register compared in a parallel manner to a known sync word. When the data in the serial register matches the sync word, then this constitutes reception of the sync word and a frame boundary is defined.
One disadvantage to previous systems for detecting the presence of the sync words is that they required a template matching technique wherein a plurality of exclusive OR gates were required to make a comparison between each bit in the serial register and each bit of the sync word. This required a significant amount of circuitry to accomplish this decoding function.


A method of optimizing the use of radio resources in the UTRAN 5,19 of a UMTS network 17, and comprising transferring information, relating to changes in the radio resources available to an application 27 at a UE 1,16 and/or relating to changes in the radio resource demand of the application 27, between the application 27 and a radio resource handling entity of the UTRAN 5,19.

The European Telecommunications Standardisation Institute (ETSI) is currently in the process of standardising a new set of protocols for third generation mobile telecommunications systems. The set of protocols is known collectively as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS). FIG. 1 illustrates schematically the logical architecture approach of UMTS, where UE 1 designates User Equipment, BS 2 designates a Base Station, RNC 3 designates a Radio Network Controller, MSC 4 designates a Mobile Switching Centre, and SGSN designates a Serving GPRS Support Node (the MSC and SGSN are illustrated in FIG. 1 by a single entity but in practice are distinct nodes forming parts of respective core networks). The BS 2 and the RNC 3 form part of the UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN) 5. The illustrated architecture can be divided into two planes; a non-access plane which contains logical elements, and an access plane which contains all of the radio access and radio specific functionality.
The non-access plane includes an end-user (end-to-end) service 6. This is the logical connection between the UE 1 and an external user 15 (connected to an external network, e.g. PSTN, Internet, etc) using an external transport function 7. A UMTS service 8 uses a transport service 9 between the MSC 4 and the external core networks and services provided by the UTRAN.
The access plane includes the logical functionality and services represented by the blocks 10 to 14. The UMTS Radio Access Bearer (RAB) service 10 provides a transport connection service through the UTRAN, which uses Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) through the blocks 11 and 12. WCDMA radio traffic channels 13 are allocated by the controllers in the RNC 3 and are physically implemented by the BS 2 over the radio interface to the UE 1. Block 14 represents the actual radio link resources which in a WCDMA system correspond to individual CDMA spreading codes.
In order to initiate a RAB service, a request for communication with a UE 1 is transmitted from the core network to the UTRAN 5. One or more parameters accompany the RAB service request. When establishing a RAB, the UTRAN flexibly maps or allocates the RAB to physical transport 11,12 and radio channel 14 resources through the UTRAN 5 and over the air interface respectively. The mapping is based upon one or more of the parameters associated with the RAB service request. During a connection, the UTRAN may change the radio resources allocated to a RAB in order to optimise the total usage of resources in UTRAN with respect to interference levels, capacity, coverage, etc. The core network is not informed about such changes in the allocated radio resources so long as the connection remains within the "service contract" defined at RAB establishment.
Two types of radio channels 14 are defined in UMTS. A "dedicated" channel (dch) exists where a CDMA spreading code is allocated to a single MS, whilst a "common" channel (cch) exists when the resources afforded by a spreading code are divided amongst two or more MSs. The choice of whether to allocate a common channel or a dedicated channel to a given RAB is made by a Radio Resource Controller of the serving RNC 3, and depends upon the actual data transfer requirements of the MS 1. The allocation is dynamic in so far as switching between common and dedicated channels may occur for a given RAB during a connection, as the level of data to be transferred varies. UTRAN radio resource handling may therefore change the radio resources allocated to a RAB by switching between common and dedicated channels, or by changing the allowed data rate on dedicated channels.

Data transmission in a telecommunications network


A method and an arrangement for controlling the drive power of a motor vehicle is suggested. Only one computing element (microcomputer) is provided for performing control functions and monitoring functions. At least two mutually independent levels are fixed in the microcomputer. A first level performs the control functions and a second level performs the monitoring functions.

A control method of this kind and a control arrangement of this kind are disclosed in German patent publication 4,220,247. There, a first microprocessor or computer is provided to control the drive unit. In the preferred embodiment, the microprocessor or computer executes computations for metering fuel, adjusting ignition time point and for controlling the air supply to the engine in dependence upon the command of the driver. Most importantly, this computing element has the possibility to increase the power of the engine by computing the air supply. For this reason, a second computing element is provided to monitor the correct function of this computing element. The second computing element monitors the operation of the first computing element and, in the case of a fault, switches off the power control by the first computing element or initiates an emergency operation. In the preferred embodiment, the monitoring of the operation of the first computing element is performed by a comparison of the driver command to the position of the element influencing the air supply.
Even though this known system guarantees a reliable operation of a drive unit with high availability, it is associated with high complexity and therefore high cost because of the second computing element so that this solution can be unsatisfactory for other embodiments.

Method and arrangement for controlling the drive unit of a vehicle


A conductive planarization assembly for use in electrochemical mechanical planarization is provided. A conductive planarization assembly in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention comprises a first insulating member and a second insulating member overlying the first insulating member and having a plurality of first holes. A conductive member is interposed between the first insulating member and the second insulating member and is electrically coupled to an external circuit. The conductive member comprises a plurality of cathode regions that are exposed by the plurality of first holes of the second insulating member.

Chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) is a technique that has been conventionally used for planarization of semiconductor wafers. It is often used in the formation of microelectronic devices to provide a substantially smooth, planar surface suitable for subsequent fabrication processes such as photoresist coating and pattern definition. A typical CMP apparatus 10 suitable for planarizing a semiconductor surface is illustrated in FIG. 1 and includes a wafer carrier 12 configured to support, guide, and apply pressure to a wafer 14 during the polishing process. The carrier 12 may be raised and lowered to load a wafer, and may be rotated about a first axis 16. The carrier may comprise a pressure control system 24 that applies a substantially constant pressure distributed across the back of the wafer 14. The pressure control system may take any suitable form, such as, for example, that of an inflated bladder formed from an elastomeric material. A retaining ring 18 may be provided to prevent the wafer 14 from being dragged out from between the carrier 12 and a polishing pad 20 by polishing forces. The polishing pad 20 is supported by a rigid platen 22 that may rotate about a second axis 26 or, alternatively, may move in an orbital, linear or other motion. The polishing pad typically comprises a polymeric material with a predetermined elastic modulus and surface structure that simultaneously provide effective polishing of the wafer and compliance with the wafer over lateral features that may differ in height on the order of several centimeters. Motion is imparted to the wafer carrier 12 and to the polishing pad 20 so that the wafer is rubbed against the pad. A liquid slurry 28 may be injected onto the pad via a nozzle 30 or may be distributed to the polishing pad surface through the polishing pad to chemically weaken the molecular bonds at the wafer surface so that the mechanical action of the polishing pad and slurry can remove the undesired material from the wafer surface.
However, conventional CMP processes tend to leave stresses in the worked wafer leading to subsequent cracking and shorting between metal layers of the wafer. Furthermore, conventional CMP processes may result in sheering or crushing of fragile dielectric layers. These processes also have a tendency to cause dishing in the center of wide metal features, such as trenches and vias, oxide erosion between metal features, and dielectric oxide loss. Electrochemical mechanical planarization (ECMP) is an attractive alternative to removal of metal by CMP because it does not impart significant mechanical stresses to the wafer, and consequently does not significantly reduce the integrity of the devices. In addition, because the removal rate of the metal may be completely controlled by a current flowing through the metal, ECMP is less likely to cause dishing, oxide erosion, and oxide loss of the dielectric layer.
In ECMP, metal removal is accomplished by electrolysis rather than by the corrosive action of a slurry. A conventional ECMP system, illustrated in FIG. 2, is similar to a CMP system in that it comprises a wafer carrier 12 that carries a wafer 14 and comprises a polishing pad 20 that is supported by a rigid platen 22. Electric contacts 42 (anodes) may be disposed within the platen 22 and extend through the polishing pad 20 to make contact with the surface of the wafer 14. To complete the ECMP system 40, the wafer is exposed to an electric field in the presence of an electrolyte 48. In this regard, counterelectrodes 44 are provided. Varying voltages may be imposed between the wafer and the counterelectrodes by a power supply 46. The counterelectrodes 44 allow for a degree of "tuning" of the uniformity of removal of the metal by passing varying current through the individual electrodes. The pad typically comprises holes to allow ion transport from the wafer 14 to the counterelectrodes 44 or, alternatively, the pad is sufficiently porous that this ion transfer may occur. The electrolyte 48 may be dispensed onto the polishing pad or may be distributed through the polishing pad to the wafer surface.
However, conventional ECMP systems have certain drawbacks. With the use of conventional high resistivity electrolytes, a region of a wafer with a high density of metal will experience a larger current density (averaged over a region of lateral dimension of hundreds of microns) than a region of the wafer with a lower density of metal. This variation in current density leads to variations in the voltage distribution in the electrolyte and to a redistribution of the electric field. This leads to a higher removal rate over regions of high metal density than over regions of smaller metal density. This effect can be minimized by reducing the spacing between the wafer and the counterelectrode. However, in typical ECMP systems, the counterelectrode generally is no closer to the wafer than the thickness of the polishing pad.
In addition, during an ECMP process, the metal removed from the wafer may be deposited on the counterelectrodes. This deposited metal may change the spacing between the wafer and the counterelectrode and may be a source of unwanted particulates due to poor adhesion of the metal deposit. While it may be desirable to fabricate the counterelectrode from a noble metal such as platinum, palladium, or gold, these materials are costly and thus fabricating solid counterelectrodes from such metals is impractical. Platinum group metals also tend to absorb hydrogen when used as cathodes, which may result in long term drifts in the behavior of such electrodes. In addition, wear of the cathodes during ECMP processes requires replacement of the cathodes at periodic intervals.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a conductive polishing assembly for use in ECMP processing that overcomes these drawbacks. In addition, it is desirable to provide a conductive polishing assembly that provides controlled planarization of the wafer surface. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description of the invention and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background of the invention.

Conductive planarization assembly for electrochemical mechanical planarization of a work piece


A cleaning system which can be integrated into a coater track system for use in the production of semiconductor devices and methods for its use are provided. The cleaning system can include a series of nozzles having assorted configurations and features which provide uniform and efficient rinsing of excess material.

The manufacture of semiconductor devices is an equipment-intensive venture. The expense of purchasing, maintaining, and repairing production equipment adds significantly to the final cost of semiconductor devices. Equipment technicians are employed to maintain and keep equipment in working order, which minimizes unexpected failures and decreases downtime. Equipment must be removed from production for both maintenance and repair, and increasing the percentage of time equipment remains in production decreases costs and is a goal of equipment engineers and semiconductor fab managers.
Production of semiconductor devices requires photolithographic processing to provide repetitive, patterned features on the surface of the semiconductor wafer. During photolithography, a semiconductor wafer is coated with photosensitive photoresist (resist), then the resist is exposed to a light pattern to alter the chemical makeup of the resist. After exposure of the resist to light, the coated wafer is rinsed with a developer to leave a pattern of resist material over the wafer surface. The patterned photoresist can then be used to etch underlying materials.
To coat the wafer surface with photoresist, a coater track system can be used. A number of photoresist track systems are produced by various manufacturers, for example the POLARIS® P2000 lithography coat system, available from FSI International of Allen, Tex. To coat the wafer with photoresist, a semiconductor wafer is placed onto a chuck within the track system. The chuck spins the wafer, and photoresist is applied to the top of the wafer through a dispensing nozzle which is part of a bowl rinse hardware assembly. The rotation of the wafer results in a uniform, thin coating of resist over the wafer surface. Any excess photoresist is removed from the wafer by centrifugal forces during application, and is contained within a coater cup.
During repeated photoresist applications to a number of different wafers, a buildup of excess resist on various interior surfaces of the coater process bowl system can result, which must be cleaned away. A coater process bowl system typically comprises an automated bowl rinse hardware assembly which periodically rinses the coated surfaces of the coater process bowl system to prevent buildup of excess photoresist. The FIG. 1 cross section depicts a coater process bowl system 10. A deflector 12 is spaced from a baffle 14 to provide a gap 16 which opens to an accumulator 18. The deflector 12, baffle 14, and accumulator 18 together form a "coater cup" assembly. The bowl rinse hardware assembly comprises various structures such as a flange 20, an inlet subassembly 22, a backing plate 24, and a nozzle mount 26 having cleaning nozzles 28 attached thereto. In a typical system, the accumulator has a diameter of about 15.5 inches and the nozzle mount has a diameter of about 5.125 inches.
During coating of the wafer, excess photoresist is forced from the spinning wafer and onto the interior surface of the deflector 12. After coating a number of wafers, the deflector 12 is cleaned by ejecting (outputting) solvent 30 (FIGS. 1 and 2) from the nozzles 28 and onto the deflector 12. The track dispenses photoresist onto the wafer using a separate nozzle (not depicted) while the cleaning nozzles 28 dispense a photoresist cleaning solvent such as propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate (PGMEA). In a typical configuration, the nozzle mount 26 has six cleaning nozzles attached thereto, as depicted in FIG. 2. The solvent rinses the excess resist from the interior surface of the deflector 12, and the solvent and resist flow down the deflector 12 through the gap 16 provided the deflector 12 and a baffle 14, and finally into the accumulator 18 where it is drained away into a larger waste collection system for disposal or recycling.
As depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2, solvent 30 is ejected from nozzles 28 using a flat, fan spray pattern. As depicted in FIG. 1, the fan spray exits the nozzle at a slight upward incline of about 15° to contact the deflector 12. Further, as depicted in the cross sectional top view of FIG. 2, the solvent 30 exits the nozzle horizontally at an angle 32, for example at an angle of about 90°. The solvent pattern should provide a continuous circle around the interior surface of the bowl so that interior locations of the deflector 12 are rinsed.
After several photoresist dispenses, the gap 16 provided by the deflector 12 and the baffle 14 can become blocked with resist, which can prevent the proper exhaust of resist and solvent through the gap and into the accumulator 18. As such, the coater process bowl assembly is periodically disassembled and sent out for cleaning. Manual cleaning is required after 96 continuous hours of use, and requires removal of the coater track system from production.
A coater process bowl system requiring less manual cleaning than previous designs would have reduced downtime, would require less technician time, and would therefore be less expensive to operate, thereby resulting in decreased production costs.

Photoresist dispenser with nozzle arrangement for cone-shaped spray


A fastener for securing an object to a threaded spindle comprises a nut portion and a flange portion rotatably connected so as to rotate independently. The fastener includes a bore therethrough having threaded and unthreaded regions, the threaded region for securing the fastener to the spindle.

1. Field of The Invention
The present invention relates to apparatus for fastening objects including, for example, saw blades, cutting discs, and the like, onto threaded spindles. More particularly, the present invention relates to a combined nut and flange fastener for fastening a circular saw blade or abrading disk to the arbor of a table saw.
2. Description of the Invention Background
Typically, a plurality of individual elements are disposed onto the rotatable arbor of powered saws to secure circular saw blades or abrading discs to the arbor. The plurality of elements known in the art are collectively referred to herein as a "fastening assembly". If the elements of the fastening assembly are not properly seated on the arbor, which is essentially a rotatable threaded spindle, the tendency of the blade to slip relative to the rotation of the arbor may increase, reducing the cutting or abrading effectiveness of the blade or disc.
Known fastening assemblies typically consist of a combination of at least a flange and a nut, and many times also include a spacer or washer disposed between the flange and nut. The flange functions to evenly distribute the clamping pressure of the tightened nut onto the object that is being secured and, in the case of a table saw, will reduce the occurrence of slippage. After placing the blade or disc onto the arbor, the flange is slid onto the arbor so as to abut the blade or disc. The spacer or washer is, if used, then slid onto the arbor to abut the flange. Finally, the nut is threaded over the arbor and is tightened against the flange or the spacer or washer.
Securing the blade or disk using fastening assemblies of the foregoing construction presents disadvantages. For example, in the case of a table saw, the arbor is typically located within the housing of the table saw and is largely inaccessible unless the housing is disassembled. As such, when fastening a blade or disc onto the arbor, the arbor must be located, and the flange, washer, and nut must be installed, largely by hand and using only the sense of touch as a guide. Such a process is time-consuming and prone to difficulty in quickly and successfully locating the arbor and securing the fastening assembly thereon. If one or more of the flange, nut, or washer/spacer are accidentally dropped into the housing of the saw, additional time is lost in retrieving the dropped elements. Accordingly, the known fastening assemblies do not provide an adequate solution to the objective of quickly and efficiently securing objects to a threaded spindle when limited space surrounds the spindle and the benefit of visual contact is absent.
The present invention is thus directed, in part, to a fastening apparatus which addresses, among others, the above-discussed needs and provides an apparatus for efficiently and effectively fastening a circular saw blade or abrading disc to the arbor of a table saw. Moreover, it will be appreciated that the present invention may be applied to the more general task of quickly and easily attaching an object of any type to a threaded spindle of any type.


A UI involving selection and display from a library of videos, including a “Mosaic” mode of operation, in which a primarily visual display is made of information about possible videos, with the effect that a user might select one such video in response to such visual display. The Mosaic includes an two-dimensional array of entries, each of which has visual information for that entry. The Mosaic collects relatively similar entries near to each other in the visual field seen by a user. The focus is centralized and emphasized, and has auxiliary information displayed for further understanding. The array is dynamically rearranged in response to change in focus and metadata about the entries. Relative weighting of that metadata is responsive to user choice. The array includes rows and columns each of which includes all possible entries, but offset by relatively prime values.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to user interfaces for video selection and display.
2. Related Art
In systems for presenting information, such as for example audiovisual media, there are now so many possible choices that individuals find it difficult to remember them all. Accordingly, such systems generally involve a UI (user interface) by which users might search for possible choices, with the effect that those users are able to select one or more choices for presentation. However, while they achieve the general goal of allowing users to search and select, known systems are subject to several draw-backs.
First, there are often such a large number of entries or titles that presenting even a small fraction of them for review by users, such as on an OSD (on screen display), or a video screen or similar interface, is unwieldy. Moreover, the large number of entries or titles makes it difficult for the user to make meaningful comparisons among multiple titles, either using a single data field for categorization, or using a plurality of data fields for categorization. In the latter case, the number of possible data fields and the fuzziness of the concept of similarity among entries or titles makes the task extremely problematic for users.
Some known systems allow users to sort lists of entries, but one result of such sorting is that the user is presented with a linear list of entries or titles, disposed in a fashion that is often difficult on the eye and relatively unhelpful for selection of an individual entry or title. This is a relatively greater drawback when many entries or titles have data fields that might be categorized into multiple groups. For example, many videos might be characterized as both "comedy" and "western," or as both "action-adventure" and "mystery," and the like. Some known systems allow users to search or sort entries by such categories, but the user's ability to locate entries with similar categories can be relatively limited, depending on the degree of sorting allowed and the number of sort keys allowed per entry.
This has the effect that only the most sophisticated users, those who are already very familiar with the corpus of possible entries or titles, can make meaningful use of combining database search techniques and linear presentation of information. There are several aspects of the invention in which this problem is ameliorated: (1) a relatively large corpus of information is sorted in such manner as to centralize and emphasize a set of similar entries or titles, possibly when considered along a plurality of data fields, (2) the user is presented with a focused-upon entry or title, with the option for causing the system to dynamically reorder those entries or titles in the corpus of information in response to the focused-upon entry or title, (3) those entries or titles having relatively greater similarity to the focused-upon entry or title are centralized and emphasized, with the effect that the user can easily and readily locate at least some entries or titles of interest, and (4) the user is presented with the ability to scroll through the presented mosaic of entries or titles, with the effect that the user is not restricted to a subset of the corpus of entries or titles when viewing the mosaic.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide an improved user interface for video selection and display.

Mosaic-like user interface for video selection and display


Exemplary ultrasound probes with sub-aperture processing capable of dynamic focus are provided that generally include an array of transducer elements that form a sub-aperture in the ultrasound probe. The transducer elements can be assigned to dynamic delay update groups and an initial delay can be applied to ultrasound signals associated with the transducer elements of the sub-aperture. A sub-aperture processor can be configured to dynamically apply delay updates to the ultrasound signals associated with the transducer elements of the sub-aperture according to the dynamic delay update groups to which the transducer elements are assigned. Exemplary ultrasound systems with a dynamic focus and methods of transmitting ultrasound signals with a dynamic focus are also provided.

Conventional ultrasound systems generally include an ultrasound probe formed from a plurality of transducers which define an aperture of the ultrasound probe. The transducers can be arranged spatially and can be divided into a plurality of sub-apertures or sub-arrays. Sub-aperture processors (SAPs) may perform beamforming operations for the elements within the sub-aperture, on both transmit and/or receive operations. A typical ultrasound system generally further includes a receive and/or transmit beamformer that is external to the probe and that is connected to the transducer elements by electrical cables.
The beamformer generally focuses and steers ultrasound energy transmitted and received by the probe to acquire acoustic reverberation data as one step in generating images of anatomic content on a display. In particular, the transmit beamformer generates pulse or continuous signals and the plurality of transducers convert electrical signals to pressure waves and vice versa. The pressure waves generally propagate through tissue and part of the ultrasound energy is reflected back to the transducers. The receive beamformer processes the received ultrasound echoes and focuses the energy. The ultrasound signals are then processed and converted into an audio output and/or a visual display at a graphical user interface (GUI).
As described above, each ultrasound waveform is output by the probe via a respective channel. In conventional (non-3D) ultrasound systems, each transducer element is normally associated with a distinct cable or wire connecting the probe to the beamformer to facilitate processing of the respective ultrasound signal, e.g., geometrical calculations are required for each transducer element for steering. For 3D ultrasound systems with thousands of individual elements, a distinct cable is not feasible. To deal with the thousands of elements, transmission is handled by distribution of a set of transmit signals from the system or with transmitters in the probe. Receiving is handled with a combination of beamforming in the probe and/or system. The probe beamforming can be analog and/or digital. A digital solution requires an analog-to-digital (ADC) converter in the probe. Since each channel can have an ADC, some implementations can require thousands of ADCs. As a result, the implementation of a beamformer in the probe may require one or a plurality of application specific integrated circuits (ASIC) and a technical solution that makes it possible to fit the circuitry needed within the required restrictions on silicon area, power, setup data, calculation time, and the like.
Thus, a need exists for ultrasound probes with means for reducing the complexity for implementing a dynamic beamformer. These and other needs are addressed by the ultrasound probes and associated systems and methods of the present disclosure.

Ultrasound probe with dynamic focus and associated systems and methods


An embodiment of the disclosure provides a communication network having a plurality of end devices protected by multilayer switches that receive data packets in different formats for transmission to the end devices, translate received data packets to a common data format for inspection to determine if they pose a security threat, and if they do not pose a threat, forward the data packets to their end device destinations.

A modern industrial plant is typically a complicated environment comprising an integrated system of automated production equipment, monitoring systems, and computers that control the equipment responsive to data provided by the monitoring systems and human instruction. By way of example, the plant may comprise: production equipment, such as production robots, and chemical reactors; component delivery systems, such as conveyor belts, and pick and place machines; and monitoring systems, such as visual inspection systems and water quality monitors. The various plant components are controlled and monitored in real time to cooperate and automatically perform a production job to which the plant is assigned by signals transmitted over a plant communication network.
Industrial automation control systems and networks were originally programmed with proprietary applications. The proprietary applications didn't interface with standard communication network applications and data processing programs that are the backbone of non-industrial communication networks and data systems that are typically used in the home and in non-manufacturing, hereinafter "enterprise", organizations. As a result, industrial automation and control systems and networks were considered to be relatively immune to any of the various security threats, such as, denial of service attacks, viruses, worms, and unauthorized access, hereinafter referred to generically as "malware", that often compromise software used in the home and enterprise systems.
However, as complexity of automated industrial plants and the control systems that govern them have increased, and the competitiveness of industrial plants has become increasingly dependent on their ability to respond flexibly and rapidly to changing global market conditions, industrial plants have become ever more intimately networked with enterprise network systems that use standard software, such as, Ethernet, TCP/IP, HTTP and Windows. As a result, their data and control systems have become increasingly exposed and sensitive to the same security threats that plague computers and software used in the home and in enterprise systems.
In response to increased exposure to security threats, industrial plants have adopted methods and devices to protect their data and control systems that are similar to methods and devices, such as various configurations of firewalls, which are used to protect home and enterprise communication networks and data systems.
However, malfunctioning of, and/or down time, in a modern automated industrial plant is generally extremely expensive and can carry substantial liability. Manufacturing components and processes in the plant are interdependent, and typically must operate in synchrony. Malware damage to a component of an automated industrial plant can therefore be amplified well beyond any particular damage to the component, and well beyond what might be sustained by an enterprise communication and data system or home computer data system damaged by the same malware.


A patterned-media perpendicular magnetic recording disk has patterned servo regions and is nanoimprinted from a master mold made using directed self-assembly of block copolymers. The disk has patterned concentric circular data tracks of discrete data islands, with the tracks having a track pitch in the radial or cross-track direction. The disk also has patterned servo sectors extending generally radially across the patterned data tracks. The servo pattern is a chevron pattern of slanted or non-radial stripes that have a stripe pitch in the cross-stripe direction substantially equal to the track pitch. As a result of the method of making the master mold, the nanoimprinted disk has a chevron servo pattern with non-radial stripes that are magnetized segments of radial lines separated by nonmagnetic spaces.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to patterned-media magnetic recording disks with patterned servo sectors, and to a method for making a master mold for nanoimprinting the patterned-media disks.
2. Description of the Related Art
Magnetic recording hard disk drives with patterned magnetic recording media have been proposed to increase data density. In patterned media, the magnetic recording layer on the disk is patterned into small isolated data islands arranged in concentric data tracks. To produce the required magnetic isolation of the patterned data islands, the magnetic moment of spaces between the islands must be destroyed or substantially reduced to render these spaces essentially nonmagnetic. In one type of patterned media, the data islands are elevated regions or pillars that extend above "trenches" and magnetic material covers both the pillars and the trenches, with the magnetic material in the trenches being rendered nonmagnetic, typically by "poisoning" with a material like silicon (Si). In another type of patterned media, the magnetic material is deposited first on a flat disk substrate. The magnetic data islands are then formed by milling, etching or ion-bombarding of the area surrounding the data islands.
Like conventional non-patterned or continuous-media disks, patterned-media disks are also required to have nondata servo regions that are used for read/write head positioning. The servo regions in the pre-etched type of patterned-media disks with elevated spaced-apart data pillars may also be patterned and thus contain elevated nondata servo islands or pillars that are separated by trenches. The servo pillars are typically "servowritten" or pre-magnetized during the manufacturing process and are not intended to be rewritten during normal operation of the disk drive. The proposed method for servowriting this type of disk is to DC "erase" the disk during manufacturing with a large magnet, leaving all of the servo pillars magnetized in the same direction. Thus for a patterned-media perpendicular magnetic recording disk, all of the servo pillars will have the same magnetization direction, i.e., either "into" or "out of" the surface of the disk. However, unlike the pattern of data pillars which are generally a periodic pattern of lines or dots, the servo pillars typically have different shapes and do not form a periodic pattern, but are generally arbitrary.
One proposed method for fabricating patterned-media disks is by nanoimprinting with a template or mold, sometimes also called a "stamper", that has a topographic surface pattern. In this method the magnetic recording disk substrate with a polymer film on its surface is pressed against the mold. The polymer film receives the reverse image of the mold pattern and then becomes a mask for subsequent etching of the disk substrate to form the pillars on the disk. In one type of patterned media, the magnetic layer and other layers needed for the magnetic recording disk are then deposited onto the etched disk substrate and the tops of the pillars to form the patterned-media disk. In another type of patterned media, the magnetic layers and other layers needed for the magnetic recording disk are first deposited on the flat disk substrate. The polymer film used with nanoimprinting is then pressed on top of these layers. The polymer film receives the reverse image of the mold pattern and then becomes a mask for subsequent milling, etching or ion-bombarding the underlying layers. The mold may be a master mold for directly imprinting the disks. However, the more likely approach is to fabricate a master mold with a pattern of pillars corresponding to the pattern of pillars desired for the disks and to use this master mold to fabricate replica molds. The replica molds will thus have a pattern of recesses or holes corresponding to the pattern of pillars on the master mold. The replica molds are then used to directly imprint the disks. Nanoimprinting of patterned media is described by Bandic et al., "Patterned magnetic media: impact of nanoscale patterning on hard disk drives", Solid State Technology S7+ Suppl. S, September 2006; and by Terris et al., "TOPICAL REVIEW: Nanofabricated and self-assembled magnetic structures as data storage media", J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys. 38 (2005) R199-R222.
The making of the master template or mold is a difficult and challenging process. The use of electron beam (e-beam) lithography using a Gaussian beam rotary-stage e-beam writer is viewed as a possible method to make a master mold capable of nanoimprinting patterned-media disks, but this method limits the areal bit density of patterned-media disks to about 500 Gbit/in2. Directed self-assembly of block copolymers has also been proposed for making the master mold and is believed capable of achieving areal bit densities of greater than 1 Terabit/in2. Pending application Ser. No. 12/141,062, filed Jun. 17, 2008 and assigned to the same assignee as this application, describes the use of directed self-assembly of block copolymers to make a master mold that allows the circumferential density of the subsequently nanoimprinted data pillars to be at least doubled from what could be achieved with a mold fabricated with just e-beam lithography. However, directed self-assembly of block copolymers is not generally practical for making a mold that is required to nanoimprint disks that have both periodic data pillars and generally arbitrary servo pillars.
What is needed is a nanoimprinted patterned-media magnetic recording disk that has patterned servo pillars that are compatible with a master mold that can be fabricated by use of directed self-assembly of block copolymers.

Patterned magnetic recording disk with patterned servo sectors having chevron servo patterns

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.V.


The present invention is directed to a drive apparatus adapted for driving display panel of the active matrix type, which comprises first signal processing means (3), (5), (7) for converting a digital video signal of m (m is natural number) bits which has been converted into data arrangement in conformity with the display format by data arrangement converting means (2) into parallel analog video signals of p (p is natural number)-phase, second signal processing means (4), (6), (8) for developing the analog video signals of p-phase into analog video signals of x/k (k is natural number)-phase to deliver the analog video signals thus developed to the video signal supply lines, and signal line selecting means (14) for sequentially selecting, one by one, at the same timing, desired signal lines from respective groups of the x/k number of signal lines obtained by dividing x number of signal lines to perform sampling of analog video signals delivered via the x/k number of video signal supply lines with respect to the selected signal lines.

In display panels of the active matrix type, e.g., liquid crystal panels, etc., there is the trend where the number of pixels is increased with realization of high definition devices (display panels). In the case where the number of pixels is increased in such a way, since write time becomes short in dot sequential drive system where video signals are written by one pixel, there is employed a plural pixel simultaneous sampling system in which plural video signal input lines for delivering video signals from the external to the liquid crystal are provided to simultaneously perform sampling of video signals delivered from the plural video signal input lines to deliver the video signals thus sampled to plural pixels.
When the liquid crystal panel is caused to be driven by the plural pixel simultaneous sampling system, it is possible to obtain sufficient write time of video signal. Accordingly, in display panels of increased pixel number, i.e., relatively high definition active matrix type such as XGA (eXtended Graphic Array: 1024×768), WXGA (Wide eXtended Graphic Array: 1386×768), or SXGA (Super eXtended Graphic Array: 1400×1500), and display panels of increased pixel number, i.e., high definition active matrix type such as SXGA+(Super eXtended Graphic Array PLUS : 1400×1050), UXGA (Ultra eXtended Graphic Array: 1600×1200), Full HD (Full High Definition: 1920×1080), the plural pixel simultaneous sampling system is employed so that write operation of video signals can be satisfactorily executed.
The plural pixel simultaneous sampling system for driving the liquid crystal panel will be explained by using FIGS. 1 and 2.
FIG. 1 is a liquid crystal drive system 50 mounted in a liquid crystal projector, which comprises liquid crystal panels 60R, 60B, 60G which are respectively liquid crystal panel for red, liquid crystal panel for green and liquid crystal panel for blue driven by the plural pixel simultaneous sampling system.
The respective liquid crystal panels 60R, 60C, 60B that the liquid crystal panel drive system 50 has are a liquid crystal panel complying with the XGA format, wherein video signals are simultaneously written by 6 (six) pixels with respect to pixels in a horizontal direction by the plural pixel simultaneous sampling system.
The liquid crystal panel drive system 50 comprises a DSD (Digital Signal Driver) 51 including a DSD core 51a for implementing gamma correction and/or color unevenness correction, etc. to digital video signals for red (R), digital video signals for green (G) and digital video signal for blue (B) which are delivered from the external, and LCD drivers 52, 53, 54 for converging digital video signals which have been caused to undergo correction processing by the DSD 51 into analog video signals to deliver the analog video signals thus obtained to the respective liquid crystal panels 60R, 60B, 60G. The respective liquid crystal panels 60R, 60B, 60G are respectively mounted at liquid crystal panel modules 61R, 61G, 61B along with horizontal drive circuit and vertical drive circuits which are not shown.
The LCD drivers 51, 52, 53 serve to convert digital video signals delivered from the DSD 51 into analog video signals of which number corresponds to the number of sampling for performing simultaneous sampling of digital video signals delivered from the DSD 51. At the liquid crystal panels 60R, 60G, 60B which comply with the XGA format, since the number of simultaneous sampling operations is set to six (pixels), the LCD drivers 52, 53, 54 serve to convert digital video signals delivered into six parallel analog video signals.
It is to be noted that timing pulses for driving the respective liquid panels 60R, 60G, 60B are generated by a TG (Timing Generator) 51b of the DSD 51.
Subsequently, the plural pixel simultaneous sampling system will be explained in detail by using the liquid crystal panel module 61R shown in FIG. 2. It is to be noted that since plural pixel simultaneous sampling systems at liquid crystal panels 60R, 60G, 60B are entirely the same, explanation will be given by using, as representative, the liquid crystal panel module 61R on which liquid crystal panel 60R is mounted.
As shown in FIG. 2, the liquid crystal panel module 61R is supplied, through video signal supply lines VSIGI to VSIG6, six parallel analog signals which have been converted at the LCD driver 52.
The liquid crystal panel module 61R comprises groups of sampling switches SWN each comprised of six sampling switches for simultaneously performing sampling of six signal lines 63 among signal lines 63 that the liquid crystal panel 60R has.
The groups of sampling switches are driven in order of groups of sampling switches SW1, SW2, . . . , SWN-1, and SWN in accordance with switch pulses delivered from a horizontal drive circuit 62. Thus, at the signal lines 63, video signals are simultaneously sampled in units of six video signals. As a result, video signals are written into pixels 64 in the row direction selected by vertical drive circuits (not shown).
Since it is necessary to sufficiently ensure write time of video signal in general, it is necessary that according as resolution of the liquid crystal panel becomes higher, it is required to increase the number of pixels to be simultaneously sampled by taking the transistor characteristic and/or the switch characteristic of the liquid crystal panel, etc. into consideration. For example, in the SXGA, it is necessary that the number of pixels subject to simultaneous sampling is set to 12 (pixels). In the UXGA, it is necessary that the number of pixels subject to simultaneous sampling is set to 24 (pixels).
As stated above, in the conventional plural pixel simultaneous sampling system, since it is necessary to change the number of pixels subject to simultaneous sampling in accordance with difference of the display format of the liquid crystal panel, it is required to also change the number of video signals delivered to the liquid crystal panel, i.e., the number of parallel analog video signals converted at the LCD drivers 52, 53, 54 in FIGS. 1 and 2 in accordance with the display format.
Accordingly, in order that the liquid crystal panel drive system 50 is caused to comply with liquid crystal panels of various display formats, LCD drivers 52, 53, 54 are required by the number of display formats. As a result, there would take place the problem that the cost is increased, and/or the apparatus becomes large-sized.
In addition, in the plural pixel simultaneous sampling system, there is the problem that there would take place ghost which is the phenomenon that the same image is displayed in the state shifted in a manner to overlap from image primarily displayed by the phase relationship between video signal and timing pulse.

Apparatus and method for converting a digital video signal to conform with a display panel format


An imaging apparatus selectively records an image taken by itself or from at least one other apparatus. A digital video camera selects between an image taken by a camera block and an image taken by at least one other camera and received by a wireless communication module. The selected image is recorded on a magnetic tape of a video cassette. The camera transmits an image it takes to at least one other camera by the communication module. Processed by a control portion, the image taken by the camera and the image(s) from the other camera(s) are composited to be concurrently presented on a LCD.

Recently, a digital video camera for home use capable of taking a moving image and recording the moving image in the form of digital data is widely used. Such a video camera can play an image signal captured and recorded by the video camera itself, and display the image signal on a LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) in the video camera or on an external monitor. Some digital video cameras additionally have a function to record in a recording medium an image signal which is received from another imaging apparatus or image recording apparatus through a communication cable or others. Further, there has been proposed a video camera apparatus having a function to transmit an image signal taken by an imager of the video camera apparatus itself, together with an audio signal taken by an audio collecting portion thereof, to an external device, through a wireless transmitter or others incorporated in the video camera apparatus (disclosed in paragraphs [0013]-[0018], FIG. 1 in JP-A-11-306663, for instance).
On the other hand, in the professional area such as broadcasting, it is common to make a selection among image signals respectively taken by a plurality of video cameras to record the selected image signal. Further, there have been proposed methods for making a selection among image signals such that an object to be imaged is predetermined, and an image in which the object is present is automatically recognized and selected. For instance, there is known an apparatus for automatically controlling monitoring cameras where data on each of a plurality of persons as an object to be imaged and data on a setup of a plurality of cameras, for instance, are registered in a database beforehand, and when any of the persons approaches a restricted area, the small transmitter carried by the person is detected by an antenna so that a search is made in the database in response to a signal indicative of the detection, in order to select a monitoring camera to control based on the result of the search (as disclosed in paragraphs [0014]-[0019] and FIG. 1 in JP-A-9-46694, for instance). A similar selection and control of cameras can be realized by having each of a plurality of persons as an object to be imaged carry a wireless tag. Further, there has been proposed a system for a convention or others where a camera and a microphone are prepared for each of participants so that the camera image signal from which is selected to be recorded is changed in accordance with audio levels of speeches made through the microphones.
With spreading of home-use video cameras, recently it is often the case that each of a plurality of spectators or participants brings a video camera in a venue such as an athletic meet or a wedding ceremony. In such a situation, it is requested that each video camera of a person can use not only an image taken by the video camera itself, but also images taken by the other video cameras of the other persons. However, such a function is not conventionally offered.
Usually, a video camera records audio as well as image. Where the video camera an image signal from which is selected to be recorded is switched among a plurality of video cameras, it is often the case that a viewer feels that upon the switching, innaturality in audio continuity is more undesirable, than shifting in the scene on a screen along with irregularity in the screen due to the shifting. However, there has not been proposed a way to lessen the undesirability felt by the viewer for the unnatural audio continuity upon the switching.
In a case where an image to be recorded in a recording medium is selected among a plurality of images taken, it is preferable that an image wherein a predetermined object is present is automatically recognized and recorded. However, a method in which a person as an object to be imaged should carry a small transmitter, a wireless tag or others, like in the technique disclosed in the above-mentioned publication JP-A-9-46694, needs to introduce a communication system using the small transmitter, wireless tag or others, in addition to means for transmitting and receiving image and audio signals, which leads to increase in the cost and size of the apparatus. Further, the method of switching the camera the image from which is selected based on the audio levels of the speeches made by the object persons to be imaged, is suitable only for particular uses such as in convention, and not versatile.
The present invention has been developed in view of the above-described problems, and therefore it is an object of the invention to provide an imaging apparatus capable of recording an image selected among images taken by a plurality of the imaging apparatuses, respectively.
Another object of the invention is to provide an image recording apparatus capable of recording an image selected among images taken by a plurality of imaging apparatuses, respectively.
Further another object of the invention is to provide an image recording method for an imaging apparatus, according to which an image is selected among images taken by a plurality of the imaging apparatuses, respectively, and the selected image is recorded.

Image pickup apparatus, image recording apparatus and image recording method


A catheter is provided that has a basket-shaped electrode assembly with an improved mechanism for expanding and contracting the electrode array. The expansion mechanism is designed to permit reproducible reintroduction of the catheter into the heart. The catheter comprises an elongated catheter body having at least one lumen therethrough. A basket-shaped electrode assembly is mounted at the distal end of the catheter body. The basket assembly comprises a plurality of spines connected at their proximal and distal ends, each of which comprises at least one electrode. The basket assembly has an expanded arrangement wherein the spines bow radially outwardly and a collapsed arrangement wherein the spines are arranged generally along the axis of the catheter body. An expander is attached at or near its distal end to the distal ends of the spines and extends through the catheter body. The expander has a proximal end that extends out the proximal end of the catheter body a lumen extending therethrough. In use, the expander can be moved longitudinally relative to the catheter body to expand and contract the basket-shaped electrode assembly. The lumen that extends through the expander permits the catheter to be introduced into the heart over a guidewire. If the catheter is removed and subsequently reintroduced over the guidewire, the basket-shaped electrode assembly can be easily reintroduced to its original position.

The invention is directed to a catheter having a basket-shaped electrode array with an improved mechanism for expanding and retracting the electrode array.
Electrophysiology catheters are commonly-used for mapping electrical activity in the heart. Various electrode designs are known for different purposes. In particular, catheters having basket-shaped electrode arrays are known and described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,772,590, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Such catheters are typically introduced into a patient through a guiding sheath with the electrode array in a folded position within the sheath so that the electrode array does not damage the patient during introduction. Within the heart, the guiding sheath is removed and the electrode array is permitted to expand to be generally basket-shaped. Some basket catheters include an additional mechanism in the form of a wire or the like connected to an appropriate control hand to assist in the expansion and contraction of the electrode array.

Basket catheter with improved expansion mechanism


Disclosed is a method of generating a structure comprising at least one virtual machine, the method comprising: obfuscating a first virtual machine source code, thereby yielding a first obfuscated virtual machine (OVM) source code; associating a processor identifier with the first OVM source code, thereby yielding a processor-specific first OVM source code; compiling the processor-specific first OVM source code, thereby yielding a processor-specific first OVM. Furthermore, a structure generated by said method is disclosed.

Today, security plays an important role in many electronic devices and computing environments. For example, conventional mobile electronic devices may be used for payment transactions which require that sensitive payment-related data, such as user credentials, are input and/or stored on said devices, Such mobile electronic devices may for instance be equipped with a near field communication (NEC) interface based on radio frequency (RF) technology, in order to exchange payment-related data with a terminal device at a point-of-sale was).
Traditionally, sensitive payment-related data have been incorporated into dedicated security tokens such as smart cards, in which the data are inherently confined to a relatively trusted environment. However, with the advent of integrated solutions, in particular the integration of so-called secure elements (SE's) in mobile devices, payment-related data are often exposed to a potentially hostile environment, and therefore the confidentiality of these data may be at stake.
A secure element is often implemented as an embedded chip, more specifically as a tamper-proof integrated circuit with (pre-) installed smart-card-grade applications, for instance payment applications, which have a prescribed functionality and a prescribed level of security. Examples of such secure elements are the integrated circuits of the so-called "SmartMX" or "SmartMX2" series of IC's produced by NXP Semiconductors. Alternatively, so-called Subscriber Identity Modules (SIM's) or Universal Subscriber Identity Modules (USIM's) may be used as secure elements. Furthermore, secure digital (SD) cards, such as traditional SD cards or micro-SD cards, may be used as secure elements.
However, in spite of their tamper resistance, secure elements that are integrated in multi-functional mobile devices are inherently less secure than dedicated smart cards, for example, and therefore there is a continuous effort to increase their security level. This problem is aggravated when so-called software-based secure elements are used. Contrary to the secure elements described above that are generally referred to as hardware-based secure elements and that still offer a relatively protected environment in which data may be stored and computations may be performed a software-based secure element is typically arranged to store sensitive data in a general storage unit (e.g. the main memory) of a mobile device. This storage unit is usually not security-proof. Therefore, developers of software-based secure elements face the challenge of embedding adequate security measures in these secure elements.
Some of these security measures have shown promising results. For example, the use of so-called obfuscated virtual machines (OVM's) appears to offer an acceptable level of protection against reverse engineering attacks. As described in the article "Hindering Reverse Engineering: Thinking Outside the Box" by Dube, T. E. et al., published in Security & Privacy, IEEE (Volume: 6, Issue: 2), in March-April 2008, a possible defense against so-called structure-centric attacks, i.e. attacks that aim at revealing a computer program's function, is based on the use of virtual machine logic, which implements a virtual architecture from a native instruction set. In order to further strengthen said defense, a virtual machine (VM) may be obfuscated. Therefore, a software-based secure element that comprises an obfuscated virtual machine (OVM) appears to offer a reasonable level of security. EP 2 482 184 A1 describes an adaptive obfuscated virtual machine. More specifically, it describes the generation of an obfuscated bytecode for execution in an adaptive VM execution environment. A VM compiler compiles a high level code to obtain the bytecode and applies a virtual instruction set architecture (V-ISA) definition to generate an optimized instruction combining two or more individual instructions in the bytecode. The VM execution environment is adapted to interpret and execute the optimized instruction.
However, a software-based secure element based on an OVM may still be susceptible to cloning. In particular, the OVM—in which cryptographic keys or other user credentials are stored—may be duplicated and used on an unauthorized mobile device, for example. In this case, the unauthorized mobile device might enable the same transactions as the original, authorized mobile device, which is clearly unacceptable. Thus, there still exists a need to improve the level of security offered by software-based secure elements of the kind set forth.

Method of generating a structure and corresponding structure


A cutter blade movably in a radial direction of a wafer is pressed for biasing to an outer circumferential edge of the semiconductor wafer. Simultaneously, the pushing biasing force of the cutter blade is controlled constant with automatic regulation corresponding to a traveling speed variation of the cutter blade, so that effect of a centrifugal force that works at the time of rotating travel of the cutter blade may not vary a pushing biasing force of the cutter blade. As a result, a contact pressure of the cutter blade to the outer circumferential edge of the semiconductor wafer is maintained stable.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for cutting a protective tape applied on the surface of a semiconductor wafer along with the contour of the wafer by traveling a cutter blade along with an outer circumferential edge of the semiconductor wafer, and relates to an apparatus for cutting the protective tape.
(2) Description of the Related Art
As methods for cutting protective tapes, there is known a method, wherein a protective tape is supplied and applied on the surface of a semiconductor wafer mounted and maintained on a chuck table; and subsequently the chuck table is rotated with a cutter blade stuck into the protective tape, that is, in the method the cutter blade is configured to travel relatively along with an outer circumferential edge of the wafer so as to cut the protective tape along with the contour the of the wafer (refer to JP-A 2004-25402).
As other methods for cutting protective tapes, there is known a method, wherein a protective tape is supplied and applied on the surface of a semiconductor wafer mounted and maintained on a chuck table; and subsequently a cutter blade is rotated and traveled along with an outer circumferential edge of the semiconductor wafer with a cutter blade stuck into the protective tape, that is, in the method the protective tape is configured to be cut along with the contour the of the wafer (refer to JP-A 2005-159243).
Since the former method using a rotating chuck table forces the chuck table having a large weight and a large inertia in a state of rest, and also having a large inertia in a moving state to be driven and rotated, the method needs a longer period of time for smooth rise of the speed from an idle state to a specified rotating speed. Smooth slowdown of the speed from a controlled rotating speed to the idle state similarly needs a longer period. Therefore, this means, as a whole, a tape cut treating cycle with a longer period of time.
In order to cope with such disadvantages, the method needs a motor for rotating and driving the chuck table having a larger force output, and exhibiting a larger starting torque, and simultaneously having a braking mechanism with a higher capability, etc., leading to consequent higher facility costs. Furthermore, the rotation of the large-sized chuck table having a larger weight with excellent accuracy and precision needs a supporting structure for rotation, and drive with higher accuracy and precision. As a result, these factors cause higher facility costs.
On the contrary, since the latter method of rotating and driving the cutter blade only rotates the lighter-weight structure compared with the chuck table, the method only needs a motor for rotative drive with a smaller force output, only needing a brake mechanism having smaller capability. Therefore, the method has an advantage of capability of implementation with a lower facility cost compared with the cost of the method of the table rotation type. However, in the method, the rotative travel of the cutter blade causes possible problems.
This kind of method of cutting the protective tape generally has following configurations of:
applying a pushing biasing force with a spring to the cutter blade;
forcing the edge of the blade of the cutter blade to be contacted to the outer circumferential edge of the semiconductor wafer with a moderate force; and
traveling the cutter blade with suitable follow-up movement along with the outer circumferential edge of the wafer. However, the rotative travel of the cutter blade exerts a centrifugal force on the support component integrated with the cutter blade, and simultaneously the centrifugal force is also varied based on the variation of the traveling speed.
In a position of cutting start, and in a state of the cutter blade in contact by biasing force to the periphery of the wafer, the pushing biasing force for pressing with a spring serves, as it is, as a contact pressure of the cutter blade to the wafer periphery. That is, when the cutter blade in a halting state starts rotation, the centrifugal force increases as the traveling speed increases. As a result, the contact pressure of the cutter blade reduces in proportion to this centrifugal force. Conversely, the stable traveling speed of the cutter blade that has reached a specific speed stabilizes the centrifugal force, and also the contact pressure of the cutter blade. Furthermore, in an approximate end of cutting, the gradually reducing traveling speed of the cutter blade causes gradual reduction of the centrifugal force. Therefore, the contact pressure of the cutter blade increases, returning to the contact pressure at the time of cutting start. In this way, the contact pressure of the cutter blade to the outer circumferential edge of the semiconductor wafer varies based on the variation of the speed of the rotating travel of the cutter blade during one round of a periphery of the wafer, causing possible variation of cutting properties based on the position in a circumferential direction of the wafer. As a result, there may arise a problem of uneven finished state of the cut end of the tape in the circumferential direction.

Method for cutting protective tape of semiconductor wafer and apparatus for cutting the protective tape


A paper discharging apparatus sequentially discharges a sheet of paper having an image on a surface thereof and stacks the paper sheet on a paper discharging base. The paper discharging apparatus has a blower for sending a gas flow to a space between a surface of the paper sheet previously discharged and arranged on the paper discharging base and a rear face of the next discharged paper sheet. A paper discharging apparatus of a printer has a paper discharging section having a paper discharging base for stacking a sheet of paper having a printed image on a surface thereof, and a paper feeding section for feeding the paper sheet to this paper discharging section. The paper feeding section has a blowing member for sending a gas to a space between a surface of the paper sheet previously fed and a rear face of the next fed paper sheet. The paper discharging section has a restraining member for restraining the gas supplied by the blowing member from being leaked on a side of the paper sheet. Another paper discharging apparatus is also shown.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a paper discharging apparatus for sequentially discharging a sheet of paper having an image thereon onto a paper discharging base of a printer, etc. and a paper discharging tray of an on-line sorter for receiving and sorting a sheet of sheet discharged from the printer, etc. on line. The present invention also relates to a paper discharging apparatus used in a rotary stencil duplicator.
2. Description of the Related Art
As is well known, in a printer and an on-line sorter, a sheet of paper having a printed image thereon is sequentially discharged and stacked on a paper discharging base or tray by a paper-discharging conveying means within the printer.
The general printer and the general on-line sorter are constructed such that the paper-discharging conveying means approximately discharges the sheet of paper in a horizontal direction. Therefore, a front end of the paper sheet discharged by the paper-discharging conveying means hangs down by its empty weight.
Accordingly, in the printer or the on-line sorter mentioned above, the discharged paper sheet is moved in a paper discharging direction while the front end of the discharged paper sheet comes in frictional contact with a printed image face of the paper sheet previously discharged and stacked on the paper discharging base. Therefore, a printed image of the paper sheet previously discharged and stacked on the paper discharging base is damaged by this front end of the discharged paper sheet. Further, the front end of the discharged paper sheet is dirtied by this printed image.
To solve such problems, in a proposed paper discharging apparatus, the discharged paper sheet is curved in an arc shape in cross section in a direction perpendicular to the paper discharging direction. Thus, a bending strength of the paper sheet as an apparent rigidity in the paper discharging direction is increased to prevent the front end of the paper sheet from hanging down when the paper sheet is discharged.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Laying Open (KOKAI) No. 56-61266 shows a device for discharging and guiding a sheet of paper. In this device, a pair of guide members are disposed on opposite sides. A distance between the guide members is increased from a paper discharging port along a paper discharging direction. The guide members have edge portions inclined upwards. The guide members extend from the paper discharging port in the paper discharging direction. A sheet of paper passes through a space between these guide members such that the paper sheet is moved from a lower side to an upper side. Thus, the paper sheet is curved in an arc shape in cross section in a direction. Accordingly, an apparent rigidity of the paper sheet is increased in the paper discharging direction to prevent a front end of the paper sheet from hanging down when the paper sheet is discharged.
In this paper-discharging guiding device shown in Japanese Patent Application Laying Open (KOKAI) No. 56-61266, the pair of guide members extend from the paper discharging port in the paper discharging direction. Accordingly, a curving state of the paper sheet can be maintained for a long time. However, since the guide members extend to an upper portion of a paper discharging tray, it is not easy to take out paper sheets discharged and stacked on the paper discharging tray. Further, there is a fear that the discharged paper sheets and the guide members are damaged. Furthermore, when a paper sheet having a stronger bending strength is discharged, there is a case in which the paper sheet does not drop as expected and is caught by the guide members therebetween and is moved and stopped on the guide members, thereby tending to cause a discharged paper jam.
To solve the above problems, there is a method for increasing a difference in distance between the paper discharging port and a stacking face of the paper sheet in a paper discharging section. In this method, a paper discharging space of the paper discharging base is increased in a vertical direction such that no front end of the discharged paper sheet comes in contact with a surface of the paper sheet previously discharged and stacked on the paper discharging base. However, in this method, it is necessary to separately dispose a paper discharging space above the paper discharging base in addition to a space for stacking paper sheets. Accordingly, for example, when this method is applied to a paper discharging apparatus of an on-line sorter having many paper discharging trays, the entire apparatus is very large-sized since respective distances between the paper discharging trays are increased.
Further, an air layer flows out of the paper sheet at both side edges thereof as the paper sheet is moved forward in the paper feeding direction. Accordingly, an air pressure is reduced so that no upper and lower paper sheets can be separated from each other. As a result, problems similar to those in the general paper discharging apparatus are caused. Therefore, these problems cannot be effectively solved by the general paper discharging apparatus.


A method and apparatus for bonding an active tag to a patch and assembling the patch to a tire is set forth. A patch assembly and a method for securing an electronic monitoring device having electronic and mechanical components for monitoring at least one engineering condition within a tire, comprising an rigid tag assembly encapsulating the electronic monitoring device, bonded to a vulcanized rubber patch which is secured to the inner cavity of a tire utilizing a layer of dual cure bonding rubber.

It is desirable to monitor engineering conditions of tires, such as wear, internal pressure and internal temperature in order to reduce tire costs and maximize vehicle efficiency. Of course, it is advantageous to perform such monitoring in large truck tires, which are expensive.
Prior art methods of monitoring large truck tires have included passive integrated circuits embedded in the body of the tire, or self-powered circuits which are positioned external to the tire. The passive integrated circuits rely on inductive magnetic coupling or capacitative coupling to energize the circuit, thus providing power to the circuit from a source remote from the tire. Self-powered circuits positioned external to the tire are exposed to damage from the environment such as weather, road hazards and even vandalism.
Recent engineering advances have permitted the installation of monitoring devices having active integrated circuits within tires. One such device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,562,787 to Koch et al. entitled "Method of Monitoring Conditions of Vehicle Tires", incorporated herein by reference, and assigned to the assignee of the present invention. These devices include an active circuit powered by a dedicated long life, miniature battery and at least one sensor for detecting, optionally storing and transmitting real time engineering conditions within the tire. Such devices are capable of being programmed to remain in an active, but dormant condition, but will switch automatically to an "awakened" condition in response to an external signal or a condition which exceeds preset limits.
One of the problems faced with such active devices is that they are delicate electronic devices that must operate in the harsh environment of a tire. Thus it is important to secure these devices in the tires to minimize the effect of the harsh tire environment on them, while still permitting them to be exposed to this environment to allow accurate monitoring of the engineering conditions for the life of the tire. These active devices have previously been mounted in tires by first encapsulating the device or power-containing circuit in a material which forms a rigid or semi-rigid encasement about the device, thereby inhibiting straining of the device as a result of applied stresses. Such materials have included non-foam compounds such as urethanes, epoxies, polyester-styrene resins, hard rubber compositions, and the like. The encapsulated device is then placed into a green rubber material which forms a housing or is placed in a green rubber pocket or pouch that becomes part of the tire. The encapsulated device is then permanently set within the rubber material during a subsequent vulcanizing operation. The green rubber material containing the encapsulated device may be assembled to the green tire and then vulcanized with the tire. Alternatively, the green patch containing the encapsulated device may be separately vulcanized and then affixed to a cured tire with a suitable adhesive. In either event, the delicate electronic components of the active tag are exposed to high vulcanizing temperatures which may adversely affect their performance or shorten their life. Additionally, certain components of the device, such as the pressure sensor or a thermistor must remain open to the pressurized tire cavity. The flow of rubber occurring during the vulcanization process can effect the openings to the tire cavity. As set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 5,562,787, the opening to the tire cavity can remain open during the curing operations by placement of a dowel into the opening.
While the methods and apparatus of U.S. Pat. No. 5,562,787 provide an acceptable method of assembling an active chip into a tire cavity, an improved method and apparatus which increases the life of the active chip in the tire is desirable.

Method and apparatus for bonding an active tag to a patch and a tire


A system and method for use in obtaining precise positional information relating to one or more points. The points may comprise key locations on a large structure allowing for the geometry of the structure to be assessed based on the positional information. In one embodiment, a high accuracy angular resolution and measurement system includes a laser beam source (110), a bi-directional acousto-optic modulator (112), and an optical detector (104). The position of the optical detector (104) is determinable from deflection angles (120, 122) of the laser beam (106) when the laser beam (106) is deflected by the bi-directional acousto-optic modulator (112) in a direction corresponding to one of a plurality of illumination locations (140) coinciding with the position of the optical detector (104) within an illumination region (142) defined by the illumination locations (140).

Large aperture phased array antennas are used in various applications, including on commercial and military satellites. Nominal performance of large aperture phased array antennas requires either precise co-planar surfaces of the radiating elements or highly accurate knowledge of non-planar conditions so that appropriate electronic compensation can be applied. For example, nominal operation of a phased array antenna operating at a frequency f of 10 GHz with a wavelength λ of 3 cm depends on maintaining co-planar conditions of about 1/25λ=0.12 cm or 1.2 mm. With large aperture antennas (e.g., apertures>15 meters) a number of factors limit the ability of the structure to maintain such precise geometry, particularly in spacecraft applications.
Construction and testing of a large structure with mechanisms that can accurately deploy within 1/100 of 1% over the entire aperture is problematic. The effects of thermal expansion and contraction cause distortions in the structure and are a primary concern in design as well. Also, residual movement and deflection of the antenna structure during articulation is difficult to eliminate and add to the problem of maintaining surface accuracy as well as adding weight to the structure. Thus, as the aperture of the antenna increases, the need to incorporate electronic compensation techniques to acquire useful data from the antenna increases proportionally. The ability to effectively apply electronic compensation depends, largely, upon accurate knowledge of the surface of the antenna.
One manner of obtaining the required surface knowledge is to measure the surface, or several key points on the surface. Some measuring devices rely on angular measurements to determine the location of discrete points. However, small changes in the position of the points (e.g., changes on the order of 1.2 mm) are difficult to measure from long distances. For example, to detect a 1.2 mm change in position using a device 150 meters away from the point being measured requires the ability to measure an angular change of 1.2/150000 radians or 1.6 arc-seconds, which is a very small angle. Vibrometers and electronic autocollimators are good position sensors, but their use is typically limited to relatively short distances and small scan angles.

High accuracy angular resolution and measurement


The invention relates to a compound having the general Formula I in which one of the groups R.sub.1,R.sub.2,R.sub.3,R.sub.4,R.sub.5,R.sub.6 and R.sub.7 represents an ionophoric moiety and the remaining groups each independently are hydrogen, a lipophilic or hydrophilic group or a reactive group for coupling to a polymer or a biomolecule, or R.sub.2 forms an aromatic ring system together with R.sub.3 and R.sub.5 forms an aromatic ring system together with R.sub.6.. the compound of the invention is useful as a luminescence indicator for cations.

The present invention relates to luminescence indicators for determining cations, in particular alkali ions and H.sup.+ ions (pH value), of liquid, in particular aqueous, media. In effecting such determination, the substance to be determined (=analyte) is contacted with a luminescence indicator (=luminophore-ionophore) having a luminophoric moiety and an ionophoric moiety, which ionophoric moiety reacts with the analyte present in the sample, wherein the luminophoric moiety changes its luminescence properties, after which the luminescence is measured and the concentration and activity of the analyte are deduced, i.e. the cation is determined, utilizing the test reading.
A determination method of this type is based on the so-called "PET effect". This latter term denotes the transfer, induced by photons, of electrons (photoinduced electron transfer=PET) from the ionophoric moiety or ionophore, respectively, to the luminophoric moiety or luminophore, respectively, which leads to a decrease in the (relative) luminescence intensity and the luminescence decay time of the luminophore. Absorption and emission wavelengths, however, remain basically unaffected in the process (J. R. Lakowicz in "Topics in Fluorescence Spectroscopy", Volume 4: Probe Design and Chemical Sensing; Plenum Press, New York & London (1994)).
By the binding of ions to the ionophore, the PET effect is partly or completely inhibited, so that there is an increase in the luminescence of the luminophoric moiety. Hence, the concentration or the activity of the ion to be determined can be deduced by measuring the change in luminescence properties, i.e. luminescence intensity and/or luminescence decay time.
From U.S. Pat. No. 5,516,911, fluorescence indicators for determining intracellular calcium are known which carry fluorescent substituents capable of acting as optical indicators.
A determination method is also known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,439,828, where diaza-cryptands are utilized as the luminophore-ionophore, which diaza-cryptands have been functionalized as fluorophores with fluorescent coumarins and, depending on their structure, are selective for lithium, sodium or potassium ions. It is stated that these luminophore-ionophores can be used in sample media of neutral pH and are even the preferred choice in such systems.
Yet, research (Frank Kastenholz, Inaugural Dissertation, University of Cologne, 1993, FIG. 32, p. 54) has shown that in the physiological pH range the fluorescence signal depends significantly on the pH of the sample and increases considerably with decreasing pH, even from pH 7.4 onwards. This affects the accuracy of a determination carried out in a biological sample. Moreover, the compounds that are being used have the disadvantage that the employed coumarins show absorption wavelengths of about 336 nm and hence cannot be excited by commercial LEDs.
These disadvantages also apply to the luminophore-ionophores mentioned in U.S. Pat. No. 5,162,525.
From Tetrahedron Letters, Volume 31, No. 36, pp. 5193-5196 (1990), diaza-cryptands are known in which the two nitrogen atoms are bound to a respective aromatic ring each, i.e. are aryl nitrogens and aniline-type nitrogens, respectively. Research conducted by the applicant has shown that these diaza-cryptands are not suited for determining potassium ions if they are present in the physiological range of concentration and at physiological pH values of the blood (7.0-7.6).

Luminescence indicator including ionophoric moiety


Fish holding apparatuses and methods of using the same are disclosed. Embodiments of a fish holding apparatus include: a first plate; a second plate coupled to the first plate, the second plate rotatable relative to the first plate about a horizontal rotation axis proximate and substantially parallel to a bottom edge of the first plate; a biasing member configured to bias the fish holding apparatus toward a closed position; and a holding mechanism configured to maintain the fish holding apparatus in an open position. Other embodiments of a fish holding apparatus (a “caliper”) configured to hold open the mouth of a fish include an elongated wire including: two ends having prongs; two arms; and a spring loop configured to provide a spring force.

Fishing is an extremely popular sport among individuals of various ages. However, a difficult and frustrating part of the activity is the problem of removing a hook from a fish after bringing the fish into a boat or onto the shore. This task can be especially difficult when the fish is still alive and struggling to free itself.
The task of removing a fishing hook from a live fish may cause injury to the handler due to cuts or abrasions caused by the fins or scales of the fish, or by the hook itself. The chances of injury are increased where a fish is large and/or struggling to free itself.
Additionally, the process of removing a hook from a fish is dangerous to the fish. The breathing functions of a fish may be harmed as a result of extended handling outside of its aqueous environment. In addition, a fish may be squeezed, dropped, or may be susceptible to bacterial infection caused by contact with a human hand. Also, it is very likely that any harm inflicted by the hook itself will be exacerbated by movement of the struggling fish.
Often fishers wish to release a fish that has been caught and return it to the water. In this case, it is important that the fish be firmly held so that the hook can be removed quickly and carefully so that the fish can be returned to the water promptly and with minimal harm.
For the reasons mentioned above, it is generally agreed among fishers and conservationists that it is advantageous to remove a hook from a fish quickly and with minimal handling. As a result, several tools, such as "hook-out pliers" or needle-nosed pliers, have been designed and used for removing hooks from fish.

Fish holding apparatus and method of using same


Systems and methods of expanding indication capabilities of existent PPDU preamble fields. The “GI+LTF Size” field is redefined to indicate a new combination of GI duration and HE-LTF size. The redefinition is indicated when the values of the two other existent fields, in combination, indicate an invalid scenario because the two values should have been mutually exclusive. Particularly, the DCM field and the STBC field are both set to the “enabled” mode as an indication for redefine the “GI+LTF Size” field. Upon receiving such a PPDU, a receiver is configured to resolve the PPDU as neither DCM nor STBC is enabled. Rather, the receiver interprets the particular combination of DCM and STBC values as an indication that the “GI+LTF Size” field is redefined to indicate the new combination of GI duration and HE-LTF size.

In high efficiency wireless communication, the preamble of a Physical Layer Convergence Protocol (PLCP) protocol data unit (PPDU) may contain high efficiency (HE) long training field (LTF) (HE-LTF) symbols used to for channel estimation at a receiver. For example, the receiver can estimate the multiple input multiple output (MIMO) channel between the set of constellation mapper and the receiver chain based on the HE-LTF. Alternatively, if space time block coding (STBC) is applied to the PPDU, the HE-LTF provides a means for the receiver to estimate the MIMO channel between the STBC encoder outputs and the receiver chain.
The IEEE 802.11ax Standard and Specifications define HE-LTF durations by means of compression to optimize performance for individual scenarios. The HE physical layer provides support for 3.2 μs (1×HE-LTF ¼ compressed), 6.4 μs (2×HE-LTF ½ compressed), and 12.8 μs (4×HE-LTF uncompressed) LTF symbol durations.
Between symbols in the HE-LTF, a guard interval (GI) is inserted and used to prevent inter-symbol interference (ISI), e.g., due to echoes or reflections in the channels. Adding a GI between symbol transmissions allows these echoes and reflections to settle before the next symbol is transmitted.
A long GI between symbols can effectively prevent ISI, but inevitably increases overhead due to the additional idle time. On the other hand, a short GI can increase data transmission throughput. However, if it's too short, the amount of ISI will increase and thereby counteract the transmission throughput.
Beamforming has become the most commonly used transmission mode for communication in compliance with the IEEE 802.11n/ac/ax Standards and Specifications, where compressed channel state information (CSI) feedback discards the common angle for each feedback vector. Therefore, in the beamforming scenarios, both single user (SU) MIMO and multi-user (MU) MIMO, 1× and 2×HE-LTFs sometimes cannot be successfully interpolated to 4×HE-LTFs due to the phase ambiguity among different subcarriers. Particularly, phase alignment cannot guarantee that an interpolated channel matches the real channel because of the numerous different channels. For some channels, the channel phases themselves do not match the aligned phases that are introduced. For the cases that phase alignment cannot guarantee the channel to be interpolated correctly, using 4×LTF is typically the solution.
According to the IEEE 802.11ax, 2 bits in PPDU preamble are allocated for a "GI+LTF size" field to define only 4 possible combinations of HE-LTF size and GI duration. Namely, "GI+LTF Size"=0 indicates a 1×HE-LTF with 0.8 μs GI; "GI+LTF Size"=1 indicates a 2×HE-LTF with 0.8 μs GI; "GI+LTF Size"=2 indicates a 2×HE-LTF with 1.6 μs GI; "GI+LTF Size"=3 indicates a 4×HE-LTF with 3.2 μs GI. These 4 modes indicated by the "GI+LTF Size" are not the optimal combinations for all types of PPDU transmissions. To use a 4×HE-LTF, all the orthogonal frequency-division multiple access (OFDMA) symbols in the payload must use GI of 3.2 μs. However, for most SU MIMO or MU MIMO cases, channel delay spreads are shorter than 3.2 μs. Compared to 0.8 μs GIs, using 3.2 μs GIs reduce data transmission rate up to about 21%.
Unfortunately, constrained by the existent PPDU structures with all the preamble bits already used or reserved for specific indications, it is difficult to introduce any additional HE-LTF/GI mode since the "GI+LTF size" field only has 2 bits and cannot indicate more than 4 combination options.

Mechanism for short guard interval indication in high efficiency WLAN


A new computer monitor visor for shielding a user's eyes from direct ambient light while viewing a video display device such as a computer video monitor. The inventive device includes a generally rectangular sheet having first and second fold lines and first, second, and third score lines which divide the sheet into first and second trapezoidal panels, and a pair of triangular panels. The second trapezoidal panel is separable from the sheet along the score lines of the sheet such that the score line define a generally trapezoidal cutout. The sheet is foldable along the first and second fold lines such that the triangular panels generally face one another.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to devices for shielding a user's eyes from ambient light and more particularly pertains to a new computer monitor visor for shielding a user's eyes from direct ambient light while viewing a video display device such as a computer video monitor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of devices for shielding a user's eyes from ambient light is known in the prior art. More specifically, devices for shielding a user's eyes from ambient light heretofore devised and utilized are known to consist basically of familiar, expected and obvious structural configurations, notwithstanding the myriad of designs encompassed by the crowded prior art which have been developed for the fulfillment of countless objectives and requirements.
Known prior art devices for shielding a user's eyes from ambient light include U.S. Pat. No. 5,121,253; U.S. Pat. No. 5,233,468; U.S. Pat. No. Des. 311,912; U.S. Pat. No. 4,863,242; U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,529; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,115,345.
While these devices fulfill their respective, particular objectives and requirements, the aforementioned patents do not disclose a new computer monitor visor. Typically, prior art devices are designed to block glare from light reflected on the screen of the monitor. These prior art devices do not provide any blocking of ambient light, such as sunlight through a window and light from fixtures, from shining directly into the eyes of a user sitting in front of the video monitor.
In these respects, the computer monitor visor according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of shielding a user's eyes from direct ambient light while viewing a video display device such as a computer video monitor.