A fiber-channel loop interface circuit that includes a dedicated transmit-frame buffer for loop initialization and responses (xe2x80x9cresponsesxe2x80x9d are non-data frames sent in response to commands or inquiries from other nodes). Having a dedicated transmit-frame buffer allows one port of a dual-port node to be transmitting initialization or response frames while another port is transmitting data frames, response frames, or initialization frames. Either or both ports can also be simultaneously receiving frames. The system includes a channel node having dual ports, each supporting a fiber-channel arbitrated-loop serial communications channel, and dedicated frame buffers within the channel node for loop initialization and responses. In some embodiments, the dedicated frame buffers are configured as on-chip buffers and include: two inbound non-data buffers coupled to the two ports, a data-frame buffer coupled to both ports, and an outbound transmit-frame buffer coupled to at least one of the ports. In addition, a method for loop initialization and responses using the dedicated buffer is described.

The present invention relates to the field of mass-storage devices. More particularly, this invention relates to an improved fibre-channel arbitrated-loop (xe2x80x9cFC-ALxe2x80x9d) apparatus and method having a dedicated frame buffer for loop initialization and responses.
One key component of any computer system is a device to store data. Computer systems have many different devices where data can be stored. One common place for storing massive amounts of data in a computer system is on a disc drive. The most basic parts of a disc drive are a disc that is rotated, an actuator that moves a transducer to various locations over the disc, and circuitry that is used to write and read data to and from the disc. The disc drive also includes circuitry for encoding data so that it can be successfully retrieved from and written to the disc surface. A microprocessor controls most of the operations of the disc drive, in addition to passing the data back to the requesting computer and taking data from a requesting computer for storing to the disc.
The interface for transferring data between the disc drive and the rest of the computer system is typically a bus or channel, such as the Small Computer Systems Interface (xe2x80x9cSCSIxe2x80x9d), or the Fiber Channel. Certain aspects of such interfaces are often standardized in order that various devices from different manufacturers can be interchanged and all can be connected to a common interface. Such standards are typically specified by some standards committee of an organization such as the American National Standards Institute (xe2x80x9cANSIxe2x80x9d).
One standardized interface for exchanging data between various storage devices and various computers is the fibre channel. In some embodiments, the fibre-channel standard includes arbitrated loops (described further below). In some embodiments, the fibre-channel standard supports a SCSI-like protocol for controlling data transfers.
Fiber channels represent significant advantages over Small Computer Standard Interface (xe2x80x9cSCSIxe2x80x9d) designs. Fiber channels provide significantly higher bandwidths, currently up to about 106 megabytes per second, compared to between two and twenty megabytes per second for traditional SCSI designs. Fiber channels provide greater connectivity in that up to one-hundred twenty-six devices (including the host) may be connected, as compared to a maximum of seven or fifteen devices in typical SCSI environments. The fibre channel can be attached with a single connector and does not require a switch. A fibre channel using coaxial electrical conductors operates at distances of up to thirty meters between devices, and up to ten kilometers using fibre optics for an entire channel, as compared to a maximum total length of up to twenty-five meters for SCSI environments. In SCSI environments, errors in data transmission are detected through use of parity, whereas in fibre channels, errors are identified by a running disparity and cyclic-redundancy-code check (xe2x80x9cCRC checkxe2x80x9d) information. More information can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,802,080 entitled xe2x80x9cCRC Checking Using a CRC Generator in a Multi-port Design,xe2x80x9d and U.S. Pat. No. 5,663,724 entitled xe2x80x9c16B/20B Encoder,xe2x80x9d both by the present inventor, Westby, and commonly assigned to the present assignee Seagate Technology, Inc., each of which is incorporated by reference.
The fibre-channel arbitrated loop (xe2x80x9cFC-ALxe2x80x9d) is an industry-standard system employing a byte-oriented DC-balanced (0,4) run-length-limited 8B/10B-partitioned block-transmission code scheme. The FC-AL operates at a clock frequency of 106.25 MHZ. One form of an 8B/10B encoder/decoder is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,486,739 granted Dec. 4, 1984 for xe2x80x9cByte Oriented DC Balanced (0,4) 8B/10B Partitioned Block Transmission Codexe2x80x9d by Franaszek et al., which is incorporated by reference.
A fibre-channel arbitrated loop (xe2x80x9cFC-ALxe2x80x9d) allows for multiple devices, each called xe2x80x9ca node,xe2x80x9d to be connected together. A node may be any device (a computer, workstation, printer, disc drive, scanner, etc.) of the computer system having an interface allowing it to be connected to a fibre-channel xe2x80x9ctopologyxe2x80x9d (defined just below). Each node has at least one port, called an NL port (xe2x80x9cnode-loop portxe2x80x9d) to provide access to other nodes. The components that connect two or more ports together are collectively called a xe2x80x9ctopologyxe2x80x9d or a xe2x80x9cloop.xe2x80x9d Each node communicates with all other nodes within the provided topology or loop.
Ports are the connections in a fibre-channel node, though which data may pass over the fibre channel to ports of other nodes (the outside world). A typical fibre-channel drive has two ports packaged within the drive""s node. Each port includes a pair of xe2x80x9cfibresxe2x80x9dxe2x80x94one to carry information into the port and one to carry information out of the port. Each xe2x80x9cfibrexe2x80x9d is a serial data connection, and, in one embodiment, each fibre is actually a coaxial wire (e.g., coaxial copper conductors, used when the nodes are in close proximity to one another); in other embodiments, a fibre is implemented as an optical fibre for at least some of its path (e.g., when nodes are separated by an appreciable distance, such as nodes in different cabinets or, especially, different buildings). The pair of fibres connected to each port (one carrying data into the port, the other carrying data out from the port) is called a xe2x80x9clinkxe2x80x9d and is part of each topology. Links carry information or signals packaged in xe2x80x9cframesxe2x80x9d between nodes. Each link can handle multiple types of frames (e.g., initialization, data, and control frames).
Since each fibre carries data in one direction only, nodes are connected to one another along a loop, wherein the nodes must arbitrate for control of the loop when they have data to transfer. xe2x80x9cArbitrationxe2x80x9d is the process of coordinating the nodes to determine which one has control of the loop. Fiber-channel arbitrated loops attach multiple nodes in the loop without hubs or switches. The node ports use arbitration operations to establish a point-to-point data-transfer circuit. FC-AL is a distributed topology where each port includes at least the minimum necessary function to establish the circuit. The arbitrated-loop topology is used to connect any number of nodes between two and one-hundred twenty-six (126) node ports.
In some embodiments, each node includes dual ports (each connected to a separate loop) which provide redundancy, so that if one loop fails, the other one can fulfill the loop duties. Dual ports also allow two hosts (e.g., two host computers) to share a single drive.
In typical first- and second-generation FC-AL drives, the two ports shared the frame-validation and frame-generation logic. This meant that if one port was receiving or transmitting a frame, the alternate port was effectively busy (since it could not simultaneously use the frame-validation and frame-generation logic), and the alternate port was thus forced to deny its host-bus adapter permission to send frames. Some host-bus adapters would continuously have to arbitrate and attempt to send a frame over and over until the primary port closed. Also, the drive was only able to transmit on one port at a time. In some cases, an outbound data transfer on a given port would have to be paused in order to send a response or perform loop initialization on the other (alternate) port.
CRC Background
Most data-transmission operations employ error checking by which an error code, based on the header and payload data of the transmission, is checked to verify the integrity of the received header and payload data. One such error-checking scheme employs cyclic-redundancy-code (xe2x80x9cCRCxe2x80x9d) information. A typical circuit employing CRC error checking will include a CRC checker to verify the integrity of received data words and a CRC generator to generate CRC information for digital words being transmitted. In multi-port designs, a CRC checker and a CRC generator must be available for each port to handle verification of each received digital word and to generate CRC information for each digital word being transmitted. In many applications, the circuit or loop-interface module transmits on only one port at a time. For example, a disc-drive subsystem communicating through a multi-port interface module to a computer network would prepare and transmit data through only a single port at any given time. However, the loop-interface module might attempt to receive data through plural ports at a given time.
One approach to reception of data through plural ports is to simply inhibit reception of data through other ports when one port is already receiving data. This approach allows common resources, such as the CRC checker or the frame-validation logic, to be shared among the several ports. The first port to receive data seizes use of the common resources to the exclusion of the other ports, and the other ports are inhibited from receiving data. Hence, incoming data cannot be received on the other ports and the other ports are limited to the function of data transmission. This approach resulted in the other ports receiving a xe2x80x9cbusyxe2x80x9d condition in response to requests to transmit data, and necessitated repeating the sequence to request transmission of data again and again, until the first port completed the operation it was performing and freed-up the common resource.
Loop Initialization Background
In plural loop networks, it is necessary to xe2x80x9cinitializexe2x80x9d a loop after an error condition is detected, as well as when a loop-interface module is connected into the channel, or when the fibre channel is powered up. Initialization is ordinarily accomplished by transmitting loop-initialization data onto the loop. However, if a loop-interface module connected to the loop is already receiving data through a port connected to another loop, that loop-interface module might not be able to receive the loop-initialization data. Normally, under such circumstances the data transfer is suspended, and loop initialization is allowed to proceed first. In other instances, the loop-initialization sequence will stall, and go into a continuous-retry mode until the other loop (of the dual-loop node) completes receiving data. Moreover, if the loop-interface modules can receive only on one loop at a time, the modules cannot receive data through another port while loop initialization is occurring on one channel.
Fiber links have received considerable attention in connection with transmission of data between various devices of a computer network. More particularly, fibre channels offer significant advantages over Small Computer System Interface (xe2x80x9cSCSIxe2x80x9d) buses in terms of higher bandwidth, greater connectability, greater ease of attachment of modules, greater transmission distance, and other factors. For example, a typical SCSI bus is able to handle up to fifteen (15) modules with a total distance of up to about 25 meters, whereas a fibre channel can handle up to one-hundred twenty-six (126) modules with a distance of about thirty meters between modules using electrical transmission, or up to ten kilometers using optical transmission. Thus, in order to achieve a data-transfer rate of, for example, a terrabyte/second peak, it would require up to seventy SCSI buses but would need only about ten fibre channels.
It is important that a channel be brought up to operation (i.e., xe2x80x9cinitializedxe2x80x9d) as early as possible to reduce the load of data traffic that would otherwise be imposed on other channels.
There is, therefore, a need for an arrangement to permit multi-port loop-interface modules to receive data and non-data frames on plural channels simultaneously, or to transmit frames on one channel while receiving data on another, or to transmit initialization and response frames on plural channels simultaneously. There is also a need for better and increased data-checking capability for data stored in on-chip buffers.
A method and dedicated frame buffer for loop initialization and responses. A fibre-channel loop interface circuit is described that includes a dedicated transmit-frame buffer for loop initialization and responses (xe2x80x9cresponsesxe2x80x9d are non-data frames sent in response to commands or inquiries from other nodes). Having such a dedicated transmit-frame buffer allows one port of a dual-port node to be transmitting initialization or response frames while another port is transmitting data frames, response frames, or initialization frames; and, in one embodiment, either or both ports can also be simultaneously receiving frames.
The present invention provides an improved communications channel system that includes a first channel node having dual ports, each port supporting a fibre-channel arbitrated-loop serial communications channel, and a dedicated frame buffer (which includes one or more specialized component frame buffers) within the first channel node for loop initialization and responses. In some embodiments, the dedicated frame buffer is configured as an on-chip buffer and includes: a first inbound non-data buffer coupled to a first port, a second inbound non-data buffer coupled to a second port, a data-frame buffer coupled to both the first port and the second port, and an outbound transmit-frame buffer coupled to at least one of the first and second ports.
Optionally, the system further includes a loop-initialization circuit that performs loop initialization substantially simultaneously on both the first port and the second port using data in the transmit-frame buffer. In some embodiments, the dedicated frame buffer includes a transmit-frame buffer having about eighty words (wherein, in this case, each xe2x80x9cwordxe2x80x9d is thirty-six bits widexe2x80x94thirty-two data bits and four parity bits). In another embodiment, the dedicated frame buffer includes a transmit-frame buffer coupled to at least one of the first and second ports for loop initialization and responses.
In some embodiments of the system, the transmit-frame buffer transmits loop initialization or responses on a first port, while substantially simultaneously a second port transmits data. In one such embodiment, the system further includes a loop-initialization circuit that performs loop initialization substantially simultaneously on both the first port and the second port using data in the transmit-frame buffer.
In some embodiments of the system, the dedicated frame buffer is configured as an on-chip buffer and includes a dedicated transmit-frame buffer coupled to at least one of the first and second ports for loop initialization and responses. In one such embodiment, the dedicated transmit-frame buffer is coupled to both ports and reserves about half of the buffer""s space for a first port and another half of the buffer""s space for a second port and the system further includes a loop-initialization circuit that performs loop initialization substantially simultaneously on both the first port and the second port using data in the transmit-frame buffer. Optionally, any of these embodiments of the system further includes a magnetic-disc-storage drive coupled to the first node, and a computer system connected to a second node (or, equivalently, a computer system having a second node), wherein the second node is coupled to the first node in a communications channel in order to transfer data between the first and second nodes. Another aspect of the present invention provides a method that includes supporting a fibre-channel arbitrated-loop serial communications channel on each of two ports of a first channel node, and receiving frames in to, and transmitting frames out from, a dedicated frame buffer located in the first channel node.
In some embodiments of the method, the dedicated frame buffer includes a first inbound non-data buffer coupled to a first port, a second inbound non-data buffer coupled to a second port, a data-frame buffer coupled to both the first port and the second port, and a dedicated transmit-frame buffer. Some versions of the method provide performing loop initialization substantially simultaneously on both the first port and the second port using data in the dedicated transmit-frame buffer. Optionally, the dedicated frame buffer includes a transmit-frame buffer having about eighty words each being thirty-six bits wide (thirty-two data bits and four parity bits). Some embodiments provide for transmitting frames from the dedicated frame buffer that includes transmitting loop-initialization and response frames from a dedicated transmit-frame buffer coupled to at least one of the first and second ports for loop initialization and responses.
Other embodiments of the method also provide for receiving data substantially simultaneously on the second port while transmitting data on the first port.
In some embodiments of the method, the dedicated frame buffer is configured as an on-chip buffer and includes a dedicated transmit-frame buffer coupled to at least one of the first and second ports for loop initialization and responses. In one such embodiment, the dedicated transmit-frame buffer is coupled to both ports and reserves about half of the buffer""s space for a first port and another half of the buffer""s space for a second port and the method further includes performing loop initialization substantially simultaneously on both the first port and the second port using data in the transmit-frame buffer. In another such embodiment, the method further includes transferring data between a magnetic-disc-storage drive coupled to the first node and a computer system coupled to a second node (or, equivalently, a computer system having a second node), wherein the second node is coupled to the first node in a communications channel in order to transfer data between the first and second nodes.
Thus, the present invention provides a significant performance enhancement by allowing transmission of loop-initialization frames and/or response frames from a dedicated transmit buffer that is operable to transmit on either or both outbound fibres of a dual-port fibre-channel interface node. In some embodiments, such transmission is performed even while the node is simultaneously receiving a data frame on one of the inbound fibres and/or receiving a non-data frame on one or both of the inbound fibres. That is, transmitting on one fibre of a port is optionally performed simultaneously with receiving on the other fibre of the same port.

Method and dedicated frame buffer for loop initialization and responses


An electronic musical instrument such as a synthesizer includes a preset memory for storing, as preset data, a plurality of sets of parameters such as tone colors, tone volumes, pitches, special effects, and the like of tones to be generated. A designated parameter value in the preset data is increased/decreased to edit the preset data. When an edit mode is released, the edited preset data is automatically saved in a recall data memory. When a "comparison" state is set during an edit operation, the preset data which is being edited is saved in the recall data memory, and preset data before editing or another preset data is set as tone generation data. When a "recall" operation is performed, data in the recall data memory is read out as the latest preset data for tone generation. The edit operation is performed while confirming generated tones by alternately executing the "comparison" and "recall" operations.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a parameter setting apparatus for an electronic musical instrument, wherein the apparatus sets various parameters for controlling tones generated by the electronic musical instrument.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In general, tone colors, tone volumes, pitches, effects, and the like of tones generated by an electronic musical instrument such as a synthesizer are controlled according to set parameters. When the parameters are set, a parameter setting apparatus is used.
A conventional parameter setting apparatus has a preset memory which stores a plurality of kinds (a plurality of sets) of preset data, each including a set of parameter data associated with various parameters for controlling a tone. When a user selects a specific kind of preset data from the plurality of kinds of preset data, the apparatus reads out the selected preset data from the preset memory, and sets it in a work memory. Parameter data constituting the preset data set in the work memory are supplied to a tone generator. The tone generator forms tone data on the basis of the supplied data, and sends the tone data to a tone production unit including a loudspeaker.
Meanwhile, a parameter setting apparatus of this type has a data edit function capable of changing a content of preset data according to a user's taste.
When data is edited using this function, a user operates an operation member for selecting preset data to call proper preset data in the work memory. When the user designates a kind and value of a parameter to be changed upon operation of the operation member, corresponding parameter data in the preset data in the work memory is rewritten accordingly. Thus, the user can obtain a tone having a desired tone color, effect, and the like.
The edited parameter data on the work memory can be simultaneously stored as preset data in the preset memory, as needed.
In the above-mentioned conventional parameter setting apparatus, parameter data which is edited using the data edit function is set in the work memory. New preset data is selected from the preset memory, and is called in the work memory. In this case, the content of the work memory is rewritten with the called preset data. For this reason, when the user wants to use the currently edited data again after he or she selects new preset data, he or she must temporarily store the edited data in the preset memory.
However, the user often erroneously selects new preset data without storing the edited data in the preset memory due to an operation error of the operation member or when he or she forgets to do so. Then, the edited data are undesirably rewritten with the new preset data, and the edited data can no longer be used. In this case, the user must perform an operation for reproducing the edited data again, and the reproduction operation is not easy, resulting in inconvenience.
An apparatus which can eliminate such a drawback, disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 59-126595 is known. This apparatus has a backup memory for storing parameter data in addition to the work memory. The backup memory is rewritten to always have the same content as that of the work memory. Even when edited data in the work memory is erroneously rewritten with other preset data, the content of the backup memory can be called in the work memory. Thus, the edited data can be easily recalled.
However, according to this apparatus, every time parameter data in the preset data in the work memory are changed, the content of the backup memory must be rewritten, resulting in a long data change processing time. When the number of parameters to be set is increased, the number of processing operations for rewriting the content of the backup memory upon operation of operation members is increased, and the volume of processing to be executed by a data processor (CPU) is increased accordingly. For this reason, an expensive data processor (CPU) having high processing performance must be used, and its execution program is complicated.
In a data edit mode, it is preferable to edit data while comparing tones produced based on the edited data, and preset data before editing or another data stored in the preset memory. In this case, in the conventional apparatus, the edited data set in the work memory must be temporarily stored in the preset memory, and then, preset data to be compared must be read out from the preset memory into the work memory. For this reason, an operation for designating a storage area in the preset memory for storing the edited data in the work memory, and instructing to store the edited data in the designated storage area, and an operation for selecting preset data to be compared, and reading it out in the work memory are required. This results in troublesome operations of the operation members, and it is difficult to quickly and easily compare data. In order to solve this problem, when a data comparison is instructed upon operation of the operation member, the edited data in the work memory can be automatically stored in a special-purpose memory. However, this operation requires another memory.

Electronic musical instrument with a parameter storage for tone generation including an enhanced edit function


A desired reagent is delivered to a workpiece undergoing a chemical mechanical polishing process with a chemical mechanical planarization apparatus. A slurry and polishing pad are provided for the polishing process. Reagent containing microcapsules are also provided, the microcapsules encapsulating a desired reagent. The workpiece is polished with a combination of the slurry, the polishing pad, and the microcapsules, wherein the encapsulated reagents are controllably released during the polishing step via manipulation of a polishing parameter. In one embodiment, the microcapsules are included in the slurry. In an alternate embodiment, the microcapsules are embedded within the polishing pad.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to chemical mechanical planarization or polishing tools and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for chemical mechanical polishing of a semiconductor wafer with a polishing pad having controlled release of desired micro-encapsulated polishing agents.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
In semiconductor device manufacturing of very large scale integrated (VLSI) circuits, extremely small electronic devices are formed in separate dies on a thin, flat semiconductor wafer. In general, various materials which are either conductive, insulating, or semiconducting are utilized in the fabrication of integrated circuitry on semiconductor wafers. These materials are patterned, doped with impurities, or deposited in layers by various processes to form integrated circuits. VLSI integrated circuits include patterned metal layers which are generally covered with dielectric materials, such as oxide, followed by a subsequent metalization, etc. The semiconductor wafers thus contain metalization layers and interlevel dielectrics.
Increasing circuitry miniaturization and a corresponding increase in density has resulted in a high degree of varying topography being created on an outer wafer surface during fabrication. It is often necessary to planarize a wafer surface having varying topography to provide a substantially flat planar surface. One such planarization process known in the art is chemical-mechanical polishing (CMP).
Chemical mechanical polishing or planarization has been widely used in the semiconductor industry for smoothing, polishing or planarizing coating or layers on the surface of semiconductor wafers. This process has been used to achieve the planarization, the controlled reduction in thickness, or even the complete removal of such layers which may include, for example, an oxide on the surface of the semiconductor wafer. Apparatus for such chemical mechanical polishing process is well known and used in the semiconductor industry and is currently commercially available.
Briefly, the chemical mechanical polishing process requires that a workpiece be held, with a desired coated surface face down, on a polishing pad supported on a rotating table, in the presence of an abrasive slurry. A chemical mechanical polishing machine can include a single rotating polishing plate and a smaller diameter rotating wafer carrier to which a wafer (or wafers) is (are) mounted. The wafer carrier is held above the polishing plate, either in a stationary fixed position or oscillating back and forth in a predetermined path in a horizontal plane, while both polishing plate and wafer carrier are rotated about their respective center axes. A slurry, consisting of an abrasive suspension with or without an etching reagent, is fed onto the polishing plate during polishing of the wafer. The slurry, also referred to as a carrier liquid, can be selected to include an etchant for the coating being planarized and for not substantially attacking other materials involved in the process. The slurry is further fed between the polishing plates to polish and flush away the material removed from the semiconductor wafer.
One problem with CMP is that it is difficult to deliver certain fluid media agents to the surface of a substrate during chemical-mechanical polishing. In a typical CMP apparatus, the substrate surface being polished is in intimate contact with an abrasive cloth, also referred to as the polishing "pad", under pressure, and while immersed in an abrasive chemical medium, referred to as the "slurry". In addition, the abrasive cloth and wafer are both in motion. The problem is how to deliver special fluid phase agents to the substrate surface being polished, under these conditions. In many cases, the desired agents are also not compatible with the slurry environment and cannot co-exist in any pH slurry medium. This difficulty may be extended to include such other agents as: reactive chemicals, polar or non-polar fluids, immiscible fluids, or other agents which would not maintain their desired properties or are incompatible if dispersed in a slurry, but which are desirable agents in the polishing process.
Furthermore, in semiconductor wafer polishing, the delivery of fluid polishing agents to the wafer surface is impeded by the juxtaposition of wafer and polishing pad surfaces so as to exclude all but a thin hydrodynamic layer of fluid. As the applied mechanical polishing forces are increased, the polishing rate initially increases, then begins to decline due to the increasing difficulty of delivering reactive polishing fluids to the wafer surface.
It would thus be desirable to provide a method and apparatus for delivering certain fluid media agents to the surface of a substrate during chemical-mechanical polishing.

Polishing pad with controlled release of desired micro-encapsulated polishing agents

International Business Machines Corporation


An ink jet recording material is disclosed comprising a support and at least one binder containing ink-receiving layer, further containing a light-stabilizing compound according to following general formula (I):A-L-R  (I)wherein,

In the majority of applications printing proceeds by pressure contact of an ink-laden printing form with an ink-receiving material which is usually plain paper. The most frequently used impact printing technique is known as lithographic printing based on the selective acceptance of oleophilic ink on a suitable receptor.
In recent times however so-called non-impact printing systems have replaced classical pressure-contact printing to some extent for specific applications. A survey is given e.g. in the book "Principles of Non Impact Printing" by Jerome L. Johnson (1986), Palatino Press, Irvine, Calif. 92715, USA.
Among non-impact printing techniques ink jet printing has become a popular technique because of its simplicity, convenience and low cost. Especially in those instances where a limited edition of the printed matter is needed ink jet printing has become a technology of choice. A recent survey on progress and trends in ink jet printing technology is given by Hue P. Le in Journal of Imaging Science and Technology Vol. 42 (1), January/February 1998.
In ink jet printing tiny drops of ink fluid are projected directly onto an ink receptor surface without physical contact between the printing device and the receptor. The printing device stores the printing data electronically and controls a mechanism for ejecting the drops image-wise. Printing is accomplished by moving the print head across the paper or vice versa. Early patents on ink jet printers include U.S. Pat. No. 3,739,393, U.S. Pat. No. 3,805,273 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,891,121.
The jetting of the ink droplets can be performed in several different ways. In a first type of process a continuous droplet stream is created by applying a pressure wave pattern. This process is known as continuous ink jet printing. In a first embodiment the droplet stream is divided into droplets that are electrostatically charged, deflected and recollected, and into droplets that remain uncharged, continue their way undeflected, and form the image. Alternatively, the charged deflected stream forms the image and the uncharged undeflected jet is recollected. In this variant of continuous ink jet printing several jets are deflected to a different degree and thus record the image (multideflection system).
According to a second process the ink droplets can be created "on demand" ("DOD" or "drop on demand" method) whereby the printing device ejects the droplets only when they are used in imaging on a receiver thereby avoiding the complexity of drop charging, deflection hardware, and ink recollection. In drop-on-demand the ink droplet can be formed by means of a pressure wave created by a mechanical motion of a piezoelectric transducer (so-called "piezo method"), or by means of discrete thermal pushes (so-called "bubble jet" method, or "thermal jet" method).
Ink compositions for ink jet typically include following ingredients: dyes or pigments, water and/or organic solvents, humectants such as glycols, detergents, thickeners, polymeric binders, preservatives, etc. It will be readily understood that the optimal composition of such an ink is dependent on the ink jetting method used and on the nature of the substrate to be printed. The ink compositions can be roughly divided in:
water based; the drying mechanism involves absorption, penetration and evaporation;
oil based; the drying involves absorption and penetration;
solvent based; the drying mechanism involves primarely evaporation;
hot melt or phase change: the ink vehicle is liquid at the ejection temperature but solid at room temperature; drying is replaced by solidification;
UV-curable; drying is replaced by polymerization.
WO 01/020078 discloses a compound of any of formulas I to X, or IA to XA

U.S. Pat. No. 6,232,469 discloses 4-acylamino-2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-piperidine derivatives represented by formula (A′):
wherein R1 represents a hydrogen atom, a hydroxyl group, an oxyradical group, an aliphatic group, an acyl group, an aliphatic oxy group or an acyloxy group; and R2′ represents an alkyl group or an alkenyl group having 3 to 7 carbon atoms and 2 to 6 hydroxyl groups, said alkyl or alkenyl group being unsubstituted or substituted with an alkyl group. U.S. Pat. No. 6,232,469 further discloses an antioxidant composition for color diffusion transfer photographic materials or ink-jet dyes comprising the 4-acylamino-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine derivatives represented by formula (A):
wherein R1 represents a hydrogen atom, a hydroxyl group, an oxyradical group, an aliphatic group, an acyl group, an aliphatic oxy group or an acyloxy group; and R2 represents an alkyl group or an alkenyl group having 3 to 7 carbon atoms and 2 to 6 hydroxyl groups.
JP 61-146591 discloses an ink-jet recording medium that form a recording image using aqueous ink that contains a water-soluble dye, characterized in that the recording medium contains a hindered amine type compound, in particular a molecule represented by formula (I):
wherein R5 is a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group of C1 to C8, a benzyl group, an allyl group or an acetyl group and preferably a hydrogen atom or a methyl group; R1, R2, R3 and R4 are lower alkyl groups, carbonyl groups etc. and preferably methyl groups and/or ethyl groups. JP 61-146591 further discloses that if n=1, A is —NH2, —OH, ═CH2, ═O, —R, —OR, —OCO—R, —NHCH2CH2CH2OCH3, —NHCSSH, phenyl, —CH═CH2, (here R is an alkyl group),
etc.; and if n=2 A is —O—C(═O)—(CH2)m—C(═O)—O— (m is 1 to 14),
—NH(CH2)3NH—,

It is known that the ink-receiving layers in ink-jet recording elements must meet different stringent requirements:
the ink-receiving layer should have a high ink absorbing capacity, so that the dots will not flow out and will not be expanded more than is necessary to obtain a high optical density;
the ink-receiving layer should have a high ink absorbing speed (short ink drying time) so that the ink droplets will not feather if smeared immediately after applying;
the ink dots that are applied to the ink-receiving layer should be substantially round in shape and smooth at their peripheries. The dot diameter must be constant and accurately controlled;
the receiving layer must be readily wetted so that there is no "puddling", i.e. coalescence of adjacent ink dots, and an earlier absorbed ink drop should not show any "bleeding", i.e. overlap with neighbouring or later placed dots;
transparent ink-jet recording elements must have a low haze-value and be excellent in transmittance properties;
after being printed the image must have a good resistance regarding water-fastness, light-fastness, and good endurance under severe conditions of temperature and humidity;
the ink jet recording element may not show any curl or sticky behaviour if stacked before or after being printed;
the ink jet recording element must be able to move smoothly through different types of printers;
All these properties are often in a relation of trade-off. It is difficult to satisfy them all at the same time.
A particular problem is the stability of the color densities of the finished color ink jet image when exposed to light for a longer period ("light-fastness"). As well-known by those skilled in the art, the light fading of colorants is mainly due to an oxidative decomposition of the colorant catalyzed by light, in particular by the UV spectral part. Therefore, there is a permanent need of more effective compounds, which stabilize the colorants of the ink jet image against fading by light.

Abstract: A is represented by following formula:

Abstract: the symbols of which are defined in the claims and description. The finished ink jet image shows an improved light-fastness.


Disclosed is an electronic device including a display configured to display an image, a sensing unit configured to sense biometric information of a user, and a controller configured to analyze the image to acquire image information and configured to provide user information based on the acquired image information and the sensed biometric information.

With the development of information communication technology and semiconductor technology, various types of electronic devices have been evolving into multimedia devices that provide various multimedia services. For example, electronic devices provide various multimedia services such as a messenger service, a broadcasting service, a wireless Internet service, a camera service, and a music playback service.
Recently, in order to protect the privacy of users' various types of information stored in electronic devices and prevent a third party from indiscriminately using the information, a fingerprint recognition function and a biometric authentication function are provided to the users. The biometric authentication function denotes a method of authenticating users using their biometric information.
In addition, an image recognition function is provided to electronic devices. The image recognition denotes a method of recognizing an image from a photograph, finding an object in the photograph, and automatically converting the object into searchable data.

Electronic device and method for providing user information


A compressor includes front and rear cylinder blocks, a drive shaft rotatably supported by the cylinder blocks, a swash plate mounted on the drive shaft, a plurality of cylinder bores defined in the cylinder blocks and located around the drive shaft, and a plurality of pistons respectively disposed in the cylinder bores. The pistons reciprocate by converting rotation of the drive shaft with the swash plate. A plurality of compression chambers are defined in the cylinder bores for compressing the gas supplied to the cylinder bores in accordance with the reciprocating movement of the pistons. Each compression chamber has dead volume defined by a space having a predetermined volume when the associated piston is at top dead center in each cylinder bore. A reference capacity is defined by the capacity when the piston is at a bottom dead center of the cylinder bore that has the smallest dead volume. The largest dead volume is greater than the minimum dead volume by approximately four percent of the reference capacity.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to reciprocating piston type compressors such as those employing swash plates, and more particularly, to reciprocating piston type compressors that enable reduction of vibration and noise.
2. Description of the Related Art
Piston type compressors are generally mounted on vehicles to air-condition passenger compartments. A typical piston type compressor has a crank chamber, which is defined in a housing, and a drive shaft, which is supported in the crank chamber. The drive shaft is connected to a vehicle engine by a clutch. A plurality of cylinder bores extend parallel to and about the drive shaft in a cylinder block, which constitutes part of the housing. A piston is accommodated for reciprocation in each cylinder bore. A compression chamber is defined in each cylinder bore by the piston. A swash plate is fixed to the drive shaft and rotates integrally with the shaft. Rotation of the swash plate is converted to linear reciprocation of each piston. The reciprocation of each piston compresses the refrigerant gas in each compression chamber.
The compressing motion of each piston causes a compression reaction to act on the piston. The compression reaction is transmitted to the drive shaft through the swash plate and causes fluctuation of the drive shaft torque. The torque fluctuation produces torsional vibration between the drive shaft and the clutch. This generates vibrations and noise. When analyzing the sum of the torque fluctuations, that is, the sum of each compression reaction produced in the compression chambers, using a fast Fourier transform (FFT), it is apparent that the torque fluctuation occurs cyclically. It is also apparent that the torque fluctation includes a wide variety of frequency components ranging from zero cycles to a large number of cycles. Among the frequency components, the main component is the n cycle component, which corresponds to the number (n) of the cylinder bores. The n cycle component corresponds to the vibration component that occurs cyclically n number of times during a single rotation of the drive shaft. For example, a ten cycle component corresponds to the vibration component that takes place cyclically ten times during a single rotation of the drive shaft. When the frequency of the n cycle component is close to the vibration frequency of the compressor and its peripheral equipment, resonance phenomena produces noise that may be transmitted to the passenger compartment.
Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Publication No. 1-160180 describes a variable displacement compressor employing a wobble type swash plate. The compressor is provided with five cylinder bores. The distances between adjacent cylinder bores are not equal. Furthermore, the dead volume (the volume of the compression chamber when the piston is located at the top dead center) in the compression chamber of one of the cylinder bores differs from the dead volume in the other cylinder bores. The top end of one of the pistons is shortened for a predetermined length to increase its associated dead volume. This alters the volume and pressure of the compression chamber. The increase in the dead volume reduces the compression reaction produced in the compression chamber and enables the sum of the compression reactions acting on the swash plate to always be constant. Therefore, the swash plate rotates smoothly due to the decrease in the torque fluctuation of the drive shaft. As a result, the generation of torsional vibration and noise is decreased.
However, the compressor of the above publication merely changes the dead volume of one or more cylinder bores to decrease the torsional vibrations and noise of the compressor. In addition, the above publication does not teach how to further decrease the torque fluctuation of the drive shaft. Therefore, when applying the device of the publication to various types of compressors, the decrease in the torque fluctuation of the drive shaft may be insufficient. Thus, the generation of vibration and noise may not be adequately suppressed.

Multiple piston swash plate type of compressor including different dead volumes of the cylinder bores by the use of different length pistons

Kabushiki Kaisha Toyoda Jidoshokki Seisakusho


An unmanned aerial vehicle includes one or more magnetometers, configured to detect a magnetic field and to output magnetometer data corresponding to a magnitude of the detected magnetic field; a position sensor, configured to detect a position of the unmanned aerial vehicle relative to one or more reference points, and to output position sensor data representing the detected position; one or more processors, configured to control the unmanned aerial vehicle to rotate about its z-axis; receive magnetometer data comprising a plurality of z-axis directional measurements taken during the rotation about the z-axis; receive position sensor data and determine from at least the position sensor data a magnetic field inclination of the detected position; and determine a z-axis magnetometer correction value as a difference between the received magnetometer data for the z-axis and the determined magnetic field inclination.

UAVs are typically equipped with a compass, which plays a crucial role in UAV navigation. Compass calibration is necessary to maintain control and stability of the UAV during flight. Known methods of compass calibration generally involve a cumbersome process of manually rotating the UAV about a variety of axes.
UAVs may be utilized alone or in combination with other UAVs. For some purposes, UAVs may be deployed in large fleets. UAV light shows may be an example of a UAV task for which a large fleet is utilized. UAV light shows can utilize hundreds, or even thousands, of UAVs. Manual calibration methods are time-consuming and cumbersome, and they generally need to be individually performed on each member of the UAV fleet. This demands significant resources of time and labor. Moreover, it is often very difficult to identify within a fleet the specific UAVs that require calibration. Thus may result in the need for time-consuming, brute force calibration of the entire fleet.


A method of killing and removing bacteria, mold, mildew or fungus from a surface or keratin substrate includes contacting the surface with an aqueous solution containing a multi carboxylic alpha hydroxy acid, a mono carboxylic organic acid and optionally Aloe. The aqueous solution has a pH of less than 2. The method can also be used to deodorize fabrics, surfaces or stagnant water. The method can also be used to treat wounds and skin irritations.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to novel formulations that contain materials generally regarded as safe ("GRAS") useful for treating surfaces and as topical skin treatments. In particular, it relates to solutions that are spread on a surface to disinfect, sanitize and deodorize and on keratin substrates to aid in healing wounds and alleviating the symptoms of skin irritation caused by burns, insect and jelly fish bites, and plant irritants such as poison oak and poison ivy.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Low pH compositions and solutions containing acidic compositions are used for various industrial and general household purposes, such as cleaning and sterilizing surfaces and articles of manufacture. Examples include well-known household cleansers and disinfectants, industrial microchip production and cleaning agents, and anti-microbials. To work both effectively and efficiently, these solutions typically contain strong inorganic acids or organic solvents, which present health concerns to the user, may be corrosive to the substances they are designed to clean (e.g. metals) and pose an ecological hazard with respect to disposal.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,510,721 discloses solutions containing acidic compositions that have a pH of less than 1. The solution contains a first inorganic acid that dissociates nearly to completion in water, a second inorganic acid less strong than the first acid, a hydroxy acid having a chelating capability of at least twice the first and second acids; and a permanganate. The acidic compositions may be used in medical, industrial, military and household applications. Plants are constantly challenged by a wide variety of pathogentic organisms including viruses, bacteria, fungi, and menatodes. Attempts have been made to control plant disease by means of disinfections, replacement of the soil, various cultural practices, and control by chemicals. Some plants suffer from detrimental soil-spread diseases, which have not been possible to control owing to restrictions of use of chemical control agents and hazard periods due to possible residues or lack of sufficiently effective products.
About twenty-five (25) percent of all fungal diseases in agricultural and horticulture are caused by powdery mildew phytopathogens.
This problem is exacerbated once fruits and vegetables are picked, as the presence of fungus or mildew on the surface of the fruit or vegetable greatly shortens its shelf life, the time from when it is picked or harvested until it reaches the ultimate consumer.
Due to the vast economic ramifications of fungal propagation in agricultural and horticultural cultivations, a broad spectrum of fungicidal and fungistatic products have been developed for general and specific applications. Such examples are the use of inorganic bicarbonate, carbonate compounds, lecithin, and lime. However, these fungicidal and fungistatic products may be harmful to the environment and may pollute areas such as ground waters.
Further, growers are increasingly reluctant to use chemicals that may cause health problems if consumed by people and are constantly looking for safe materials to treat fruit and vegetables to extend their shelf life.
Thus, there is a need for a safe anti bacterial, mildew or fungal treatment which provides for an inexpensive way to kill and destroy microorganisms on surfaces without harming the environment.
Various treatments for skin irritation are known. For insect bites, such as mosquito bites, treatments such as Calamine lotion, have been used for many years. Cortisone treatment has also been used to treat numerous skin problems, including insect bites.
In addition to insects, there are numerous other sources of skin irritation. For example, numerous plants produce substances that have a toxic or irritating effect on skin. Poison Ivy, poison oak, poison sumac, etc. are only a few examples of many types of plants which have an injurious effect on human skin.
Insects and plants that attack people on land are only one source of skin irritation. There are also many waterborne hazards faced by humans. For individuals who swim in warmer coastal waters, sea lice represent a particularly disagreeable hazard. Sea lice is a commonly used colloquial expression which describes jelly fish larvae. Sea lice lodge themselves under the skin and result in unsightly welts and extremely irritated and sensitive skin. Treatment for sea lice is typically an agent designed to kill the cause of the irritation. The most common remedy being the use of chemicals such as ammonia to kill the offending organisms. While this will eventually resolve the problem, it does not provide any immediate relief to those being bitten by sea lice. Further, the use of ammonia exacerbates the stinging and burning sensation caused by the sea lice and actually increases user discomfort.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2002/0045600 discloses a topical treatment for skin irritation that uses a spray-on liquid or a rub-on lotion based papain skin treatment for relief of symptoms related to skin irritation. Papain is suspended in a water solution that is spread on the surface of the affected area. The liquid solution ensures that the active ingredient contacts the skin without missing spots as may occur when using dry or powdered skin treatments. The papain is an active ingredient extracted from papaya which relieves the skin irritation caused by sea lice, insect bites, etc.
A disadvantage associated with treatments that do not alleviate pain and discomfort is that they create a situation in which the individual scratches the affected area, which further irritates the skin, and prolongs the healing process.
While addressing the basic desirability of treating sea lice to ensure their elimination, the prior art has failed to provide a method of treating skin irritations caused by sea lice, insect bites, etc. and which results in immediate relief of the symptoms.
It would be desirable to have a way to treat skin irritations caused by a variety of environmental conditions, including those conditions caused by waterborne nuisances such as sea lice, and land borne nuisances such as mosquitos, insects, and plants with substances that irritate skin (for example, poison ivy), which would immediately alleviate the pain and discomfort rather than increase it as the prior art treatments such as ammonia have done.


A magnetic sensor includes a base material, a plurality of magnets provided at predetermined spacing on the base material, and a plurality of magnetic detection parts respectively provided close to the plurality of magnets. Each of the plurality of magnetic detection parts outputs a signal in accordance with change in the magnetic field accompanying deformation of the base material.

A portable information processing device that is called a convertible PC and that can be used in the two modes of a notebook PC mode and a tablet PC mode is known. A convertible PC in general includes a display-side housing on which a touch screen is positioned, a main-body-side housing having a keyboard and a touchpad, and a hinge movably connecting these. By rotating the display-side housing via the hinge roughly 360 degrees about the horizontal axis with respect to the main-body-side housing, notebook PC mode can be switched to tablet mode. When the switch is made to tablet mode from notebook PC mode, the placement surface of the keyboard and touchpad of the main-body-side housing are positioned on the back surface, so that the keyboard and touchpad are exposed to the outside. Consequently, in tablet mode, it is necessary to disable the functions of the keyboard and touchpad in order to prevent erroneous operation of the keyboard and touchpad. In order to enable the functions of the keyboard and touchpad when in notebook PC mode and disable the functions of the keyboard and touchpad when in tablet mode, it is necessary to accurately detect switching between notebook PC mode and tablet mode. Conventionally, a method that detects switching between the two modes using a magnet housed inside one of the display-side housing or the main-body-side housing and a magnetic sensor (magnetic switch) having a magnetic detection element housed inside the other has been used.
Development is progressing on various types of robots that can accomplish work that in the past has been done by workers in place of such workers, such as industrial robots having robot arms and/or the like, and such robots are being introduced at factories and the like that manufacture various types of products. By using various types of robots such as industrial robots that can be taught skills that workers cultivate over many years, stable manufacturing of products over the long term becomes possible. In order for this kind of robot to be taught workers' skills and accomplish work in place of such workers, it is desirable to precisely control the rotational movement and the like of the joints of a robot arm or the like about an axis. In order to precisely control the rotational movement and the like of such joints, conventionally, a magnetic sensor that can detect the rotational angle or the like accompanying such rotational movement has been used.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


The disclosed embodiments relate to a system and method for compensating for spoke light in a video unit (10). More specifically, there is provided a method comprising measuring a first light level during a non-spoke time of a color wheel (14) to generate a non-spoke light level; and setting a spoke light compensation value based on the measured non-spoke light level. There is also provided a video unit (10) comprising a light source (12) configured to generate a first light level during a non-spoke time of a color wheel (14), a photodiode assembly (26) configured to measure the first light level to generate a non-spoke light level, and a processor (20) configured to set a spoke light compensation value based on the non-spoke light level.

This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art, which may be related to various aspects of the present invention that are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
Digital Light Processing ("DLP") is a display technology that employs an optical semiconductor, known as a Digital Micromirror Device ("DMD") to project video onto a screen. DMDs typically contain an array of at least one million or more microscopic mirrors mounted on microscopic hinges. Each of these mirrors is associated with a point on the screen, known as a pixel. By varying the amount of light that is reflected off each of these mirrors, it is possible to project video onto the screen. Specifically, by electrically actuating each of these hinge-mounted microscopic mirrors, it is possible to either illuminate a point on the screen (i.e., "turn on" a particular micromirror) or to leave that particular point dark by reflecting the light somewhere else besides the screen (i.e., "turn off" the micromirror). Further, by varying the amount of time a particular micromirror is turned on, it is possible to create a variety of gray shades. For example, if a micromirror is turned on for longer than it is turned off, the pixel that is associated with that particular micromirror will have a light gray color; whereas if a particular micromirror is turned off more frequently than it is turned on, that particular pixel will have a darker gray color. In this manner, video can be created by turning each micromirror on or off several thousand times per second. Moreover, by sequentially shining red, green, and blue at the micromirrors instead of white light, it is possible to generate millions of shades or color instead of shades of gray.
As stated above, the shading of a particular pixel may be partially determined by the length of time that the micromirror corresponding to that pixel is either turned on or turned off. This shading can be quantified using a measurement referred to as the least significant bit ("LSB"). For example, DMDs are typically configured to display 256 shades from off (0 LSBs) to all on (256 LSBs) with each shade between 0 and 255 becoming successively brighter. It is possible to create a variety of different color shades by combining various LSBs of red light, green light, and blue light (i.e., primary colors of light). For example, one color shade may be formed from 30 LSBs of red light, 150 LSBs of green light, and 85 LSBs of blue light, another shade from 212 LSBs of red light, 156 LSBs of green light, and 194 LSBs of blue light, and so forth. Because the three colors of light are shined sequentially and rapidly, a viewer sees a single shade of light formed from the three different colors of light.
One technique for generating the sequential stream of colored light is with a color wheel. A color wheel typically includes six color filters arrayed red, green, blue, red, green, blue around the circumference of a wheel. By shining white light at the circumference of the color wheel and rotating the color wheel, it is possible to generate a sequential stream of red, green, and blue light. However, the colored light may become briefly inconsistent when the colored light transitions between primary colors. Due to this variance in color, the light generated during these transitions, which are referred to as spoke times may not be employed.
In certain circumstances, however, a technique known as spoke light recovery ("SLR") maybe employ to use light generated during spoke times. In particular, if the shade of the red light, green light, and blue light components of a pixel are each above a threshold LSB value (e.g., 150) the light generated during the spoke times can be employed. Although SLR can boost the light output for certain shades of light, this boost in light output can create a sudden increase in light output when a video display switches from a non-SLR shade to an SLR shade. Conventional SLR systems compensate for this boost in light output decreasing the non-spoke light by a fixed amount when SLR is employed. However, as light sources age, the amount of light that the light source generates may change, and a fixed compensation cannot adjust for these changes.
An improved method and system for spoke light compensation is desirable.

System and method for compensating for spoke light


A valve body main unit has a circular step surface facing a circular valve seat surface of a valve chamber formed on a terminal end part of a fuel supply path to a fuel tank and a circular groove with one groove wall extending from the circular step surface, and is normally urged in a direction of closing an inflow port surrounded by the circular valve seat surface. The valve body main unit also has an elastic seal body with a ring shape inserted into the circular groove of the valve body main unit. The elastic seal body has a circular fin-shaped part projecting from an outer perimeter part and pushed against the circular valve seat surface by the urging of the valve body main unit to close the valve.

The invention relates to a valve body used for a backflow prevention valve. The backflow prevention valve is provided at a terminal end part of a fuel supply path for delivering fuel into a fuel tank, and functions so that during delivery of fuel from the fuel supply path, a valve is opened by a flow pressure of the delivered fuel to allow the fuel to flow into the fuel tank, and during non-delivery of fuel, the valve is closed to block the fuel inside the fuel tank from flowing back into the fuel supply path.
As a backflow prevention valve for a filler pipe of a fuel tank, there is one disclosed in Patent Document 1. The prevention valve has a structure in which a seal member having a lip part seated in a valve seat part of a valve body is held between a main body member and a spring bearing member. There are several drawbacks in the prevention valve. First, the number of constituent parts is large and the assembly work takes time correspondingly. Second, depending on dimensional accuracy of the main body member and the spring bearing member, the seal member may deform in a wave shape, thereby making it difficult to properly position the lip part in the valve seat part. Third, it is necessary to pay attention to the seal quality between the seal member and the spring bearing member, in addition to the seal quality between the main body member and the seal member.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2000-16099
In view of the problems described above, an object of the present invention is to provide a valve body for a backflow prevention valve that can be constructed suitably with the minimum number of parts.
Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the flowing description of the invention.

Valve body for backflow prevention valve


An apparatus that contains inks and other substances of similar viscous within the usable area of a screen printing frames assembly. A structural assembly defining the enclosed area in which the ink is to be contained fits within the perimeter of the frame. Incorporated into the structural assembly is a resilient sealing edge which ensures that the ink is contained within the area defined by the apparatus. Furthermore, a substantially rigid retaining mechanism is incorporated into the apparatus for positive assurance that the position of the apparatus relative to the screen printing frame assembly is maintained constant. In a preferred embodiment, the retaining mechanism consists of a series of rigid retaining arms which are secured to the frame using threaded fasteners.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to screen printing apparatus. Specifically, to such apparatus which is used for containing inks and other substances of similar viscosity within the usable area of screen printing frame assemblies, and which utilize a substantially rigid retaining mechanism to secure the apparatus to the screen printing frame.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The screen printing process involves a number of essential set-up procedures. For example, setting up a simple one-color design would include the following:
1. Creating a stencil of the imprinted image on the screen,
2. Securing the screen to a printing press,
3. Registering the stencil in relation to the substrate being printed, and
4. "Taping-off" the interior perimeter of the frame.
To create the stencil, a screen is coated with a photosensitive emulsion and allowed to dry. Once the emulsion has dried, a film positive (reverse of film negative) of the image to be imprinted is placed in intimate contact with the screen, and exposed to light in the UV spectrum. The photosensitive emulsion under the open areas of the film positive cures while the emulsion under the darkened areas of the film positive does not. The uncured emulsion is then washed from the screen using water under high pressure and the screen is allowed to dry. The resulting pattern on the screen is a stencil of the image that will be printed. The screen printing frame assembly (frame and screen) is then attached to a printing press, and aligned such that the imprinted image is printed in the desired location and orientation on the underlying substrate. Following registration, the inside perimeter of the frame is "taped-off".
Taping-off the screen consists of applying pieces of tape around the inside perimeter of the frame. The purpose of applying the tape is to seal off the interface where the screen meets the frame preventing ink from flowing out of the usable area of the screen, and correspondingly into the gap between the frame and the screen. And, since the emulsion is typically coated 1/2" to 1" from the edge of the screen, taping-off the screen prevents ink from flowing through the screen at any open areas around the edge of the screen where emulsion was not coated.
Failure to tape-off screens or properly tape-off screens results in the following adverse condition arising.
1. Misprints due to ink passing through the screen at unintended locations. PA0 2. Excessive ink consumption due to ink flowing out of the usable area of the screen, and correspondingly into the gap between the screen and the frame. PA0 3. Excessive clean-up time since ink between the screen and the frame must be flushed out using solvents. PA0 1. High Flexibility-the screen stretches during printing PA0 2. Solvent Resistant-during printing, the adhesive and the backing are exposed to solvents in the ink PA0 3. High Tack Adhesive-the tapes must not release from the screen during potentially long print runs. PA0 4. Integral Construction-the adhesive must remain with the backing when removed from the screen. PA0 5. Inexpensive-the tape must be reasonably priced since a considerable amount of tape is used on each frame and thrown away after printing is completed. PA0 1. Hazardous to the environment because they are used as a disposable product but are not biodegradable or recyclable. Not only are the tapes not biodegradable or recyclable, but neither is the ink which is on the tape when it is removed from the screen and discarded. In actuality, the inks disposed of with these tapes pose a special concern because some of them contain hazardous chemicals, and if incinerated, can form other hazardous/toxic compounds. PA0 2. Costly due to depletion and the overhead associated with installing/removing the tape to/from the screen. When used disposably, even the most economically priced tapes contribute significantly to overhead. Equally critical is the overhead associated with installing and removing these tapes to/from the screens since the competitiveness of most printers is directly related to minimizing set-up time and maximizing run time. PA0 3. Difficult to handle during installation and messy to handle when removing from the screen. The high tack adhesive makes the tape difficult to handle during application since it tends to aggressively stick to anything it touches. And when it is removed from the screen after printing, the printer has to contend with not only the tacky adhesive, but also with the tape being covered with ink. PA0 4. Unsatisfactory performance over extended periods of exposure to solvent/inks. Regardless of the tape being used, over extended periods of time, the solvents in the inks will attack the adhesive on the tape and reduce their adhesion.
As the term "taping-off" implies, tapes exclusively are presently being used for this application. From the multitude of tapes that are currently available, only those displaying the following characteristics are generally used for this application.
In response to the above requirements, tapes have been developed specifically for this screen printing application. The majority of these tapes are improved versions of existing tapes which provide superior solvent resistance. Tapes termed "split linered" have been developed specifically for taping-off screen printing frames. These tapes get their name from having a removable liner on the adhesive side that has been die cut down the center of the tape width. Corresponding to the line where the liner is die cut, a crease is created in the tape backing thereby providing a fold line. The convenience of this tape is that it allows the printer to neatly and accurately affix the tape to the frame and the screen by removing one liner, positioning and affixing the tape to the screen, and then removing the other liner and affixing the other half of the tape to the frame.
While most printers use generic packaging tapes or solvent resistant tapes, use of split linered tapes is common by large volume printers since their print runs are longer, and they often have the occasion to print the same design several times before making a new stencil. As a result of the special nature of these split linered tapes, their cost is significantly higher than generic packaging tapes or solvent resistant tapes. Whereas a standard clear plastic packaging tape or solvent resistant tape cost approximately $3.00-$4.00 a roll, split linered tape can be as much as 4 times more for the same size roll.
Although printers are currently using a number of different types of tapes to tape-off their screens, perceiving them to be convenient because they are available through numerous sources and perform the task at hand, all tapes suffer from a number of disadvantages when used in this capacity:

Ink containment apparatus for screen printing frame assemblies


An automatic liquid soap supply device is formed of: a plurality of sub-units each having a use detection circuit for detecting the use of a liquid soap supply tap and a pump driving circuit connected with the use detection circuit, pumps each disposed to each of the sub-units, connected to each of the pump driving circuits for supplying a liquid soap to each of the supply taps and a main unit having a single power source circuit connected with each of the use detection circuits.

The present invention concerns an automatic liquid soap supply device for use in automatic supply of liquid soap to a plurality of water supply taps.
In a washing stand, for example, of a public lavatory, there are disposed a plurality of water discharging taps for supplying hand washing warmed water, as well as supply taps corresponding to the number of the water discharging taps for supplying liquid soap.
By the way, as a structure for supplying the liquid soap to each of the supply taps, an individual supply structure or a gravitational supply structure has been used generally. In the individual supply structure, reservoirs for storing liquid soap are disposed corresponding respectively to the supply taps and liquid soap is supplied from each of the reservoirs to each of the supply taps. However, in the individual supply structure, since the liquid soap has to be supplemented to each of the reservoirs, administration is complicated. In view of the above, in the gravitational structure, a single reservoir for storing a liquid soap is disposed above each of the supply taps, so that the liquid soap is distributed by weight of the soap in the reservoir to each of the supply taps. However, it is extremely difficult for a worker to supplement the liquid soap in each reservoir of this structure.
Then, a pressurized type automatic liquid soap supply device as shown in FIG. 7 has been proposed in view of the difficulty in the gravitational structure. The device comprises a single main reservoir 100 and a plurality of auxiliary reservoirs 104, 105 and 106 connected to the main reservoir 100 and corresponding to each of the supply taps 101, 102 and 103, in which each of the auxiliary reservoirs 104, 105 and 106 is connected by way of each of solenoid pumps 107, 108 and 109 to each of the supply taps 101, 102 and 103. Further, touch switches 110, 111 and 112 are disposed in the vicinity of the supply taps 101, 102 and 103 respectively and each of the touch switches 110, 111 and 112 is connected to each of the control circuits 113, 114 and 115, and each of the control circuits 113, 114 and 115 is connected with each of the solenoid pumps 107, 108, 109.
Each of the control circuits 113, 114 and 115 and each of the solenoid pumps 107, 108 and 109 are separately driven by a power source individually and when one (or plurality of them) is supplied with electric power, each of the solenoid pumps 107 (108, 109) is driven by each of the control circuits 113 (114, 115) upon contact of a user on the touch switch 110 (111, 112), so that the liquid soap in each of the auxiliary reservoirs 104 (105, 106) is supplied by each of the solenoid pumps 107 (108, 109) from each of the supply taps 101 (102, 103).
According to this device, since each of the auxiliary reservoirs 104, 105 and 106 is always connected with the main reservoir 100, it may suffice to supplement the liquid soap only to the inside of the main reservoir 100 and since there is no requirement to dispose the main reservoir 100 at a high place, the operation for supplementing the liquid soap is facilitated.
However, the existent automatic liquid soap supply device as described above involves the following various problems. That is, in this device, since each of the control circuits 113, 114 and 115 and each of the solenoid pumps 107, 108 and 109 disposed corresponding to each of the supply taps 101, 102 and 103 are separately driven by a power source individually, connection plugs 116, 117 and 118 have to be disposed by the number corresponding to that of the supply taps 101, 102 and 103 in a public lavatory. Accordingly, this makes electric work troublesome and makes it difficult to shorten the necessary time upon installation. In addition, warmed water from a discharge tap (not illustrated) used by a user often splashes from a washing stand 119, 120 or 121 and a great amount of water is used for cleaning. Accordingly, there may be a risk of electric leakage in the device of this structure. Further, in a cold district or highly humid district or season, the device of the above-mentioned structure also causes a great risk of electric leakage in the lavatory. Accordingly, in the device having the above-mentioned structure, leakage proof countermeasure has to be taken corresponding to each of the supply taps 101, 102 and 103. Moreover, in the existent device as described above, although the supplement for the liquid soap is simplified, since supply and stop of the power source to each of the control circuits 113, 114 and 115 and each of the solenoid pumps 107, 108 and 109 can be conducted only when the connection is made or released between each of the plugs 116, 117 and 118 and each of individual power sources, the operation efficiency, for example, upon cleaning is worsened.


Identification of an access point to which an access terminal is to be handed-off involves, in some aspects, identifying one access point of a set of access points that may have been detected by an access terminal. For example, an access terminal may receive a signal having an identified characteristic (e.g., a particular phase offset) from an access point. Each access point of a set of access points associated with the identified characteristic may be directed to attempt to decode a signal from the access terminal. The access point of the candidate set to use for the handoff operation may then be determined based on the signal received from the access terminal, if any, by each of the candidate access points.

1. Field
This application relates generally to wireless communication and more specifically, but not exclusively, to improving communication performance.
2. Introduction
Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication (e.g., voice, data, multimedia services, etc.) to multiple users. As the demand for high-rate and multimedia data services rapidly grows, there lies a challenge to implement efficient and robust communication systems with enhanced performance.
To supplement conventional mobile phone network base stations such as macro base stations, small-coverage base stations may be deployed (e.g., installed in a user's home) to provide more robust indoor wireless coverage for mobile units. Such small-coverage base stations are generally known as access point base stations, Home NodeBs, or femto cells. Typically, such small-coverage base stations are connected to the Internet and the mobile operator's network via a DSL router or a cable modem.
As a mobile unit moves throughout a given geographical area, the mobile unit may need to be handed-off from one of the base stations of the wireless communication system to another base station. In such a system, small-coverage base stations may be deployed in an ad-hoc manner. For example, small-coverage base stations may be deployed based on the individual decision of owners that install the base stations. Thus, in a given area there may be a relatively large number of these small-coverage base stations to which the mobile unit may be handed-off. Consequently, there is a need for effective handoff methods in a wireless communication system employing a large number of base stations.

Identification of target node for wireless handoff


In order to suppress power consumption, in a parking lock control device of a vehicle of the present invention, when a parking lock activation command is outputted, either one of right or left parking lock mechanism is activated. When it is estimated or detected that the vehicle moves in a state in which only the one parking lock mechanism is activated, the other parking lock mechanism is activated.

A related art of a Patent Document 1 has disclosed a configuration in which, in a vehicle having a motor for each wheel, a parking lock mechanism is provided at each wheel, and when a parking lock request is outputted, by activating the parking lock mechanism of each wheel, the wheel is locked.
However, in a case where a plurality of parking lock mechanisms are activated, there arises a problem that increases power consumption.

Parking lock control device for vehicle and control method


A manipulator for supporting and displacing an object comprises a base. A moving portion supports the object. Two articulated mechanisms each having five rotational joints between links, with each articulated mechanism being connected to the base by two of the rotational joints. The moving portion is connected to both the articulated mechanisms by moving-portion joints. The articulated mechanisms and moving-portion joints are arranged with respect to each other between the base and the moving portion so as to constrain movement of the moving portion to displacements in two translational degrees of freedom and two rotational degrees of freedom with respect to the base. Four actuators are each operatively connected to a different one of the rotational joints between the base and the articulated mechanisms so as to selectively control the displacements of the moving portion in any one of the four degrees of freedom of the moving portion.

1. Field of the Application
The present application relates to robotic manipulators and, more particularly, to such manipulators constructed to control the movement of an end-effector with at least two translational and two rotational degrees of freedom, and composed of articulated arms connecting the end-effector to a base.
2. Background Art
Various designs of robotic manipulators exist for controlling the movement of an end-effector with six or fewer degrees of freedom (DOFs). Among these designs, so-called parallel manipulators are becoming increasingly popular.
In a parallel manipulator, an end-effector (i.e., moving portion, output portion) is connected to a base through at least two articulated arms. Often, the joint of each articulated arm that connects directly to the base is actuated. Thus, the actuators of a parallel manipulator are usually fixed to the base, and this reduces significantly the weight of the moving parts of the parallel manipulator and allows higher accelerations at the end-effector.
One of the less-discussed advantages of parallel manipulators is the versatility of their designs. There exists an optimal design for every particular motion pattern. There are parallel wrists for applications that require orienting an object. There are parallel manipulators for applications that require positioning with one orientational (i.e., rotational) and three translational DOFs, and so on. There are also parallel manipulators for applications that require a specific workspace volume (for example, an unlimited rotation about an axis or large displacements along a given axis, etc.). Often, these parallel manipulators comprise five-bar mechanisms.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,047,610, issued Apr. 11, 2000 to Stocco et al., entitled "Hybrid Serial/Parallel Manipulator," discloses a manipulator having three translational and two rotational DOFs. It consists of two five-bar mechanisms (each actuated by two motors) that pivot about the axes of their base bars. The two five-bar mechanisms are connected to the end-effector through universal joints. It basically registers the position and orientation of a handle, but not the rotation about the handle's axis. This manipulator is redundantly actuated, which inevitably increases the complexity of the control system and, most importantly, the manufacturing cost of the whole unit.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,116,844, issued Sep. 12, 2002 to Hayward, entitled "Mechanisms for Orienting and Placing Articles," discloses a parallel manipulator having one translational and three rotational DOFs. The parallel manipulator has two five-bar mechanisms (each actuated by two motors) that pivot passively about the axes of their base bars and are connected to a T-shaped end-effector whose extremity runs through a universal-cylindrical joint assembly. In this manipulator, none of the motors is fixed to the base.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,595, issued Oct. 7, 1997 to Hui et al., entitled "Four Degree-of-Freedom Manipulator," discloses a parallel manipulator composed of two five-bar mechanisms moving in parallel planes, whose extremities are connected through a serial triple-revolute-joint chain. A body attached at the middle revolute joint of this chain would therefore have one rotational and three translational DOFs. In this manipulator, an end-effector such as a handle (as in a haptic device) or a suction cup (as in a material-handling robot) cannot be easily attached at the middle revolute joint of the triple-revolute-joint chain. Furthermore, this manipulator has a lock-up singularity when the axes of the extremity joints of both five-bar mechanisms coincide.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,339,969, issued Jan. 22, 2002 to Salcudean et al., entitled "Three-Degree-of-Freedom Parallel Planar Manipulator," discloses a parallel manipulator having three DOFs in a plane. The manipulator is composed of two five-bar mechanisms moving in parallel planes, whose extremities are connected through a link of constant length. This manipulator registers the position and orientation of a handle moving in a plane. This manipulator is redundantly actuated, which inevitably increases the complexity of the control system and, most importantly, the manufacturing cost of the whole unit.
International Publication No. WO 2006106165, published Oct. 12, 2006, by Nabat et al., entitled "Unlimited-Rotation Parallel Robot with Four Degrees of Freedom," discloses a parallel manipulator having one orientational and three translational DOFs. The manipulator is composed of two five-bar mechanisms moving in parallel planes, whose extremities are connected through two articulated links, one of which passes through one of the extremities via a cylindrical joint. In this manipulator, the cylindrical joint is subject to lateral forces which increase the friction forces. Indeed, the inventors have eventually constructed a different version of their manipulator, replacing one of the five-bar mechanisms with a more complex mechanical system.
Japanese Publication No. JP2005066723, published Mar. 17, 2005, by Okamoto and Sakaguchi, entitled "Parallel Robot with Four Degrees of Freedom," discloses a parallel manipulator having two translational and two rotational degrees of freedom. The manipulator is composed of two five-bar mechanisms actuated with linear motors and moving in parallel planes, whose extremities have hollow spherical joints through which a tool holder passes. This manipulator uses linear actuators, which make the manipulator more cumbersome. Furthermore, hollow spherical joints are difficult to manufacture and increase the cost of the manipulator.
The publication "A Two Degrees-of-freedom Planar Haptic Interface with High Kinematic Isotropy," by Frisoli et al. [Proceedings of 1999 IEEE International Workshop on Robot and Human Interaction, Pisa, Italy] presents a parallel manipulator having two translational and two orientational DOFs. The translational DOFs are active, while the rotational DOFs are passive. The manipulator is composed of a single five-bar mechanism. An unactuated so-called remote-center-of-rotation mechanism is mounted on the extremity of the five-bar mechanism and holds a pen-shaped end-effector. The manipulator is used as a haptic pen that can measure and control the motion on a paper plane while measuring the pressure of the pen exerted by the user along the pen axis. A haptic pen is suitable for applications such as teaching drawing or handwriting, or for rehabilitation. In this particular device, the orientation of the pen is not controllable.
Of all the dozens of parallel manipulator designs, very few are aimed at controlling the movement of an end-effector with two translational and two rotational degrees of freedom, as the invention disclosed in Japanese Publication No. J-P2005066723. Such parallel manipulators can be used as haptic devices, for example, to simulate the motion of a pen along a piece of paper, or they can be used as a subsystem of a five- or six-DOF manipulator. For example, the manipulator disclosed in Japanese Publication No. JP2005066723 can be mounted on a vertical axis and thus serve as a 5-axis machine tool.
The publication "Type Synthesis of 4-DOF Parallel Manipulators," by Qinchuan Li and Zhen Huang [Proceedings of 2003 IEEE International Conference on Robotics & Automation, Taipei, Taiwan], discloses two such 4-DOF parallel manipulators, one of which consists of four identical arms each composed of five revolute joints connected in series. While this manipulator is theoretically attractive, it is of relatively small practical interest, since its design is cumbersome and its proper functioning relies on strict manufacturing tolerances. Furthermore, the kinematics of such a manipulator are complex.


The invention prevents a connection failure arising from an ingress of a conductive material, such as a solder ball, into a cholesteric liquid crystal layer in a liquid crystal display device having the cholesteric liquid crystal layer on a substrate when an electronic component is mounted to be connected to a conductor arranged on the substrate having the cholesteric liquid crystal layer thereon. A liquid crystal display device includes a liquid crystal cell having a liquid crystal layer between an upper substrate and a lower substrate bonded to each other with a sealing member interposed therebetween. First conductors are arranged on the inner surface of the lower substrate and second conductors are arranged on the inner surface of the upper substrate. A transflective layer containing a cholesteric liquid crystal layer is arranged between the lower substrate and the first conductors. Electronic components are mounted on the inner surface of the upper substrate outside the sealing member. The electronic components are electrically connected to the second conductors and are electrically connected to the first conductors through inter-substrate conductors.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display device and electronic apparatus. More particularly, the invention relates to a liquid crystal display device which reduces or prevents a connection failure due to the ingress of a conductive material, such as a solder ball, into a cholesteric liquid crystal layer when an electronic component is mounted to be connected to a conductor formed on a substrate having the cholesteric liquid crystal layer.
2. Description of Related Art
Reflective-type liquid crystal display devices can be applied in a variety of mobile electronic apparatus because they do not have a light source, such as a back-light, incorporated therein, and thus they consume less power. Reflective-type liquid crystal display devices take advantage of ambient light, such as natural light or illumination light, but are difficult to view under dark conditions. Liquid crystal display devices have been proposed which use ambient light under light conditions as in an ordinary reflective-type liquid crystal display device, while presenting a display via an internal light source under dark conditions. This type of liquid crystal display device employs a reflective and transmissive display method. Depending on the ambient light level, the device switches between a reflective mode and a transmissive mode. The device presents a distinct display under dark conditions while saving power. In this specification, this type of liquid crystal display device is referred to as a "transflective-type liquid crystal display device."
In one proposed transflective-type liquid crystal display device, a reflective layer, formed of a metal film such as aluminum or the like and having slits (apertures), to transmit light is arranged on the inner surface of a lower substrate (in this specification, one surface of the substrate facing the liquid crystal is referred to as an "inner surface", and the other surface of the substrate opposite from the inner surface is referred to as an "outer surface"), and the reflective layer functions as a transflective layer. In this liquid crystal display device, the use of the metal film arranged on the inner surface of the lower substrate controls the parallax of the display device due to the thickness of the lower substrate, and particularly, prevents color mixing if the structure using a color filter is adopted.
FIG. 8 illustrates a related art transflective liquid crystal display device having this type of transflective layer.
The liquid crystal display device 100 includes liquid crystal cells including a liquid crystal 103 encapsulated between a pair of transparent substrates 101 and 102. A reflective layer 104 and an insulator 106 are laminated on the lower substrate 101. Lower electrodes 108, which are electrically conductive transparent layers fabricated of indium tin oxide (hereinafter referred to ITO), are formed on the insulator 106. An alignment layer 107 is formed to cover the lower electrode 108. On the other hand, a color filter 109 having color layers of R (red), G (green), and B (blue) is formed on the upper substrate 102. A planarization layer 111 is laminated on the color filter 109. Upper electrodes 112, fabricated of electrically conductive transparent film such as ITO, are formed on the planarization layer 111. An alignment layer 113 is then deposited to cover the upper electrodes 112 from below.
The reflective layer 104 is fabricated of a metal having a high light reflectance such as aluminum, and has a slit 110 to transmit light for each pixel. Through the slit 110, the reflective layer 104 can function as a transflective layer (hereinafter, the reflective layer 104 is referred to as a "transflective layer"). Arranged on the outer surface of the upper substrate 102 are a forward diffuser 118, a retardation film 119, and an upper polarizer 114 in that order from the upper substrate 102. Arranged on the outer surface of the lower substrate 101 are a ¼-wave plate 115, and a lower polarizer 116 in that order from the lower substrate 101. A backlight 117 (an illumination device) is arranged beneath the lower polarizer 116 below the bottom surface of the lower substrate 101.
When the liquid crystal display device 100 shown in FIG. 8 is used in a reflective mode under light conditions, external light, such as sunlight or illumination light entering from above the upper substrate 102, is transmitted through the liquid crystal 103, is reflected from the surface of the transflective layer 104 on the lower substrate 101, is transmitted through the liquid crystal 103 again, and then exits toward the upper substrate 102. When the liquid crystal display device 100 is used in a transmissive mode under dark conditions, light emitted from the backlight 117 arranged below the lower substrate 101 is passed through the slit 110 of the reflective layer 104, is transmitted through the liquid crystal 103, and then exits toward the upper substrate 102. These light rays contribute to image displaying in each mode.
In the reflective-type liquid crystal display device, a metal film having a high light reflectance, such as aluminum or silver, has been used in the related art for the reflective layer. A dielectric mirror can be formed of dielectric thin films having different refractive indices alternately laminated, a reflective cholesteric plate formed of a cholesteric liquid crystal, or a reflective hologram plate using a hologram element is used for the reflective layer in the reflective-type liquid crystal display device. These reflective plates not only reflect light, but also have other functions.
In particular, the cholesteric liquid crystal exhibits a liquid crystal phase above a certain temperature (liquid crystal transition temperature), in which liquid crystal molecules take a helical structure configuration with a constant pitch. This structure has the property that the cholesteric liquid crystal selectively reflects light having a wavelength coinciding with the helical pitch thereof while transmitting light having other wavelengths. The helical pitch is controlled by the intensity of ultraviolet light or temperature at the curing of the liquid crystal. The color of reflected light is localized, and the cholesteric liquid crystal is thus used as a reflective color filter.
If a plurality of cholesteric liquid crystal layers reflecting light rays of different colors are laminated, the cholesteric liquid crystal functions as a reflective plate that reflects white light.

Liquid crystal display device and electronic apparatus having cholesteric liquid crystal reflective layer