A continuous automated process is provided for manufacturing a phosphor product having controlled particle size characteristics and enhanced luminescent performance characteristics for use in a luminescent display. A precursor host lattice solution, a precursor dopant solution and reagent solution are initially selected as the starting materials for the phosphor product and are mixed together to produce a liquid starting material mixture. The mixture is conveyed to a microwave reactor and heated therein in a first heating stage by subjecting the mixture to microwaves at a predetermined frequency for a time sufficient to convert the starting material mixture to a precursor complex. The precursor complex is conveyed to a fluidized bed reactor and heated therein in a second heating stage by a hot fluidizing gas for a time and at a temperature sufficient to convert the precursor complex to the phosphor product in particulate form. The instantaneous particle size characteristics of the phosphor product are determined and transmitted to an autofeedback controller that adjusts the microwave frequency and reactor residence time of the first heating stage in response to the particle size data, thereby automatically tailoring the specific particle size characteristics of the phosphor product to the requirements of the practitioner. The instantaneous photoluminescent characteristics of the phosphor product are also determined and transmitted to another autofeedback controller that adjusts the amount of the dopant precursor solution fed to the starting material mixture in response to the photoluminescent data, thereby automatically tailoring the specific photoluminescent characteristics of the phosphor product to the requirements of the practitioner. In an alternate embodiment the precursor complex is retained in the microwave reactor for the second heating stage, rather than performing the second heating stage in the fluidized bed reactor.

Luminescent materials, termed phosphors, have general utility in luminescent displays. A phenomenon common to all phosphors is their ability to emit photons that are visible to the human eye when the phosphors are excited to elevated energy levels. One excitation technique employed in many luminescent displays, including cathode ray tubes, vacuum fluorescent displays, and field emission displays, projects electrons through a vacuum onto a display screen from an electron-emitting cathode positioned proximal to the display screen. When the cathode is activated, electrons traveling from the cathode strike phosphors positioned on the display screen. The electrons are reflected, scattered or absorbed on contact with the display screen. The incident electrons transfer energy to the phosphors, thereby exciting the phosphors and advantageously causing them to emit visible light. By selectively exciting the phosphors in a given pattern, an image can be created on the display screen.
Other types of luminescent displays rely on substantially the same principle as described above to create images on the display screen, but excite the phosphors by alternate forms of energy, such as x-rays, gamma rays, and ultra-violet, to name a few. In any case, many luminescent displays, including cathode ray tubes, field emission displays and plasma displays, require high resolution display screens for optimum performance. It has been found that screen resolution is inter alia a function of the average phosphor particle size and the phosphor particle size distribution. In particular, it has been found that extremely fine grain phosphors having a relatively small average particle size and a narrow particle size distribution are a prerequisite for satisfactory high resolution display screens.
The conventional method for manufacturing phosphors is to mix the phosphor starting materials in dry particulate form and fire the resulting mixture in an oven or a kiln at a high temperature, transforming the starting materials to the desired phosphor composition. This method, however, produces large grain phosphors having a relatively large average particle size and a wide particle size distribution, characteristics that are unsatisfactory for high resolution display screen applications. Accordingly, the large grain phosphors produced in this manner are mechanically sized by milling, crushing and sieving, or other such means to obtain the desired fine grain phosphors. Unfortunately, mechanical sizing of the phosphor particles diminishes the luminescent efficiency of the resulting fine grain phosphors, correspondingly diminishing the luminance of display screens employing such phosphors. In addition, the resolution of such display screens is also often diminished since a high current density may be required to achieve the requisite luminance of the display screens.
As such, a need exists for extremely fine grain phosphors having satisfactory performance characteristics for use in high resolution display screen applications. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a process for manufacturing a phosphor that satisfies the performance demands of high resolution display screens. It is another object of the present invention to provide a process for manufacturing a phosphor that enables precise control of the particle size and luminescent characteristics of the resulting phosphor. More particularly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a process for manufacturing an extremely fine grain phosphor that does not require mechanical sizing of the phosphor product which would diminish the luminescent efficiency thereof. These objects and others are accomplished in accordance with the invention described hereafter.

Phosphor manufacturing process employing auto feedback to control product characteristics


A multifunctional favor animal box includes a box body, a cover and a carrying body. The box body has an opening on the end thereof. The cover covers the opening of the box body, a cylinder is extended from the inner side of the cover and is received within the box body and a holding portion is formed outside the cover. The carrying body is properly connected to the outer wall of the box body. The favor animal box of the present invention can be used as a shovel, a container, etc. for cleaning the dung of favor animal, which can be carried by the favor animal itself. The favor animal box has a beautiful outlook, and thus the user has no any uncomfortable feeling. Moreover, a board can be adhered on the concave portion of the box body for recording the address, name and other information about the favor animal. Therefore, by the present invention, a lost animal can be searched easily.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a multifunctional favor animal box, and especially to a favor animal box which can be hung on the neck of an animal for easily cleaning the dung of favor animal.
2. Description of the Prior Art
With the improvement of life, more and more peoples like to raise animals. However, the requirement about environment protection has become more strict than before. In general, people often carry papers, plastic bags and a shovel for cleaning the dung of animal. After the dung has been cleaned, those cleaning tools and dung are necessary carried to a proper place for being further processed. But it is very inconvenient to carry these cleaning tool and dung.

No. 21, Alley 9, Lane 27, Sec.5, Min Shen E. Rd.


A method for manufacturing a strained silicon wafer, having steps of a first step of preparing a single crystal silicon substrate, a second step of forming a graded SiGe layer on the substrate, the graded SiGe layer having a first Ge composition ratio increased stepwisely from 5 to 60% at atomic ratio, a third step of forming a SiGe constant composition layer on the graded SiGe layer, the SiGe constant composition layer having a Ge composition ratio substantially equal to the Ge composition ratio on a surface of the-graded SiGe layer and a fourth step of forming a strained Si layer on the SiGe constant composition layer. The second through fourth steps are performed under the reduced pressure atmosphere while the single crystal silicon substrate is rotated in a circumferential direction at a rate from 300 rpm to 1500 rpm.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a manufacturing method for a strained silicon wafer in which a SiGe layer and a strained Si layer are deposited on a silicon substrate.
2. Description of the Related Art
In these years, a strained silicon wafer in which a SiGe layer is epitaxially grown on a single crystal silicon substrate and a strained Si layer is epitaxially grown on the SiGe layer has been proposed. By using the strained Si layer as a channel area, the strained silicon wafer enables the carrier movement at double or more the speed as fast as using the normal bulk Si wafer.
Therefore, it has been noted that the strained silicon wafer is suitable for the fast MOSFET, MODFET, HEMT and the like.
In the strained silicon wafer having the above described SiGe layer, when the strained Si layer used as the channel area is epitaxially grown, it is required to grow the SiGe layer on the silicon substrate for serving as base material of the epitaxial growth of the strained Si layer.
However, due to a difference in a lattice constant between Si and SiGe, a misfit dislocation occurs when the SiGe layer is epitaxially grown on the silicon substrate. And a threading dislocation caused by the misfit dislocation reaches a surface of the silicon substrate at high density. The same dislocation continuously exists at high density up to the strained Si layer formed on the SiGe layer.
The dislocation in the strained Si layer causes a junction leakage current to be greatly increased when forming the device elements.
Moreover, there is a problem that due to threading dislocations and residual strain energy, an irregularity undulation so called a crosshatch occurs on the surface of the strained Si layer. Therefore, conventionally, various proposals have been made to reduce the threading dislocation density.
For example, in the Japanese Patent Examined Publication No. JP-B-2792785, a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device was disclosed in which a graded SiGe layer having the Ge component increased at a concentration gradient of about 25%/μm or less is epitaxially grown on the single crystal silicon substrate at 850° C. or higher, and then the strained Si layer is epitaxially grown on the graded SiGe layer, a thickness of the strained Si layer being desirably in a range from 100 to 1000 Å.
Also, in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. JP-A-2002-118254, a semiconductor wafer was described in which a step graded SiGe layer of SiGe layer having the Ge composition ratio progressively increased is formed on the silicon substrate. A relaxed SiGe constant composition layer and a strained Si layer having the constant Ge composition ratio are provided on the step graded SiGe layer. The threading dislocation density can be reduced by increasing the number of steps. Then, it is shown that the film thickness of the step graded SiGe layer is 1.5 μm, the film thickness of the relaxed SiGe constant composition layer is ranging from 0.7 to 0.8 μm, and the film thickness of the strained Si layer is ranging from 15 to 22 nm.
Also, in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. JP-A-2003-229360, a semiconductor substrate manufacturing method has been described. That is, after an SiGe layer having a Ge concentration of 22 atomic % or more is deposited on a silicon substrate until the thickness of the SiGe layer becomes about 100 to 500 nm, H+ ions are injected into the SiGe layer, the silicon substrate and the SiGe layer are thermally annealed so as to relax the SiGe layer, and the strained Si layer is deposited on the relaxation SiGe layer until the thickness of the strained Si layer becomes about 5 to 30 nm thick.
Also, in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. JP-A-2003-197544, a semiconductor substrate was disclosed in which the SiGe layer has a film thickness thinner than double of a critical film thickness. The critical film thickness is to cause a lattice relaxation by occurring dislocation due to increased film thickness. The second SiGe layer consists of an SiGe graded SiGe layer having the Ge composition ratio progressively increased toward the surface and an SiGe constant composition layer disposed on the graded SiGe layer with a Ge composition ratio on an upper face of the graded SiGe layer that are deposited alternately and with continuous Ge composition ratio in a state where a plurality of layer are deposited. The Ge composition ratio on a lower face of the second SiGe layer is lower than the maximal value in a layer of Ge composition ratio on the first SiGe layer. Whereby the given thickness of the strained Si layer is formed 20 nm, for example.
However, in the Japanese Patent Examined Publication, the threading dislocation density is in an order of 105 cm−2 in an example, and it is not suggested that the thickness of the strained Si layer has any influence in respect to the lower dislocation density.
Similarly, for the semiconductor substrate as disclosed in the Japanese Patent Unexamined Publications Nos. JP-A-2002-118254 and JP-A-2003-229360, the method for relaxing the SiGe layer to reduce the dislocation density was only disclosed, but the relationship between the thickness of the strained Si layer and the reduction in the threading dislocation density was not described.
Moreover, for the semiconductor substrate as disclosed in the Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. JP-A-2003-197544, the thickness of the strained Si layer was formed 20 nm as an illustration, but there was no description that its thickness had any influence on reduction in the threading dislocation density.
Thus, as a result of investigations taking notice of the relationship between the strained Si layer and the reduction in the threading dislocation density, the present inventor has found that the dislocation density is reduced in the predetermined thickness of the strained Si layer.

Manufacturing method for strained silicon wafer


A method of removing titanium nitride is described. The silicon nitride resides on a patterned substrate. The titanium nitride is removed with a gas-phase etch using plasma effluents formed in a remote plasma from a fluorine-containing precursor, a nitrogen-and-hydrogen-containing precursor and an oxygen-containing precursor. Plasma effluents within the remote plasma are flowed into a substrate processing region where the plasma effluents react with the titanium nitride.

Integrated circuits are made possible by processes which produce intricately patterned material layers on substrate surfaces. Producing patterned material on a substrate requires controlled methods for removal of exposed material. Chemical etching is used for a variety of purposes including transferring a pattern in photoresist into underlying layers, thinning layers or thinning lateral dimensions of features already present on the surface. Often it is desirable to have an etch process which etches one material faster than another helping e.g. a pattern transfer process proceed. Such an etch process is said to be selective of the first material relative to the second material. As a result of the diversity of materials, circuits and processes, etch processes have been developed with a selectivity towards a variety of materials.
Dry etch processes are often desirable for selectively removing material from semiconductor substrates. The desirability stems from the ability to gently remove material from miniature structures with minimal physical disturbance. Dry etch processes also allow the etch rate to be abruptly stopped by removing the gas phase reagents. Some dry-etch processes involve the exposure of a substrate to remote plasma by-products formed from one or more precursors to achieve high etch selectivity. The high selectivities achieved enable novel process sequences.
Methods are needed to enhance the etch selectivities of various materials and to broaden the suite of materials which the selective etch does not etch or etches very slowly.


Disclosed are laminates from multiple stacked plies of a uni-directional tape in which the tape formed from a plurality of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene gel spun, multi-filament yarns. The resultant laminate contains not more than five percent resin by weight. Related methods of making a laminate of this type are also disclosed.

Impact-resistant and penetration-resistant materials find uses in many applications such as sports equipment, safety garments, and personal body armor.
Various fiber-reinforced constructions are known for use in impact-resistant, ballistic-resistant and penetration-resistant articles such as helmets, panels, and vests. These articles display varying degrees of resistance to penetration by impact from projectiles or knives, and have varying degrees of effectiveness per unit of weight.
For example, a measure of the ballistic-resistance efficiency is the energy removed from a projectile per unit of the target's areal density. This is known as the Specific Energy Absorption, abbreviated as "SEA", and having units of Joules per kg/m2 or J-m2/kg. The SEA of a fibrous construction is known to generally increase with increasing strength, tensile modulus and energy-to-break of the constituent fibers. However, other factors, such as the shape of the fibrous reinforcement, may come into play. U.S. Pat. No. 4,623,574 presents a comparison between the ballistic effectiveness of a composite constructed with a ribbon-shaped reinforcement versus one using a multi-filament yarn: both of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene in an elastomeric matrix that substantially coated each of the individual fibers. The fiber had a higher tenacity than the ribbon: 30 grams/denier (g/d) (2.58 GPa) versus 23.6 g/d (2.03 GPa). Nevertheless, the SEA of the composite constructed with the ribbon was somewhat higher than the SEA of the composite constructed with the yarn.
One example of the preparation of UHMWPE melt-blown film is provided by Takashi Nakahara et al., "Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene Blown Film Process," ANTEC 2005, 178-181 (2005). Film made by this process was slit and drawn to make a high strength tape. The tenacity of the tape made from the stretched blown film was less than 20 g/d (1.72 GPa).
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,091,133; 5,578,373; 6,951,685; and 7,740,779 disclose polyethylene powder being compressed at an elevated temperature to bond the particles into a continuous sheet that is then further compressed and stretched. U.S. Pat. No. 5,091,133 describes a fiber made by this latter process having a tensile strength of 3.4 GPa. Polyethylene tapes so produced are commercially available under the trademark TENSYLON® by BAE Systems. The highest tenacity reported on the TENSYLON® web site is 19.5 g/d (tensile strength of 1.67 GPa).
An example describing the preparation of a UHMWPE composite made from Spectra® fiber is provided by Yachin Cohen et al., "A Novel Composite Based on Ultra-High-Molecular-Weight Polyethylene", Composites Science and Technology, 57, 1149-1154 (1997). Spectra® fibers under tension were treated with a solvent in order to swell the fiber surface and promote adhesion between fibers while forming a prepreg. The yarn prepreg was then wound on a plate to produce unidirectional layers which were then pressed and heated and the solvent removed to yield a composite sheet material containing UHMWPE fiber in a re-crystallized UHMWPE matrix formed from the previously dissolved fiber surfaces. The researchers state that the unique properties of UHMWPE make it a desirable candidate for a matrix material to be used with UHMWPE fibers; however, this had not been possible before the use of their solvent-based process for several reasons: (1) The difference in the melting temperatures of the oriented UHMWPE fibers and the un-oriented UHMWPE matrix is too small, (2) The extremely high melt viscosity of UHMWPE results in negligible melt flow in molding processes for formation of the composite materials, (3) The relatively poor adhesion of untreated UHMWPE fibers to UHMWPE matrix.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,135,804 describes high strength plaques made by heating and pressing unidirectionally aligned gel-spun polyethylene fibers without any solvent or resin treatment of the fibers before pressing. Example plaques were formed by winding fibers around a 3-inch square metal plate and then pressing the assembly for several minutes in a heated press. The hot-pressed UHMWPE plaques were substantially free of voids and essentially transparent.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,628,946 describes a homogeneous polymeric monolith made from thermoplastic polymer fibers which were first pressed into contact with each other at an elevated temperature adequate to selectively melt a portion of the polymer fibers and then pressed at a second higher pressure at the elevated temperature to further consolidate the material. An example of a monolithic sheet of dimensions 3 mm by 55 mm by 55 mm made from Spectra® fiber is given, in which a unidirectionally aligned bundle of the fibers was pressed in a mold at 152° C. for 10 minutes at a first pressure and 30 seconds at a higher pressure. It is stated that a DSC trace of the pressed sheet showed around 350 of a "second phase" formed by melting of the original fiber.

Laminates made from ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene tape


An optical fiber connector including a connector body, a connector case, and a latch spring. The connector body including an opening to receive an optical fiber, the opening having a first end and a second end, the optical fiber to enter the first end and to terminate proximate to the second end. The connector case is coupled to the connector body. The latch spring is coupled to the connector case.

1. Field
Embodiments of the invention relate to the field of optical systems and more specifically, but not exclusively, to an optical fiber connector.
2. Background Information
Many of today's electronic components are connected together by way of wire cables. Such cables include Universal Serial Bus (USB) cables, parallel printer cables, and Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) cables. Devices within a computer system are also connected using wired systems such as Integrated Drive Electronics (IDE) drive ribbon connectors. However, such electrical connections suffer from limitations in transmission speed and signal integrity.
Cables carrying optical signals on optical fiber are becoming more and more popular. Optical signals provide high-speed, superior signal quality, and minimal interference from outside electromagnetic energy. In today's systems, optical cables are often connected to components using glue or screw connectors.


A policy controlled bearer service for delivery of a service from an application function (to a mobile terminal is set up. A terminal identity of the mobile terminal may be used to bind to applicable policy information when setting up the bearer service. This obviates the need to transmit specific binding information to the mobile terminal during application layer signaling for the purpose of policy controlled bearer service set-up. The terminal identity is registered in a register of a policy decision function along with policy identifying information. When a bearer service activation request is received from the mobile terminal the request is mapped to applicable policy information by means of the terminal identity and the matching registration in the register of the policy decision function.

Communication networks for packet based communication of information in the form of data bits are well known to the person skilled in the art. The growing importance of mobile communication creates the demand to transfer data over wireless connections. The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is a collaboration agreement that brings together a number of telecommunications standards bodies and was established to produce globally applicable Technical Specifications and Technical Reports for a 3rd Generation Mobile System based on evolved GSM core networks and the radio access technologies that they support. This includes maintenance and development of the Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) Technical Specifications and Technical Reports including evolved radio access technologies (e.g. General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) and Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE)).
One of the issues that the 3GPP is currently working on is a framework for providing end-to-end Quality of Service for services involving GPRS networks as described in the technical specification 3GPP TS 23.207 V6.2.0 (2004-03). This technical specification describes the use of a Policy Control mechanism in order to control and authorize the use of network resources prior to set-up of a service.
In the future it is assumed that packet switched services undergo Policy Control by means of a Policy Decision Function (PDF). The PDF is a logical element that is used as a logical policy decision element and enables coordination between events in the application layer and resource management in the IP bearer layer.
Policy Control was developed since it is considered important that network managers and service providers can to monitor, control, and enforce the use of network resources and services based on "policies" derived from certain criteria such as the identity/authority level of users and applications, traffic bandwidth requirements, security considerations, time of day/week etc. Because there are varying circumstances in which various entities are entitled to use the services they request, there is a need for rules, need for enforcement methods of these rules, and a need for a "judge" to decide when they apply. Accordingly, three major components of a policy system include policy rules, which are typically stored in a policy database, policy enforcement, which may be implemented at Policy Enforcement Points (PEP), and Policy Decision Points. The IETF has standardized a protocol for information exchange between PEPs and Policy Decision Points under the term Common Open Policy Service (COPS). In general, a policy may be regarded as a collection of rules that result in one or more actions when specific conditions exist.
FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram that illustrates the different elements that are involved in the policy control mechanism developed by 3GPP. FIG. 1 illustrates an example where a service is set-up between a mobile User Equipment (UE) 1 and an Application Function (AF) of a service provider. The UE includes an AF Client 3 which communicates with the AF 2 by means of AF session signaling 4 in order to initiate an application session. The set-up of the session and activation of the service require set-up of a bearer service to carry the data packets of the session. The session may include one or a plurality of different IP flows with specific requirements for bearer resources. The AF session signaling 4 may include information on Quality of Service (QoS) requirements which are translated into bearer QoS parameters by a translation/mapping function 5 in the UE. In order to activate the bearer service the UE sends a request for activation of a PDP context with the bearer QoS parameters that are determined by the translation/mapping function to a GGSN 6. The communication between the UE and the GGSN is in this example handled by means of UMTS BS Managers 7, 8 in the UE and the GGSN respectively. In this example the GGSN functions as a PEP and is provided with an IP BS Manager 9 which is involved in QoS management. The GGSN 6 interacts with a PDF 10, via a Go interface 11, in order to execute policy control. The PDF 10 makes policy decisions based on policy set-up information obtained from the AF 2 via a Gq interface 12. More detailed information regarding the elements illustrated in FIG. 1 and their function can be found in the above mentioned technical specification TS 23.207 V6.2.0.
When 3GPP specified the policy control mechanism an authorization token was also introduced in order to establish a binding mechanism for mapping PDP contexts and IP flows to policy information. The authorization token is generated by the PDF for a particular AF session on request from the AF. The authorization token includes a fully qualified domain name of the PDF and is unique across all PDP contexts associated with an APN (Access Point Name). The AF sends the authorization token to the UE in the AF session signalling. The UE should then include the applicable authorization token in any request to activate or modify a PDP context. The authorization token will then be used in the GGSN and PDF to map to the correct policy information.
The plan to introduce the authorization token and the associated handling of it when implementing policy control in 3G systems has a number of disadvantages. One major disadvantage is that it requires modification of existing UEs in order to make them capable to handle authorization tokens. Another disadvantage is that the introduction of the authorization token requires new standardization for the RTSP (Real-Time Streaming Protocol), SIP (Session Initiation Protocol), and SDP (Session Description Protocol) and other protocols used in set-up and handling of application sessions.

Binding mechanism for quality of service management in a communication network


An ultrasonic diagnosis and treatment system having a thin tube which is capable of being inserted into a body cavity, and which has at its extreme end an observing ultrasonic vibrator for emitting ultrasonic waves for observation and a treating ultrasonic vibrator for emitting strong ultrasonic waves for treatment. Observation and treatment are performed by using ultrasonic wave. The system further includes a processing device for performing an operation other than the ultrasonic treatment at least on a region observed by using ultrasonic waves. A guide for enabling the processing device to reach the region observed by using ultrasonic waves is provided on the thin tube.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ultrasonic diagnosis and treatment system having an ultrasonic probe for making ultrasonic diagnosis and ultrasonic treatment with converged ultrasonic waves in a body cavity.
2. Description of the Related Art Statement
Various ultrasonic diagnosis apparatuses have been proposed which are generally arranged to display, as a visible ultrasonic tomographic image, information collected in a plurality of directions in a living body by repeatedly transmitting ultrasonic pulses from an ultrasonic vibrator to organic tissues of the living body, by receiving ultrasonic pulse echoes reflected by the organic tissue with the same ultrasonic vibrator or a different ultrasonic vibrator separately provided and by gradually shifting the directions in which the ultrasonic pulses are transmitted and received.
In general, such ultrasonic diagnosis apparatuses are of the type using extracorporeal ultrasonic probes. However, intracorporeal ultrasonic probes, such as an ultrasonic probe combined with an endoscope, a small-diameter ultrasonic probe and an in-coelom ultrasonic probe capable of being inserted into body cavities, have also been used widely.
On the other hand, various ultrasonic treatment apparatuses for making various treatments with converged ultrasonic waves, e.g., calculus crushing apparatuses and ultrasonic thermatologic apparatuses, have also been proposed. Among such treatment apparatuses using ultrasonic waves, ultrasonic high-temperature treatment apparatuses are known which treat a lesion in organic tissues such as cancerous cells by instantaneously cauterizing the same at a high temperature by strongly converged ultrasonic waves.
Ultrasonic high-temperature treatment apparatuses of this kind include one which converges ultrasonic waves to a target part from an extracorporeal applicator having a large-opening ultrasonic vibrator to obtain strong converged ultrasonic waves, and one incorporating a comparatively small ultrasonic vibrator and having an in-coelom ultrasonic probe inserted in the rectum to treat the prostate hypertrophied.
An ultrasonic treatment apparatus disclosed in the publication of PCT WO93/16641 is combined with a positioning means for positioning a deep treated part (a focal point to which treating ultrasonic waves are converged), e.g., an ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus for obtaining an ultrasonic tomographic image. If, as in such a case, a diagnosing ultrasonic vibrator for focal point positioning is incorporated in the above-described extracorporeal applicator or in-coelom ultrasonic probe for ultrasonic treatment, positioning of a treated part can easily be performed with an ultrasonic tomographic image, and a treatment with ultrasonic waves can be reliably made while making ultrasonic diagnosis.
The application of the above-described conventional ultrasonic high-temperature treatment apparatus, particularly those having an in-coelom probe inserted in the rectum to treat the prostate is disadvantageously restricted and cannot be used by inserting the probe in lumina other than the rectum, because the probe is large in diameter and hard and because the end of the probe from which diagnosing and treating ultrasonic waves are radiated cannot be freely curved.
Thus, the conventional apparatuses for performing ultrasonic diagnosis and ultrasonic treatment can be applied only to restricted parts depending upon the construction of the ultrasonic probe having the ultrasonic vibrator for radiating diagnosing and treating ultrasonic waves, and they cannot be used to make in-coelom high-temperature treatment by inserting the probe into an upper or lower digestive tube, the thoracic cavity, the abdominal cavity, a cerebral ventricle or the like. The conventional apparatuses are also unsatisfactory in terms of treatment efficiency, because they only utilize ultrasonic wave energy by emitting treating ultrasonic waves.
Further, since the conventional apparatuses are arranged for inserting only a single ultrasonic probe unit into body cavities, they are not capable of detecting and monitoring various kinds of information on the position at which treating ultrasonic waves are converged or internal body portions in the vicinity of a treated part (the body temperature of the treated part, the intensity of ultrasonic waves at the treated part, etc.), so that it is difficult for an operator to make a treatment safely and reliably by grasping treatment situations.

Ultrasonic diagnosis and treatment system


A system for monitoring and controlling power demands in devices with DC power supplies. In response to a detected decline in voltage levels, the device reduces power demands of the device, in one or more stages before powering down entirely. This approach has application to battery powered devices, particularly fro medical applications such as cochlear implants.

Many devices are powered by electrochemical cells, particularly devices for medical use. Examples of such devices include hearing prostheses, neural stimulators, pacers, drug pumps and other devices. Increasingly, these devices use digital processing systems, rather than analog systems which were the standard prior art technique. One feature of digital systems is that the processor used will generally require a certain minimum voltage to operate effectively. If this is not present, the device will fail erratically. To avoid this, a system shutdown voltage level is generally used, at which level the device shuts itself down. This level is often set well above the actual minimum level, to avoid the possibility of error from a dubious power supply. In contrast, prior art analog systems generally fail gradually, with progressively less performance delivered as less voltage is available from the battery. Accordingly, the user has generally more warning of impending device failure.
To take the example of cochlear implants, modern speech processors are controlled by and process speech using a microprocessor. The speech processor also provides power to an induction loop, which via an inductive coupling supplies power and data to an implanted receiver stimulator unit. Although in principle any suitable battery could be used to provide power to such systems, the zinc-air cell is the preferred power source. Such cells are also commonly used for applications such as external hearing aids.
Zinc air cells have several practical advantages. They have a very high energy density, and so can supply a device's requirements for a relatively long period of time relative to their size and weight. They also have a relatively constant power output through most of their life, so that there is little risk of dangerous rapid discharge, for example by shorting. However, if they experience a heavy load, then it is common for the voltage to temporarily sag.
Conventionally, such devices have employed a battery monitor arrangement, whereby the voltage is monitored and if it falls below a certain level, the device is shut down. Such voltage levels are often set at a value which corresponds to a relatively high power demand, so as to prevent anomalous operation due to under voltage. As a result, if even a relatively new battery is subjected to adverse conditions, for example a period of heavy load, the cell voltage may fall below the pre-defined cut-off level and the processor will be shut down. In the field of Cochlear implants such an event is inconvenient and has potentially serious implications. After shut-down, the user must reset the speech processor by re-starting it, and hence the user is disconnected for a time from their hearing environment. Similar problems can arise with other battery powered digital systems, where short term conditions cause a temporary reduction in the voltage of the power supply.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved battery monitoring arrangement in order to improve the performance of battery powered devices.

Battery monitor and power demand adjuster


A power transmission apparatus for a vehicle may include a first input shaft selectively connected to an output side of an internal combustion engine through a first clutch, a second input shaft disposed at the first input shaft without any rotational interference and selectively connected to the output side of the internal combustion engine through a second clutch, a motor/generator performing a function of a motor and a generator, and a planetary gear set including first, second, and third rotation elements such that the first rotation element is directly connected with the motor/generator, the second rotation element is selectively connected with the second input shaft so as to be in synchronization with each other, and the third rotation element is directly connected with the first input shaft.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a power transmission apparatus for a vehicle. More particularly, the present invention relates to a power transmission apparatus for a vehicle which can improve power delivery efficiency through a fixed gear ratio mode and control to an optimal driving point through a variable gear ratio mode by applying a motor/generator and a planetary gear set for an electronic continuous variable transmission (E-CVT) to a double clutch transmission (DCT).
Description of Related Art
In a vehicle, environment-friendly technology is a key on which the survival of the future automobile industry may greatly depend, so vehicle manufacturers are devoting their efforts to the development of environment-friendly vehicles so as to meet required environmental and fuel efficiency regulations.
As such a future type of vehicle technology, there are, for example, an electric vehicle (EV) which uses electrical energy, a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV), and a double clutch transmission (DCT) which is configured to enhance efficiency and convenience.
In addition, vehicle manufacturers are trying to commercialize a predetermined technology such as an idle stop and go (ISG) device and a regenerative braking device, as a means for enhancing the efficiency of a driving force transfer system in an effort to enhance the performance of fuel efficiency while meeting exhaust gas regulations of each country.
The ISG device uses a technology for stopping the engine while the vehicle stops and for starting the engine when the vehicle starts. The regenerative braking device uses a technology for driving a generator which uses the kinetic energy of the vehicle instead of braking based on a conventional way of friction when braking and decelerating the vehicle, and for storing the generated electrical energy in a battery and then reusing such stored electrical energy.
In addition, the hybrid electric vehicle to which the transmission of the present invention may be applied is a vehicle which uses two or more power sources, and may be combined in various ways. The hybrid electric vehicle may be formed as a hybrid type of a gasoline engine or a diesel engine which uses existing fossil fuel and a motor/generator which is driven by electrical energy.
In addition, as a transmission which may be applied to such a hybrid electric vehicle, there is, for example, a double clutch transmission (DCT). The DCT is capable of increasing efficiency and improving convenience by applying two clutches to the manual transmission structure.
Specifically, the DCT is a transmission wherein gear shifting is performed in such a way that odd-numbered gears and even-numbered gears are alternately operated using two clutches. The mechanism wherein the gear shifting of the odd-numbered gears and the even-numbered gears is alternately performed may improve a torque disconnection effect during the gear shifting of the existing manual transmission (MT) and the automated manual transmission (AMT).
However, the DCT may have a lot of clutch damage and energy loss due to slipping of the clutch at the time of startup. When the vehicle starts on an incline, the vehicle may have a large backward force due to the slipping of the clutch, and thus problems may occur in terms of safety. Since it needs to make shifting quickly due to the heat capacity of the clutch, the impact during the gear shifting increases as compared with the automated transmission.
The information disclosed in this Background of the Invention section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.

Power transmission apparatus for vehicle


A low-temperature sintering temperature compensating microwave dielectric ceramic composition includes ZnTiO.sub.3 stoichiometrically combined with ZnO and TiO.sub.3, wherein Zn.sup.2+ of the ZnTiO.sub.3 is replaced with Mg.sup.2+ to produce (Zn.sub.1-X Mg.sub.X)TiO.sub.3 (X=0.02.about.0.5). The composite has a fine structure and improved dielectric property without a sintering agent.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a thermal compensating microwave dielectric ceramic composition, and more particularly a low-temperature sintering temperature compensating microwave dielectric ceramic composition which makes it possible to sinter at a low temperature ranging from 1050.degree. C. to 1250.degree. C., consisting of a composition of ZnTiO.sub.3 stoichiometrically combined with ZnO and TiO.sub.2 and (Zn.sub.1-X Mg.sub.X)TiO.sub.3 in which some of the ZnO of the ZnTiO.sub.3 is replaced with MgO.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Recently, communication equipments such as wireless telephone receivers and mobile phones, and electronic parts applied to transmitter/receivers for satellite communication are increasingly getting higher in frequency, smaller in size and lighter in weight. Accordingly, high frequency is being evolved from a conventional bulk type to a multilayer type which enables a surface mounting, and also to a composite module.
In electrical circuits, a ceramic dielectric is applied to a variety of objectives such as by-passing, coupling and filtering. Thermal compensating ceramic dielectric is mainly used to manufacture high frequency devices such as coupling circuits, filters and resonators.
Significant electrical properties applicable to the above objectives may include a high dielectric constant, a low dielectric loss, a high quality (Q) factor, a temperature coefficient of capacitance and/or resonant frequency, a high insulating resistance, a high mechanical strength, and a low thermal expansion coefficient.
What is more important in applying to a practical use properties such as timing and tuning respectively appropriate to a high frequency equipment may be a quality coefficient, a capacitance, and the stability of a resonant frequency. Further, in a tuning circuit, the resonant frequency requires a correspondence to or a compensation for environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, voltage and electric current.
A precise sintering having mechanical strength and dielectric property sufficient for serving as a device without an additional sintering agent is not obtained at a high sintering temperature ranging from 1300.degree. C. to 1600.degree. C. as shown in conventional high frequency dielectric compositions such as barium titanites: BaTi.sub.4 O.sub.9, Ba.sub.2 Ti.sub.4 O.sub.20 and Ba.sub.2 Ti.sub.5 O.sub.11, magnesium titanites:(Mg,Ca)TiO.sub.3, ZST:(Zn,Sn)TiO.sub.4, barium perovskites: Ba(Zn.sub.1/3 Nb.sub.2/3)O.sub.3, Ba(Zn.sub.1/3 Nb.sub.2/3)O.sub.3, Ba(Mg.sub.1/3 Nb.sub.2/3)O.sub.3 and Ba(Mg.sub.1/3 Ta.sub.2/3)O.sub.3, (Ca,Sr,Ba)ZrO.sub.3, and (Ca,Sr)(Li,Nb)Ti!O.sub.3.

Low-temperature sinterable temperature compensating microwave dielectric ceramic composition

Korea Institute of Science and Technology


An electric motor includes a stator assembly having an annular stator core with an inner diameter and an outer diameter. The inner diameter is formed with a plurality of winding slots extending from a first end of the stator core to a second end of the stator core. A plurality of windings are disposed within the winding slots beginning with a first slots. The windings are coupled into at least one winding group associated with at least a first phase, and each winding has a first winding end and a second winding end extending from the first end and the second end, respectively, of the stator core. At least one thermal fuse is disposed in thermal contact with the first winding end and substantially adjacent to the first winding portion.

Dynamoelectric machines, for example electric motors, find numerous uses as prime movers. One application is fuel delivery where electric motors are used to drive pumps for providing pressurized fuel to combustion engines. In some of these "electric" fuel pump applications, the pump assembly and the electric motor are disposed within the tank from which fuel is being pumped. This arrangement, in fact, is typical for fuel delivery pumps and fuel boost pumps found on jet aircraft.
When used in fuel delivery applications, care must be taken to ensure a failure of the motor does not cause an ignition of the fuel, principally fuel vapor, within the tank. While extreme care is exercised to prevent motor failures, some motor failures are inevitable. One failure mode is caused by the wearing out over time in service of the insulation materials separating the coils of the motor stator. Heat is generated within the motor during normal operation which over time can lead to the degradation of the insulation materials. Excessive heat, such as resulting from application of excessive amounts of current to the motor or from application of current to the motor with the rotor in a locked condition, accelerates the breakdown of the insulation materials. Poor wiring connections, such as between the coil windings and fuses and/or terminal leads may also lead to a motor failure. The high resistance of a poor wiring connection may create excess heat, which can degrade or burn away insulation materials or potentially melt the wire forming the connection. A common result of these failure modes is the formation of a short-circuit between one or more of the stator coils.
In multi-phase motors, for example three-phase motors, a failure resulting in a short-circuit between the coils of two separate phases may result in a voltage differential, line-to-line voltage, up to .sqroot.3 times the line voltage. In a failure resulting in a short-circuit between a coil and neutral, a voltage differential up to the line voltage may result. In either failure event, a great deal of energy is released from the windings often as an electrical arc or plasma discharge. Discharges having sufficient energy to perforate the metal walls of multiple housing members within which the pump assembly and electric motor are contained have been observed. Perforation of the walls of the motor housing where the motor is used in fuel delivery applications may have significant detrimental effects including the potential ignition of fuel vapor within the fuel tank.
A hazardous yet typical location for the failure of a fuel pump motor stator winding is the end turns region of the motor stator. If a sufficiently large "air gap" is provided between the outer diameter of the stator and more particularly an outer diameter of the end turns of the stator and the motor housing wall inner diameter, enough of the energy of the arc is dissipated within the air gap such that perforation of the housing wall is substantially avoided. Additionally, controlling the above-described failure modes to both limit the occurrence of failure and the energy associated with a failure reduces the likelihood that a failure resulting in the perforation of the motor housing will occur.
Unconvinced that present electric fuel pump motors sufficiently protect against housing wall perforation in the event of fuel pump motor failure, the Federal Aviation Administration has issued directives requiring that certain jet aircraft maintain a minimum fuel quantity within the tanks at all times during operation. The minimum fuel quantity ensures that the electric fuel pump assembly remains submerged within liquid fuel while the aircraft is in service. Should an arc be discharged from the fuel pump due to a motor failure while the fuel pump is submerged in liquid fuel, there is insufficient oxygen available within the liquid fuel to result in ignition. However, maintaining a minimum quantity of fuel within the tanks significantly limits the range of aircraft. In fact, some commercial passenger long-range, non-stop flights have been discontinued as a result of these directives. These flights now require a refueling stop-over that adds to both the time and cost of the flight.

Electric motor and a method for making an electric motor


A long pulse alexandrite laser hair removal system is disclosed using light pulses of greater than 1 msec and fluences between 10 and 50 J/cm.sup.2. The use of an alexandrite laser allows good penetration while still achieving an acceptable combination of hemoglobin and melanin absorption. The use an index-matching application on the skin sections to be treated is also described. This substance will be absorbed into the epidermal layer to provide better coupling of the laser light into the skin. Also, and most advantageously, it will reduce reflections at the epidermal-dermal junction, which can lead to the damage of the skin. Also a topical thermal or photochromic indicator is suggested since skin irradiation in the near-infrared generally does not produce any characteristic skin color change as is found when using pulsed dye lasers, for example.

Historically, there have been a number of options for the permanent removal of hair. Electrolysis has been the most commonly selected approach, in which an operator, usually an electrologist, attaches an electrode to each individual hair shaft, with the patient typically holding a second electrode. An electrical current is then passed through the hair shaft and the hair follicle through the papilla. This precisely directed current can induce permanent injury in the follicle and papilla, stopping the future production of the hair shaft.
Problems exist with the electrolysis technique, however. The success with which hair is permanently removed varies greatly from patient to patient. Moreover, the process is slow since each hair follicle must be individually treated, and there is some discomfort associated with the electric current.
The removal of hair using lasers is another approach that has found only limited success. Numerous techniques have been taught in the prior art. Each, however, suffers from drawbacks such as poor ultimate success in stopping hair growth even after multiple treatments, excessive injury to the tissue surrounding the hair follicles and papilla, and excessively large and expensive laser systems.
One approach relies on a pulsed laser source and the use of an exogenous absorber. A commercially available hair dye solution is first applied to the skin containing the unwanted hair and allowed to migrate along the hair shafts and into the follicles. The skin is then irradiated with a spot size of approximately 0.5 centimeters using a Q-switched YAG laser, or other short pulsed laser system. The pulse durations used by the lasers tend to be short, 15 nsec for the Q-switched laser. It appears that the sub-microsecond pulse durations shocks the hair follicle, which stops hair production, but only for a limited time. After months, the follicle again begins to produce hair, requiring further treatments or other techniques to yield any lasting success.
Other approaches have been proposed that rely on flashlamps, instead of lasers. This has the advantage of a less expensive, reasonably portable light source, but flashlamps create their own control problems. It is difficult to deliver light from the flashlamp to the skin, so that it must be placed in proximity to the skin. The reflectors that surround the flashlamp and collect the light and direct it to the skin must be precisely built and calibrated. Any error can cause hot spots in the spatial energy distribution. This can lead to under-treatment in some areas and burning in others. Moreover, the bandwidth of the light from these flashlamps is broad, usually including the visible and stretching into the longer infrared wavelengths. These longer wavelengths are well absorbed by water that occupies the skin. Thus, the light from these sources tends to penetrate very poorly, which leads to higher fluence levels to sufficiently treat deeper-lying hair producing structures with the concomitant risk of burning or damaging the skin.
Still other approaches use laser light delivery systems that inject light into only a single hair follicle at a time. These have the advantage of a reduced concern for damaging tissue between hair follicles but have many of the same disadvantages associated with the electrolysis. That is, each individual hair and hair follicle must be separately treated.
Long pulse ruby lasers have recently been used in hair removal. The high energy ruby lasers, however, are generally large, inefficient types of laser light generators, when very long pulses are generated.

Alexandrite laser system for hair removal and method therefor


The concepts and technologies disclosed herein are directed to a website verification service. A system can receive, from a web server that hosts a website, a query for a set of authentication credentials (“credentials”) to be used to verify that the website is trustworthy. The system can generate and provide the credentials to the web server. The web server can, in turn, provide the credentials to a web browser device for presentation to a user via a web browser application executing on the web browser device. The system also can provide the credentials to a verifier device. The verifier device can present the credentials to the user via a verifier application executing on the verifier device. The user can compare the credentials presented via the web browser application to the credentials presented via the verifier application executing on the verifier device to determine whether the website can be trusted.

In recent years, the frequency and sophistication of cyber-attacks have increased significantly. Denial-of-service ("DoS"), distributed denial-of-service ("DDoS"), man-in-the-middle, phishing, eavesdropping, and password attacks, among others, target businesses and individuals alike. This is due, in part, to the ubiquitous nature of Internet use for many aspects of our daily routines, including email and other text-based communications, social networking, finance, online commerce, and the like. Users typically access websites they think are trustworthy and freely provide their authentication credentials to "log-in" and may therefore unknowingly access a website that is under attack.
Most cyber security mechanisms are user-focused. In other words, a user is required to provide authentication credentials, such as a username and password, but the website that requests authentication credentials from the user is not required to provide its own authentication credentials to verify its authenticity to the user. Many websites rely on a certificate authority to verify that a website actually belongs to a specific entity. However, sophisticated cyber-attacks can spoof valid certificates or may utilize other attack mechanisms to circumvent or otherwise compromise the security provided by a certificate authority.


A jump starter device can include sensors to measure data of a vehicle coupled to the jump starter device. The jump starter device can include a controller configured to process the load data to determine the status of the load, such as the conditions of the vehicle connected to the jump starter.

The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for jump-starting a vehicle or for replacing a battery in the vehicle.
Battery problems in vehicle operations are a big issue in everyday maintenance or operating a vehicle, such as having a depleted, discharged, or dead battery. An early approach includes using a pair of electrical connector cables to connect a battery of an operating vehicle to the battery of the non-operation vehicle. This method requires the presence of another working vehicle, which can be unavailable at the time of need. A recent approach includes using a portable car jump starter device which includes a battery to be connected to the battery of the non-operation vehicle through a pair of cables.
The current jump starters have common problem of not able to automatically detect whether the connection with the non-operation vehicle is a suitable connection, e.g., not to damage the jump starters or the vehicle itself, such as having shortage cables, battery or vehicle circuit.
Accordingly, there exists a need for further improvements in vehicle jump start devices.


A loud speaker element including a frame which supports a planar diaphragm, an electric conductor in the form of a coil or grid being secured to the diaphragm, and magnetic field generating means being provided to generate magnetic fields which intersect the conductor. The element is characterized in that the diaphragm is made of lightweight, woven cloth having open mesh. The conductor is secured to a first region of the diaphragm. The open mesh at the first region is closed by means such as lacquer or stencil film. The second region of the diaphragm surrounds the first region. The frame covers the second region and acts as a baffle to prevent signal cancellation at lower frequencies.

Planar diaphragm loudspeakers have been in use for over twenty years but have never achieved the same popularity as cone-type speakers, due primarily to their cost and to their size and different performance characteristics.
Numerous examples of such speakers may be found in the patent literature, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,674,946 Winey, U.S. Pat. No. 3,919,499 Winey, U.S. Pat. No. 3,829,623 Willis et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,468,530 Torgeson and U.S. Pat. No. 4,471,172 Winey. The last mentioned patent illustrates the structure of a typical planar diaphragm speaker, which comprises a polyester film diaphragm, a current carrying conductor adhered to the diaphragm, spaced bar magnets for generating a magnetic field which intersects the conductor, with the conductor typically being positioned in alignment with the gaps between the bar magnets. When an exciting current passes through the conductor, the diaphragm will be vibrated by the reactive forces generated by the interfering magnetic fields surrounding the conductor and between the adjacent bar magnets.
Most existing planar diaphragm speakers in commercial production utilize polyester film, such as Mylar (registered trade mark) having a thickness of the order of 0.01 mm to 0.1 mm. The present applicant believes that the quality of sound produced by speakers constructed in this way is to a certain extent colored by the use of polyester film or similar materials. Furthermore, the use of such materials results in manufacturing difficulties, such as the ease with which the film may be properly tensioned and the care with which the film must be handled during manufacture.


The system described herein is a unified approach to three-dimensional filtering for the reduction of video noise. The technique is based on weight averaging pixels of the filter's output value in a three-dimensional neighborhood, in space and time, of the filter's output value. The weights can be computed for individual factors, such as distance, regional differences, etc., or can be combined into a weight that is indicative of all individual weights.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to video and image processing. In particular, the system described herein is designed to reduce additive noise in video sequences using three-dimensional non-linear filtering.
2. Description of the Related Technology
In the past decade applications of digital video have increased dramatically. These applications range from the use of digital video for cinemagraphic archiving, medical imaging, video storage and playback on DVDs. In addition, digital video also forms the basis for more efficiently transmitting television, via cable, over the air, and over the Internet.
The last application is especially important. It is based on video compression, a set of algorithms that are based on digital video. The algorithms achieve higher compression ratios than what would be capable through analog techniques, thereby reducing the bandwidth required for transmission of video. Where formerly a cable channel's bandwidth would support the transmission of a single analog video channel, with digital compression cable operators could operate at various points on the resolution/bandwidth trade off curve, allowing 12 video channels of average quality or 7-8 channels of superior quality to be transmitted in a bandwidth that formerly carried one analog channel of video. Video compression has also made HDTV possible: without it the bandwidth required for transmission could not be supported within the present allocations for bandwidth. Digital video is fundamental to the transmission of video using the Internet's packetized techniques. It allows the use of buffers to eliminate variations in a packet's time of arrival, and the application of even more powerful compression algorithms that further reduce the usage by the video signal of the channel's capacity (which in the Internet is shared by other users).
The pervasive use of digital video has spawned increased interest and demand for noise filtering algorithms. Noise reduction can be critical to overall system operation, since the presence of noise in video not only degrades its visual quality but affects subsequent signal processing tasks as well. Noise especially is deleterious to digital video that will be compressed and decompressed. The effect is inherent in compression algorithms. These algorithms are designed to recreate a sequence of images that will be perceived by the eye as being virtually identical to the images created from the uncompressed data. Since they do not reject noise, the compression algorithms treat it as signal, and attempt to create data that represents components of noise that will be most visible to the eye. Worse yet, in most instances the output of the video compression unit is limited in data rate to match it to the rated capacity of the channel through which the data is transmitted. When noise captures some of bits that are outputted by the video compressor, fewer bits are left to represent the real signal. Therefore noise reduction—the elimination, as far as possible, of noise contaminating the video—is a desirable adjunct to video compression.
Noise is a catch-all term for an unwanted signal that is interfering with the signal that is desired. It is noticeably present in television receivers situated in areas with having marginal signal conditions for receiving a conventional amplitude modulated vestigial sideband television signal. This noise is commonly modeled as being additive, white and Gaussian. In the case of analog video delivered by satellite, the video signal is frequency modulated onto a carrier. The baseband signal delivered by the ground receiver is accompanied by noise that is additive and Gaussian when the receiver is operating above threshold (i.e., when the vector representing the noise in signal space is usually much smaller than the vector representing the modulated signal). When the system is close to threshold, the character of the noise becomes impulsive, leading, for example, to the clicks that are heard on an automobile radio as the FM station being received goes out of range. For video transmitted by satellite, the impulses appear in the picture as short white or dark streaks. A satellite or terrestrial television receiver may also be affected by man-made noise such as impulsive noise originating from motor vehicles.
Applying noise reduction to video is the process of identifying the desired video signal and using that information to discriminate against the noise. Best performance is achieved by having a broad range of processing options that is available only through the use of digital techniques. The input video would be sampled into numerical pixel values indexed by horizontal and vertical spatial coordinates and a time coordinate that is an indicator of frame number. A filtering operation is modeled as a sequence of arithmetic operations performed on the input samples to form an output pixel.
Noise reduction inherently implies averaging together elements of the signal that are almost identical. Suppose a given pixel has a noise-free value of 0.5, meaning its brightness is half-way between peak white and black. The pixel is contaminated by noise n1, so the pixel value that is actually available is P1=0.5+n1. With additional knowledge, a second pixel may be found in another position with value P2=0.5+n2, where n1 and n2 are both noise values and are uncorrelated and have the same variance. The weighted average of 0.5 P1+0.5 P2 is found to be equal to 0.5+½(n1+n2). The power in ½(n1+n2) is one-half the power in n1 or n2. Thus, averaging together the values of the two pixels improves the signal/noise ratio of the estimated pixel value by a factor of 2. However, if P2=0.3+n2, meaning that the brightness of the second pixel was closer to black, then 0.5 P1+0.5 P2=0.4+½(n1+n2). The net effect of weighting P1 and P2 equally before averaging in the second case is to introduce an error into the estimate for the brightness of the pixel the weighted average is supposed to represent. This example illustrates the basic principle of this invention: to reduce the noise level associated with a particular pixel, weight average its value with a second pixel value whose noise free brightness is close to the one in question. When the confidence level in the equality of the noise free brightness levels is high, the weights assigned to the 2 pixel values should be approximately equal; if the confidence level is low, the second pixel level is effectively disregarded by making its weight close to zero, with the first pixel value weighted by (1−weight used for 2nd pixel).
In the current state of the art, the best noise rejection performance is achieved with three-dimensional filters that combine two-dimensional spatial filters and one-dimensional temporal filters to obtain the benefits of each. Actually the potential of unrestricted three dimensional filtering potentially goes beyond what has been achieved to date. While separating the three-dimensional sampling grid into a two-dimensional spatial grid combined with a one-dimensional temporal grid may make the processing of the signal more convenient because fewer processing operations per input data point may be required, the limitation of separating the filtering of video in time and space unduly restricts the available design options. Allowing unrestricted three-dimensional filtering would expand the design options to include more complex algorithms for video processing. A generalized approach is likely to offer superior performance for noise reduction with fewer deleterious side effects, such as blurring and apparent loss of resolution. Therefore, there is a need for a refinement of three-dimensional digital filtering into classes of algorithms that simplify the application of the algorithm while preserving the likelihood of optimal performance that three-dimensional filtering promises.

System and method for video noise reduction using a unified three-dimensional non-linear filtering


A fringe field switching mode liquid crystal display device includes first and second substrates with a liquid crystal layer disposed therebetween. A gate line and a data line crossing the gate line define a pixel region on the first substrate. A thin film transistor is connected to the gate line and the data line. A common line is parallel to and spaced apart from the gate line and a common electrode extends from the common line and has a substantially square shape corresponding to the pixel region. A curved pixel electrode is connected to the thin film transistor and overlaps the common electrode. A second substrate faces the first substrate. A black matrix formed on the first or second substrate includes an opening exposing the pixel region. The opening has corners.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display device. More particularly, it relates to a fringe field switching mode liquid crystal display device having high transmittance and high aperture ratio.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Liquid crystal display (LCD) devices are being developed as the next generation display devices because of their characteristics of light weight, thin profile, and low power consumption. In general, an LCD device is a non-emissive display device that displays images by making use of a refractive index difference through utilizing optical anisotropy properties of a liquid crystal material interposed between an array substrate and a color filter substrate. Of the different types of known liquid crystal displays (LCDs), active matrix LCDs (AM-LCDs), which have thin film transistors (TFTs) and pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix form, are the subject of significant research and development because of their high resolution and superiority in displaying moving images.
A conventional LCD device, generally, uses twisted nematic (TN) mode liquid crystal, the orientation of which is parallel to substrates and is continuously twisted from one substrate to another substrate by 90 degrees. However, the TN mode LCD device has disadvantages of a narrow viewing angle and slow response characteristics.
To solve the above problems, various modes, such as a multi-domain TN structure and an optically compensated birefringence (OCB) mode, have been proposed. In the multi-domain TN structure, a pixel is divided into several domains. The process of manufacturing the multi-domain is complicated, and there exists limitation in improving the viewing angle. The OCB mode has wide viewing angles and fast response time. However, in the OCB mode, it is difficult to control and maintain the liquid crystal material stably due to bias voltage.
In-plane switching mode liquid crystal display (IPS-LCD) devices, recently, have been proposed as a new display mode. In the IPS-LCD devices, electrodes for driving liquid crystal molecules are formed on the same substrate.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the concept of a related art IPS-LCD device. As shown in FIG. 1, an upper substrate 10 and a lower substrate 20 are spaced apart from each other, and a liquid crystal layer 30 is interposed therebetween. The upper substrate 10 and lower substrate 20 are often referred to as a color filter substrate and an array substrate, respectively. A common electrode 22 and a pixel electrode 24 are positioned on the lower substrate 20. The common electrode 22 and pixel electrode 24 are positioned such that they are parallel to each other. On a surface of the upper substrate 10, a color filter layer (not shown) is commonly positioned to correspond to an area between the pixel electrode 24 and the common electrode 22 of the lower substrate 20.
A voltage applied across the common electrode 22 and pixel electrode 24 produces an in-plane electric field 26 through liquid crystal molecules of the liquid crystal layer 30. The liquid crystal molecules have a positive dielectric anisotropy, and thus the liquid crystal molecules will align so as to be in parallel with the electric field 26. The viewing angles can range 80 to 85 degrees in up-and-down and left-and-right sides from a line vertical to the IPS-LCD device, for example.
FIG. 2 is a plane view of an array substrate according to the related art IPS-LCD device. As shown in FIG. 2, a gate line 40 and a data line 42 cross each other to define a pixel region P. At a crossing of the gate line 40 and the data line 42, a thin film transistor T is formed. A common line 44 is spaced apart from the gate line 40, and in the pixel region P, a plurality of common electrodes 46 extends from the common line 40 parallel to the data line 42.
A first pixel connecting line 48 is connected to the thin film transistor T, and a plurality of pixel electrodes 50 extends from the first pixel connecting line 48 alternating with the plurality of common electrodes 46. A second pixel connecting line 52 connects ends of the plurality of pixel electrodes 50, and the second pixel connecting line 52 overlaps the common line 44. The overlapped common line 44 and second pixel connecting line 52 form a storage capacitor CST with an insulating layer interposed therebetween.
Spaces between the common electrodes 46 and the pixel electrodes 50 correspond to aperture areas A, where liquid crystal molecules are driven by an electric field parallel to a substrate. In the above array substrate, there exist 4 blocks of 4 aperture areas A in one pixel. That is, in the pixel region P, three common electrodes 46 and two pixel electrodes 50 alternate with each other.
The common electrodes 46 include two first common electrodes 46a that are near by the data line 42 and a second common electrode 46b that is disposed between the first common electrodes 46a. To minimize cross-talk between the data line 42 and the pixel electrodes 50 and to prevent light leakage, the first common electrodes 46a should have a wider width than the second common electrode 46b, and this reduces an aperture ratio.
To improve the aperture ratio and transmittance of the related art IPS-LCD device, fringe field switching (FFS) mode LCD device has been suggested. The FFS mode LCD device has a square common electrode of an island shape corresponding to the pixel region and a pixel electrode consisting of a plurality of rods that are spaced apart from each other and forming slits. The common electrode and the pixel electrode overlap each other with an insulating layer interposed therebetween. In the FFS mode LCD device, since electric fields are induced every several angstroms, the electric fields are strong, and thus even the liquid crystal molecules over the electrodes can be arranged by the electric fields. In addition, as the common electrode and the pixel electrode are formed of a transparent conductive material, the aperture ratio may be improved.
FIG. 3A is a plan view illustrating an FFS mode LCD device according to the related art, and FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view along the line IIIB-IIIB of FIG. 3A. FIG. 3A shows mainly an array substrate of the FFS mode LCD device, and FIG. 3B illustrates a cross-section of the FFS mode LCD device including a liquid crystal layer in a corresponding cutting area.
In FIG. 3A, a gate line 62 and a data line 78 cross each other to define a pixel region P. A thin film transistor T is formed at a crossing of the gate line 62 and the data line 78. In the pixel region P, a plurality of pixel electrodes 82 connected to the thin film transistor T are spaced apart from each other. A common electrode 68 extends below the plurality of pixel electrodes 82.
More particularly, the thin film transistor T includes a gate electrode 64, a semiconductor layer 72, a source electrode 74 and a drain electrode 76. A first pixel connecting line 84 is connected to the drain electrode 76, and the plurality of pixel electrodes 82 extends from the first pixel connecting line 84. Ends of the plurality of pixel electrodes 82 are electrically connected to each other by a second pixel connecting line 86. The common electrode 86 of each pixel region P is connected to a common line 66, which is spaced apart from and is parallel to the gate line 62.
The common electrode 68 and the plurality of pixel electrodes 82 are formed of a transparent conductive material through different processes. The common line 66 is formed of the same material through the same process as the gate line 62. The common electrode 68 directly contacts the common line 66 without an insulating layer therebetween, and the plurality of pixel electrodes 82 are disposed over the common electrode 68 with an interposed insulating layer (not shown).
Operations of the FFS mode LCD device will be explained hereinafter through the cross-sectional structure of FIG. 3B. In FIG. 3B, a square common electrode 68 is formed on a first substrate 60, and a first insulating layer 70 covers the common electrode 68. A plurality of pixel electrodes 82 are formed on the first insulating layer 70 over the common electrode 68. The plurality of pixel electrodes 82 form slit shapes that are spaced apart from each other. A first alignment layer 88 covers the plurality of pixel electrodes 82.
A second substrate 90 is spaced apart from and faces the first substrate 60. A color filter layer 92 and a second alignment layer 94 are sequentially formed on an inner surface of the second substrate 90. A liquid crystal layer 96 is interposed between the first and second alignment layers 88 and 94.
In the FFS mode, the liquid crystal molecules between the electrodes are rotated by a lateral electric field to be parallel with the substrates, and then the liquid crystal molecules over the electrodes rotate due to vertical and lateral electric fields around the electrodes and an elastic force of the liquid crystal. That is, as light is also transmitted over the electrode, the transmittance is high. Moreover, rotation rates of the liquid crystal molecules are different in one pixel, and thus color shift is decreased by self-compensating effects.
If the electrodes may have stripe shapes, to form a lateral electric field, an alignment direction makes an angle of about 60 degrees with the gate line, which is a base line of 0 degree. Since the alignment direction is also inclined with respect to light transmission axes of polarizers (not shown), ranges of the viewing angle become non-uniform. The alignment direction may be within a range of 90 degrees to -270 degrees with respect to the base line, and the light transmission axes of the polarizers, which are 0 degrees and 90 degrees with respect to the base line, respectively, cross each other at a right angles. Therefore, viewing angle characteristics are lowered at directions of 45 degrees and 135 degrees.
In addition, there exists color shift difference according to angles of all directions, and thus the viewing angle characteristics are decreased.

Fringe field switching mode liquid crystal display device


A system and method of forecasting space weather (at Earth or another location) based on identifying complex patterns in solar, interplanetary, or geophysical data. These data may include current or historical measurements and/or modeled data (predicted or simulated). Data patterns (both non-event and event-related) are identified (even when another event is occurring). Such patterns may vary with recent/cyclic variations in solar (e.g. solar max/min), interplanetary, or geophysical activity. Embodiments are built around: (1) templates, (2) expert systems, (3) neural networks, (4) hybrid systems comprising combinations of (1), (2) and/or (3), and multimodal intelligent systems. Forecasts are customized and/or updated as new data arise and as systems are dynamically modified (e.g. via feedback between system parts). Numerical or other indexes are generated representing: forecasts, associated confidence levels, etc. The invention predicts events/non-events and/or other values or parameters associated with space weather (e.g. Dst, event onset time, duration, etc.)

When solar flares, disappearing filaments, and other solar events occur on the sun they create great turbulences and disturbances in the region of space close to the sun. These disturbances are often so extreme that they create shock waves which travel through space and, ultimately, arrive at the earth or at other locations of interest (e.g. a spacecraft position, a comet, or a planet), where they can cause serious problems such as loss of spacecraft, spacecraft anomalies (such as bit flips in electronic components), surface charging problems, disruption of on-board computer memories, and even damage to the structure of semi-conductor microelectronics and solar cells. The charged particles, including energetic electrons and protons, associated with these disturbances can do as much damage to solar cells and other hardware in one disturbance as several years' exposure to the undisturbed environment. For example, energetic electrons can cause large static charges, some measuring as high as 19,000 volts, to build up in insulators deep in spacecraft, which may cause arcing that damage sensitive electronic components. In addition, astronauts both inside and outside a spacecraft, space station or shuttle can be subjected to dangerous doses of protons and other types of radiation during these disturbances.
These disturbances can also cause communications blackouts at all frequencies, not only with spacecraft, but with high-flying aircraft and with ground-based objects. High frequency (HF) radio wave communication is more routinely affected since it depends on reflection from the ionosphere to carry signals great distances. Ionospheric irregularities caused by solar disturbances give rise to signal dispersion, fading, and even complete signal loss during very disturbed conditions. Ionospheric irregularities also affect the higher frequency radio waves used by telecommunication companies that penetrate the ionosphere and are relayed via satellite to other locations. The ionospheric irregularities can even prohibit critical communications such as search and rescue efforts and military operations.
One example of a serious space weather related communications failure took place in the early 1980s when President Reagan was on Air Force One on his way to China—all communications were lost with the plane for more than two hours. Mr. Reagan and his advisors were upset and concerned; they were subsequently informed that the failure was due to disturbances that originated on the sun and eventually propagated to the near earth environment.
In addition to communications systems, marine navigation systems using very low frequency signals, such as LORAN and OMEGA, depend on accurate information on the altitude of the bottom of the ionosphere. During environmental disturbances, rapid vertical changes occur in the location of this boundary, introducing significant errors of up to several kilometers in determinations of location.
Global Positioning Systems (GPS) are also sensitive to space weather disturbances. These systems have a wide variety of applications including aircraft navigation and air traffic control systems. However, because they operate by transmitting radio waves from satellites to receivers on the ground, in aircraft, or in other satellites, they are very sensitive to ionospheric disturbances. Significant errors can result when signals are reflected, refracted and slowed by disturbed ionospheric conditions.
Electric power companies are also affected by space weather disturbances because their long power lines are susceptible to electric currents induced by the dramatic changes in high-altitude ionospheric currents occurring during geomagnetic storms. Surges in power lines from ground induced currents (GICs) can cause massive network failures and permanent damage to expensive equipment. It is estimated that the March 1989 Hydro-Quebec power black-out, which was caused by a space weather disturbance, cut electric power to several million people.
With accurate early warning, spacecraft operators can take effective remedial action, such as phased shut downs of components where the most sensitive elements are turned off first and the other components are shut down closer to the predicted onset of the event. Other remedial actions include downloading spacecraft memory to ground-based memory; shutting down all spacecraft systems except those necessary for real-time tracking; increasing real-time monitoring of satellite operations for anomalies; delaying major changes in vehicle potential caused by turning on/off susceptible components; and calculating the best time to adjust a low earth orbit for drag. For military communications, redundant transmissions could be scheduled along with real-time human monitoring as a check of communication integrity. For space stations and shuttles, extra-vehicular activity could be curtailed, launches could be delayed or early landings planned to avoid a disturbance.
Such remedial actions are currently impractical due to the generally short lead time (approximately one hour) and overwhelming inaccuracy (over 80 percent false alarms) of space weather disturbance predictions. If operators were given an accurate warning at least several hours in advance of a space weather event, they would have a great deal more flexibility in developing and implementing strategies for protecting their spacecraft, systems, and/or astronauts. In addition, power companies could, for example, reduce the load on transmission circuits, confidently reset tripped protective relays on power networks, selectively ground capacitor banks to prevent large potential drops and delay power station maintenance and equipment replacement. Telecommunication companies could, for example, look for alternate frequencies for transmissions and effect plans to minimize communications outages.
The space weather forecasts provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA's) Space Environment Center (SEC), the civilian office responsible for space weather forecasts, demonstrate the need for improvement that this invention addresses. Until several years ago, these forecasts were made entirely "by eye." Operators would examine the raw data (primarily solar magnetic field, x-ray, and optical data) and then, based on intuition and experience, issue forecasts. According to the SEC's own statistics, only 30% of the storms that they forecast actually occurred. There are also many false negatives (i.e., times when they do not forecast storms that do occur) and the generally brief forecast horizon often does not provide sufficient time for effective remedial action.
Recently, others have attempted to generate more 'objective' forecasts based at least in part on solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) data obtained from the Advance Composition Explorer (ACE) and the WIND spacecraft. Both these spacecraft are very close to the Earth (compared to the distance between the Earth and the sun) and therefore forecasts based on their measurements of solar wind and IMF have a very short lead time. Typically, these systems produce forecasts that have a lead time of one hour or less and often they are ex post facto (i.e. they generate a "prediction" after the event has already begun to disturb the geophysical environment).
Still other forecasting approaches rely upon data from solar event observations, inputting these data into various theoretical models that attempt to predict how the solar events, and their associated shock waves, will propagate through space and effect space weather. The Wang-Sheeley model, the Interplanetary Shock Propagation Model (ISPM) (see Dryer, M. 1998, "Multidimensional simulation of solar-generated disturbances: Space weather forecasting of geomagnetic storms," AIAA Journal, 36, 365–370), and the Shock Time Of Arrival (STOA) model (see Smart, D. F. and Shea, M. A. 1985, "A simplified model for timing the arrival of solar flare-initiated shocks," Journal of Geophysical Research, 90, 183–190) are examples of various theoretical models. These approaches have met with limited success due in part to the difficulty of accurately modeling the propagation of solar events through space and often in part to the lack of complete data on the solar events themselves.
It has been recognized that there is an association between SEP events and subsequent geomagnetic storms. SEPs are created when a large disturbance occurs on the sun and as the disturbance propagates through space. Some of these particles travel towards distant locations (e.g. the Earth, spacecraft, etc.) much more rapidly than the interplanetary shocks that cause many space weather events. They thus may potentially extend the space weather forecast horizon to several hours in advance of a storm and, at times, even a day or more in advance.
Past attempts to use SEPs for space weather prediction have been limited. For example, J. Joselyn described a simplistic technique for forecasting geomagnetic activity. She compared a single measure of SEP activity in only one energy channel to a set threshold. In particular, she looked at SEP events in which a flux of more than 10 protons per centimeter 2/second of energies exceeding 10 MeV (million electron-volts) occurred for at least 30 minutes; i.e., See Joselyn, J. 1995. Geomagnetic Activity Forecasting: The State of the Art. Reviews of Geophysics, 33, 3. Based on that criterion, she determined that between 1976 and 1989 such events preceded geomagnetic storms (Ap>30, where Ap is the well known global geomagnetic index) within 2–3 days 62% of the time. Joselyn also found that events with peak energetic particle fluxes exceeding 100 flux units preceded geomagnetic storms 75% of the time. Joselyn did not discuss the number or percentage of geomagnetic storms that a forecast based on such events would miss. Joselyn only compared SEP flux to a simple threshold, i.e., a single SEP data value. This simple single point comparison is too simplistic for useful prediction.
More recently, Q. Fan and J. Tian have used measures derived from two SEP values (e.g., the rise rate of SEP flux over time) as inputs to a neural network to attempt to classify the intensity of geomagnetic storms based in part on SEP data. See Fan, Q. and Tian, J. 1998, Prediction of geomagnetic storms following solar proton events (SPEs) with a back-propagation neural network, "Prediction of Geomagnetic Storms Following Solar Proton Events (SPEs) With a BP Neural Network," AI Applications in Solar-Terrestrial Physics. Proceedings of ESA Workshop (WPP-148), edited by I. Sandahl and E. Jonsson, pp. 163–166. Each SEP (proton and electron) flux rise rate was based on only two SEP flux values, the background flux value and the peak flux value. Although Fan and Tian thus begin to recognize the value of time variations in SEP data, they, and Joselyn, failed to capture the potential of solar energetic particles as a space weather prediction tool.
Previous attempts at using SEPs in space weather forecasting have met with only limited success for many reasons. First, the prior work based predictions on only one SEP data point (a threshold or peak value) and/or measures derived from two SEP data points (such as rise rate). They therefore are not capable of identifying complex patterns in SEP data, associated with space weather events, that require consideration of three or more data points. Second, the prior work was based on analysis of only SEP data preceding space weather events, but not of SEP data preceding non-events; any system that does not take into account non-events is susceptible to false alarms and is unable to give all clear signals. Third, the prior work does not recognize the fundamental importance of recent and/or cyclical variations in SEP data (and solar, interplanetary and geophysical activity), such as variations that occur across different phases of the solar cycle. Fourth, the prior work does not provide any indication of a confidence level, such as a numerical confidence index, in a forecast. Fifth, the prior work was unable to provide a forecast while another event was in progress. Sixth, the prior work was unable to meaningfully update forecasts as new data came in.
Additionally, nearly all work prior to this invention has focused on creating prediction or identification systems based around one (or at most, several) rules or equations. Because of the highly complex nature of space weather phenomena, such simple systems are incapable of accurately modeling many of the most important aspects of space weather. Furthermore, many variables related to space weather interact to modify (or otherwise constrain) each other. Simple systems fail to take advantage of this potentially useful inter-connectedness. Because of these and other reasons, such systems have proven quite poor at generating space weather related forecasts. There is therefore a need for a space weather forecasting system that can synergistically combine separate forecasting systems and techniques.
Also, there is a need for improved notification systems for space weather events. Even the current "best" space weather forecast systems, yield only broad predictions in terms of space (e.g. North America, Alaska, or Sweden) or time (e.g. a spacecraft anomaly sometime in the next three days). Such broad predictions are of little use to most end-users. Currently, the only more specific forecasts are those that are based on ACE data (and thus have a lead-time of, at best, 45 minutes). The prior work has thus been unable to issue forecasts and/or initiate action sequences that were customized to meet the needs of end users.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Space weather prediction system and method


A burner assembly for use in a gas burning fireplace for producing flame patterns simulating flame patterns produced by real burning wood, and a method for producing such flame patterns. A preferably cylindrical bluff body is placed into the gas flow path from a supply line dividing the flow into a first and a second flow and generating Karman vortices within each flow. The vortices between the two flows are staggered. Each flow enters into a burner and exits through the burner ports where it is ignited to produce a flame pattern. The vortices create a rotating turbulence within each flow such that each flow has relatively steady flow portions alternating with turbulent rotating portions. This variance in the flow results in flames that have varying intensity, as well as color, and produces flame patterns simulating those produced by real burning wood.

The present invention relates to a gas fireplace for producing a flame having a realistic appearance as though it was produced by real wood burning, and a method for producing such flame.
Gas fireplaces are common place in many homes today. They are able to provide the advantages of a real wood fire without the disadvantages associated with real wood burning fireplaces. The problem with most gas fireplaces is that they produce a static flame that is not realistic looking, i.e., they produce a flame which is not similar to a flame produced by actual burning wood.
Accordingly, there is a need for a gas fireplace capable of producing a realistic flame as though it was produced by actual burning wood.

Karman vortex generating burner assembly