The specification describes a MCM IC package with improved RF grounding. The package has at least one RF IC chip bonded to an interconnect substrate and the substrate is interconnected to an intermediate printed wiring board (IPWB). The IPWB is interconnected in turn to a system printed wiring board (SPWB). The RF IC chip is metallized on the backside, and is flip chip bonded directly to the SPWB thereby eliminating two intermediate interconnections and reducing the impedance of the interconnection between the RF chip and the SWBP.

In integrated circuit packages containing RF chips noise problems frequently arise due to interconnects that are long or ineffectively placed. It is well known that electrical leads in and adjacent to RF circuit components act as antennae for stray signals that are inevitably present in an integrated circuit environment. The problem becomes more complex as the size of the IC chips is reduced and packaging techniques for IC chips and modules containing IC chips (MCMs) become more dense and efficient. Primary noise receivers in the RF circuit are the connections to the ground plane, and any expedient that reduces the length and impedance of these RF IC connections to the RF ground plane should significantly improve the noise performance of the RF circuit.


The conveyor comprises two spaced-apart under-neck guides (3) along which articles are designed to be transported by being suspended via their collars (2) on the under-neck guides (3), and also a longitudinal stop (6) which is mounted above the under-neck guides (3) and which serves to limit the up stroke available to the articles between the under-neck guides (3). In a preferred embodiment, the top abutment is in the form of a stop (6) having an abutment-forming bottom longitudinal face (6a) in which there is formed a longitudinal central channel (6b) of width (L) that is less than the diameter (D) of an article at its top end (1d).

Foreign priority benefits are claimed under 35 U.S.C. xc2xa7 119(a)-(d) or 35 U.S.C. xc2xa7 365(b) from French Patent Application Serial No. 97/10770 filed Aug. 25, 1997, and under 35 U.S.C. xc2xa7 365(a) from PCT International Application PCT/FR98/01646 filed Jul. 24, 1998, which designated at least one country other than the United States. PCT Application PCT/FR98/01646 of which this application is a National Stage filing under 35 U.S.C. xc2xa7 371, was published under PCT article 21(2) in French.
The Present/invention relates to conveying articles having a collar or the like projecting therefrom and enabling them to be suspended while they are being transported. The invention relates more particularly to a conveyor in which the articles are transported while being suspended from their collars resting on two under-neck guides acting as guide rails, and being more particularly propelled one behind another by means of a flow of air. A main application of the invention lies in transporting lightweight articles made of plastics, such as receptacles (pots, bottles, etc.) made of PET, PVC, etc . . . , in particular during packaging operations involving these articles, the conveyor being used, for example, to bring a line of empty receptacles from an upstream machine for manufacturing the receptacles (a blow-molding machining) to a downstream machine for filling the receptacles (a bottling machine).
In the field of bottling, it is now a widespread practice to use pneumatic conveyors in which empty bottles, or more generally articles, are guided one behind another between two under-neck guides while being supported by means of respective projections from their necks (the collars). The articles are set into motion individually one behind another or else in entire trains of bottles, under drive from jets of air. Such conveyors have already been described, for example, in international patent application WO 90/10587, and in British patent application GB 2 092 981. In those two publications, the driving airjets are directed mainly on the necks of the articles above their collars. In other types of known conveyors, the driving air jets can also be directed onto the bodies of the articles below their collars.
While they are being transported, the articles which are supported solely by their collars have a tendency to swing relative to the vertical. Receptacles swinging relative to the vertical in a direction that is transverse to their travel direction become difficult to convey and also give rise to risk of the articles being dropped or else becoming jammed. Proposals have therefore already been made to limit such swinging in a direction that is transverse to the travel direction by fitting conveyors with lateral guides positioned on either side of the article transport path. In practice, such lateral guides are positioned level with the cylindrical body portions of the articles and they are spaced apart from each other by a distance that is slightly greater than the diameter of said cylindrical portions. The articles are thus supported by their collars and while they are being transported they are held essentially vertically by the guides in respective vertical planes that extend transversely to the transport direction. However, the above-mentioned guides are not sufficient to ensure that the articles are conveyed properly. In particular, such guides do not prevent the articles from jamming while they are traveling.
In practice, while the articles are being conveyed, jamming occurs most frequently while articles are being accumulated, i.e. during stages in which the articles build up into a train that is stationary or moving very slowly, with the articles coming into contact and being pressed against one another.
Such jamming of articles during an accumulation stage can have various causes. In general, while the articles are pressed against one another they exert thrust which tends to lift them vertically off the under-neck guides. Under such circumstances, it can happen that at least one of the articles, because it has been lifted vertically, becomes jammed in position by wedging between the under-neck guides. It can also happen, when articles are of a profile which contributes to enabling them to be interfitted relative to one another, that in the event of an article being lifted vertically, the articles jam relative to one another without necessarily jamming by becoming wedged between the under-neck guides. It has also been observed that the risk of jamming is higher when transporting plastic articles, and in particular PET bottles, that have come directly from a blow-molding machine. This can be explained by the fact that the thermoplastic resin constituting the walls of the plastic articles coming from a blow-molding machine is in a state such that the walls of the articles are sticky, and the mere fact of one article rubbing against another while articles are being lifted can lead to the articles sticking together. Another cause of articles jamming during an accumulation stage is associated with the fact that an article coming into contact at speed with a train of accumulated articles tends to tilt significantly relative to the travel direction by bearing against the last article in the accumulated train. If the next article arrives at this particular moment and presses against the base of the article that is tilted in the travel direction, it exerts mechanical thrust thereon tending to lift it between the under-neck guides and to jam it in the tilted position.
Proposals have already been made in U.S. Pat. No. 5,421,678, to fit an air conveyor with tope guide-shoulders (referenced 42 in FIGS. 4, 7, and 8 of that document) whose main function is to act as an abutment in the event of an article being lifted. That solution nevertheless presents the following two major drawbacks. With that solution, the problem of receptacles jamming between the under-neck guides is indeed reduced, however a new risk arises of the receptacles jamming between the guide-shoulders, in particular when receptacles are lifted during an accumulation stage. That solution is therefore not satisfactory with regard to the problem of articles jamming during an accumulation stage. The other drawback of that solution is associated with the problem of determining the optimum setting for the spacing between the guide-shoulders. By acting on the spacing between the guide-shoulders, the distance through which the articles can be lifted can be increased or reduced. In practice, the closer together the guide-shoulders, the better the prevention of vertical jamming of the articles. However, by acting on the spacing between the guide-shoulders, the forward or backward tilt angle in a vertical plane of the articles in their travel direction is also varied. In practice, the smaller the spacing between the guide-shoulders, the more narrowly the tilt angle of the articles is limited. Although it is known that an excessive tilt angle of the articles while they are being conveyed can give rise to the articles jamming forwards or backwards relative to the under-neck guides, it is nevertheless necessary for articles that are being conveyed to be capable of oscillating slightly relative to the vertical in the transport direction through some minimum tilt angle so as to obtain better conveyability of the articles. With the top guide-shoulder solution of U.S. Pat. No. 5,421,678, it is thus necessary to adjust the spacing between the guide-shoulders as a function of two constraints: providing an effective abutment against the articles being lifted; and putting a proper limit on the forward or backward tilt angle of articles while they are being conveyed. Those two constraints make it difficult to achieve an optimum setting for the spacing of the guide-shoulders.
The present invention proposes a novel solution serving to reduce the risk of articles jamming, in particular during an accumulation stage, while mitigating the two above-mentioned drawbacks inherent to implementing top guide-shoulders having an abutment function as taught in U.S. Pat. No. 5,421,678.
The conveyor of the invention is known insofar as it comprises two spaced-apart under-neck guides along which the articles are to be transported while being suspended from the under-neck guides via their collars or the like. The term xe2x80x9ccollarxe2x80x9d is used herein to designate any projection from the articles that enables them to be suspended while they are being transported.
In a manner characteristic of the invention, the conveyor includes a longitudinal stop fitted thereto, mounted above the under-neck guides and serving to limit the up stroke available to articles between the under-neck guides.
More particularly, for articles including a tapering portion beneath the collar, with the section of the tapering portion decreasing towards the collar and passing through a xe2x80x9ccontactxe2x80x9d section of diameter equal to the spacing between the under-neck guides, the stop of the conveyor is preferably provided at a distance from the under-neck guides such that residual clearance exists between the stop and the top end of an article when supported in the vertical position by the under-neck guides, which residual clearance is less than the xe2x80x9ccontactxe2x80x9d height between the under-neck guides and the contact section of the article when in the vertical position. This characteristic makes it possible to avoid an article jamming by becoming wedged between the under-neck guides in the event of an article being lifted while it is in the vertical position.
In the context of the most general concept of the invention, the top abutment can be constituted merely by a stop of given thickness fixed over the under-neck guides, e.g. on the inside face of the top wall of the blow channel of the conveyor. Under such circumstances, since the height of the stop cannot be varied, its thickness is selected as a function of the articles to be transported so that the stop performs its function as a top abutment. In another simplified variant, the height of the stop can be varied so as to enable it to be adjusted in position as a function of the articles to be transported. These simplified variants of the invention nevertheless suffer from the following drawback: the distance between the bottom face of the stop and the two under-neck guides must be selected to be as small as possible in order to best limit the risk of an article jamming in the event of the article being lifted, but must be large enough to avoid impeding the articles while they are being transported, and in particular to ensure that the tops of the articles, which tend to swing back and forth while they are being transported, do not come into contact with the top abutment while they are swinging.
To mitigate that drawback, two preferred variant embodiments of the invention are proposed.
In a first preferred variant, the stop has a longitudinal bottom face that serves as an abutment and in which there is provided a longitudinal central channel of width less than the diameter of an article at its top end. This longitudinal central channel advantageously allows a portion of the top end of an article to rise above the level of the bottom face of the stop having the abutment function while said article is swinging forwards or backwards in the transport direction. With an appropriate choice for the shape for the central channel, the articles can be allowed to swing forwards or backwards to a greater or lesser extent without coming into contact with the stop. More particularly, the shape of the central recess of the stop, and in particular in terms of the height and the width of the channel, is designed in such a manner as to ensure that residual clearance exists between the stop and the top end of an article supported by the under-neck guides when the article is at a forward or backward tilt angle of 45xc2x0.
In a second preferred variant embodiment, the height of the stop relative to the under-neck guides is adjustable to occupy at least two positions:
a high position in which the articles can be transported freely without their top ends coming into contact with the stop; and
a low position for limiting the up stroke available to articles between the under-neck guides, in particular while articles are accumulating.
Advantageously, the conveyor of the invention may further comprise two top longitudinal guides which are positioned on either side of the path of the articles and which serve to limit the forward or backward tilt angles of the articles in a vertical plane and in their transport direction. In the context of the invention, and contrary to the top guide-shoulders of U.S. Pat. No. 5,421,678, these top longitudinal guides do not serve to act as top abutments for engaging articles that are being lifted, but serve solely to limit forward or backward tilting of the articles. The two constraints respectively of preventing articles being lifted and of limiting the tilt angle of the articles are thus advantageously dissociated from each other.

Conveyor for transporting articles having a collar and including a fitted stop to reduce the risk of the articles jamming


A sleeve keeper watch bracket for use with a wristwatch worn by a user, comprises a first member having a shape and size generally corresponding to a case of the wristwatch, the first member generally lying in a first plane, a second member generally lying in a second plane parallel to and above the first plane, a third member coupling the first member and second member, and wherein the first member is affixed to the wristwatch case and the second member extends away from the user's hand and is adapted to hold back a long sleeve of a garment worn by the user.

Many of today's garments worn by both men and women feature long sleeves that reach the wearer's wrist, such as dress shirts, blouses, suit jackets, windbreakers, dress coats, rain coats, tunics, hoodies, etc. When wearing these long-sleeve garments, the wearer must push back the sleeve when he/she raises his/her arm to reveal the wristwatch. Therefore, reading time becomes a two-handed operation that maybe impractical or inconvenient at times, such as when the wearer is carrying packages, an umbrella, a purse, a suitcase, etc., or operating machinery.


A wide-angle lens system has, from the object side thereof: a first lens element having a negative optical power and having a meniscus shape convex to the object side; a second lens element having a biconcave shape; a third lens element having a biconvex shape; and a fourth lens element having a negative optical power and having a meniscus shape convex to the image side. Alternatively, a wide-angle lens system has, from the object side thereof: a first lens element having a negative optical power; a second lens element having a negative optical power; a third lens element having a positive optical power; and a fourth lens element having a positive optical power.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a compact wide-angle lens system, and more particularly to a wide-angle lens system that offers a total angle of view of about 150 degrees and that is suitable for use with a solid-state image sensor in a digital input device (such as a digital still camera or a digital video camera) like a videophone, an intercom, a surveillance camera, a vehicle-mounted camera, or the like.
2. Description of Related Art
There have conventionally been proposed many wide-angle lens systems designed as an image-taking optical system for use with a solid-state image sensor in a surveillance camera, a vehicle-mounted camera, or the like. Among such wide-angle lens systems are those that offer a total angle of view of about 150 degrees, of which some are composed of, for example, eight lens elements (see Patent Publication 1 listed below).
Patent Publication 1: JP-A-2004-102162
The wide-angle lens system disclosed in Patent Publication 1 mentioned above, however, requires an extremely large number of lens elements, namely eight, and has a complicated construction with an extremely large total length. Moreover, all the lens elements are glass lens elements, making the wide-angle lens system unsatisfactory in terms of cost and weight.

Wide-angle lens system and image-taking device


An image obtained by being imaged by an imaging device and converted to color data using a color processing parameter is input and target color data corresponding to converted color data is input. Next, the color processing parameter is optimized based upon the color difference between the converted color data and target color data. When the optimization processing is executed, first optimization processing is executed for optimizing the color processing parameter using the first target color data being within a prescribed color gamut, and the converted color data corresponding to the target color data, and second optimization processing is executed for optimizing the color processing parameter using second target color data, which includes the target color data being out of the prescribed color gamut and is less than a prescribed threshold value, and the converted color data corresponding to the second target color data.

In a conventional imaging device such as a digital camera, a plurality of color processing parameters are stored within the image device in advance, one color processing parameter is selected from among these in accordance with the particular mode and image data obtained by imaging is subjected to color processing using the color processing parameter than conforms to the mode selected. The color processing parameter referred to here is data in a case where a condition (an output condition) that is to prevail at output of output data is specified for the input data by a program or the like.
In a conventional imaging device such as a digital camera, however, only the color processing parameters of modes that have been prepared beforehand can be set. In other words, color reproduction in line with user preferences cannot be realized in accordance with the image obtained by imaging.
Accordingly, the applicant has proposed a color processing parameter customizing apparatus [see the specification of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-153684 (Patent Reference 1)] for the purpose of providing an apparatus in which the color reproduction of a digital camera can be set freely based upon user preference. The apparatus of Patent Reference 1 is adapted to find an optimum color processing parameter whereby photographic data obtained when a color chart that includes skin-tone color, the colors of sky and grass or the primary colors has been photographed by a digital camera is processed in such a manner that the original colors of the color chart or the skin-tone color and colors of sky and grass or colors such as the primary colors will approach a color (referred to as "target data" below) that the user deems to be desirable.
However, there is room for improvement with regard to the apparatus set forth in Patent Reference 1, as will be set forth below.
If the target data falls within the final target color space (e.g., sRGB, AdobeRGB, etc.), comparatively good color reproduction is obtained. However, if the target data is outside the target color space, there are instances where the image quality of color reproduction in the target color space will decline owing to the effect of the target that is outside the target color space. If the target data is outside the target color space, color reproduction of the target data per se cannot be achieved. Furthermore, if the target data is outside this color space, there are instances where the input data itself departs from the target (this is particularly true with regard to hue). If optimization is performed as is, data within this color space will also deviate together with the input data.
Thus, in a system in which a three-dimensional look-up table (3D LUT) is designed fully automatically, for example, it is difficult to realize good color reproduction.


The submarine is equipped with a fluid gas pressure container, in particular for storing liquid oxygen. The liquid gas pressure container is arranged within the pressure hull of the submarine and is surrounded by an outer pressure container which is likewise stored within the pressure hull of the submarine. A device is provided which on exceeding a predefined pressure within one pressure container leads fluid from the pressure container out of the pressure hull.

Submarines, in particular for military application, are usually supplied underwater with electrical energy from batteries. Energy converters for producing the electrical energy from an energy source, for example hydrogen and from an oxidant, for example oxygen, are also increasingly used. Fuel cells are particularly suitable for this, in which the energy source is catalytically oxidized amid the production of electrical energy and heat. An oxygen-containing gas such as air for example, but also preferably pure oxygen which is stored cryogenically and in liquid form, are typically used as oxidants with these systems.
It is known how to store liquid oxygen (LOX) on land in order to ensure an adequate safety. The rules which apply on land however are not sufficient for the safe storage of liquid and/or gaseous oxygen in a submarine, in particular for a military application. The storage of liquid oxygen therefore has been previously effected in a liquid gas pressure container arranged outside the pressure hull, which however is rather unfavorable intrinsic of the system, since the incorporation of one or more pressure containers outside the actual pressure hull of the submarine is comparatively expensive with regard to technology, since it is not possible to provide a comparatively large container alone for fluidic reasons, as well as for reasons of weight distribution, and thus several small containers need to be attached on the outside on the pressure hull of the submarine vessel, and these need to be cased in a streamlined manner. Only in this manner may one ensure that no oxygen may reach the inside of the pressure hull of the submarine in the case of any leakage of the pressure container.


An audio output device includes a voltage detection unit, a processing unit, a voltage detection unit, an alarm unit and an audio output unit. The voltage detection unit is utilized for detecting a voltage level of an audio signal to generate a detection result. The processing unit is utilized for determining whether the voltage level of the audio signal is greater than a threshold value according to the detection result and accordingly generating a control signal. The volume adjustment unit is utilized for adjusting the audio signal to generate an adjusted audio signal according to the control signal. The alarm unit is utilized for outputting a first alarm signal to implement an alarm function according to the control signal. Then audio output unit is utilized for playing the adjusted audio signal according to the control signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an audio output device and a control method, and more particularly, to an audio output device and a control method capable of adjusting volume of an audio signal and performing alarm functions.
2. Description of the Prior Art
With rapid development of technology, portable electronic devices equipped with multimedia playback functions, such as wearable devices, smart phones, notebooks, tablets, portable audio players, are widely used in the daily life. In general, audio signals can be generated by the portable electronic devices and played back via external audio output devices.
However, the portable electronic device may output an audio signal in an inappropriate volume level since the portable electronic device does not offer proper volume control for the audio signal. So, a user may feel uncomfortable due to a sound of large volume and even suffer from hearing loss or hearing impairment. For example, if a portable audio player provides audio signals at very high volume. As the user wears a pair of headphones and the pair of headphones is connected to the portable audio player, the audio signals may be passed on to the pair of headphones and played at high volume level accordingly. Under such a situation, the user would listen to the audio signal too loud and suffer hearing loss. Thus, the prior art has to be improved.


A system and method are provided for booting a computing device using a NAND flash memory. Boot code stored in the NAND flash memory is transferred to a RAM for execution by the CPU. Operating system program stored in the NAND flash memory is transferred to a system memory for execution therefrom by the CPU after system boot.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a system for booting a computing device; more particularly, a system booted using a NAND flash memory and a booting method thereof.
2. Discussion of Related Art
In every typical personal computer (PC) or computing device such as a personal digital assistant (PDA), a program installed in a basic input/output service (BIOS) is executed when the PC or device is turned on. A number of initialization functions are performed by executing the BIOS program. These functions are typically: checking the CMOS Setup for custom settings; loading the interrupt handlers and device drivers; initializing registers and power management; performing the power-on self-test (POST) for installed components or peripherals such as disk drives; displaying system settings; determining which components are bootable; and initiating the bootstrap sequence. Conventionally, a BIOS (or booting) program is stored in a read only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM) or a NOR-type logic (NOR) flash memory.
If a booting program is stored in a ROM, since ROMs are nonvolatile, the stored program cannot be changed. Any minor changes necessary to the stored program require replacement of the ROM. In the case where a booting program is stored in an EPROM, the previously stored program must be erased if there are changes to the stored program. EPROM erasure further requires a separate component or device. As such, any changes or updates needed in the booting program cannot be easily performed if the program is stored in a ROM or an EPROM. In the case where a booting program is stored in a NOR-logic (NOR) flash memory, the stored program can be erased or updated. However, compared to a NAND-logic (NAND) flash memory, the NOR flash memory are larger in size for a given memory storage capacity and is more expensive to manufacture.
One example of a system with a NAND flash memory storing a BIOS is illustrated in FIG.1, which is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,535,357. Referring to FIG. 1, a system 10 includes a system bus 17, a combination chip 16 in which a NAND flash memory 18 and an internal interface block 15 are incorporated, and a controller 11 for controlling the combination chip 16 and the system memory 19. The controller 11 can be a central processing unit (CPU), which has a CPU core 12 for performing computing functions, a memory controller 14, and an internal system bus 13 which is internal within the controller 11. The memory controller 14 carries out a memory map between the NAND flash memory 18 and the system memory 19, and uses the internal interface block 15 for interfacing functions performed according to the memory map. The internal interface block 15 temporarily stores data of the NAND flash memory device in a storage device such as a register or RAM, and transfers the temporarily stored data to the system memory through the system bus 17 under control of the memory controller 14.
The internal interface block 15 includes a NAND interface logic 28 for interfacing with the NAND flash memory 18 and a NOR interface logic 29 for interfacing with the system memory 19 or memory controller 14 through system bus 17. The NOR interface logic 29 is circuit conventionally used for interfacing between a NOR flash memory and memory controller and/or system memory. If the flash memory was a NOR flash memory, the NAND interface logic 28 would not be needed to conform signals from the flash memory to 'NOR interface manner' (one skilled in the art may refer to this term as "ROM interface manner"), which is data transfer where random access of the memory is possible based on an address of a byte/word unit. In contrast, data transfer by 'NAND interface manner' is not by random access, but data of block units is transferred by a block address and a command.
The system 10 transfers data of the NAND flash memory 18 to the internal interface block 15 through the NAND interface logic 28 using the NAND interface manner, and transfers the data to the system memory 19 through the NOR interface logic 29 using the NOR interface manner. Since data access from the NAND flash memory 18 requires traversing the two-stage NAND interface manner and NOR interface manner, data access speed is compromised. Further, system performance rating of such device cannot be optimal because the time required for accessing a booting code stored in the flash memory device by the memory controller is one measure of system performance.
Moreover, since all data of the NAND flash memory 18 need to be loaded into the internal interface block 15 and logic circuit supporting both NAND and NOR interfaces is needed, the internal interface block 15 need to be physically large in size. Accordingly, system 10 as shown in FIG. 1 may suffer from high cost and sub-optimal performance rating.

System boot using NAND flash memory and method thereof


In a method of estimating a bit rate (f1) of a digital signal conveyed through a SONET network between an originating node and a terminating node, the digital signal received by the originating node is processed to determine a result of a first function of the signal bit rate (f1) and a respective Tx local reference frequency (f2) of the originating node. A result of a second function of the Tx local reference frequency (f2) and a respective Rx local reference frequency (f3) of the terminating node is calculated. Finally, a result of a third function of the respective first and second function results is calculated, to derive an estimate of the signal bit rate (f4) relative to the Rx local reference frequency (f3).

Within the modern network space, the Synchronous Optical Network (SONET)/Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) protocol is becoming increasingly popular as a mechanism for data transport. In this respect, SDH is the European equivalent of the SONET transmission standard. Accordingly, all references in this application to SONET should be understood to also refer to SDH.
A significant amount of SONET/SDH infrastructure has been installed, particularly within the network core. This SONET infrastructure is used to transport asynchronous subscriber signal traffic having differing formats, such as Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), Internet Protocol (IP), etc. In order to facilitate this functionality, various known methods are provided for mapping the asynchronous subscriber traffic into Synchronous Transfer Signal (STS/STM) frames for transport across the SONET infrastructure, and then extracting the subscriber traffic out of the STS to recover the original subscriber signal format.
FIG. 1a is a block diagram schematically illustrating principal operations of a conventional transmitting node 2 of an optical communications system. As shown in FIG. 1a, asynchronous subscriber traffic within multiple tributaries 4 is received by the node 2 and buffered in an elastic store 6. The traffic may comprise any arbitrary mix of signals, including DS-1, DS-3 and E1 traffic. Traffic within each tributary 4 is normally buffered in a respective First-In-First-Out (FIFO) buffer 8. The timing of this buffering operation is controlled by a data clock signal 10 having a frequency f1 generated by a tributary clock recovery circuit 12. A synchronizing framer 14 reads data from each FIFO 8, and maps the read data into corresponding tributaries of a number of SONET Synchronous Payload Envelopes (SPEs) 16, using a known format such as those defined in the SONET standard. Each SPE 16 is then passed to a channel transmitter (Tx) 18, which inserts the SPEs into an STS frame, and then modulates the STS frame onto an optical channel carrier 20 for transmission through the optical network. A Tx local clock 22, which is synchronous with a SONET Primary Reference 24, generates a respective TX local clock signal 26 having a frequency f2, which is used to control operation of the synchronizing framer 14 and channel Tx 18.
As is known in the art, the number and size of the SPEs 16 are selected based on the channel line rate. For example, for a channel line rate of 10 Gb/s, the synchronizing framer 14 may map subscriber traffic into a set of four STS-48 envelopes. Other combinations may equally be used, such as, for example, eight STS-12 envelopes.
Normally, a respective buffer fill signal 28 is generated for each tributary FIFO 8, and used to control the insertion of stuffing bits into the corresponding SPE tributary.
As shown in FIG. 1b, at the terminating node 30, the incoming STS 20 is decoded by a channel receiver (Rx) 32 and processed by a pointer processor 34 to demap each SPE tributary from the STS 20. Thus, stuffing bits are stripped out of each tributary, and the remaining subscriber data stored in a respective tributary FIFO 36 of an elastic store 38. An Rx local clock signal 40, having a frequency f3 which is preferably referenced to the SONET Primary Reference 24, is supplied to a desynchronizer Phase locked Loop (PLL) 42. A buffer fill signal 44 generated by the tributary FIFO 36 is used to steer the Phase locked Loop (PLL) 42, so that the PLL output constitutes a recovered data clock signal 46 having a frequency f4 which approximates the data rate of the subscriber traffic. As a result, by reading data from the tributary FIFO 36 at a timing of the recovered data clock 46, a desynchronizer framer 48 can generate a recovered subscriber signal 50 in which the original timing is closely approximated.
For cases in which the channel line rate is equal to or greater than the subscriber data rate (i.e. for f1≦f2), the introduction of idle packets to replace "missing" subscriber traffic enables the synchronizing and desynchronizing framers 14 and 48 to compensate any differences between the tributary data rate and the channel rate. However, this mapping technique suffers a limitation in that the fill signal 44 of the Rx tributary FIFO buffer 3b tends to vary in a step-wise manner as idle packets are inserted and striped from SPE tributaries. This causes timing jitter in the recovered subscriber signal 50.
In most situations, the amount of timing jitter introduced by mapping and demapping asynchronous client signal traffic to and from STS frames does not create any difficulties. However, if the timing of the subscriber signal is critical, such as an HDTV signal or a subscriber-originated SONET signal (e.g. for SONET over SONET applications) the introduced timing jitter can noticeably degrade the quality of the subscriber's signal. Accordingly, there is interest in methods that enable subscriber traffic to be transparently mapped on to SONET STS signals. An important aspect for transparency is to preserve the original timing information of the subscriber signal.
Applicant's U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/972,686 (Roberts et al.), entitled Method and Apparatus for Digital Data Synchronization, which was filed on Oct. 9, 2001, which issued to U.S. Pat. No. 7,023,942 on Apr. 4, 2006, teaches a method of rate adapting an asynchronous subscriber signal on to SONET STS frames without incurring waiting time jitter, by measuring the phase and frequency of the (asynchronous) subscriber signal and encoding this information into the frame overhead. Thus, as shown in FIG. 2a, a multi-bit digital timing estimate (F) is calculated (at 52) to indicate the difference between the tributary data rate f1, and the Tx local clock frequency f2. In the embodiment of FIG. 2a , the timing estimate F is computed as a ratio between f1 and f2. In other embodiments, the timing estimate F may be computed as a phase difference between the subscriber data signal and Tx local clock signal, calculated at the time that a corresponding client data block is mapped into the SPE. In either case, the timing estimate F is supplied to the synchronizing framer 14 and used in place of the tributary fill 28 to control the insertion of stuff bytes into the SPE tributary. The timing estimate F is also inserted into the SUE tributary and conveyed with the subscriber data to the terminating node 30.
As shown in FIG. 2b, at the terminating node 30, the pointer processor 34 demaps each SPE tributary, and extracts the timing estimate F. The timing estimate F extracted from the SPE tributary is used in place of the elastic store fill signal 44 to steer the desynchronizer Phase locked Loop (PLL) 54. Consequently, the PLL output constitutes a recovered data clock signal 56 having a frequency f4 which more closely approximates the original frequency f1 of the subscriber traffic. As a result, by reading subscriber data from the tributary FIFO 36 at a timing of the recovered data clock 56, the desynchronizer framer 48 can generate a recovered subscriber signal 50 in which the original timing is substantially restored.
An important attribute of U.S. Pat. No. 7,023,942 is that the timing estimate F enables the transparent transport of the subscriber's original phase variations over a reasonable bandwidth (e.g. 100 Hz-1 KHz). Traditionally, waiting time jitter is reduced by narrowing the bandwidth of the desynchronizer PLL 42 (see FIG. 1b). However, very narrow filtering at the desynchronizer PLL 42 has the effect of attenuating the subscriber signal's phase variations and hence looses some transparency of the subscriber timing characteristics. U.S. Pat. No. 7,023,942 overcomes this limitation by the accurate measurement of subscriber phase/frequency at the synchronizer 2. This information is encoded within the STS frame (in the form of timing estimate F) and used to steer the desynchronizer PLL 54, which substantially eliminates waiting time jitter.
Another important attribute of U.S. Pat. No. 7,023,942 is that, unlike conventional systems, an elastic store fill signals 28 and 44 are not used to control insertion of stuff bytes at either the transmitting or receiving nodes 2, 30. This avoids problems due to the fill signals 22 and 44 containing clock noise, cross-talk from other signals, and data patterning. Instead of the elastic store fill signals 22 and 44, U.S. Pat. No. 7,023,942 uses the timing estimate F as an accurate measurement of the subscriber phase/frequency to drive stuffing at the transmitting node 2 and generation of the recovered data clock signal 56 at the receiving node 30.
A limitation of U.S. Pat. No. 7,023,942 is that subscriber signal phase and frequency information (F) is measured with respect to the Tx local clock signal 26 (FIG. 2a) at the originating node 2, whereas the recovered data clock signal 56 generated by the desynchronizer PLL 54 is based on the Rx local clock signal 40 at the terminating node 30. Ideally, both of the Tx and Rx clock signals 26 and 40 are derived from the same SONET primary reference 24, and thus will be synchronous. However, the originating and terminating nodes 2 and 30 may well be situated in different SONET islands, with the result that there may be a frequency difference (Δf) between the Tx and Rx local clock signals 26 and 40. Any such frequency difference means that the recovered data clock frequency f4 will not precisely match the original subscriber data frequency f1, and thus accurate recovery of the original timing of the subscriber signal may not be possible.
The SONET standard provides a method for frequency aligning an incoming SONET signal at a SONET network element using the payload pointers (e.g. the H1, and H2 bytes) within the Transport Overhead (TOH). These pointers provide a positive or negative word stuff of size 8*N bits for an STS-N signal. For a positive stuff, the start position of data in the Synchronous Payload envelope (SPE) is advanced by 8*N bits, and for a negative stuff, the start position is pushed back by 8*N bits. In principle, the positive and or negative stuff indications that arrive at the terminating SONET node provides a measure of the relative frequency difference between the originating and terminating nodes.
However, a pointer change (i.e. a positive or negative stuff indication) is typically generated when, at an elastic store between the synchronous write and read clocks, the elastic store fill exceeds a predetermined threshold. These pointer changes represent large phase changes in the subscriber data (equivalent to 8*N bits) and occur at a worst case nominal stuffing ratio of zero (see D. L. Duttweiler, "Waiting Time Jitter" Bell System Technical Journal, vol. 51, pp 165-207, January, 1972), which means they can induce a large jitter/wander penalty on the data payload arriving at the terminating node 30. As well, these pointer changes may have been generated by clock noise or cross-talk, due to the fact that they are driven by an elastic store fill signal.
Various methods have been proposed for reducing the jitter/wander penalty imposed by pointer changes. For example, a common method is to simply allow the large phase step due to the pointer change to occur in the Rx elastic store 38, and filter this phase step directly into the desynchronizer PLL 42 using, for example, a low-pass filter 58 (FIG. 1b). This method directly couples the pointer filtering with the desynchronizer function, which means that the pointer and desynchronizer functions cannot be optimized independently.
The publication "Analysis of Techniques for the Reduction of Jitter Caused by SONET Pointer Adjustments", Kusyk et al., IEEE Transaction on communications, Vol. 42, pp 2036-2050, describes a "pointer leaking" method in which, when a pointer is received, bits corresponding to the pointer are leaked from a first elastic store to a second elastic store (not shown) in order to reduce the slope of the phase change. The second elastic store fill drives the desynchronizer PLL 42, via a low pass filter 58 in a conventional manner.
The publication "Waiting Time Jitter Reduction by Synchronizer Stuff Threshold Modulation", W. D. Grover et al., Proceedings of IEEE GLOBECOM '87, vol. 1, pp 514-518, describes a threshold modulation method, which involves encoding word stuffing at the synchronizer such that a traditional desynchronizer can largely filter the frequency of the word stuffs. Again this method uses the elastic store fill 44 to drive the desynchronizer PLL 42, which again implies that the pointer and desynchronizer functions cannot be optimized independently.
As described above, prior art techniques focus on the problem of reducing the jitter imposed on the subscriber signal by pointer changes through the network. Hence the prior art does not address the problem of how to jointly optimize pointer filtering with transparent synchronizer/desynchronizer operation. Nor does the prior art address the question of how to process pointer filters for SONET over SONET applications.
Accordingly, a method and apparatus capable of accurately estimating the bit rate of subscriber traffic conveyed through a synchronous network between different SONET islands remains highly desirable.


An apparatus and a method thereof are provided, the apparatus including a first memory; a second memory; an image sensor; and a controller configured to obtain, using the image sensor, a plurality of images including a first image and a second image corresponding to at least one object in a first resolution, each of the first image and the second image corresponding to a different time from each other; store, in the first memory, the first image at least temporarily; display, via a display operatively coupled with the controller, the second image in a second resolution; and store, in the second memory, the first image stored in the first memory, in response to an input received in relation with the second image as displayed via the display.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to capturing a still image using images stored separately at predetermined times in addition to a preview image and, more particularly, to an apparatus and method for storing high-resolution images received at predetermined times in a first buffer and capturing a still image using the high-resolution images stored in the first buffer.
2. Description of the Related Art
An ordinary digital camera includes a lens system for forming an image of a subject on a film or a surface of an image sensor, and the image sensor for detecting the image formed by the lens system as an electrical signal. The film or the surface of the image sensor corresponds to an image surface of the lens system. A focus of the lens system varies in position according to a distance between the lens and the subject. Therefore, it is possible to capture or photograph images of various qualities according to changes in the position of the image surface, which is associated with a position of the subject.
A user photographs a desired subject in an image using a digital camera with the above-stated elements. In order to more easily take a picture of a desired subject, the user may use a preview image that provides an image of the subject in real time, to previously get hold of the image to be captured. The preview image is displayed on a display through the lens system in real time, and the user may easily take a picture of the desired subject while viewing the displayed preview image. A camera with the function of outputting a preview image on the display is the necessaries of life, playing an important role in multimedia communication required in the modern society.
An internal structure of a common camera outputting a preview image will be described with reference to FIG. 1 below.
FIG. 1 shows an internal structure of a conventional camera outputting a preview image. Elements of the camera include a lens system 101, an image sensor 103, a driver 111, an Image Signal Processor (ISP) 105, a display 107, and a controller 109.
Referring to FIG. 1, the lens system 101 optically receives an image of a subject, and includes at least one lens. The image sensor 103 converts the image of a subject optically received by the lens system 101 into an electrical signal. The ISP 105 processes the electrical signal received from the image sensor 103 on a frame-by-frame basis, and outputs a low-resolution image frame that is converted according to screen features (size, picture quality, resolution, etc.) of the display 107.
The display 107 displays the low-resolution image frame received from the ISP 105 on a screen, and the driver 111 moves the lens system 101 according to control of the controller 109. Although not shown in the drawing, the driver 111 includes a motor for providing a driving force, and a carrier for moving the lens system 101 forward and backward by the driving force. The controller 109 controls the driver 111 to move the lens system 101 to a focal position.
Now, a description will be made of a procedure for receiving and analyzing a preview image using the elements in FIG. 1,
When an image of a subject is optically received through the lens system 101, the image sensor 103 converts the optically received image of a subject into an electrical signal and provides the electrical signal to the ISP 105. The image of a subject received through the lens system 101 is continuously received in real time, and the image sensor 103 converts the received real-time image of a subject into an electrical signal, and provides the electrical signal to the ISP 105. The ISP 105 converts the received real-time image of a subject into a low-resolution preview image and displays the low-resolution preview image on the display 107. The user may monitor the received real-time preview image on the display 107.
Commonly, however, when a user captures an image while viewing a preview image, an image following the preview image is captured. If the subject is stationary, it doesn't matter even though an image is captured after the time the user intends to take a picture of the subject. However, in case of an image sensitive to motion, an unwanted image may be captured after the time the user intends to take a picture.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Apparatus and method for image capture using image stored in camera


A technique for secured personal identification numbers which cannot be readily detected by either observation or repeated trial attempts is disclosed. The secured personal identification number maintains the dual level security of a personal identification number or password without adding substantial complexity or an undesirable reduction in security. Moreover, the secured personal identification number of the present invention is readily applicable to any type of account which is accessed by entry of an account number and a personal identification number or password.

The personal account has become an omnipresent aspect of contemporary society, associated with almost every aspect of our lives. Personal accounts are associated with, for example, telephone calling cards, checking and savings accounts in banks, computer networks, and credit cards. Typically, account security is maintained (and unauthorized access prevented) by use of a password or personal identification number (PIN).
Account security is maintained by requiring two separate steps for account access. First, the account number must be entered. Second, a password or PIN associated with the account must be entered as well. The account number is typically not concealed (i.e., it may be printed on the telephone calling card or credit card, or it may be recorded on a magnetic strip affixed to the card which is read by an associated card reader) and may be considered, at least for security purposes, to be readily accessible. In contrast, a password or PIN is not supposed to be readily accessible. Rather, a user is typically instructed to memorize and not write down a password or personal identification number to prevent inadvertent disclosure of the password or PIN. By keeping the password or PIN confidential, unauthorized access to an account is hopefully prevented.
For example, a telephone calling card number may be provided by keying in the number on a telephone keypad or, in some circumstances, sliding the telephone calling card through a magnetic card reader attached to a specially equipped telephone. The account number is printed on the telephone calling card, and accordingly is readily accessible to any individual looking at the telephone calling card. However, merely knowing the account number does not allow someone to use the telephone calling card since a caller also has to know the PIN associated with the telephone calling card before a call may be placed using the telephone calling card. In theory, someone who steals the telephone calling card or merely knows the account number printed on the telephone calling card cannot make fraudulent telephone calls using the telephone calling card account because only the authorized user knows the PIN necessary to activate the account.
Similarly, an automatic teller machine (ATM) access card has at least one account number associated with it which is normally recorded on a magnetic strip affixed to the card that is read when the card is inserted into the automatic teller machine. Again, unauthorized use of the card (and therefore unauthorized account access) is theoretically prevented by requiring entry of a personal identification number before an account identified on the card can be accessed to, for example, withdraw money from the account. The owner of the ATM access card is normally instructed to memorize the PIN and not write it down to prevent an unauthorized user from learning the PIN.
With respect to telephone calling cards and ATM access cards, a user will typically recall the PIN associated with the account and enter the PIN by pressing numeric buttons on a keypad At that instant, the secrecy of the PIN, which was stored only in the user's memory and therefore undetectable, evaporates. Any individual who can see the user entering the PIN can note the PIN as it is punched into the keypad and thereafter knows the PIN for the account.
Personal identification numbers are also used to limit cellular telephone fraud. Normally, each cellular telephone has a unique identifier which is transmitted along with the telephone call to identify the cellular telephone for billing purposes. Unfortunately, the unique identifier may be detected by a thief equipped with a scanner. The thief can then program another cellular telephone with the previously unique identifier and calls made using the "cloned" telephone will be billed to the cellular telephone from which the unique identifier was stolen. The providers of cellular telephone services have sought to reduce the amount of fraud perpetrated in this manner by requiring entry of an authorization code before the cellular telephone can be used. By so doing, the providers of cellular telephone services have established an additional level of security that limits fraudulent use of the telephone. Unfortunately, the personal identification number can also be detected by a scanner and this security technique may be defeated as well.
Computer networks also have user accounts and associated passwords. For example, a user may have an electronic mail account or, as is increasingly often the case, the user may have a personal account associated with a home page of the World Wide Web accessed through the Internet. Typically, the user's account number may be readily obtained but unauthorized access to the user's account is restricted by requiring entry of a password or personal identification number before access to the account is granted. For example, a computer user may have a stock trading account with a stock broker that maintains a web page. The user's account is not accessible without entry of an identification number, which is normally keyed in by the user at a remote terminal. As with other multiple level security systems using passwords or personal identification numbers, the identification number may be detected by an observer. In this case, the observer may be simply watching the keyboard or, alternatively, the observer may be using a so-called "sniffer" to observe the network traffic.
Another area where computer networks rely upon passwords for security is general network access. For example, many networks maintain a file for each user in which the user's various network account numbers (i.e., log in names) and associated passwords are maintained in a plain text file (e.g., r.host). This allows a user who has logged in to the network from her primary terminal to access various associated networks without having to repeatedly enter her user name and password for each access to an associated network. Although this system greatly enhances the ease with which a user can traverse network elements, it provides an opportunity for abuse if a computer hacker obtains access to the file information. At that point, the computer hacker can, at a minimum, view files to which he is not authorized for access. In worst case scenarios, the unauthorized user may destroy files or, under the guise of being an authorized user, otherwise damage the system or the authorized user's reputation.
In yet another application, a personal identification number or password is used in connection with voice mail. In a typical voice mail system, a user will enter the voice mail account number, typically the user's extension number, and then will be prompted to enter an access code of some kind. It is only by entering the appropriate access code (a PIN or password) that the user is able to listen to his or her voice mail. Thus, the user is able to maintain a degree of confidentiality with respect to her voice mail.
Each of these applications suffers from a common flaw. A casual observer or a dedicated intruder can detect the supposedly secret personal identification number or password, either by direct observation or by repeated trial attempts. Having determined what the personal identification number or password is, an unauthorized person can obtain access to the account with relative ease, having bypassed one of the security mechanisms intended to prevent such abuse.
For example, a telephone calling card can be readily abused by a thief observing an authorized user enter the calling card number and the personal identification number and recording the numbers as they are entered on the telephone keypad. The thief can then place hundreds if not thousands of dollars worth of unauthorized telephone calls.
Alternatively, a thief can watch a bank customer enter her personal identification number in an automatic teller machine and then steal the automatic teller machine access card from the bank customer. Because the thief knows the personal identification number, the thief can easily access all of the customer's bank accounts and the security provided by the personal identification number is easily defeated.
With respect to computer network systems, an intruder may be able to access an account number without direct observation of password entry but simply by repeated trial attempts. The hacker can program a terminal to enter an authorized account number and then determine the password by repeatedly entering guesses at the correct password until the account is accessed. At that point, the network security has been breached and the unauthorized user's access to the network is limited only by the access rights associated with the account. If, as is often the case, the intruder attempts to access the network system administrator's account, the potential for malfeasance is virtually unlimited.
A similar circumstance exists with respect to voice mail systems. In that situation, an interloper may, with an appropriately configured computer modem, repeatedly enter access codes to obtain unauthorized access to a specific voice mail account without manually entering the access codes on a telephone keypad. A determined interloper will eventually enter the correct access code and be able to listen to messages and, depending on the voice mail system, in some cases, use the voice mail account to place long distance calls and otherwise abuse the system.
Accordingly, passwords and personal identification numbers do not provide adequate security against unauthorized account access because of their vulnerability to observation and/or discovery by repeated trial attempts.


An rotating door driven so as to be swivelable around a pivot of the rotating door includes a rotary bearing; a connection element having a driver piece configured to receive the pivot of the rotating door, the driver piece being mounted in the rotary bearing; and a drive connectable to the pivot of the rotating door in frictional engagement via the connection element.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a rotating door driven so as to be swivelable around a pivot.
2. Description of the Related Art
In known rotating doors of this type, the drive also functions as an upper bearing location for the pivot of the rotating door. This requires a massive design of the drive housing and bearing with the result that corresponding drives have quite a large construction and a complicated design.

Rotating door which is driven so as to be swivelable around a pivot


The disclosure relates to compositions, preferably in the form of a powder and/or granules, which contain as principal components a first component selected from the group consisting of isoflavones, soy products containing at least one isoflavone, and mixtures thereof, together with a polysaccharide as second component. A preferred first component is genistein or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt or derivative thereof (e.g. genistin). A preferred second component is pectin. The disclosure further relates to a process for the manufacture of such compositions, and their use in dietary supplements, pharmaceutical and personal care compositions. The disclosure is also directed to the use of a polysaccharide for improving the flowability of a component selected from the group consisting of isoflavones, soy products, preferably those containing at least one isoflavone, and mixtures thereof.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to compositions comprising as principal components a first component selected from the group consisting of isoflavones, soy products containing at least one isoflavone, and mixtures thereof, and a polysaccharide as second component. A preferred first component is genistein, a preferred second component is pectin.
The present invention further relates to a process for the manufacture of such compositions, and their use in dietary supplements, pharmaceutical and personal care compositions.
The present invention is also directed to the use of a polysaccharide for improving the flowability of a component selected from the group consisting of isoflavones, soy products, preferably those containing at least one isoflavone, and mixtures thereof.
Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
Genistein is a bioactive isoflavone naturally found e.g. in soy and commercially available. It has been claimed to be useful as an anti-inflammatory agent, for prevention and treatment of osteoporosis and heart disease, for prevention of photodamage and aging skin and wrinkles, for inhibition of Alzheimer's disease and for treatment of menopausal symptoms, estrogen disorders, cancer, cataracts, cystic fibrosis and migraine. Amongst the voluminous literature in this field, M. Messina, Chemistry & Industry 1995, 413-415, and T. E. Wiese et al., ibid. 1997, 648-653, present interesting reviews on the biological effects and uses of isoflavones, including genistein.


An exterior rearview mirror for motor vehicles has a mirror arm and a mirror housing connected to the mirror arm so as to foldable about a pivot axis relative to the mirror arm. A support plate is mounted in the mirror housing. A mirror pane is attached to the support plate so as to face outwardly relative to the mirror housing. An adjusting device for adjusting a position of the mirror pane from the interior of the motor vehicle is provided. The adjusting device includes a first adjusting member accessible from the interior of the motor vehicle. The adjusting device includes a second adjusting member mounted within the housing. The first and second adjusting members are connected to one another so as to be pivotable about a common axis. The common axis coincides substantially with the pivot axis of the housing.

The invention relates to an exterior rearview mirror for a vehicle, preferably a motor vehicle, comprising a mirror arm and a mirror housing which can be folded relative to the mirror arm and has mounted therein a support plate for the mirror pane. The support plate is adjustable in its position by an adjusting device that can be actuated by a control element from the interior of the motor vehicle.
Exterior rearview mirrors are known in which the folding action of the mirror housing resulting from an impact disengages the adjusting device from the support plate in order to allow for the folding movement of the mirror housing. Upon returning the mirror housing into the operational position there is the problem that the support plate and the adjusting device are to be connected to one another such that the support plate again assumes its original (adjusted) position.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to embody an exterior rearview mirror of the aforementioned kind such that for a simple constructive embodiment of the adjusting device it is ensured that the mirror pane support plate, after folding of the mirror housing and its return into the operational position, assumes again the originally adjusted position.


A system and method for measuring fuel pressure decreases in a fuel accumulator of an internal combustion engine is provided. The system includes the ability to stop a fuel flow to a fuel accumulator of the engine. Pressure signals are transmitted to a control system of the engine until the fuel pressure in the fuel accumulator drops by a predetermined amount, at which time fuel flow is re-enabled. The pressure signals are then analyzed to determine the amount or quantity of fuel delivered by each fuel injector. The system and method maintain engine and emissions performance by limiting the amount of fuel pressure decrease in the fuel accumulator.

All fuel systems have a certain amount of fuel leakage because of clearances between components. However, some fuel systems have relatively high fuel leakage for lubrication, cooling, and other purposes. Even though fuel leakage may have desirable benefits, fuel leakage rates may change with time and may exceed predetermined limits.

System and method for estimating high-pressure fuel leakage in a common rail fuel system


A semiconductor fabrication process in which a transistor trench and an isolation trench are simultaneously formed in a semiconductor substrate. The transistor trench is laterally displaced from the isolation trench. Thereafter the isolation trench is filled with an isolation material and a gate dielectric is formed on the floor of the transistor trench. Next, a conductive gate is formed on the gate dielectric and a source/drain impurity distribution is introduced into a source region and a drain region of the semiconductor substrate. The drain region and the source region are laterally disposed on either side of the transistor trench. In a presently preferred embodiment, the semiconductor substrate comprises a substantially single crystal p+ silicon bulk and a p- epitaxial layer formed upon the p+ silicon bulk. Preferably, the process of forming a transistor trench and the isolation trench includes depositing a photoresist layer on an upper surface of the semiconductor substrate, patterning the photoresist layer to expose an upper surface of an isolation trench region and an upper surface of a transistor trench region, anisotropically etching the isolation trench and the transistor trench region with a chlorinated plasma and stripping the photoresist layer. The process of filling the isolation trench with an isolation material preferably comprises depositing an isolation dielectric on the topography defined by the upper surface of the semiconductor substrate and the isolation trench and removing the isolation dielectric from regions exterior to the isolation trench.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of semiconductor processing and, more particularly, to a method of forming trench transistors and shallow trench isolation structures using a single trench formation process step.
2. Description of the Relevant Art
The fabrication of an integrated circuit involves placing numerous devices in a single semiconductor substrate. Select devices are thereafter interconnected by a conductor which extends over a dielectric which separates or "isolates" the individual devices. Implementing an electrical path across a monolithic integrated circuit thereby involves selectively connecting isolated devices. When fabricating integrated circuits it must therefore be possible to isolate devices built into the substrate from one another. From this perspective, isolation technology is one of the critical aspects of fabricating a functional integrated circuit.
A popular isolation technology used for an MOS integrated circuit involves the process of locally oxidizing silicon. Local oxidation of silicon, or LOCOS processes involve oxidizing field regions between devices. The oxide grown in field regions is termed field oxide, wherein field oxide is grown during the initial stages of integrated circuit fabrication, before source and drain implants are placed in device areas or active areas. By growing a thick field oxide in field regions pre-implanted with a channel-stop dopant, LOCOS processing serves to prevent the establishment of parasitic channels in the field regions.
While LOCOS has remained a popular isolation technology, there are several problems inherent with LOCOS. First, a growing field oxide extends laterally as a bird's-beak structure. In many instances, the bird's-beak structure can unacceptably encroach into the device active area. Second, the pre-implanted channel-stop dopant oftentimes redistributes during the high temperatures associated with field oxide growth. Redistribution of channel-stop dopant primarily affects the active area periphery causing problems known as narrow-width effects. Third, the thickness of field oxide causes large elevational disparities across the semiconductor topography between field and active regions. Topological disparities cause planarity problems which become severe as circuit critical dimensions shrink. Lastly, thermal oxide growth is significantly thinner in small field (i.e., field areas of small lateral dimension) regions relative to large field regions. In small field regions, a phenomenon known as field-oxide-thinning effect therefore occurs. Field-oxide-thinning produces problems with respect to field threshold voltages, interconnect-to-substrate capacitance, and field-edge leakage in small field regions between closely spaced active areas.
Many of the problems associated with LOCOS technology are alleviated by an isolation technique known as the "shallow trench process". Despite advances made to decrease bird's-beak, channel-stop encroachment and non-planarity, it appears that LOCOS technology is still inadequate for deep sub-micron MOS technologies. The shallow trench process is better suited for isolating densely spaced active devices having field regions less than one micron in lateral dimension.
The trench process involves the steps of etching a silicon substrate surface to a relatively shallow depth, e.g., between 0.05 to 0.5 microns, and then refilling the shallow trench with a deposited dielectric. Some trench processes include an interim step of growing oxide on trench walls prior to the trench being filled with a deposited dielectric. After the trench is filled, it is then planarized to complete the isolation structure.
The trench process eliminates bird's-beak and channel-stop dopant redistribution problems. In addition, the isolation structure is fully recessed, offering at least a potential for a planar surface. Still further, field-oxide thinning in narrow isolation spaces does not occur and the threshold voltage is constant as a function of channel width.
Despite its advantages over LOCOS, the conventional trench isolation process requires dedicated photolithography and dry etch steps to define the isolation trenches prior to the transistor fabrication sequence. These processing steps increase manufacturing costs by heightening the demand for typically scarce photolithography and plasma etch resources. Therefore, it would be desirable if the cost imposed by the addition of a trench formation process sequence enabled additional processing benefits.
The operating characteristics of a transistor fabricated with standard metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) integrated circuit techniques are a function of the transistor's dimensions. In particular, the transistor's source-to-drain current (I.sub.ds) is proportional to the ratio of the transistor's width (W) to the transistor's length (L). For a given transistor width W and a given biasing condition (e.g. V.sub.G =3V, V.sub.D =3V, and V.sub.S =0V), I.sub.ds is maximized by minimizing the transistor length L. Minimizing transistor channel length improves the speed of integrated circuits, which comprise a large number of individual transistors, because the larger drain current associated with a short channel length can drive the adjoining transistors into saturation more quickly. Minimizing L is, therefore, desirable from an device operation standpoint. In addition, minimizing the transistor length L is desirable from a manufacturing perspective because a smaller area of silicon is required to manufacture a transistor having a smaller length. By minimizing the area required for a given transistor, the number of transistors available for a given area of silicon increases and, with it, a corresponding increase in the circuit complexity that can be achieved on the given area of silicon.
The main limitation of minimum device size in a conventional transistor fabrication process is the resolution of the optical lithography printing system. In an optical lithography printing system, radiation is directed from an illumination source through a patterned mask and onto a photoresist layer. The patterned mask transmits the illumination source radiation onto selected areas of the photoresist layer to reproduce the mask pattern in the photoresist layer. Resolution in optical lithography systems is limited by diffraction effects, which spread radiation from the illumination source into regions of the photoresist which are not directly exposed to the illumination source. Because of diffraction effects, there is a minimum distance beyond which even a geometrically perfect lens cannot resolve two points. In other words, when two points are less than a minimum distance from each other, the two points cannot be resolved by the lithography system. The diffraction patterns associated with each point overlap each other to such an extent that the two points cannot be effectively differentiated. The resolution of a lens depends on the wavelength of the illumination source and the numerical aperture of the lens. Rayleighs criteria defines two images as being resolvable when the intensity between them drops to 80% of the image intensity. This criteria is satisfied when the 2d=0.61 .lambda./NA. Where 2d is the separation distance of the two images, .lambda. is the wavelength of the energy source, and NA is the numerical aperture of the lens.
As process technologies approach and surpass the resolvable limits of photolithography aligners, semiconductor manufacturers are typically forced to implement alternative techniques to achieve adequate resolution of the minimum features. Unfortunately, the conventional alternatives involve abandoning or substantially modifying the existing photolithography equipment at a prohibitive cost. For example, it is typically necessary to upgrade photolithography aligners or abandon the optical alignment equipment entirely and replace it with advanced lithography equipment such as e-beam or x-ray lithography equipment to adequately resolve features in the deep sub-micron range (i.e. <0.5 .mu.m). The cost associated with replacing or upgrading photolithography equipment can be prohibitive due to the capital required to purchase and install the improved equipment and the extensive costs associated with qualifying the new equipment for production worthiness and training production and maintenance personnel in the operation and care of the new equipment.
In addition, conventional transistor fabrication processes, in which the transistor gate is formed above the semiconductor substrate, result in a non-planar surface upon which subsequent processing layers must be fabricated. The non-planar surface increases the difficulty of subsequent processing. In particular, photolithography resolution is negatively affected by variations in the thickness of the photoresist layer across non-planar regions or "steps" in the underlying substrate. Photoresist line width variations are common over steps in the underlying substrate primarily due to standing wave effects and light scattering at the steps caused by diffraction and reflection effects. Moreover, it is difficult to fabricate the shallow source/drain junction depth that is required to minimize short channel effects in deep submicron transistor technologies. This is especially true with respect to p-channel devices where the source/drain impurity typically comprises boron which is known to have a high diffusion coefficient. It would therefore be desirable to implement a transistor fabrication process that enables the reduction of the minimum transistor channel length, improves the planarity of the wafer surface upon which the post-fabrication processing sequence occurs, integrates nicely with a shallow trench isolation process, and facilitates the formation of shallow source/drain junctions.

Integrated circuit employing simultaneously formed isolation and transistor trenches


A seat occupant sensing system has a plurality of variable resistance force sensors located between a rigid seat support member and the floor of the vehicle. The force transferred from the rigid seat support member to the floor of the vehicle passes through said variable resistance force sensors which sense the magnitude of the force transferred therethrough and generate a signal which is indicative of the force transferred therethrough resistance force sensors interposed between a rigid seat support member and a rigid seat pan member such that the weight supported by the seat pan member is transferred from the seat pan member to the seat support member via said at least one variable resistance force sensor which senses the magnitude of the weight transferred therethrough. A device, such as a microprocessor, processes a signal from the variable resistance force sensors to determine the weight that the rigid seat pan member is bearing. The signal processing device may control the activation and operation of a safety device such as an airbag or seat belt pretensioner as a function of the presence of and weight of a seat occupant.

Many vehicles are equipped with safety devices such as airbags, seat belt pretensioners and so forth to protect persons occupying various seats in the vehicle. If a seat is unoccupied or is occupied by a person of a particular size, it may not be necessary to activate a safety device associated with that seat. Furthermore, if a seat is occupied by a person of a particular size the manner in which a safety device is employed may be varied accordingly. One indicator of the size of a seat occupant is his or her weight. In the case of an infant, the combined weight of the infant and an infant safety seat is useful as an indicator of occupant size.


A multiple objects detection method for a capacitive touchpad, through at least one preset time, whether it is noise and interference or an operation of object on touchpad is thus distinguished, actions such as object touches the touchpad, leaves the touchpad are then judged correctly, and different kinds of gesture operations are precisely detected.

Capacitive touchpad is an input device for controlling cursor movement by providing smooth panel for finger to slide on it. Since capacitive touchpad is very thin, it can thus be designed into ultra-thin notebook, key board, digital player or other devices, besides, its non-mechanical design makes it very easy to be maintained.
FIG. 1 is the prior art two dimensional capacitive touchpad 100, comprising panel 102, Y axis sensing layer 104, insulated layer 106, X axis sensing layer 108 and bottom board 110. When finger 112 touches panel 102, the sensed value (capacitance value) on the touched location will have a change, and the control circuit connected to touchpad 100 can convert the capacitance on the touchpad into sensed value, as shown in FIG. 2, in order to judge finger location, amount of movement and direction of movement. In the prior art technology, the detected sensed value is used to judge if the object touches capacitive touchpad 100, this is as shown in FIG. 3, when sensed value is larger than critical value th, it means object touches touchpad 100, on the contrary, when sensed value is smaller than critical value th, it means object leaves touchpad 100 or object is not on touchpad 100.
However, touchpad 100 might be interfered by signals from wireless device such as cellular phone, etc., and generate noise, therefore, touchpad 100 might misjudge that object is touching, clicking, moving or performing any gesture operation on it. FIG. 4A is an example showing noise generated on touchpad 100, the noise is converted into sensed value through analog digital converter, as shown in FIG. 4B, finally through a sampling process, the waveform as in FIG. 4C is obtained, this kind of waveform is similar to the waveform generated when two fingers touch touchpad 100, as shown in FIG. 5, therefore, noise in FIG. 4A could be misjudged to be two fingers touching touchpad 100, this could lead to wrong operation.
Therefore, a detection method which can prevent interference from noise is highly expected.

Method for multiple objects detection on a capacitive touchpad


An enclosure, such as a building entrance protector (BEP) enclosure, has a base, a mid layer pivotally connected to the base, and a cover pivotally connected to the mid layer. A mounting plane mounted to the mid layer divides the enclosure into two chambers--an inner chamber and an outer chamber. The mid layer provides at least two different mounting positions for the mounting plane, in order to provide different sets of volumes for the two chambers. In particular, by moving the mounting plane from the lower mounting position to the upper mounting position, the volume of the inner chamber is increased, while the volume of the outer chamber is decreased. The enclosure is designed such that the mounting plane can be reconfigured from one mounting position to the other in the field and without disturbing any of the hardware, including any electrical connections, housed within the two chambers, including any hardware mounted directly to the mounting plane. As such, the volumes of the chambers in the enclosure can be efficiently changed in the field as needed to accommodate changing hardware needs.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to enclosures for telecommunications applications, and, in particular, to enclosures for receiving hardware for splicing and/or connecting to cables carrying telecommunications signals, such as telephone cables carrying telephone signals.
2. Description of the Related Art
A building entrance protector (BEP) enclosure houses the physical interface between the nodes of a local telecommunications network and a telecommunications cable. For example, a BEP enclosure may house the interface hardware between the telephones of an office building and an exterior telephone cable having a number of twisted copper pairs that carry the voice signals for those telephones. A BEP enclosure would typically be mounted in the basement or first floor of the office building. A BEP enclosure may also be used to house the interface hardware for systems based on fiber optical communications. Similarly, BEP enclosures may be used with telecommunications systems carrying signals other than just telephone voice signals.
A BEP enclosure provides two main functions: (1) it houses the hardware that provides connections between a cable and the individual nodes (e.g., telephones) of a local network; and (2) it houses the hardware that provides electrical isolation between the cable and the local network. Electrical isolation is intended to prevent any high voltages and/or high currents that may exist from time to time in the cable from reaching the local network. For example, a BEP enclosure will house isolation components designed to protect telephone users from lightning striking a telephone cable. Such electrical isolation is typically provided by 5-pin plug-in protectors that quickly connect signals to ground upon detection of sufficiently high voltages or currents.
Depending on the situation, it may be desirable to control the access that different users have to the different types of hardware housed in a BEP enclosure. For example, when a BEP enclosure is to be used in an office building, it may be desirable to provide operators of the office building with access to the connection hardware housed in the BEP enclosure, but not to the isolation hardware. In this way, the office-building operators would be able to adjust the distribution of telephone signals from the cable to the various offices in the building, while, at the same time, being prevented from disturbing the electrical isolation hardware housed in the BEP enclosure.
To achieve this access control, BEP enclosures typically have two or more chambers that house the different types of hardware. For example, isolation components may be housed in a first chamber, and connection components, in a second chamber. The BEP enclosure can then be configured to provide only limited access to the office-building operators, that is, access to the second chamber but not to the first chamber. Representatives of the telephone service company, on the other hand, would have access to both chambers.
FIGS. 1(a) and 1(b) show perspective and cross-sectional views, respectively, of the three basic parts of a conventional BEP enclosure 100: the base 102, the mid layer 104, and the cover 106. The base is essentially a rectilinear box with a bottom, four side walls, and open on its top. The mid layer has four side walls with a mounting plane 108 perpendicular to the four side walls. The mid layer is adapted to be pivotally connected to the base at one side (110), and the cover is adapted to be pivotally connected to the mid layer at the other side (112). The interior of the base and the lower portion of the mid layer form an inner chamber 114 of the BEP enclosure, while the upper portion of the mid layer and the cover form an outer chamber 116 of the BEP enclosure. As such, the mounting plane of the mid layer forms both the top surface of the inner chamber and the bottom surface of the outer chamber.
Chamber access is typically controlled by the type of mechanism used to hold together the parts that form the chamber. For example, special security screws can be used to seal a chamber, thereby restricting access to only those individuals who have special tools designed to remove those security screws. Two such screws are 216-type screws and KS-type screws, each of which requires a different special tool to remove. If a regular slotted or Philips-head screw is used to secure the chamber, then access will not be restricted because regular and Philips-head screw drivers are readily available.
In certain circumstances, the hardware to be housed in the chambers of a BEP enclosure may change over time. For example, it may be desirable to replace one type of plug-in protector, used to provide high voltage/current electrical isolation and mounted to the bottom of the mounting plane within the inner chamber, with a faster, more reliable type of plug-in protector. Unfortunately, there may not be enough room in the inner chamber to add the improved protectors, which may be longer than the protectors that are to be replaced.

Enclosure for telecommunications applications having a configurable mounting plane


The method and the apparatus disclosed serve to acquire seismic induced movements. A coil and a permanent magnet are contained in an enclosure and the seismic movements induce a relative movement between said coil and said magnet. The current induced into the coil is appraised as a measure of said seismic movement. The position of the coil in relation to the permanent magnet is monitored by a position sensor. A closed loop control generates a current that is fed into the coil so that the coil settles at a given neutral position relative to the permanent magnet.

The present invention is directed, in general, to the field of seismic exploration and seismology and, more particularly, to seismic sensors such as geophone assemblies. It also encompasses a method and apparatus for compensating the effect of gravity on seismic sensors as well as a method and apparatus to overcome the bandwidth limitations of geophones towards long wavelengths.
3-component seismometers are being used in geophysics to explore structures below the earth's crust. Whereas the vertical alignment of a seismometer can be easily accomplished on land, this calls for elaborate mechanical and lately electronic appliances on the seabed.
Seismometers often contain geophones as sensors. In principle, an electrodynamic geophone comprises a coil, a magnet and a suspension, which allows the coil to move only in one direction relative to the magnet and the magnetic field is directed in such a way that said movement induces a current in the coil.
Depending on the construction most often the magnet or the coil is attached to an enclosure, which is coupled to the area under investigation. Due to the inertia of the moving part a current is induced in the coil, which is proportional to the ground motion. Common constructions are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,718,900 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,152,692.
Different types of geophones are used for horizontal and for vertical measurements relative to the direction of gravity. The vertical geophone compensates the influence of gravity by pre-stressing the suspension of the moving part. A horizontal geophone does without pre-stress.
In order to detect ground movements in all directions, one vertical geophone and two horizontal geophones at a time are assembled into a three component seismometer such that vertical, north-southern, and east-western ground motions can be detected independently from each other after appropriate leveling. Such arrangements have been used in prospection geophysics for many years. An alternative assembly that is mainly used for broadband seismology only comprises one single type of geophone and became known as "Galperin arrangement". A drawback for earthquake geophysics (seismology) is the fact that below the eigenfrequency of the moving part the sensitivity of a geophone declines rapidly. The eigenfrequency of manufactured geophones is in the range of 1 to 20 Hz. Seismology studies ground motions from 1 milliHz to 20 Hz. Therefore, geophones for prospection geophysics are unsuitable for seismology.
A paper by E. Wielandt, "Design Principles of Electronic Inertial Seismometers", published in "Earthquakes: Observation, Theory and Interpretation", 1983, LXXXV Corso, Soc. Italiana di Fisica, Bologna, describes arrangements that detect ground motions in the seismological bandwidth. All contemporary so called "broadband seismometers" have in common that the spring mounted seismic mass is kept at rest relative to the seismometer's enclosure due to feedback by means of a position detector and an electrodynamic tracking arrangement, i.e. the seismic mass closely follows the ground motion. Thus the influence of the mechanical eigenfrequency on the propagation response is nullified. The measurement signal itself is derived from the feedback signal, which is proportional to the ground motion in the seismological bandwidth as well. An elaborate implementation is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,280,206.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,075,754 discloses a simple version of a similar arrangement that uses a standard geophone as the seismic mass, as acceleration detector, and as tracking means all at the same time.
The search for oil and gas is extended to deeper and deeper sea areas due to the continuing depletion of terrestrial and coastal reservoirs. The high cost of deep water operations asks for an increasing quality of seismic exploration and therefore, more and more often seismometers are deployed on the seabed in addition to the traditional registration of pressure waves using hydrophones on the water surface. Usually, mechanical arrangements, e.g. gimballed suspensions damped by high-viscosity fluids, are used for the necessary vertical alignment. The horizontal north-south and east-west orientation is accomplished either by means of an integrated compass or by recording seismic calibration pulses. Also, borehole seismic surveys are riddled by the fact that boreholes are no longer vertical and straight, but full of bends and even horizontal sections. Therefore, the present invention opens up new possibilities for seismic borehole sensors.
As early as 1998 EPRO GmbH, Germany in a product catalogue for "Vibration Transducer PR9268" describes that the coil of a transducer that has been mounted in a tilted position may be brought back into its operating position by injecting a suitable electrical compensation current, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,412,592 B1 discloses how such a compensation current can be automatically generated depending on the tilt angle by means of a potentiometer coupled to the geophone mechanically.
Document WO 03/096071 A1 discloses a method and arrangement to reduce the measurement error, which is due to the tilt of a geophone by feeding a compensation current into the geophone's coil that has been derived from a separate acceleration or tilt sensor. Thereby the residual error under all tilt conditions is diminished to an error that amounts to a maximum tilt angle of 10 degrees. Thus this method respectively this apparatus is suitable to compensate the tilt of geophones down to an eigenfrequency of 10 Hz without calibration.
Any discussion of the prior art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such prior art is widely known or forms part of common general knowledge in the field.
It is the object of the present invention to specify a method and an apparatus of the aforementioned nature that fully compensates any tilt without calibration even for geophones under 10 Hz eigenfrequency using less energy than the arrangement disclosed in WO 03/096071 A1.

Method and apparatus for the acquisition of seismic movements