There are described diffusion transfer photosensitive film units which include a novel antihalation layer comprising an antihalation material, titanium dioxide and a binder. Diffusion transfer film units prepared according to the invention provide silver images of enhanced resolution, film speed and sharpness.

Diffusion transfer photography is well known and has been utilized to provide "instant" images in black and white in both a peel-apart format and an integral format. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,543,181 describes instant peel-apart black and white silver transfer films and U.S. Pat. No. 4,489,152 describes instant integral black and white silver transfer films.
Diffusion transfer photographic film units which include photosensitive silver halide for forming images typically comprise a support carrying a photosensitive silver halide emulsion, a silver halide solvent, a silver reducing agent for converting the exposed silver halide to metallic silver and an alkaline activator to obtain a pH at which the silver halide can be effectively developed. A visible image is formed in these materials by exposing the photosensitive silver halide to an imagewise pattern of activating light to form a latent image, dissolving the unexposed silver halide, transferring the dissolved unexposed silver halide to an image-receiving layer and reducing the transferred unexposed silver halide to form a positive image in reduced silver.
It is well known in the art that light used to expose the photosensitive silver halide emulsion of a diffusion transfer photographic film unit may be diffusely transmitted therethrough to the support and, then be reflected back to the emulsion causing it to be reexposed. Given the distance of the support and the interfaces (of the other layers of the film unit between the support and the emulsion layer) from the emulsion layer, the reexposure of the emulsion occurs at points laterally removed from the initial exposure, hence, with reexposure by such reflected light, a "halo" appears around the site of initial exposure of the emulsion. As will be appreciated by one of skill in the relevant art, the halo effect or "halation" reduces the resolution or sharpness of the film and, accordingly, of the resultant image produced by such film.
As would be understood by those of skill in the art, halation may be substantially prevented or reduced by absorbing any light which may be transmitted by the photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer. It is generally known in the art to prevent halation by, for example, coating the support of the film unit remote from where the exposure is made with either dyes or pigments, or coating an antihalation layer which contains gelatin and dyes or silver between the support of the film unit remote from where the exposure is made and the photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer. Generally, the antihalation dyes incorporated within an antihalation layer are either bleached, decolorized or removed from the layer after photographic processing, e.g., to prevent its color from reappearing in time as it is slowly reoxidized, while antihalation dyes or pigments incorporated in the support remain.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,039,333 is directed to an antihalation layer and describes photographic materials for use in conventional photography which include a combination of at least two particular binders together with an antihalation material, e.g., carbon black, which provide improved antihalation.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,751,174 is directed to a silver halide photographic material for use in conventional photography and describes the inclusion of a light-insensitive silver halide emulsion layer between a light-sensitive silver halide emulsion layer and the support which decreases halation.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,957,856 is directed to a subbing layer having a decoloring capable antihalation function and describes a silver halide photographic material for use in conventional photography which includes the subbing layer which comprises a binder, a polymer, i.e., mordant, described therein, a dye described therein and a surface active agent. As reported therein, the particular mordant and dye combination improves the processing time decolorization.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,990,432 is directed to a silver halide photographic light-sensitive material for use in conventional photography and which includes a reflective support having a transmission density of not more than 0.8, a silver halide emulsion layer and an antihalation layer formed closer to the support than the silver halide emulsion layer. As reported therein, the antihalation layer prevents any reflected light incident into the silver halide emulsion layer.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,318,885 is directed to an antihalation layer and describes a photographic element for use in conventional photography which includes a reflective support, one or more photosensitive silver halide emulsion layers, and a colored, i.e., blue or gray grains of silver in the form of platelets, antihalation layer interposed between the support and the photosensitive layers.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,665,528 is directed to a quickly decolorized new antihalation dye which is incorporated in an antihalation layer of a silver halide photographic material that is conventionally processed.
Diffusion transfer color photographic integral-type film units are known in the art, such as described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,422,233, which include layers comprising image-forming materials, e.g., dye developers, interposed between an opaque support and a photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, which may also function as antihalation layers given the light absorption ability of the dye developers. Black and white diffusion transfer photographic film units, by definition, do not contain such color image-forming materials and, therefore, generally contain some provision for antihalation.
The integral black and white instant films described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,489,152 include an opaque layer, i.e., carbon black and polyvinylpyrrolidone, between the silver halide emulsion layer and the image-receiving layer so that the film unit may be developed outside the camera, and a light-reflecting layer, i.e., a white layer of titanium dioxide, positioned between the carbon black layer and the image-receiving layer to provide a white background against which the silver transfer image may be viewed. It would be understood by those of skill in the relevant art that the carbon black layer disclosed therein would be able to function as an antihalation layer, i.e., absorb substantially all of, if not all of, the light which passed through the emulsion layer during photoexposure.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,078,933 is directed to a silver halide photographic light-sensitive element for use in conventional photography which includes at least one silver halide emulsion layer and at least one hydrophilic colloid layer containing at least one dye wherein the dye is useful in antihalation and can be decolorized readily and completely. According to the description provided therein, to be satisfactory, the subject dyes must be photographically inert, have a good mordanting property, i.e., remain in the layer, and be decolorized or removed by dissolving during photographic processing, i.e., good bleachability.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,294,917 is directed to a dye antihalation layer and describes a photographic silver halide material for use in conventional photography which includes in at least one layer a solid dispersion of a water-insoluble antihalation dye. As reported therein, after completion of the conventional photographic processing, no dye in the antihalation underlayer was visible and, the dye was completely and irreversibly destroyed in the silver halide developing solution and no discolouration of any of the processing solutions was visible.
It is known in the art that use of antihalation materials may result in a loss of emulsion sensitivity or speed. Methods have been devised to reduce such losses in speed associated with the use of antihalation materials, by, for example, incorporating a layer of a light-reflecting pigment, such as, for example, titanium dioxide, e.g., in between the support containing the antihalation materials and the photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer of the film unit, or, in between the antihalation layer and the photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, preferably, adjacent the photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer. The reflecting layer reflects back substantially all of the exposure light to the silver halide emulsion and, given the proximity of the reflecting layer to the photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, causes reexposure to made in substantially the same point as the original exposure, hence, preventing "halo" formation, such as described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,563,406 which describes a photographic support coated with, in succession, a colorant layer (antihalation layer), a white pigment layer and a silver halide emulsion layer; or, U.S. Pat. No. 4,615,966 which describes a diffusion transfer photographic instant film unit which includes a light-reflecting spacer layer disposed between a silver halide layer and the associated layer of image dye-providing material to increase effective film speed as a result of the reflection of light back to the silver halide.
While such methods of preventing or reducing halation in photographic elements have been found to provide advantageous results as are described in the above-mentioned patents, nevertheless their performance in some photographic systems is not completely satisfactory. For example, in some diffusion transfer photographic systems, the use of such methods have been found to contribute to undesirable silver image resolution and speed loss thereby adversely affecting the aesthetic qualities of the final photograph.
It would be desirable to have diffusion transfer photographic black and white film units which include suitable antihalation materials, and which, at the same time, provide suitable film speed and resolution in the finished photograph, and suitable sharpness as visually perceived.
As the state of the art for diffusion transfer photographic film units continues to move forward, new techniques and materials continue to be developed by those of skill in the art in order to meet the performance criteria required of such materials. The present invention is drawn to novel diffusion transfer black and white photosensitive film units which include an antihalation layer comprising an antihalation material, titanium dioxide and a binder; an aqueous alkaline processing composition which includes a suitable amount of a light-reflecting pigment, preferably, titanium dioxide, to form a light-reflecting layer during photographic processing which provides a white background against which to view the final image; a silver reducing agent; and a silver halide solvent.

Diffusion transfer photosensitive film unit for silver transfer image


Apparatus for placing external corner protectors upon the external corner regions of palletized loads, prior to the wrapping of the palletized loads within wrapping material, comprises four corner protector pickup, transfer, and applicator mechanisms respectively disposed adjacent to the four corner regions of the palletized load, wherein the corner protector pickup, transfer, and applicator mechanisms are movable independently of the external corner protector magazine assemblies. The external corner protector pickup, transfer, and applicator mechanisms are rotatably mounted upon rotatable actuators which are rotatably movable through angular movements comprising 270°, and, in turn, the rotary actuators are mounted upon linearly movable mechanisms which are movable in both X and Y directions. The external corner protector magazine assemblies, and the external corner protector pickup, transfer, and applicator mechanisms operatively associated therewith, are therefore capable of being oriented either in a parallel mode, or in a perpendicular mode, with respect to the longitudinal extent of the conveyor system which conveys the palletized load into and out from the wrapping station.

Apparatus for wrapping or packaging a palletized load or article generally comprises a stationary or fixed framework defining a wrapping station for receiving the palletized load or article to wrapped within wrapping or packaging material, and a movable framework which is mounted upon the stationary or fixed framework in a vertically reciprocable manner or mode of operation. The movable framework has a wrapping material dispensing unit rotatably mounted thereon for rotation around a vertical axis defined at the wrapping station at which each one of the palletized loads or articles is disposed so as to be wrapped within the packaging or wrapping material, and accordingly, as the movable framework is moved vertically along the fixed or stationary framework, the wrapping material dispensing unit is rotated around the palletized load or article so as to completely encase the palletized load or article within the wrapping or packaging material. The palletized load or article to be wrapped or packaged usually comprises opposed pairs of vertical sides, wherein adjacent sides of the palletized load or article meet at an angle so as to define a plurality of vertically oriented corner or edge regions, and in order to protect the vertically oriented corner or edge regions of the palletized load or article from being damaged during transportation, shipping, storage, or the like, vertically oriented corner or edge protectors, fabricated, for example, from paper or paperboard material, are applied to or mounted upon the vertically oriented corner or edge regions of the palletized load or article prior to the wrapping or packaging of the same within the wrapping or packaging material.
The apparatus for applying the vertically oriented corner or edge protectors onto the vertically oriented corner or edge regions of the palletized load or article generally comprises, for each vertically oriented corner region of the palletized load or article, a magazine for storing a plurality or supply of the vertically oriented corner or edge protectors, and a pickup, transfer, and applicator mechanism operatively associated with the magazine for removing a leading one of the vertically oriented corner or edge protectors from the magazine, for transferring the removed corner or edge protector toward the particular or corresponding corner or edge portion of the palletized load or article, and for applying the vertically oriented corner or edge protector onto the particular vertically oriented corner or edge region of the palletized load or article. One such type of apparatus which has heretofore been proposed, and which is currently well-known in the industry, is that disclosed within U.S. Pat. No. 5,535,572 which issued to Morantz et al. on Jul. 16, 1996. More particularly, as can best be appreciated from FIG. 1, which corresponds to FIG. 2 of the aforenoted patent to Morantz et al., it is seen that the exemplary, conventional, PRIOR ART palletized load or article wrapping or packaging system, generally indicated by the reference character 10, comprises a stationary frame assembly 12, a movable frame assembly 14 movably mounted upon the stationary frame assembly 12 for vertical movement with respect thereto, and a ring member 16 which is supported upon the frame assembly 14 for vertical displacement therewith and which is rotatable around a system axis 18. The stationary frame assembly 12 spans a conveyor 20 which is adapted to convey a palletized load or article L, to be wrapped or packaged, along a flow path P to a wrapping or packaging station, which is located at the axial location 18, in preparation for the wrapping or packaging of the palletized load or article L, and subsequent to the wrapping or packaging of the palletized load or article L, the conveyor 20 will discharge the wrapped or packaged palletized load or article L outwardly from the wrapping or packaging station. A film carriage 22 is mounted upon the ring member 16 for displacement therewith and includes a roll of plastic wrapping or packaging film material which is adapted to be paid out or dispensed during a palletized load or article wrapping or packaging operation.
The palletized load or article L is defined by means of a pair of oppositely disposed end walls 34,36 and a pair of oppositely disposed side walls 38,40 wherein adjacent pairs of the side walls and end walls 34,36,38,40 define four vertically oriented corner regions upon the palletized load or article L which are adapted to be protected by means of vertically oriented corner or edge protectors. Accordingly, a plurality of corner or edge protector magazine and pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 44 are provided within the vicinity of each one of the four corner regions of the palletized load or article L such that a pickup, transfer, and applicator assembly 132 can effectively pick up or remove a leading one of a plurality of serially arranged, vertically oriented corner or edge protectors from a magazine assembly 56, transfer the removed corner or edge protector from the magazine assembly 56 toward the particular corner or edge region of the palletized load or article L, and apply the corner or edge protector onto the corner or edge region of the palletized load or article L. More particularly, as can best be appreciated from FIG. 2, which corresponds to FIG. 4 of the patent to Morantz et al., each one of the plurality of corner or edge protector magazine and pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 44 is seen to comprise a stationary framework 46 which includes a plurality of vertically oriented corner posts 48, a pair of transversely oriented framework members 50,50 connecting pairs of the corner posts 48 together, and a pair of longitudinally extending frame rail members 52,52 connecting other pairs of the corner posts 48 together. In addition, a pair of longitudinally extending frame members 54,54, having racks 70 formed thereon, also connect the pair of transversely oriented framework members 50,50 together.
A magazine unit 56, for housing a plurality of corner or edge protectors C within a transversely oriented, serial array, is mounted upon a carriage assembly 58 which comprises a carrige support plate 59, and the opposite ends of the support plate 59 are mounted upon carriage wheel units 60 which are rollably disposed upon the longitudinally extending rail members 52,52. A motor 64, mounted upon the undersurface portion of the support plate 59, is adapted to drive pinions, not illustrated, which are disposed in meshed engagement with the racks 70 such that the entire carriage assembly 58, upon which the magazine unit 56 is mounted, can be moved in a reciprocal manner along the longitudinally extending rail members 52,52. It is additionally seen that each one of the pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 132 is respectively mounted upon the support plate 59, through means of a support block 134, so as to be movable along with the carriage assembly 58. The support block 134 is mounted upon a pair of guide rods 136 which are slidably mounted within a pair of guide blocks 138 which are mounted upon the support plate 59, and the support block 134 is also attached to the distal end of a piston rod 142 of a cylinder mechanism 140 which is also mounted upon the support plate 59.
The support block 134 comprises a pickup plate 148 which is mounted upon a support plate 150 which is fixedly mounted upon a vertically oriented rotatable shaft 144, and a pinion mechanism 158 is also fixedly mounted upon the rotatable shaft 144. A rack 160 is fixedly mounted upon one of a plurality of vertically orient-ed corner posts 72 of the magazine unit 56, and accordingly, when the support block 134 is driven to the right, as viewed in FIG. 2, from the solid line position to the dotted line position, the pinion mechanism 158 will be enmeshed with and driven by the rack 160 so as to rotate the pickup plate 148 and the vertically oriented shaft 144 around the vertical axis defined by vertically oriented shaft 144. In this manner, the leading one of the edge or corner protectors C will be removed from the magazine unit 56 and angularly pivoted through an angular rotation of 135 so as to be disposed at the dotted line position designated by means of P1,P2 which represent the side members of each corner or edge protector C. When the corner or edge protector C is disposed at such dotted line position, the pickup, transfer, and applicator assembly 132 may then be adjustably positioned still further with respect to the end and side wall members 34,38 of the palletized load or article L by means of piston-cylinder assembly 140,142, as well as by means of drive motor 64 which controls the movement of carriage assembly 58, so as to apply or mount the corner or edge protector C onto the external corner or edge region of the palletized load or article L.
While the aforenoted apparatus of Morantz et al. is quite satisfactory, the structural components, and the operational arrangement of such structural components, comprising the apparatus or system presents some logistical and operational situations which are deemed to need improvement. For example, it is noted, for example, that the pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 132 are respectively mounted upon the carriage assembly 58 along with the magazine unit 56 which houses the supply of corner or edge protectors C. Accordingly, a substantial amount of mass, that is, the entire carriage assembly 58 and the magazine unit 56, is required to be moved when each one of the pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 132 is moved with respect to a particular one of the external corner or edge regions of the palletized load or article L in order to properly position the leading one of the corner or edge protectors C which has been removed from a respective one of the magazine units 56. This massive movement of the aforenoted structural components necessitates a slow movement of the pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 132 with respect to the external corner or edge regions of the palletized load or article L, or the use of larger motor drive units. It is further noted that since each magazine unit 56 and each pickup, transfer, and applicator assembly 132 is mounted upon the movable carriage assembly 58, then when the supply of corner or edge protectors C needs to be replenished, operator personnel must perform such replenishment operation either while the carriage assembly 58 is in motion, such as, for example, when each one of the pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 132 is being moved toward an external corner region of the palletized load or article L so as to position the leading one of the corner or edge protectors C onto the external corner or edge region of the palletized load or article L, or when each one of the pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 132 is being moved away from the external corner region of the palletized load or article L so as to permit the wrapping or packaging process for the palletized load or article L to be completed. The performance of such a replenishment operation during such movements of the carriage assembly 58 is obviously dangerous or potentially hazardous to operator personnel.
Alternatively, such a replenishment operation may conceivably be performed after the pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 132 have been moved away from the external corner region of the palletized load or article L so as to permit the wrapping or packaging of the palletized load or article L to be completed, or still further, when the wrapped or packaged palletized load or article is being discharged from the wrapping or packaging station by means of the conveyor mechanism 20, while a new palletized load or article L is being conveyed into the wrapping or packaging station in preparation for the commencement of a new wrapping or packaging operation. However, the time window for accomplishing such a corner or edge protector replenishment operation may be relatively short, and if the replenishment operation is not in fact completed when the next wrapping or packaging operation is to be performed, the system experiences operational downtime which causes a loss in productivity.
Lastly, it is noted that in accordance with the structural arrangement and actuating mechanisms comprising the pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 132, and the mounting of the same upon the carriage assembly 58, the plurality of pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 132 are only able to undergo angular rotation through means of an angular extent comprising 135° of movement. Accordingly, as can best be appreciated from FIG. 2, in order to permit the pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 132 to undergo such angular or pivotal movement from the solid line position to the dotted line position so as to properly position the same, as well as the leading one of the external corner or edge protectors C disposed thereon, with respect to a respective one of the external corner or edge regions of the palletized load or article L, the plurality of corner or edge protector magazine and pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies 44 must be positioned in a transverse or perpendicular mode or orientation with respect to the longitudinal extent of the conveyor 20. This arrangement requires a larger amount of floor space to be allocated to the entire packaging or wrapping machinery or apparatus 10.
A need therefore exists in the art for a new and improved apparatus or system for applying vertically oriented external corner or edge protectors onto vertically oriented external corner or edge regions of a palletized load or article wherein the magazine assemblies for housing or storing supplies of the plurality of external edge or corner protectors are stationary so as not to present a hazardous environment for operator personnel during the replenishment of the supplies of the external corner or edge protectors within the magazine assemblies, wherein the external corner or edge protector pickup, transfer, and applicator mechanisms are movable independently of their operatively associated magazine assemblies such that the mass which is required to be moved in order to remove the leading one of the external corner or edge protectors from each one of the magazine assemblies, to transfer the removed external corner or edge protector toward the external corner or edge region of the palletized load or article disposed at the wrapping or packaging station, and to apply the external corner or edge protector onto the external corner or edge region of the palletized load or article is minimized whereby the controlled movements of the external corner or edge protector pickup, transfer, and applicator mechanisms are able to be performed faster and with smaller motor drive mechanisms, and wherein the external corner or edge protector pickup, transfer, and applicator mechanisms are rotatably or pivotally movable through angular movements or extents of 270° so as to permit the external corner or edge protector magazine and pickup, transfer, and applicator assemblies to be optionally oriented in both parallel and perpendicular modes with respect to the longitudinal extent of the palletized load or article conveyor mechanism which conveys the palletized loads or articles into the wrapping or packaging station, and which discharges the palletized loads or articles out from the wrapping or packaging station, whereby the floor space of the manufacturing or fabrication facility can be optimized.

Apparatus for applying external corner or edge protectors onto external corner or edge regions of packages or palletized loads


An alignment mark comprising a first test zone and a second test zone for measuring the relative position between different layers of a semiconductor device. The alignment mark is used to determine the overlay error between layers of a semiconductor wafer while minimizing measurement inaccuracies caused by semiconductor manufacturing processes. The first test zone includes two sections, one in which test structures are formed on one layer and a second in which test structures are formed on a second layer. Each of these test structures is composed of smaller sub-structures. The second test zone includes two similar sections that are also composed of smaller sub-structures. The first and second test zones are configured so that the section of each test zone formed one layer is adjacent to the section of the other test zone that is formed on the other layer. By forming each of the periodic structures with smaller sized sub-structures, a more accurate measurement of any alignment error may be obtained. Another aspect of the present invention pertains to a method of utilizing the alignment mark so that an overlay measurement may be obtained.

The present invention relates generally to testing procedures for the semiconductor manufacturing process. More specifically, the present invention relates to alignment marks for measuring alignment error between different layers or different exposures on the same layer of a semiconductor wafer stack.
One of the most critical process control techniques used in the manufacturing of integrated circuits is the measurement of overlay accuracy between successive, patterned layers on a wafer. Overlay accuracy pertains to the determination of how accurately a patterned layer aligns with respect to the layer above or below it, or multiple exposures in the same layer.
Presently overlay measurements may be performed with test patterns that are printed onto the layers of a semiconductor wafer. As generally known, patterns may be printed onto semiconductor wafer layers through lithographic methods. Such methods generally involve applying a layer of photoresist material to a wafer layer, shining a light source through a patterned mask to expose certain areas of the photoresist, developing the exposed resist to produce the desired pattern of remaining resist, and then etching or implanting, etc. the surface of the wafer that is exposed through the photoresist. One type of test pattern for overlay measurement consists of sets of parallel patterns that are placed proximate to each other. The sets of parallel patterns formed on different wafer layers are positioned such that the a pattern from one set will align with a respective pattern from the other set when the layers are properly aligned. This test pattern and variations of this pattern are effective for determining the overlay error. However, inherent aspects of the lithographic processes and other semiconductor manufacturing processes limit the accuracy with which the test patterns may provide information as to the device overlay error. Optical lens aberrations of the lithography patterning equipment can cause pattern placement errors that are dependent on feature size, spacing, shape and location, and illumination conditions, including off-axis illumination and partial coherence. Other semiconductor manufacturing processes are also feature size dependent. It would be desirable to have overlay test patterns capable of improving the correlation between the overlay error measured on the test pattern and the real overlay error of the circuit components.
The present invention is directed towards alignment marks and methods for determining the overlay error between layers of a semiconductor wafer while minimizing measurement inaccuracies caused by semiconductor manufacturing processes. The present invention, in each of the various embodiments, uses alignment marks that are composed of periodic structures formed on each of two layers of a semiconductor wafer to provide alignment information between those two layers of the semiconductor device. The alignment marks are formed in specific locations on each wafer layer such that the alignment marks on one layer will be aligned with the mark on the other layer when the two layers are properly aligned. It follows that when the two layers are properly aligned, it is more likely that the integrated circuit patterns on the two layers will be aligned. Therefore, the degree of alignment between the circuit patterns on each wafer layer may be determined by measuring the alignment between the marks on each layer.
One aspect. of the invention pertains to an alignment mark for measuring the relative position between different layers of a semiconductor device. The alignment mark includes a first test zone and a second test zone. The first test zone includes two sections, one in which test structures are formed on one layer and a second in which test structures are formed on a second layer. Each of these test structures are composed of smaller sub-structures. The second test zone includes two similar sections that are also composed of smaller sub-structures. By forming each of these test structures with sub-structures that are sized closer to the size of the actual circuits, a more accurate measurement of any alignment error in such circuits is obtained. The first and second test zones are configured so that the section of each test zone formed in one layer is adjacent to the section of the other test zone which is formed on the other layer. Another aspect of the present invention pertains to a method of utilizing the alignment mark so that an overlay measurement may be obtained.
These and other features and advantages of the present invention will be presented in more detail in the following specification of the invention and the accompanying figures which illustrate by way of example the principles of the invention.


A purpose is to provide a semiconductor optical device having good characteristics to be formed on a semi-insulating InP substrate. Firstly, a semi-insulating substrate including a Ru—InP layer on a conductive substrate is used. Secondly, a semi-insulating substrate including a Ru—InP layer on a Ru—InP substrate or an Fe—InP substrate is used and semiconductor layers of an n-type semiconductor layer, a quantum-well layer, and a p-type semiconductor layer are stacked in this order.

Along with the rapid spread of broadband network, achieving high speed, down-sizing, and high function have been important issues regarding optical communication devices. On the background, there is an increasing need for a semiconductor optical device (OEIC device) in which optical functional devices such as a semiconductor laser device, an optical modulator and a photodiode, which have been used as individual devices, are monolithically integrated on one substrate. The OEIC device has a lot of advantages such as down-sizing by forming a plurality of optical functional devices having different or similar functions on one substrate, cost reduction by reducing workload and the number of parts relating to optical coupling among individual devices, achieving high function and multiple function by integrating a plurality of functional devices having different functions, and so forth. In such an OEIC device, electric insulation between optical functional devices is very important since a plurality of optical devices formed in an array and a plurality of optical functional devices having different electric characteristics are simultaneously driven. For an InP substrate used in a semiconductor optical device in which electrodes are arranged on both surfaces of the device, an n-type or p-type conductive substrate or an insulating substrate is used.
Meanwhile, OEIC devices for optical communication suitable for 1.3 μm band and 1.55 μm band, which are low-dispersion and low-optical-loss bands of optical fibers for communication, are, in view of their easiness in manufacture, preferable to be formed on an InP (indium phosphorus) substrate having semi-insulating (SI) property and have electrodes aggregated on its one side. Such an SI—InP substrate using an InP substrate in which Fe (iron) is doped is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2002-344087 (Patent Document 1). More specifically, Patent Document 1 discloses a structure in which, in the case of stacking a Zn—InP layer (Zn (zinc)-doped InP) as a p-type semiconductor layer on an Fe (iron)-InP substrate, a Ru—InP (Ru (ruthenium)-doped semi-insulating InP) layer is provided on an Fe—InP substrate, then a stacked body having stacked layers of p-type semiconductor layer, an active layer, an n-type semiconductor layer in this order is provided, and a p-electrode which supplies p-type carriers into the p-type semiconductor layer and an n-electrode which supplies n-type carriers to the n-type semiconductor layer are provided to one surface (a surface to stack the semiconductor layer) of the Fe—InP substrate together to prevent the resistivity as an SI—InP substrate from being lowered due to interdiffusion of Fe in the Fe—InP substrate and Zn in the Zn—InP.


A mobile video teleconferencing system comprising an audio-visual assembly atop a vertical support structure mounted to a powered, wheeled base. The device is controlled through a wireless Internet connection by a remote user, and is light enough to be carried with one hand.

(1) Field of Invention
The present invention is related to the field of video teleconferencing, more specifically, the invention is a mobile remotely controlled video teleconferencing system.
(2) Related Art
Portable video teleconferencing systems, such as that described in Janda (U.S. Pat. No. USD208,634), have existed since the 1960s. The high costs of bandwidth and specialized equipment prevented widespread adoption for decades. The availability of inexpensive computers and broadband Internet access in the 1990s led to an explosion in the use of video teleconferencing. While video teleconferencing provides a more life-like user experience than phone teleconferencing, the inability of a user to move around in a remote location is still a serious limitation.
Mobile video teleconferencing robots allow a user to see, hear, and move around in a remote location. The ability to move around provides the user a much richer experience than conventional video teleconferencing because it is a closer approximation to actually being in the remote location. Despite this significant advantage, mobile video teleconferencing has not become a widely used technology. Rudimentary solutions such as placing a conventional video teleconferencing system on a manually movable cart do offer some improvement, but they necessitate a high degree of cooperation from the remote party that the user wishes to conference with. Niche market solutions such as Wang, et. al. (US Patent No. US20040117065A1) are inadequate for general use because they are costly, heavy, difficult to setup, difficult to transport, dangerous and not versatile.
More specifically, the device discussed in Wang allows doctors to remotely visit their patients in a hospital. However, the Wang device costs approximately $88,000 and is thus unsuitable for consumer or low-cost commercial use. (see http://edition.cnn.com/2005/TECH/05/18/Spark.robodoc/) The Wang device's extreme weight of approximately 200 pounds leads to many serious shortcomings. (see http://www.gizmag.com/go/3459/) Taking the device up and down stairs is difficult even with multiple people. Transporting the device by car is similarly impractical. The weight also leads to increased device cost due to the higher cost of shipping and requirement for additional raw materials. The weight also leads to a danger of collisions with people and animals which must be mitigated with costly sensors and electronics. A heavy device also necessitates a need for larger motors and larger batteries, which further add to the total device weight and cost.
The Wang device has several other design shortcomings that prevent it from being useful outside its intended niche. The height of its LCD and camera is not adjustable. This prevents the remote user from exercising a psychological advantage by being taller or shorter than the person he is communicating with. Additionally, this makes conversations with seated people awkward. The Wang device does not support stereo microphones. Consequently the remote user cannot determine the direction that sounds are coming from without a visual queue. This makes it difficult for the remote user to know who is talking when conversing with multiple people as might occur in a conference room.
The Wang device's low ground clearance and lack of gyroscopic video stabilization make it unsuitable for use on uneven ground. As far as is known, the Wang device does not have a docking station that allows the remote user to charge the device without local intervention. Thus a local user must be intervene periodically to keep the device operative. The Wang device also lacks a movable actuator which could be used for pressing elevator buttons. All of these limitations render the Wang device unsuitable for many applications.
Eric Paulos and John Canny's 1998 paper "PRoP: Personal Roving Presence" discuss a mobile video teleconferencing robot. Their 'PRoP' robot suffers from many of the same limitations as the Wang device robot. Among these deficiencies are the lack of stereo microphones, lack of gyroscopic image stabilization, lack of adjustable height, low ground clearance, and lack of remote charging capability.
Additionally, the PRoP robot suffers from some design deficiencies not found in the Wang device. Its LCD and camera are far from each other, which leads to eye-gaze preservation problems. Specifically, a local user looking straight into the eyes of the image displayed on PRoP's LCD will appear to the remote user to be looking away from him because of the distance between the LCD and the camera. While PRoP's camera can tilt to face the local user, its LCD does not which further compounds the eye-gaze preservation problem. Additionally, its LCD is very small which may make the local user feel like the remote user is far away even when PRoP is physically close to the local user.
The PRoP does not appear to be designed for easy hand carrying. Its base appears heavy and unwieldy. The stalk has no handle or suggested grip-point. Similarly, the stalk-base attachment point doesn't appear to be strong enough for the additional forces caused by hand-carrying. Additionally, the stalk gives no indication of being collapsable for easy shipment, relocation and storage of the device.
PRoP's height and base configuration results in an unstable design that leaves it susceptible to falling while traversing rough terrain, ramps, or in the event of a collision with a person or object. Furthermore, in the event the device does fall, no protective mechanisms are in place to protect PRoP's delicate electronics from damage. The lack of fall-over survivability limits the device's use in real-world applications.
An Internet appliance is a stand-alone special purpose consumer product which accesses the Internet and is easy to configure and use. Both PRoP and the Wang device both appear to require complicated installation and additional hardware to operate. Consequently, they are not Internet appliances, and are inappropriate for the consumer market.

Mobile video teleconferencing system and control method


A system and method for detecting unwanted electronic content, such as spam. As a user operates an application to send messages, several metrics are tracked to allow the system to analyze her activity. Illustrative metrics may include, but are not limited to, block count (e.g., how many other users have blocked her), block rate (e.g., the rate at which other users block her), peer symmetry (e.g., percentage of her messages that are to other users that have her in their address book), message uniqueness (e.g., how unique her messages are from each other), peer uniqueness (e.g., how unique the addressees of her messages are), and message rate (e.g., the rate at which she sends messages). Periodically, metrics may be compared to corresponding thresholds. Depending on whether a threshold is crossed, and which threshold is crossed, she may be banned from using the application or placed on a watch list.

This invention relates to the field of computers. More particularly, systems and methods are provided for detecting unwanted or undesirable electronic content, such as spam.
Users of online applications are plagued by spam and other undesired content, such as attempted scams, unsolicited news stories, advertisements posing as news stories, photographs, jokes, and so on. For some applications, such as electronic mail, elaborate schemes have been developed for detecting such content and preventing it from reaching users' computers or inboxes. They do little, however, to identify users who are sending such content and prevent them from using an application to send more.
In some applications, such as those that provide for instant messaging, chat and/or other forms of inter-user communication, messages are delivered to addressees immediately or nearly immediately. With these applications, it may be advantageous to identify persons who send unwanted content and prohibit them from using the application. If this can be done quickly enough, and with a high degree of accuracy, the amount of unwanted content delivered to users can be reduced drastically.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

System and method for detecting unwanted content


The invention concerns an installation for manufacturing a drip irrigation pipe (8) formed of a pipe (8) provided with drippers (4), including a dripper feed station (37), followed by an extrusion station (10), including an extrusion head (14) producing a tubular blank (22) and means for welding the drippers (4) to the inner wall of said blank (22), characterized in that the dripper welding means (4) include a support surface (50) and a counter-support surface (56) between which the drippers (4) are pressed against said tubular blank (22) so as to be welded thereto, said support (50) and counter-support (56) surfaces being arranged upstream of the calibrating means (24).

It is common practice to use, for certain irrigations, so-called "drip" pipes. These are pipes whose wall is pierced, at intervals fixed beforehand, with holes of small diameter through which the water flows into the ground. In order to control the flow from the holes with precision, a flow limiter, commonly called a "dripper" and formed of a hollow plastic part bonded to the inner wall of the pipe, is provided facing each hole. This part has, on the side turned towards the inner wall of the pipe, a hollow part that forms a collecting chamber. This collecting chamber is connected to the inner space of the pipe by a conduit forming a labyrinth formed by a pre-prepared groove on the cylindrical face of the drip, which is intended to be turned towards the inner face of the pipe.
In drip irrigation pipe manufacturing installations like, for example, that disclosed in EP Patent Application No. 0 970 602, drippers are fed regularly into an extrusion station comprising extrusion, calibrating and welding means from a feed device such as a centrifugal bowl and orientator for feeding the drippers according to a determined orientation. In the extrusion station feed by plastic material melted in a melting chamber, the pipe is continuously formed by an extrusion head, calibrated, and the drippers are welded at regular intervals to the inner wall of the still warm pipe so that they adhere to the latter by melting locally. Once the pipe-dripper assembly has cooled in a water cooling tank, a hole is pierced in the wall of the pipe, facing the collecting chamber.
According to this document, the drippers are brought into contact with the pipe and welded thereto using a guide support which penetrates and passes through the extrusion station to extend into the cooling tank, in which a device is provided for pinching the dripper-pipe assembly between the guide support and a belt moving substantially at the speed of progression of the pipe. Welding thus occurs downstream of the melting chamber and the calibrator in the cooling tank. At this point, the pipe has already cooled down greatly, such that the weld between the dripper and the pipe can exhibit imperfections. In order to overcome this problem it is common to overheat the plastic material so that its temperature is still sufficiently high at the point when the drippers are welded. The material is thus brought to a temperature close to its molecular degradation limit. Slight temperature variations can then cause deterioration in the quality of the material, which involves very strict control of the heating temperature, and consequently, an increase in the production costs. Another solution that avoids overheating the plastic material consists in heating the drippers themselves prior to putting them into contact with the pipe. In order to do this, the guide support is provided with a heating resistor. This solution, however, involves significant extra space, complication and increased cost.

Installation and method for manufacturing drip irrigation pipes


A parallel redundant fan system includes at least first and second fans located adjacent each other. Each fan includes: (i) a fan housing defining a fan chamber in which an impeller is supported for rotation about an axis of rotation; (ii) a first chamber outlet in communication with the fan chamber and defined by an opening in a first wall of the fan housing; (iii) a second chamber outlet in communication with the fan chamber and defined by an opening in a second wall of the fan housing; and, (iii) first and second backflow prevention dampers respectively associated with the first and second chamber outlets. The first and second dampers respectively include first and second damper plates that selectively pivot from their closed positions toward their opened positions against the closing force of respective first and second counterweights in response to exhaust air flow pressure exerted thereon.

Motor drives are power conversion systems or "converters" that operate to provide power to electric motors in a controlled fashion to control one or more motor performance parameters, such as speed, torque, etc. Medium voltage current-source type motor drives typically receive multiphase AC input power in the voltage range of about 2,400 to 6,900 volts, which is converted in a rectifier to DC power supplied to a DC link and provided from the DC link to an inverter. The inverter switches the DC link currents to provide AC output current to a motor load with the output current being controlled by the inverter in closed loop fashion to drive the motor at a desired speed and/or torque. The rectifier is generally an active switching type rectifier that selectively activates switches to provide current from the AC input to the DC link bus to achieve AC to DC power conversion, where the rectifier gain is controlled to provide a DC link current level at the peak current level required by the motor at any given time. The inverter, in turn, implements a switching scheme to selectively connect the motor leads to the DC link bus terminals to provide motor phase currents with controlled amplitudes, phase, and frequency to implement a particular motor control strategy based on motor performance feedback values and desired performance setpoints or profiles. Voltage source drives are similar but the DC link supplies a select constant DC voltage instead of a select constant DC current.
These motor drives generate large amounts of heat that must be exhausted from the various component housings/enclosures, e.g., from the common mode choke (CMC) housings/enclosures. This has previously been accomplished with redundant exhaust fan systems with two or more vertically stacked fans in which failure of one of the fans results in operation a redundant fan. These stacked fan systems are not suitable for use in applications where vertical space/height is limited. Also, the vertically stacked fans have been found to be suboptimal for other reasons such as noise, efficiency, and other reasons.

Air cooling of medium voltage drive components


An optical system includes both a microspot broadband spectroscopic ellipsometer and a photoacoustic film thickness measurement system that are supplied laser light by the same laser light source. One of the systems makes a measurement, the result of which is used to adjust a parameter of the other system; e.g. the ellipsometer measures thickness and the photoacoustic system uses the thickness result to measure the speed of sound. In one version, the ellipsometer converts the laser beam to a broad-spectrum beam that provides higher intensity.

The semiconductor processing industry has made significant progress in recent years in forming ever-smaller minimum device geometries, which has created a need for processes that form very thin films. This development has in turn led to a need for metrology equipment to measure those films. In many process steps, the thickness of the thin films used to form these structures is becoming ever thinner. Gate oxide thicknesses, for example are now typically on the order of 10 to 20 Angstroms thick. One technique for measuring the thickness of such films is known as ellipsometry.
Ellipsometry is a non-contact, nondestructive, optical technique for the characterization of transparent thin films on surfaces. When a surface or interface is struck by polarized light, ellipsometers measure the change in the reflected light's polarization by detecting and quantifying the change in the amplitude ratio (psi) and the change in phase (delta) induced by reflection of light from the surface.
In another trend, the increasing requirements of high-speed and low-power semiconductor devices has resulted in a significant shift away from aluminum conductors and silicon oxide insulators as the dominant metal/insulator combination in semiconductor multi-level metallization technology. Copper and low k dielectric materials are replacing aluminum metallurgy and silicon oxide dielectrics. It is also anticipated that copper metallurgy and low k dielectric materials will dominate the semiconductor integrated circuit designs. One technique for measuring the thickness of metal films is known as photoacoustic film thickness measurement.
Photoacoustic film thickness measurement is a non-contact, nondestructive optical technique for measuring the thickness of single or multi-layer opaque metal films. A photoacoustic thickness measurement system forms two optical beams: an excitation beam used to excite the surface of the film sample periodically, and a probe beam used to sense the reflectivity of the surface of the sample following each pulse from the excitation beam.

Metrology system with spectroscopic ellipsometer and photoacoustic measurements


The total or a partial quantity of lubricant oil for automotive vehicles is exchanged at a gas service station when a vehicle visits for its fuel supply. The lubricant oil is maintained with low values of contaminates, while extracted waste oil is purified and supplemented with lacking additive agents for reuse as fresh lubricant oil. An impurities removal equipment has a centrifuge and a filter device for the purification.

This invention relates to a system used in a gas service station, where lubricant oil is extracted from automotive vehicles after use for proper treatment when they visit the gas service station for fuel refilling.
According to the statistics announced by Californian Authorities in 1988, annual consumption of the lubricant oil throughout U.S.A. was eight million tons, and it is now deemed that 57% of the above consumed oil has been abandoned. It is now feared that one-fourth of the above 57% might have been illegally abandoned. After formal and legal collection by treatment factories, only a part of the used oil is treated into diesel engine oil for reuse while remaining large part is used as fuel for burning. When this fuel is burned, calcium, barium and other additives which are included in the lubricant oil produce poisonous chemical compounds during burning, and such compounds are emitted in the air to contaminate the atmosphere. The consumed oil which is illegally and directly abandoned to the ground causes earth contamination. When the treated oil is used for diesel engine fuel, there is a bad influence on the engine which causes some engine trouble.
There are three factors which change the lubricant oil into waste material:
1Mixture of increased amount of impurities such as combustion remnants, incombustibles, water, gasoline, and metal dust. PA1 2Deterioration and wear of additive agents. PA1 3Deterioration of oil itself by oxidization.
According to the knowledge of the present inventor, about 90% of the change is caused by the mixture of the increased amount of impurities, and approximately 10% is caused by the deterioration and wear of additive agents, while the oil deterioration is not significant. Therefore, a large amount of the waste oil can be recycled as clean lubricant oil when the impurities are removed and additive agents are supplemented therein.
The lubricant oils which are presently used in automotive vehicles are high quality, and therefore the vehicles can be driven up to 100,000 kilo meters without exchanging the oil. The main object of oil exchange is to maintain good fuel consumption and to maintain compression braking ability. Lubricant oils where impurities are increased and additive agents are worn produce lower engine output and bad fuel consumption. At the same time, the solid impurities collect on the outlet valve seats and damage the sealing ability of the valves. This also reduces engine braking and engine efficiency during running. In order to avoid these situations, oil exchange is required after a proper running time period or a running distance.
In general, the oil exchange is now performed for all of the oil in an engine at one time in a gas service station or repairing factory after 3000.about.5000 kilo meters driving. However, this exchange system is not preferable because the degree of the contamination of the oil is very different between the initial time and the final time.

Method of supplying and treating lubricant oil in gas service station


A device for detecting state-of-health (SOH) of batteries has a detection module, a computation control module and an output module. The computation control module is electrically connected to the detection module and the output module. The detection module detects voltage values of a battery at multiple test points. The computation control module converts the voltage values at the test points into a ratio and maps the ratio to a SOH value in a SOH curve of the battery indicative of a state of health of the battery and the SOH value is outputted through the output module. The present invention can easily detect the SOH of a battery within a short period of time to solve the existing problems of being time-consuming and complicated in determining the SOH of batteries and causing incorrect determination of battery capacity and additional maintenance cost.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for detecting state of health (SOH) of batteries and more particularly to a device capable of quickly mapping to a detected voltage of a battery to an instant SOH of the battery from a known curve for the SOH of the battery.
2. Description of the Related Art
Progress in battery technology and demands for energy conservation, carbon reduction and environmental protection render more and more opportunities to the use of electric vehicles. To meet the requirement of higher driving range and performance, the battery pack used in the electric vehicles is formed by multiple batteries connected in series or series-parallel to achieve desired voltage and capacity, and increasing efficiency and performing degradation analysis are the critical measures to meet the foregoing requirement.
The major energy source of electric vehicles comes from the battery packs mounted inside the electric vehicles. The capacity of energy stored inside the battery pack is an important criterion for users to consider charging the battery pack. Despite the currently growing market demand for electric vehicles, most of the existing electric vehicles are dedicated to short to medium range commuting. Users of most electric vehicles live in residential buildings or apartments. Unless any charging outlet or charging station is available in the parking area, charging an electric vehicle could become an issue. Hence, a preferable solution is to widely build battery exchange stations. When electric vehicles are running out of battery, drivers of the electric vehicles can pay for a fully charged battery pack from a neighboring battery exchange station to replace the original battery pack and the amount of the payment for the exchange depends on the remaining capacity of the replaced battery pack. The battery exchange station then needs to test the battery capacity and perform a battery degradation test of the replaced battery pack.
When a effective capacity of a battery applied in an electric vehicle is lower than 80% from the original capacity, the battery is deemed as one with serious degradation and no longer complies with the requirement of the electric vehicle. Hence, performing a battery degradation test can avoid miscalculation of an existing effective capacity of the replaced battery.
Devices in the market for capacity estimation and degradation test of batteries focus on the lead-acid batteries for vehicles, and the most common devices are battery life testers or battery testers. The battery life tester has a high-power load circuit mounted therein for a large discharging current so that the battery life tester can measure a voltage drop and thus a discharging capability of batteries. A state of degradation of the battery can be determined from the discharging capability. Because of the high-power load circuit, the battery life tester is bulky and inconvenient to be carried around. The discharge current during the test period is rather high so that the testing time of the battery should be short to avoid the effect of degradation or damage on the battery. The battery testers serve to analyze four items (voltage, cold start current, resistance and battery energy) to determine the degradation degree of a battery. Practically, the resistance (internal resistance) of a battery is measured through an AC measurement method for measuring the internal resistance of a battery to obtain a corresponding battery capacity. However, when a battery tester is measuring the internal resistance of a battery, the engine of the vehicle must be turned off for at least one hour, and only one battery is allowed for testing at a time. When multiple batteries are connected in series, it is impossible to measure the battery capacity of each battery.
Disclosed as a currently available technique for detecting state of health (SOH) of batteries, the U.S. patent publication number 20070252600 entitled "Diagnosis method for state-of-health of batteries", discharges a constant current from a battery for a long period of time, then measures a voltage value of the battery, observes a voltage variation rate, and further determines if the SOH of the battery is abnormal. However, such technique takes a long time for the battery to discharge, the degradation of the battery is the only state that can be determined, and an instant SOH of the battery cannot be rapidly diagnosed.
Furthermore, as disclosed in the U.S. patent publication number 20090128097 entitled "Method and system for tracking battery state of health", the system for tracking battery SOH is composed of a charger, a charging counter and a processor. When the system charges a battery to be tested and starts counting time, the capacity of the battery during the charging course is calculated and is compared with a original capacity of the battery to determine the SOH of the battery. As the calculation of the capacity involves an accumulative method, long estimation time fails to achieve fast determination and a specially designed filter is required, an instant SOH of the battery is unable to be diagnosed.
From the foregoing, most conventional devices measure battery capacity using a current method and an internal resistance method. The current method employs a specific current-discharging pattern and measures a voltage variation rate serving as a basis for determining the SOH of the battery. The drawback of the current method resides in that a long discharge time arises from complete life cycle test of the battery. The determination of SOH is limited to merely determining if the battery is healthy without knowing the health degree of the battery. The internal resistance method needs to provide an external input voltage of a battery to be tested for measuring an internal resistance value of the battery, and determines a degradation status of the battery after a calculation. The drawback of the internal resistance method resides in that the measuring device demands for higher specification, is thus more costly and is composed of many subsystems. The accumulative method continuously measures and records an electric charge of a battery during the course of discharge and compares the measured electric charge with an originally recorded electric charge of the battery to determine the SOH of the battery. The drawback of the accumulative method resides in that fast determination of SOH is impossible because a complete charge or discharge procedure is required and a specially designed filter must be provided.

Device and method for detecting state of health of batteries


The present application discloses a video type detection method, apparatus, electronic device and storage medium. A specific implementation solution is as follows: obtaining N key frames of a first video, where N is an integer greater than 1, and a type of the first video is to be detected; obtaining M confidence scores corresponding to each of the N key frames by inputting each of the N key frames into M algorithm models corresponding to the first video type respectively, where M is an integer greater than 1; determining a confidence score of the first video by a fusion strategy algorithm model according to N×M confidence scores of the N key frames; and comparing the confidence score of the first video with a confidence score threshold corresponding to a first video type, to determine whether the type of the first video is the first video type or not.

With the continuous development of the Internet, more and more videos appear on the Internet. At the same time, there are some security risks. For example, some terrorists upload violent and terrorist videos to the Internet for publicity, which is likely to cause greater harm to social stability. Therefore, it is necessary to classify and filter sensitive videos in a large amount of videos, and establish a secure network environment.

Video type detection method and apparatus based on key frame, and storage medium


Cyclodextrin inclusion complexes of hydrophobic actives are useful in liquid and solid laundry detergent formulations. The inclusion complexes are stable and capable of releasing their active ingredients gradually during wash and rinse cycles.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to the field of textile laundering, to cyclodextrin compositions containing textile laundering additives for use therein, and to processes for producing these compositions.
2. Background Art
Textiles are subjected to laundering during several stages in their life cycles. For example, textiles may be laundered after weaving to remove traces of spin finishes and/or lubricants applied during yarn preparation or prior to weaving, to remove soil accumulated during the weaving process, to remove fugitive dyes, etc. Textiles may also be laundered prior to fabrication into articles such as white goods, clothing, etc., or following fabrication, to impart fabric finishes such as softeners, antistats, or brighteners, to modify the appearance, e.g. stone washing, partial bleaching, etc. The term "laundering" and like terms as used herein apply to all these activities and to others whereby textiles are contacted with aqueous detergent-containing compositions to alter their properties.
Many laundering compositions have been developed for the above uses, the vast majority in relatively concentrated form, which are diluted upon use to form an aqueous working composition of the desired strength. Non-limiting examples of such compositions include liquid and dry laundry detergents, fabric softeners, bleaches, particularly non-chlorinated bleaches, rinse aids, optical brigheners, etc. Frequently, compositions are marketed which perform several of the functions of the compositions identified above in a single composition. Thus, laundry detergents frequently include oxygen bleaches, optical brighteners, fabric softeners, antistatic agents, and UV absorbing materials. Incorporation of these components into a single composition is particularly important for the ultimate consumer, who is not likely to wish to add a variety of different products to a wash load, particularly at different times in the wash cycle.
Typical laundering processes, whether domestic or industrial, require several cycles, e.g. one or more treatment cycles followed by one or more rinse cycles. In many cases, it is necessary that a desired active component be effective over several or all of these cycles, and at times, to be highly effective during the latter of the cycles. In the case of antifoams, for example, it is desirable that these retain their efficiency during the wash cycles and also desirably at least the first rinse cycle.
The majority of components of laundry compositions are water soluble. These include, for example, the detergents, whether ionic, nonionic, or zwitterionic, the builders and sequestrants, alkalizers, salts, etc. Other ingredients such as antifoams, softeners, rinse aids, and optical brighteners may be only partially soluble or insoluble. Still other active ingredients may be soluble, but it is desired that are released and deposit on the textiles later in the wash process so that the deposits remain on the textile even after the rinse cycle is complete. The active ingredients must also be storage stable in their respective compositions, i.e., concentrates such as granulated or liquid laundry detergents. However, many detergent actives do not exhibit such stability.
In the case of antifoams, for example, simple silicone oils are known as effective antifoam agents. However, their antifoam activity diminishes rapidly during even a first wash cycle, and hence quite complex formulations including silicone oils, silicone resins, and other additives, frequently adsorbed or absorbed onto or into porous supports such as fumed or precipitated silica have been developed. Even so, many of these compositions are not storage stable in some compositions, particularly liquid detergents, and thus special formulations have been developed for these products. In the case of softeners, brighteners, antistats and the like, which must remain on the laundered fabric, it is desirable that these ingredients are efficiently deposited and remain adherent, as components which exit during the wash or rinse cycles represent a loss of active ingredient which then requires an increased amount in the composition to be effective for their intended purpose.
Cyclodextrins are cyclic molecules of linked saccharides. The most common cyclodextrins ("CDs") are α-CD, β-CD, and γ-CD, containing 6, 7, and 8 D-glucopyranosyl moieties, respectively. These cyclodextrins have limited water solubility, β-CD having a water solubility of only about 18 g/L, while α-CD and γ-CD have somewhat higher solubilities, 145 and 232 g/L, respectively. Cyclodextrins may be modified, to produce alkyl-, hydroxyalkyl-, ester- and other modified CDs. CDs have a relatively hydrophobic guest cavity and a hydrophilic exterior, and have been used, e.g. to form inclusion complexes of odiferous and/or easily oxidizable polyunsaturated oils, as in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,775,749; 4,777,162; 4,831,022; and 5,189,149. The odor of such products is reduced considerably and their oxidative stability enhanced. Inclusion of flavor oils, for somewhat the same reasons, is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,287,603. The foregoing products are, in general, used in powder form.
CDs have also been shown to be useful in supplying relatively water-insoluble drug candidates at higher concentrations than the aqueous solubilities of the dry actives, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,432,928, wherein CDs whose water solubility has been increased by modification are used to complex the poorly soluble pharmaceutical actives.
The ability to form inclusion complexes is necessarily limited to molecules which can enter the hydrophobic cavity. Furthermore, the usefulness of CD inclusion complexes is unpredictable when the chemistry of the surroundings is complex. For example, inclusion complexes of ω-3 fatty acids, when dispersed in oily vehicles, can exhibit guest/solvent interchange, and thus the benefits of including the ω-3 fatty acid in the CD complex are largely lost.
CDs have seen only limited use in laundering compositions. For example, in DE 4 035 378, fabrics are treated with cyclodextrins which are then linked to the fabric by use of traditional cellulose-reactive crosslinkers. The fabric, now bearing cyclodextrin groups on its surface, is rendered odor-resistant, the cyclodextrins absorbing odiferous molecules during wearing by the user. Athletic socks with the aforementioned bonded cyclodextrin having experienced some commercial success.
In EP 1127940, detergents useful for washing textiles to produce a textile product with soft hand are disclosed. The soft hand is said to be imparted by interaction of the CD with the fabric. In addition to the CD, the formulations contain a long chain aliphatic carboxylic acid, and a cationic surfactant. However, no CD inclusion complexes are disclosed. Because of the high loadings of powerful surfactants, alkali, builders, sequestrants and the like, it would not be expected that CD inclusion complexes would be useful in laundering compositions. This is especially the case when the composition also contains quantities of hydrophobic substances, which would be expected to exchange with the guest of a CD guest/host inclusion complex.

Cyclodextrin laundry detergent additive complexes and compositions containing same


A standing seam panel for interlocking engagement with adjacent standing seam panels. The standing seam panel includes a strip of sheet material having a central panel portion, a male sidelap portion, and a female sidelap portion sized and contoured to receive the male sidelap portion of an adjacent standing seam panel. The female sidelap portion includes a first latch flange engaged with the male sidelap portion and the male sidelap portion includes a second latch flange engaged with the female sidelap portion.

Traditional standing seam panel roofing systems are available as snapped-together panels or panels that require mechanical seaming. Snap-together panels can be quickly installed; however, this type of panel may provide less uplift resistance than mechanically seamed panel systems. Installation of mechanically seamed panel systems involves additional time and labor to seam adjacent panels to one another. Thus, there are very few options, if any, for standing seam roof panel systems that are both quickly installed and also provide increased uplift resistance.


The portable electronic device comprises a movement which is formed by a printed circuit board on the upper surface of which a digital display cell is disposed. At the side of the upper surface of the display cell, an antenna coil is disposed which covers the peripheral part of the cell. The electrical connection between the antenna coil and the printed circuit is produced by means of a connector which is formed by two corresponding male connectors and two female connectors. The male connectors are formed by elastically deformable blades which penetrate into two metallized holes of the board which define the two female connectors.

In order to limit the influence of the various electrical elements of a timepiece and likewise of the ferromagnetic materials forming the latter, the communication antenna is preferably placed in the upper region of the housing, i.e. at the side of the display means and/or of the glass covering these display means.
Furthermore, in order to ensure good reception and to permit communication at some distance from the timepiece, the coil of the antenna is formed by several turns with a diameter of the order of magnitude of the timepiece housing.
It is known from the prior art to integrate such a coil in a recess of the body or preferably in an opening of the housing, this opening surrounding by definition the upper glass of the housing. This latter solution permits the display means to be disengaged from the timepiece and in particular the use of a digital display which forms the major part or the whole of the screen of this timepiece.
In the conventional manner, a digital display is formed by an LCD cell. In the case of the present invention, the dimensions of this LCD cell are provided with the order of magnitude of the opening defined by the housing for the display means. However, the solution of integrating the antenna coil into an opening poses a double problem. Firstly, this necessitates having an opening forming at least partially a different element of the body in order to permit the introduction of the coil into this opening in a simple manner. Such an arrangement thus hardly permits a body-opening to be produced in one piece. As a result, the cost of the housing is increased, the assembly of this housing being more difficult and requiring some care due to the integration of the antenna coil into the opening. Next, such an arrangement restricts the production of the upper part of the housing. In fact, the dimensions of the housing in its upper part can be reduced only with difficulty because of the opening in the interior of which an antenna coil is disposed.
One object of the present invention is to alleviate the aforementioned disadvantages of the prior art.
Another object of the invention is to make available a watch equipped with a communication antenna which ensures very good reception and/or emission of electromagnetic signals and has a digital display with large dimensions.
More particularly, the object of the invention is to make available an electronic device which can be worn on the wrist with a digital display and an antenna coil with high efficiency which may be easily assembled on the portable device whilst restricting the spatial requirement.

Portable electronic device, in particular a timepiece, comprising an antenna formed by a large-diameter coil


This invention relates to improved sheet products and specifically to improved nonwoven sheet products made from highly oriented plexifilamentary film-fibril webs. The improved sheet products have high opacity and strength with a much wider range of porosity or Gurley Hill Porosity Values. In particular, sheet products made in accordance with the present invention have considerably higher Gurley Hill Porosity Values than similar weight sheet products subject to the same finishing treatments in accordance with prior known sheet materials. Similarly, sheet products made in accordance with the present invention can be made which have much lower Gurley Hill Porosity Values than prior sheet materials. The invention includes numerous methods and data characterizing the webs and sheets that form the improved sheet materials.

E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (DuPont) has been in the business of making Tyvek.RTM. spun bonded olefin sheet product for many years. However, the commercial process for making Tyvek.RTM. includes the use of a CFC (chlorofluorocarbon) spin agent. As the use of CFC's will soon be prohibited, DuPont has been developing a non-CFC process for manufacturing Tyvek.RTM. sheet. Unfortunately, there is, as yet, no identified spin agent that may be used as a simple substitute in place of the present CFC spin agent without requiring substantial modifications of the process or process conditions for manufacturing the product.
Thus, an entirely new facility has been built to manufacture Tyvek.RTM. sheet using a substantially modified process and a very different spin agent. The new spin agent is a hydrocarbon, namely: normal pentane, and just about every process activity and condition has been changed or scrutinized because the new spin agent does not act or react exactly like the CFC spin agent in the present commercial system. It is of course, the intent of all the developmental work to be able to produce essentially the same sheet product as made in the conventional commercial process so as to continue to develop the business and markets that the Tyvek.RTM. business has created.
The developmental work for recreating the process of making Tyvek.RTM. sheet has the additional object to form improved products that have better characteristics for current and new end uses.
It is a particular object of the present invention to provide sheet products that have a wider range of Gurley Hill Porosity Values than that which is attainable by conventional nonwoven technology.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is directed to a number of related sheet products made with polymeric man-made fiber that may be characterized in a number of independent ways. For example, one sheet has and opacity of at least 80 percent and a Gurley Hill Porosity Value of at least 120 seconds. Preferably this sheet product has a basis weight of less than 2.5 oz/sq yd and more preferably a basis weight of less than 1.7 oz/sq yd. Another sheet has a basis weight of at least 1.4 oz/sq yd and a Gurley Hill Porosity of less than 20 seconds. Another sheet has less than forty percent voids in the cross sectional area wherein no more than five percent have extremum lengths greater than 27 microns. A further sheet has at least thirty percent voids and at least five percent of the voids have extremum lengths greater than 23 microns.
A still further sheet is fully bonded and has a Correlation relative to spatial period wherein the correlation is in the range of 0.4 to 0.8 at a 15 pixel spatial period, 0.45 to 0.85 at a ten pixel spacing period, and 0.3 to 0.8 at a 20 pixel spatial period, wherein the measurements are based on a Hewlett Packard Deskscan II scanner operating under standard conditions and the pixels are approximately 169 microns square. Another sheet is similarly characterized but having a correlation of 0.1 to 0.5 at a 15 pixel spatial period, 0.15 to 0.55 at a ten pixel spatial period and a 0.05 to 0.45 correlation at a 20 pixel spatial period wherein the same equipment is used under normal conditions and the pixel size is the same.
A still further characterized sheet is set forth which is fully bonded and has a Haralick feature 13 Information Measure of Correlation between 0.19 and 0.35 at a ten pixel spatial period, between 0.15 and 0.325 at a 15 pixel spatial period, and between 0.125 and 0.3 at a 19 pixel spatial period wherein the pixels are approximately 169 square microns. A different sheet is similarly characterized and set forth having a Haralick feature 13 Information Measure of Correlation in the range of 0.075 to 0.2 at a ten pixel spatial period, 0.05 and 0.175 at a 15 pixel spatial period, and between 0.05 and 0.175 at a 19 pixel spatial period.
The invention further relates to a sheet being defined as a nonwoven sheet product made of overlapping layers of flash spun fibers bonded together with at least heat and pressure, wherein the web comprises fibrils having a mean apparent fiber width of greater than 24 microns, a median apparent fiber width of greater than about 13.5 microns and wherein the fibers are spun from one or more orifices at less than 100 pounds per hour per orifice, and wherein the sheet product has a Gurley Hill Porosity Value of greater than 30 seconds. An additional nonwoven sheet product is set forth which is made of overlapping layers of flashspun fibers bonded together with at least heat and pressure, wherein the web comprises fibrils having a mean apparent fiber width of less than 25 microns, a median apparent fiber width of less than about 13.5 microns, such that the fibers are spun from one or more orifices at less than 100 pounds per hour per orifice, and wherein the sheet product has a Gurley Hill Porosity Value of less than 20 seconds. A further nonwoven sheet product is set forth which is made of a plurality of overlapping plexifilamentary film-fibril webs wherein the webs have openings between the fibrils and the openings have an average perimeter of at least 2650 microns, the sheet includes portions which have at least four separate overlapping web swaths and the Gurley Hill Porosity Value is at least 25 seconds. Another nonwoven sheet product is set forth which is made of a plurality of overlapping plexifilamentary film-fibril webs wherein the webs have openings between the fibrils and the openings have an average perimeter of less than 3300 microns, the sheet includes portions which have at least four separate overlapping web swaths and the Gurley Hill Porosity Value is less than 75 seconds.
The invention is further related to a nonwoven sheet product made from a plurality of overlapping plexifilamentary film-fibril webs, wherein the sheet product has a cross section comprising fibrils which are bonded together and form voids within the sheet, the voids forming less than forty percent (40%) of the cross sectional area of the sheet and wherein the voids have a general shape so as to appear long and thin and wherein no more than five percent of the voids have extremum lengths greater than 27 microns.
Preferably, the nonwoven sheet product has an opacity of greater than 80. More preferably, the nonwoven sheet product according to claim 18 wherein the Gurley Hill Porosity Value is greater than 80. In addition, it is preferred that the nonwoven sheet product has less than fifteen percent of the voids having extremums greater than four microns.
The invention also relates to a method of characterizing a plexifilamentary film-fibril web comprising a number of steps, in particular, the first step is scanning a sample of the plexifilamentary film-fibril web with optical scanning equipment to create an image of the scanned sample and the next step is to digitize the image of the scanned sample. Thereafter, the openings between fibrils in the digitized image are identified and the perimeters of the openings between the fibrils to are measured to create a data set for comparison to other web samples.
The invention further relates to another method of characterizing a plexifilamentary film-fibril web comprising scanning a sample of the plexifilamentary film-fibril web with optical scanning equipment to create an image of the scanned sample and digitizing the image of the scanned sample. Thereafter, the individual fibrils in the digitized image are identified and the width of the fibrils are measured to create a data set for comparison to other web samples.
Finally, the invention relates to an additional method of characterizing a sheet material comprising the steps of cutting a sample of the sheet material to reveal a cross section thereof, scanning the cross section of the sample of the sheet material with a scanning electron microscope to create an image of the scanned sample and digitizing the image of the scanned sample. Thereafter, the voids in the cross section in the digitized image are identified and the voids are measured to create a data set for comparison to other sheet samples.

Nonwoven sheet products made from plexifilamentary film fibril webs


A shield for a nose of a large aircraft. The shield is float-mounted on a frame of the aircraft in one embodiment. To this end, the shield and the frame are respectively provided with fingers and receptacles that engage with each other. To prevent loosening, peripheral elastic links are distributed on the rim of the shield. Through this approach, it is shown that the shield retains only about one degree of freedom relative to the frame. This degree of freedom is oriented in the direction of the fingers.

1. Field of the Invention
An object of the present invention is an aircraft nose comprising a protective shield. This protective shield is located between, on the one hand, a cabin or cockpit in which the pilots are located and, on the other hand, a radome in the front of the aircraft in which certain detection devices such as radar antennas are located.
It is an aim of the invention, in the case of large aircraft, to efficiently protect a cabin, a flight deck or even a vital compartment of the aircraft from frontal impact at high speed. Such projection results essentially from forceful impact by flying objects or creatures on the front of the aircraft. At high speed, the radome located in front of the aircraft is perforated in its central part by the projectile encountered, the devices inside the radome are destroyed and the projectile continues traveling up to the compartment in which the pilot or pilots are placed. The pilot or pilots may then be seriously injured. It is possible that, in the zone located beneath the floor of the cabin, facing the bay, in a vital compartment of the aircraft, there will be other devices that could be damaged by this impact. When the projectile reaches the aircraft more or less on the nose side, the inclination of the fuselage at this position averts perforation.
To prevent such accidents, a shield is interposed between, on the one hand, the cabin in which the pilot is placed or the vital compartment of the aircraft and, on the other hand, the radome of the aircraft placed in front of the aircraft.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Prior art shields are constituted in such a way as to be made in the form of assembled panels adjoining one another. Indeed, at high altitude, the atmospheric pressure is low. To avoid a situation where the aircraft passengers lack air, the cabin is tightly sealed and, because of the very low external pressure, it is deemed to be pressurized. This means that the structures of the aircraft are subjected to internal pressure forces having an effect similar to that of an inflation. This inflation is produced everywhere in the aircraft, and especially at the front of the aircraft, on a front frame of the cabin bearing the shield. This frame, which is initially plane, gets deformed. This shield structure in the form of panels is then put to use to adapt to this deformation while at the same time keeping the qualities of tight sealing and protection given by the shield.
However, for large aircraft, the shield must fulfill other functions. In particular, it must be light and resistant, and must furthermore easily lend itself to mounting and dismounting during aircraft maintenance. The standard provides that the shield must withstand impact by flying objects of a weight of four pounds launched at speeds of 180 m/second. From this viewpoint, the approach using multiple panels proves to be less efficient and less practical to implement than a rigid and resistant panel. We are then confronted with the following problem, which is that of making a large-sized rigid and resistant panel to be mounted on a structure that is itself deformable.