An automatic speech recognition dictation application is described that includes a dictation module for performing automatic speech recognition in a dictation session with a speaker user to determine representative text corresponding to input speech from the speaker user. A post-processing module develops a session level metric correlated to verbatim recognition error rate of the dictation session, and determines if recognition performance degraded during the dictation session based on a comparison of the session metric to a baseline metric.

An automatic speech recognition (ASR) system determines a semantic meaning of input speech. Typically, the input speech is processed into a sequence of digital speech feature frames. Each speech feature frame can be thought of as a multi-dimensional vector that represents various characteristics of the speech signal present during a short time window of the speech. In a continuous recognition system, variable numbers of speech frames are organized as "utterances" representing a period of speech followed by a pause, which in real life loosely corresponds to a spoken sentence or phrase.
The ASR system compares the input speech frames to a database of statistical models to find the models that best match the speech feature characteristics and determine a corresponding representative text or semantic meaning associated with the models. Modern statistical models are state sequence models such as hidden Markov models (HMMs) that model speech sounds (usually phonemes) using mixtures of Gaussian distributions. Often these statistical models represent phonemes in specific contexts, referred to as PELs (Phonetic Elements), e.g. triphones or phonemes with known left and/or right contexts. State sequence models can be scaled up to represent words as connected sequences of acoustically modeled phonemes, and phrases or sentences as connected sequences of words. When the statistical models are organized together as words, phrases, and sentences, additional language-related information is also typically incorporated into the models in the form of language modeling.
The words or phrases associated with the best matching model structures are referred to as recognition candidates or hypotheses. A system may produce a single best recognition candidate—the recognition result—or a list of several hypotheses, referred to as an N-best list. Further details regarding continuous speech recognition are provided in U.S. Pat. No. 5,794,189, entitled "Continuous Speech Recognition," and U.S. Pat. No. 6,167,377, entitled "Speech Recognition Language Models," the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
Confidence scores can be used to characterize the degree of correspondence between a given model sequence and the speech input. FIG. 1 shows a scale of confidence scores along a vertical axis ranging from a high of 1000 to a low of 0. Typically, speech recognition outputs having a confidence score above a given accept threshold are automatically accepted as probably correctly recognized. And speech recognition outputs having a confidence score below a given reject threshold are automatically rejected as probably not correctly recognized. Speech recognition outputs between the two confidence score thresholds may or may not be correctly recognized and usually require some form of user confirmation.
Confidence scores are widely used in automated dialog systems, but to date their use in dictation tasks has been rather limited. At present, confidence scoring in dictation applications has been confined to identifying incorrectly recognized words or in multi-pass recognition.

Automatic methods to predict error rates and detect performance degradation


A method for providing memory management for objects is described. Specifically, techniques are described for providing common memory management code to objects that are instances of different classes and for releasing a memory management subtree that starts with a particular object in the memory management tree. A memory management template provides common pre-processor memory management code. A specialized version of the memory management template is used to create a specialized template subclass. When a memory management operator of an object that is an instance of the specialized template subclass is invoked the common memory management code in the specialized template is executed. Memory is associated with each object in a hierarchical tree. Data for the memory is maintained that reflects the hierarchical tree relationship between the objects. A subtree and the associated memory can be released without an application program tracking the relationships.

Memory management refers to operations and processes that are performed to manage the allocation and deallocation of memory for storing objects or other data structures. Typically, most applications use the memory management code that is supplied by the computer language that the applications are written in. However, the memory management code supplied by the computer language may not have certain desirable features such as optimization for performance, optimization for memory allocation, or releasing memory for a set of objects that have a relationship to each other. Therefore, it is advantageous for objects to have their own memory management code.
In the object-oriented world, supplying unique memory management code to an application entails overriding the new and delete operators in every class that is used to create objects in that application. The problem with this is that each class used to create objects in the application require a separate copy of the memory management code to override the new and delete operators in those classes. Having many copies of the memory management code complicates not only routine maintenance but also complicates providing enhancements. For example, whenever a bug is found in the memory management code, the memory management code in each class has to be modified.
When there is a relationship between a set of objects, an application program has to track the relationship between these objects in order to release memory associated with the objects in the proper order. For example, for any given database connection, one or more queries are executed involving statements, and resultsets are returned in response to the queries. Therefore, a hierarchical relationship exists between a database connection, and the related statements, resultsets, and streams. The connection, and related statements, resultsets, and streams can each be represented by their own object and these objects can be organized in a hierarchical tree that reflects the relationship between these objects. For example, the connection object is the top object in a hierarchical tree, the statement objects are directly under the connection object, the resultset objects are directly under the statement objects and so on. Memory is needed for executing methods associated with the objects or for performing computations on behalf of the objects, among other things. Therefore, memory is associated with each object in the hierarchical tree (hereinafter referred to as a "memory management tree").
A particular object and the objects below that object form a subtree of the hierarchical tree. For example, a particular statement object and all the objects below that particular statement object, such as resultset objects and stream objects, form a subtree of a hierarchical tree. A subtree and the memory associated with the objects in the subtree form a memory management subtree. When a particular object is no longer needed, the memory management subtree, which includes the particular object, the objects below this particular object (hereinafter referred to as "descendents" of the particular object), and the memory associated with all of these objects, is released. For example, once an application program is finished with a statement object, the statement object and all of the statement object's descendants (e.g., resultset objects and stream objects) can be released. The memory associated with these objects is also released. To do this, an application program has to track the relationship between the objects and the associated memory. The release of a memory management subtree needs to be done in such a way that other objects in the hierarchical tree and their associated memory is not released. For example, if a subtree that starts with a particular statement is released, the connection that this particular statement is associated with and the other statements associated with that connection should not be impacted.
Therefore it can be seen that there is a need not only for providing unique memory management code for an application but to provide this memory management code in a way that it is shared by all the objects that are instances of the classes used in the application. Furthermore, it can be seen that there is a need for tracking the relationship between a set of objects in a hierarchical tree and the memory associated with these objects in a way that is transparent to an application program. In so doing, the application program can issue a release for one particular object in the hierarchical tree that results in releasing the memory management subtree that starts with that particular object.

Providing common memory management code to objects that are instances of different classes


Sealing device for sealing at least one zone of underpressure or overpressure adjoining a moving surface that includes at least one sealing element, positionable opposite the moving surface to form a front and a rear, with respect to a surface running direction. The sealing device includes a sealing section located at the front and a ventilation section located at the rear. The sealing section is structured to sealingly interact with the moving surface; and the ventilation section is structured and arranged to form a gap with the moving surface that widens in the surface running direction.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a sealing device for the sealing of at least one zone of underpressure or overpressure adjoining a moved surface in a paper making machine. The sealing device includes at least one sealing element disposed opposite the moved surface. Such a sealing device is known, e.g., from DE-A-197 51 283 (see FIG. 15).
2. Discussion of Background Information
Such sealing devices are used in practice both in the former part and in the press part and/or the dryer part of a respective paper machine, where they can be used in, among other things, suction rolls or blow rolls. For instance, as a rule, suction rolls have fixed interior suction boxes which form, e.g., adjustable zones having at least one pressure level, with the sealing of the pressure zones or vacuum zones taking place in the wire travel direction by sealing strips, which as a rule extend at least substantially over the whole roll length.
As a rule, sealing strips having a continuous straight runoff edge are used for sealing the vacuum in suction roll types. However, the vacuum in the roll perforation breaks down abruptly at such a runoff edge of the sealing strip running off in the wire travel direction, which produces an extremely high development of noise and results in a clearly audible, shrill so-called "suction roll whistle".


Circuits and methods for facilitating distribution of gated clocks in a programmable integrated circuit such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA) are described. Dynamic power savings are achieved in a FPGA by providing gated clock driver circuitry at various places in a hierarchical clock distribution network. The gated clock circuitry provides a clock signal gated by an enable signal to clocked elements. Configurable logic blocks (CLBs) comprising the clocked elements and programmable interconnect tiles are disposed in the gate array. Clock signals are distributed to the CLBs via a clock distribution network. Clock enable signals are provided corresponding to some of the clock signals. Clock buffers or drivers are provided within the clock distribution network that drive gated clock signals to CLBs. By disabling certain clocked elements using one or more embodiments of the invention when portions of the FPGA are inactive, dynamic power consumption is reduced.

In designing and fabricating programmable integrated circuits, PLD integrated circuits including, for example, CPLD or FPGA devices, are frequently used. A circuit designer typically approaches the design of a device using FPGA or CPLD technology by accessing a library of known functions, which are selected as circuit elements, and which are then coupled together using design tools to form useful circuitry. The output of the design process is typically a netlist of wired connections, or other connectivity information, coupling instances of the selected circuit elements. Circuit elements in such libraries include relatively low level devices such as input and output buffers, clock buffers, NAND and NOR gates. Circuit elements may further include higher level devices such as registers, flip-flops, register files, memory arrays, and even processors or CPUs, and specialized functions such as digital signal processors (DSPs) may be provided as library elements.
By selecting the necessary circuit elements and coupling them together, a circuit designer can quickly create a new functional integrated circuit. Because CPLD/FPGA technology allows automated tools to program a pre-existing completed packaged integrated circuit device, the integrated circuit can quickly be completed as a physical device and tested. In contrast, the manufacture of custom, semi-custom or application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) requires that the circuit designer complete the design and then wait for silicon devices to be manufactured, packaged, tested and delivered as integrated circuits before the physical devices are available. Thus, PLD technology allows fast design, verification and production of integrated circuits. Further, certain FPGA devices are programmed using non-volatile memory devices or even one time programmable elements to contain the programming, e.g. the interconnect selections and the circuit functional selections. Since in some cases these devices can be reprogrammed, changes to the design or modifications to fix errors in the design may be made quickly and without the need for waiting for additional silicon manufacture to occur.
Like many integrated circuits, present FPGA and CPLD designs use more power than is desirable. Power consumed may be described as static and dynamic power. Dynamic power is consumed during circuit operations when one or more elements of the circuit are changing state. One approach to saving dynamic power in current PLD integrated circuits, such as FPGAs or CPLDs, which are typically CMOS logic devices, is to provide clock enables to the clocked elements including registers or flip-flops. When the clock to a clocked element is disabled by an enable signal, the register or flip-flop transistors coupled to the clock line will not change state, thus saving dynamic power. When a particular circuit element that is clocked is not in use, the circuit can selectively disable the clock to that portion, and thereby save power that would otherwise be consumed with each clock transition.
However, the use of many of these clock enable lines in a PLD design places a high demand on the routing area resources of the device. The clock enable line is an additional signal, in addition to the clock signal, that is now routed to many clocked elements on the programmed integrated circuit. In some prior art FPGAs, the clock enable lines are even routed to some circuits where they are never used. The clock enable lines therefore take up valuable routing circuit area, limiting the availability of routing area for other purposes.
In the prior art, clock gating circuits are known for providing a clock signal that is gated by an enable signal. Because a change in the enable signal could appear in the gated clock signal as a partial or "runt" output clock signal if a simple logic gate were used, clock gating circuits are designed to prevent erroneous outputs on the gated clock signal.
FIG. 1 depicts, for example, a first clock gating circuit of the prior art described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,456,115, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference. The patent provides several similar embodiments for providing a gated clock signal without requiring a flip flop or latch to do so. In FIG. 1, circuit 10 includes elements 11 and 13 which receive both the clock and inverted clock signals CK and CK_, and pass the output of the element to the next element only when the clock CK falls. The ENABLE signal and the clock signal CK_ are then combined at the logic gate 17 to form the output GATED CLOCK. The use of the circuit of FIG. 1 provides clock output GATED CLOCK that is gated by the input ENABLE signal without forming "runt" clock pulses on the output. The reference patent provides several other embodiments of the circuit of FIG. 1 using, for example, NOR gates instead of NAND gates, and other modifications that provide a gated clock output signal.
FIG. 2 depicts an alternative prior art approach gated clock circuit 20 that uses a register 23 to synchronize the enable signal ENABLE to the free running input clock signal CK. The output of the register Q and the clock CK are then logically combined by a logic gate 21 which then outputs the signal GATED CLOCK. This circuit is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,782,486, which is also hereby incorporated by reference herein.
A common feature of certain integrated circuit logic devices is the use of multiple clocks that are multiplexed to form a selected clock for a particular section. For example, in FIG. 3, using the S0-S1 inputs to clock multiplexer 35, the selection is made between a locally generated clock LGCK, a system clock CK which may be free running or operate at a different frequency, and a fixed value—that is, no clock at all. The multiplexer output is then buffered by output driver 33 to provide a clock output signal OUTCLK with sufficient drive to supply a group of synchronous circuits as the load.
The use of a clock multiplexer to select clocks is also sometimes done in a manner to prevent the clock output signal provided by the multiplexer from making false or short pulse transitions; for example, when the multiplexer selection input changes. FIG. 4 depicts a known clock multiplexer circuit 40 for selection between two clock signals CK1 and CK2, which provides an output signal OUTCK. The input select signal SEL is synchronized to the current output clock signal by registers 51 and 53 and when the input SEL transitions from one selection value to the other, the circuit provides a robust transition to the newly selected clock at the output. This circuit is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,315,181, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.
The use of clock gating circuits to save dynamic power in synchronous circuitry used in PLDs such as CPLDs and FPGAs continues to increase. A continuing need thus exists for an improved gated clock distribution circuit, and methods for facilitating the use of clock gating to lower power consumption in these PLD devices without the disadvantages of the prior art circuits.

Clock distribution to facilitate gated clocks


A cooling device includes an enclosure housing, an external heat rejection device, a primary cooling system including a loop heat pipe like (LHPL) device. The LHPL device includes an evaporator module, a condenser module, a vapor line, a liquid return line, and a working fluid having a liquid phase and a vapor phase. The evaporator module includes a component-evaporator heat spreader, an evaporator body, and an evaporator-component clamping mean. The evaporator body includes an evaporator outer shell, a working fluid inlet port, several different types of compensation chamber, a working fluid exit port, and an evaporator wick having vapor escape channels. The condenser module includes a condenser coolant inlet, a condenser coolant exit, a condenser condensation channel, a condensation channel working fluid inlet, a condensation channel working fluid exit, and a condensation channel-coolant thermal interface further comprises a coolant passageway.

A way that may be employed to efficiently cool servers found in data centers as well as workstations that contain electronics housed in enclosures which employ Loop Heat Pipes, Capillary Pumped Loops and similar passive heat transfer technologies to cool the primary heat loads in such enclosures and which may also employ a combination of other methods to cool the secondary heat loads produced by the devices in these enclosures. We refer to devices which combine features of Loop Heat Pipes, Capillary Pumped Loops and Advanced Loop Heat Pipes as Loop Heat Pipe Like (LHPL) devices.
The cooling of electronics housed in enclosures has for many years been dominated by methods that were much more concerned about getting the job done than the energy it took to get the job done. Methods for improving the efficiency of electronic cooling using passive heat transfer such as heat pipes have been available since at least the Manhattan project, yet have only become inexpensive with the advent of commodity CPUs that rejected 40 or more Watts. These standard heat pipes are typically used to distribute heat from intense electronic sources that employ heat spreaders to reduce the intensity which then use heat pipes to distribute rejected heat to a set of fins. The main purpose of the heat pipes was to reduce the thermal resistance of the thermal conduction path between the heat spreader and the midpoint of the fins. In the case of air cooled LHPLs, they often end up doing the same thing, except that they make it possible to move the heat to locations where there is little room for large fins to room in enclosures where there is much more room for a large set of fins, or to a location along one of the walls of the enclosure making it possible to remove the heat using less powerful fans and rejecting the heat outside of the enclosure before it can recirculate heating the air coming into the enclosure. There are other advantages to using LHPL devices that include removing heat from very intense sources that can't be effectively cooled by ordinary heat pipes as well as the ability to replace air with a liquid coolant, which can reduce the thermal resistance of air cooled devices by a factor of 3 or more. This disclosure employs passive closed loop heat transfer devices that can dramatically improve not only the energy efficiency of electronic cooling but also makes it possible to cool devices that reject 500 or more Watts mounted on densely packed printed circuit boards and in the case of a data center reduce the energy required to cool it by 80% or more!
The devices at the heart of this disclosure are Loop Heat Pipes, Capillary Pumped Loops and derivatives of Loop Heat Pipes that can include devices like pumps in the condenser lines that reduce the temperature of the devices being cooled. We lump all these devices together into a category we define as Loop Heat Pipe Like (LHPL).
In general the LHPLs employed provide the best energy efficiency of any electronic cooling device ever invented. Not only are they passive, but their ability to reject heat to new locations is often measured in meters while employing condenser pipes (often less than 3 mm) that make it possible for them to move heat out of congested spaces to condensers that may reject heat to condensers that feature large heat transfer areas rejected to coolants such as air and water. And it is this ability to transport heat to new locations in an enclosure and then pass it through a reasonably long pipe to a condenser which employs a large heat transfer area that makes it possible to efficiently transfer the heat being rejected by tiny hot spots in semiconductors to secondary coolants that remove the heat to cooling loops that ultimately reject waste heat to the outside world. It is also this ability to distribute the primary heat load over large areas that makes it possible to create very efficient counter flow heat exchangers that retain the quality of the heat and make the total heat transfer process so efficient. It is the low total thermal resistances of these devices that make it possible to produce LHPLs whose overall thermal resistance is only 0.15° C. /Watt and that have a heat transfer coefficient of 0.15° C. /(Wcm2). In the case of a 100 Watt CPU whose LHP condenser was cooled by water at 30° C. the output from the condenser turned out to be 47° C. with the CPU running at a heat spreader temperature of 59° C. Translated into practical terms, employed in the 1 U rack mount chassis that dominate modern data centers, this device makes it possible to remove the heat directly from a server housed in a rack cabinet and move it directly back to the cooling tower in the data center. In the process, the noisy fans in the racks that produce many points of failure and may consume as much as 30% of the energy being used by servers along with the main CRAC unit blowers and water chillers that consume 35% of the total power employed by the data center end-up getting cut out of the cooling process. The temperature we chose to cool these LHPs with, 30° C. was chosen based on ASHRAE tables, and the performance of commercially available evaporative cooling towers. This temperature turns out to be the temperature of the coolant that this type of cooling tower will produce running in Atlanta, Ga. on the hottest and most humid day of the year. A quick comparison of the power consumption at institutions like Lawrence Livermore National Labs suggests that:
TABLE 1 Electronics 50% Water Chiller 25% Air Blower 10% 1 U fans 9% UPS 5% Lighting 1% changes to this:
TABLE-US-00002 Electronics 83% 1 U fans 1.6% Cooling Tower Pump and fan 5% UPS 8.3% Lighting 1.6%
Which is to say the total power consumed by the data center goes down by 40%.
The same energy benefits that accrue to data center cooling also accrue to the general cooling of all electronic enclosures that are air cooled, but to a lesser extent, for the simple reason that air is a much poorer heat transport medium than the chilled water that gets employed to move heat from servers that are cooled with it back to the water chiller or in the best case cooling case we have run up against, the data center cooling tower. At the head of the list of benefits in addition to reduced energy costs are huge reductions in noise, the elimination of heat arriving at the walls of enclosures that can be so hot that it is almost possible to get burned touching them, the frequent failure of rotating cooling components including fans and pumps (in the case of pumped liquid cooling) which now occur so often that the systems that employ them have to mount them so that they can be easily swapped out without turning the machine off along with the ability to reject heat loads from devices that produced 500 or more Watts and to cool efficient devices such as CPUs and GPUs mounted in laptops where improved energy efficiency can improve battery life.
To appreciate the benefits of employing LHPLs to cool electronic enclosures, including air and water cooled electronic devices used to do everything from control the operation of space vehicles to reject heat to the cooling towers of data centers, it is first necessary to recite the goals of this disclosure, which were to efficiently cool electronic enclosures in which semiconductor devices that rejected large quantities of heat (greater than 50 Watts) mounted on densely packed PCBs along with devices that shared the same enclosures that rejected the balance of the heat but did not provide a dense source of heat. In the case of air cooled enclosures housed in rack mounted chassis, we wanted to make the first goal achievable while at the same time improving the quality of heat being rejected to the data centers CRAC system. In cases where liquid cooling, including chilled water was available on the data center floor, our goal was to reject high quality heat all the way back to the data center cooling tower, on a year round basis in most localities in the world. To achieve these goals, we employed LHPLs, some of whose other outstanding properties in addition to the fact that they are passive devices, turns out to be that the eliminate most of the electric motors, fans, blowers, compressors and other rotating devices found in servers and throughout the data center that end up making noise, contribute to frequent server failures and cost money to maintain and operate.
These goals don't get met without skepticism from prior art and other technologies, so we will now address the advantages of our approach in detail, while at the same time laying out the critical items that need to be overcome to reach our goals.
There are a large number of technologies that have been recently investigated whose main purpose has been to improve the heat transfer capabilities of devices that may be used to cool semiconductor devices that reject large quantities of heat. LHPLs continue to remain as good as or better than these other devices. We will examine just a couple of the higher end sensibly cooled heat exchange technologies: microchannels and jet impingement. Microchannels require a liquid under pressure, usually pump driven and drive the liquid across a channel which extracts heat from the processor's heat spreader. The contact areas that may be achieved with these devices is less than the wick areas provided by LHPLs which means to provide equivalent cooling, they need to make up for the fact that LHPLs absorb a factor of 100 as much heat per gram of coolant than they typically do. As a consequence, they end-up leaving the region of the device at higher velocities and at much colder temperatures. It is also very difficult for them to provide uniform cooling across the entire heat spreader for the simple reason that they do not uniformly expose the heat spreader to a uniform flow. Jet impingement, on the other hand does expose the surface to a more uniform flow, but because of a characteristics of the way in which jets interact with surfaces along with the fact that the heated water has to be quickly removed from the region of contact, a fair amount of mixing goes on, again reducing the temperature of the resulting effluent. The heat transfer coefficient of the LHPs employed in our experiments was 0.15° C. /Wcm2. This state of the art performance makes it possible to cool semiconductor dies whose are 1 inch squared and reject as much as a kilowatt. It is possible that jet impingement may be able to cool devices that reject more power, simply because of the energy that they may eject into the flow employing pumps. But, for now at least, what we have just demonstrated is that for all of the semiconductor devices that are available or likely to become available, this technology not only may reject as much energy as the competitors, but do it without requiring additional energy and at the same time producing effluents whose heat quality is excellent.
The critical role that LHPLs perform in the removal of heat from hot semiconductors, is they make it possible to remove large quantities of it, using small devices that can be packed into small locations and while at the same time providing rejection distances that make it possible to locate large efficient condensers that may employ counter-flow designs at locations in the electronic enclosure where that heat can be exchanged with either air or water. That being said, the next most important feature of the technology that this disclosure brings to the table is methods that make it possible to maintain the quality of that heat as long as possible, whether it be exchanger with air or a chilled liquid. This is a crucial part of the design approach to the heat transfer problem that we have taken.
The method we will use to greatly improve the overall coefficient of performance (COP) of the data centers cooling is by eliminating the majority of the motors typically employed to cool a data center. For this feat to be realized, it becomes important to maintain the quality of the heat being rejected by the rack cabinets that the data center may use to contain its server units.
One of the big problems in energy conservation is underestimating the important role that the quality of the heat being rejected to the final cooling device in major thermodynamic systems plays in the overall cost of buying and operating such systems. Reducing the quality of the heat too much in the case of coal fired power plants results in the sulfuric acid condensing out in them so fast that they have to be frequently replaced. In the case of a clean large multi-megawatt fuel cell power plant, extracting too much energy from the exhaust flow ends up driving the cost of the energy and the fan required to cool the plant up to the point where the savings get lost. The implication for data center cooling is, keep the quality of the heat up, unless you want to spend a lot of money rejecting it at the cooling tower. In existing systems, the cost of rejecting it at the cooling tower consumes 25% of the cost of running the data center, i.e., running a water chiller.
The naive approach to the use of passive heat devices suggests that like the extra cooling loops that currently consume close to 35% of the energy required to run a data center, simply stringing a series of these devices in a row, ought to be able to solve the cooling problem, without even using a cooling tower. As it turns out, a sequence of such devices will operate less efficiently than a single large Loop Heat Pipe, whose condenser line moves the heat the same distance, simply because a sequence of these devices will end up losing energy at each point of contact that connects the devices. And, since the effective driving range of the LHPs used to cool the semiconductor devices we are working with is several meters, the bottom line is that unless the cooling tower you are planning to use is in the immediate vicinity of the server you are cooling, stringing passive device together does not buy very much, but does just like the sequence of cooling loops currently employed, does dramatically degrade the heat you are attempting to reject. So, the ground rule for employing LHPLs employed to cool semiconductors turns out to be, exchange the energy with another secondary coolant, preferable one in the liquid state, as quickly as possible, if your goal is to use that coolant to drive a cooling tower directly, or to employ that heat in a cogeneration scheme or if it is simply to return air to a CRAC units heat exchanger at the highest possible temperature, thereby improving the efficiency of even an air cooled data center.
Having rejected the heat from the primary heat load in our electronic enclosure with the highest possible quality to either an air or in the case of a liquid, most likely chilled water, our goal now becomes to move it to the outside world with the smallest loss in energy. However, while doing that, we also need to consider how our LHPL primary heat removal solution interacts with the rest of the devices we use to gather up heat from the enclosure.
In data centers in which the average rack cabinet only consumed 5 KW, the fans on the rear of rack cabinets were a convenient way to help cool the contents. However, their main function at today's power levels of 20+ KW is mostly to hide the unsightly cables that drape the servers contained in the cabinet. A significant portion of the air being drawn through a typical rack cabinet ends up being drawn around the stack of server chassis within and often the asymmetric flows within the cabinet can result in eddies that circle back to the front of the cabinet near the top, heat up the top servers by as much as 15 degrees F. To get around that problem fans can be added to the top of the rack cabinet and baffles inserted between the servers and the side panels. A better way to employ such fans, is simply to insert a duct in the cabinet that can be used to gather up all the air from the rack mounted chassis and exhaust it out the rear of the cabinet by connecting it the fans on the rear door or out the top using fans mounted on the top panel or possibly to the CRAC units return air flow ducting. To make sure that this duct does what it is intended to do, a mechanism has been provided in the disclosure to seal the chassis to the duct and at the same time make sure that in the event that a chassis is not installed the duct does not leak. Furthermore, to help solve the problem of potential leaks in situations where direct chilled water is being employed within the rack cabinets, the duct can be used to contain the chilled water manifolds that serve the rack mount chassis. Finally, to make it possible for the air being removed from the rack to be reused without having to make the long trip back to the CRAC units blower, simply inserting chilled water air heat exchangers in the exit path from the rack mount chassis to the duct, makes it possible to eject the air from the cabinet at the ambient air temperature of the room. This strategy has a number of benefits of other approaches to the cooling of high power rack mount chassis that employ water cooled air heat exchangers within the rack cabinet. Besides taking up much less space in the rack cabinet, and making it possible to employ distributed heat exchangers whose total area is much larger than the ones employed by other solutions, it also reduces the total high speed fetch that the air has to make. And in the process, the amount of energy that gets injected into air flow ends up being minimized.
Reducing the energy employed moving air is one of our overall goals. When we have to do it, our goal is to move the air the smallest distance at the smallest possible speed that gets the cooling job done. The reason for this is quite simple, energy losses due to drag scale as the velocity of the air cubed multiplied by the distance it travels. Keeping the velocity and distance down, makes an enormous difference in the energy consumed by the fans driving the serves, rack cabinets and the data center itself. The technology we employ cuts down on these losses three different ways. First, when exchanging energy between air and either the primary coolant being chilled in a condenser, or a chilled liquid that is cooling it, employing finned condensers that have large areas, which our technology enables by doing things like moving the heat being rejected out of tight spaces, ends up reducing the velocity of the air required. Next, by moving air the smallest distances possible, which we make possible by picking up secondary heat sources in 1 U sealed rack mount chassis (which reduces the distance and velocity needed) or by cutting down on the distance that air needs to flow at high velocities when it is being cooled by a negative pressure duct, or by completely eliminating the need for the air to travel back to the data center's air heat exchanger, we make large reductions in the amount of energy that needs to employed by air fans and blowers. This strategy plays an important role in our energy conservation effort, and is embodied in both our sealed chassis and sealed duct designs.
The final energy reduction principle that needs to be taken into account that out embodiment improves is water condensation. In some data centers, as much as 40% of the energy being employed by water chillers gets used to remove (by condensation) water vapor from the cooling flow which then, apparently needs to get added back into the flow to keep IT people wandering through the data center happy. It turns out that there no longer is an electrical static discharge (ESD) requirement on the minimum air content of the air being employed in data centers, which basically means that keeping the relative humidity below the point where condensation occurs in the equipment can now be achieved by simply making sure the dew point of the air in the systems being cooled is less than the temperature of the liquid coolant being employed to cool systems, saving roughly 10% of the energy employed to cool some data centers, especially those in humid localities.
Our sealed chassis embodiments make this possible by keeping the dew point of the air inside of the rack mount chassis below the temperature of the coldest liquid coolant employed. This is simply accomplished in an embodiment in which we pass slightly pressurized air through a cold trap that removes excess water from it before slowly bleeding it into the "sealed" chassis, that are allowed to slowly leak air back to the ambient, at a rate that guarantees that the average air content of the chassis remains dry enough to avoid condensing if and when it comes into contact with chilled surfaces.
When it comes to cooling air cooled enclosures in general, LHPLs make it possible to make great strides in efficient uniformly distributed air cooling, by the simple act of placing the LHPL condenser at the point in the chassis where the air flow is normally exhausted out of the chassis. In the two enclosures we have studied, 1 U rack mount chassis and desktop cooled chassis, the fans that are employed on the exterior surfaces of these chassis have provided high enough flow rates to in the case of a 1 U chassis only require a single blower (already employed to pull air out of the chassis) to cool a pair of 120 Watt processors (it normally takes four to eight 1 U fans to accomplish the same task) and a single 120 mm fan running at just 1800 RPM to cool a 500 Watt CPU sitting in either the PCIe bus of the system. In all of the chassis we have examined, including the 4 U chassis employed to cool four to eight Opteron multi-core processors, the existing fans on the rear wall of the chassis that we have examined have more than enough cooling fans to make it possible to cool all of the processors, without the need for CPU fans. Which is to say, all of the chassis tested, when their CPUs were cooled using LHPLs, could get by without the need for CPU cooling fans. Not only that, the CPUs that were being cooling in situations like the 4P/8P chassis, normally require very high air flow rates even with cooling fans that fit into 2 U tall spaces simply because the CPUs in the front row end up heating the air used to cool the rear row of processors. This problem goes away with LHPLs, making it possible to actually reduce the air flow rates on the rear wall while at the same time eliminating the four to eight fans typically used to cool processors. And, while we can't claim that air cooling does as good a job as water cooling, we have gone about as far as you can go with air cooling to maintain the quality of the heat being rejected. In addition to providing sealed ducts, more uniform distribution of cooling air across the chassis and the reduction of the ambient temperature within the chassis, we have also introduced LHPL condenser designs which employ counter-flow cooling, which results in increased exit flow air temperatures which in turn end up improving the efficiency of an air cooled data center's water chiller.
When it comes to liquid cooling, the embodiments provided make it possible to employ LHPL cooling with condensers that are either directly or indirectly cooled with chilled liquids including water, safely. A new method for interfacing all closed loop passive heat transfer devices to chilled liquids has been introduced which employs a cold plate along with what we call a cold spreader (that is thermally attached to the LHPL working fluid's condenser lines) that comes into contact with the cold plate when a rack mount chassis gets installed inside of a rack cabinet. This interface, while not quite as efficient as the directly cooled interface we are about to describe, in certain situations, like blade and COTS Single Board Computer (SBC) situations, makes it possible to cool these devices as well, without using the quick disconnects that direct chilled liquids require. To improve the quality of the heat being rejected by these split condensers, a counter-flow version is also embodied and examples are provided of how to employ the cold plates that are a component of a split condenser to also cool air that is either circulating within a sealed chassis or being passed through a chassis that is being evacuated either by internal fans or a negative pressure air duct.
The most efficient cooling that we believe can be obtained using LHPLs comes when they are cooled directly with chilled liquids housed in a sealed enclosure in which the remainder of the components within the enclosure are being cooled by either liquid cooled cold plates, air that is circulating about a chassis that includes cold plates that cool it and the PCBs in the chassis and that is driven by low energy fans or blowers or air that is being circulated through the sealed chassis that passes through a chilled liquid air heat exchanger that may be a part of a component that includes the LHPL's condenser. The condenser design that we created that did the best job of producing high temperature effluent employed counter-flow heat exchange and used a chilled water jacket that was made of a material that does not readily conduct heat in addition to employing a helical wire that was thermally attached to the serpentine shaped condenser pipe, forcing the liquid to take a longer path and simultaneously increasing turbulent flow.
The final claim in the disclosure is for a data center cooled with the afore mentioned devices in which the servers in the data center room is directly attached to the cooling tower, eliminating the need for air ducting, special insulation in the walls of the data center (to keep humid air out), the need for an air blower and finally the water chiller employed by the air blower, in localities in the United States, when on the hottest most humid days of the year, an evaporative cooling tower will return water to the data center room that is at least 30 C, which is to say for most locations as hot and humid as locations like Atlanta Ga., 365 days of the year.
Definitions Used
Loop Heat Pipe (LHP)
A Passive two phase heat transfer device that consists of an evaporator that contains a compensation chamber and a wick with escape channels on one side that receives heat from the device being cooled which causes a working fluid to change phase on the inside of the escape channel walls producing vapor phase coolant that leaves the evaporator passing through a vapor line to a condenser where the vapor passes through a condensation channel that may be cooled by a gas or liquid causing it to change phase back to a liquid and dumping the rejected heat into the cooling gas or liquid before it returns to the evaporator through a liquid return line that may pass through a compensation chamber located within the evaporator between the evaporator's inlet and the side of the wick facing the evaporator inlet. The device being cooled is typically thermally mounted to the evaporator shell which encloses the wick in the region of the wick that contains the escape channels.
Loop Heat Pipe Like (LHPL)
A device that may contain any of the ingredients of a Loop Heat Pipe or Capillary Pumped Loop as well as an additional derivative feature such as a pump at any point along its condenser path designed to either increase the working pressure of the working fluid leaving the pump or extending the length of the lines. An LHPL may contain one or more compensation chambers that can lay within the evaporator, attached to the evaporator, inline in the liquid return line or attached to the liquid return line at any point along it.
Capillary Pumped Loop (CPL)
A device that contains all of the ingredients of a Loop Heat Pipe but in which the compensation chamber is no longer situated within the evaporator between the inlet and the wick, but at some point along the liquid return line.
LHP Compensation Chamber
A volume situated between the liquid return line inlet of an LHPL evaporator module and the evaporator wick which distributes returning liquid to the wick and whose volume is large enough to impact the performance characteristics of the LHPL. See description of FIGS. 3 and 4.
Internal Compensation Chamber (ICC)
Identical to LHP Compensation Chamber, a volume placed along the liquid return path of an LHPL which is contained by the region within the evaporator module where returning liquid is received.
An Undeclared Compensation Chamber (UCC)
An ICC whose volume is too small to impact the performance of the LHPL. This can arise in situations where there is not enough room to place a large enough volume within the evaporator to compensate for the length of the vapor and liquid lines which prevents it from impacting the performance of the LHPL. See description of FIGS. 3 and 4 as well as detailed discussion of FIG. 4.
Liquid Return Path
The path that liquid returning from the condenser to the wick within the evaporator module takes which includes the liquid return line that connects the condensation channel exit with the evaporator inlet and the region between the evaporator module inlet and the exposed surface of the wick inside of the evaporator module body.
External Compensation Chamber(ECC)
A volume connected to the liquid return path which extends from the condenser outlet to the evaporator wick that connects a volume to either the liquid return line or to the evaporator shell using a small length of tubing. This is the form of a compensation chamber.(CC) that normally is associated with Capillary Pumped Loops (CPLs). See description of FIGS. 3 and 4.
An INLINE Compensation Chamber (ILCC)
A volume inserted into the liquid return line that is primarily used to compensate for the differences in the length of the lines used to interface evaporators and their condensers cooling a system that has several primary heat rejecting components. See description of FIGS. 3 and 4.
Standard Heat Pipe (HP)
A sealed tube that is lined with a wick that contains a working fluid that receives heat at one end called the evaporator, causing the working fluid in the wick to change phase and enter the empty center of the tube which allows the vapor produced by the heat to flow to the other end called the condenser where a coolant receives the heat and causes the working fluid to change back to a liquid which then gets carried by the wick lining the walls back to the evaporator end of the sealed tube.
Two Phase Passive Heat Transfer Cooling Devices
LHPs, LHPLs, CPLs, HP, Thermo siphon and any similar device
Two phase Heat Transfer Cooling Devices
Any device that is a member of the Two Phase Passive Heat Transfer class of devices plus any device that transfers heat between an evaporator and a condenser that employs a pump to affect the motion of the working fluid.
Primary Heat Load and Components
The devices within an enclosure whose cooling is facilitated by LHPL devices.
Secondary Heat Load and Components
The devices within an enclosure that are not being cooled using an LHPL device.
Thermally Attached
Techniques which connect a pair of thermally conducting devices together which improve heat transfer between the two such as soldering, the employment of heat conducting epoxies and thermal transfer products that use solids and pastes along with the use of clamping pressure and surfaces that are polished flat.
Heat Sink
A finned device made of a thermally conducting material such as copper which typically has solid "base plate" on one side to which a set of fins have been thermally attached, the base plate acting as a heat spreader that conducts incoming heat from the device being cooled to the fins which typically reject the heat passed to them to the air flowing through the fins.
Laminar Flow Disruptor
An obstacle placed along the wall or center line of a conduit carrying a gas or liquid which causes the boundary layer flow along a wall of the conduit to mix with the flow at the center of the conduit.
PCB
Printed Circuit Boards (PCB) are currently multi-layer devices consisting of insulating plastic materials that have circuits etched on both of their sides prior to being glued together using copper Vias that connect the etch on their surfaces together providing the "nets" that connect components soldered to the outer layers of the boards to each other. PCBs often employ extensive areas of copper plating that are used to provide the power and ground planes that are required to enable high speed circuits to function. A 12 layer PCB will often employ 6 of these copper ground planes, providing a mechanism for gathering secondary heat from components soldered to the board. These copper planes often play a crucial role in the cooling of the components that receive power and grand from them, by virtue of the fact that high power devices like CPUs can consume over 100 Amps at voltages of 1.2 volts (which is how said CPUs can end up rejecting over 100 Watts!) while often employ 1,000 or more pins that make connections between their BGAs (ball grid arrays) and the PCB which are made using said copper vias, half of which are used to provide the silicone die with power and ground. The Vias that connect these pins to the internal power and ground copper end up playing an important role in the cooling many high power circuits including MOSFETs, which makes it possible to collect rejected secondary heat by simply placing a cold beneath a PCB.

Gas cooled condensers for loop heat pipe like enclosure cooling


A push-switch for vehicle, and a method of manufacturing the same, including fixed contacts and movable contact brought into and out of contact in accordance with upward and downward movements of operating member, in which at least one of the contacts is provided on surfaces thereof with a plurality of fine projections and depressions produced by arcing discharges between the contacts or machining work. Contacts at a large number of points are attained by the provision of the plurality of fine projections and depressions, hence a switch capable of stable contact can be provided.

Recently, there have been widely used push-switches for vehicles, of a push-operated type, for controlling stop lamps following depressing operation of the brake pedal, or more specifically, for turning on the stop lamps when the brake pedal is depressed and turning off the lamps when the depression is released. A conventional-art example of such push-switches for vehicle (hereinafter called "PSV") will be described with reference to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4. FIG. 3 is a sectional view of PSV of conventional art. In FIG. 3, case 1 formed of an insulating resin material substantially in a box shape with an opening provided in its top plate has a plurality of fixed contacts 3 embedded in the top plate with their terminal portions 3A projecting from the underside of the top plate.
Further, there is provided conductive, metallic movable contact 4 upwardly urged by contact pressure spring 5 to elastically contact with fixed contacts 3. Thus, a plurality of fixed contacts 3 are electrically connected by movable contact 4 thereby establishing a switch contact. Further, contact pressure spring 5 in its slightly compressed state is mounted between movable contact 4 and the inner bottom of case 1.
The opening provided in the top plate of case 1 is covered by cover 7. Return spring 6 in a coil shape in its slightly compressed state is inserted between the underside of operating member 2 and the inner bottom of case 1 so that operating portion 2 is urged upward.
Cover 7 is provided with hollow cylindrical portion 7A projecting upward. Within cylindrical portion 7A, there is inserted operating shaft 2A of operating member 2 for vertical movement, while the upper end of operating shaft 2A is upwardly protruded from hollow cylindrical portion 7A. PSV is thus constructed.
PSV constructed as described above is generally mounted forwardly of the brake pedal (not shown) of a vehicle with operating shaft 2A of operating member 2 pressed in by an arm or the like. Further, terminal portions 3A of fixed contacts 3 are connected with stop lamps via connectors or the like. More specifically, in a state where the brake pedal is not depressed, operating shaft 2A of operating member 2 is pressed downward to compress contact pressure spring 5 and return spring 6 so that movable contact 4 is moved downward to be separated from fixed contacts 3. As a result, a state where a plurality of fixed contacts 3 are electrically disconnected is brought about and hence the stop lamps are turned off.
When the brake pedal is then depressed, the arm is separated from operating shaft 2A so that the pressing force acting thereon is released. As a result, operating member 2 is moved upward by the elastic restoring force of return spring 6 and, at the same time, movable contact 4 is brought into elastic contact with fixed contacts 3 by being pressed by contact pressure spring 5. Thus, the plurality of fixed contacts 3 are brought into their electrically connected state so that the stop lamps are turned on.
Electric bulbs, LEDs, or the like are generally used as the stop lamps turning on and off in the above described manner. When electric bulbs are used, a relatively large current, e.g., around 10 A at DC 12V, is supplied. When, on the other hand, LEDs or the like are used, a relatively small value of current, e.g., 0.5A-1A at DC 12V, is supplied. Incidentally, an example of PSV having the configuration as described above is disclosed in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 2003-151398.
In above described conventional PSV, however, movable contact 4 and fixed contact 3 as shown in their sectional view of FIG. 4 are in contact with each other at one point on their surfaces. Therefore, in case of such PSV is used for stop lamps employing LEDs or the like operating with a small value of current and oxide film is formed on the surfaces of fixed contacts 3 and movable contact 4, there arises a possibility of an unstable contact occurring between the contacts.
The present invention has been made to solve such a problem encountered in conventional art and is aimed at realization of PSV providing stabilized contacts.

Push-switch for vehicle and method of manufacturing the same

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A semiconductor memory having memory cells each storing first data and second data in a memory cell array arranged in a column direction; a plurality of word lines connected to the memory cells in a row direction; and first and second bit lines, to which the first and second data are respectively read out, in the column direction. When one of the first and second bit lines changes from a first potential to a second potential lower than the first potential after data read out, the potential of the other bit line is changed from the second to the first potential, and if the electric potential of the selected bit line changes from the first to the second potential when data is read out, the other bit line is selected when the data is next read out, and, if the electric potential of the selected bit line maintains the first potential, the selected bit line is maintained selected even when the data is to be read out next.

The present invention relates to a semiconductor memory and a data read method of the same.
With the recent development of high-performance LSIs, it is being required to increase the operation speed of SRAMs incorporated into these LSIs.
An SRAM has memory cells arranged in a matrix. Each memory cell is connected to a word line running in the row direction, and is also connected to a pair of bit lines running along the column direction. The memory cell stores a pair of data.
To read out data from the memory cell, the pair of bit lines are charged in advance (i.e., precharged) to change their electric potentials to "H" level.
When the word line is activated by changing its electric potential to "H" level, the two data held in the memory cell are read out to the pair of bit lines.
A bit line to which data "0" is read out is discharged from "H" level to "L" level. A bit line to which data "1" is read out maintains "H" level without being discharged.
After that, signals corresponding to the potential levels detected from these bit lines are output, thereby reading out the data held in the memory cell.
When the data are thus read out from the memory cell, the electric potential of the word line is changed to "L" level, and the bit line whose electric potential has changed to "L" level is charged. In this manner, the electric potentials of both the pair of bit lines are set at "H" level.
As described above, a time for charging a bit line must be ensured after data are read out from a memory cell as an object of data read and before data are read out from a memory cell as an object of next data read. This makes it impossible to increase the operation speed of an SRAM.
Also, whenever data are read out from a memory cell, a bit line whose electric potential has changed to "L" level must be charged. This increases the power consumption.

Semiconductor memory and data read method of the same


A fusion implant for insertion between opposing vertebrae includes a body having an inner surface defining a hollow inner chamber for containing a graft material therein. The body includes a stress transfer mechanism for transferring stress from the vertebrae surrounding the implant to the graft material contained within the implant. A method is provided for implanting the fusion implant between opposing vertebrae by the steps of inserting an implant into a collapsed disc space between adjacent vertebrae, the implant including a collapsed body, and expanding the body to spread the adjacent vertebrae apart.

Fusion cages or interbody fusion devices provide a means of opening the collapsed disc space between opposing vertebrae to relieve pressure on nerves and/or the spinal cord by placing a spacer or spacers in the disc space.
Presently used fusion cages are either cylindrical or rectangular devices having an external threaded or toothed portion for engaging the vertebral end plates in order to prevent the cage from slipping. Such cages are generally hollow. They can be filled with graft in order to induce fusion of the two vertebrae together. Such devices provide great potential for eliminating the large incisions required for posterior instrumentation and open a door for minimally invasive surgery. the large incisions required for posterior instrumentation and open a door for minimally invasive surgery.
The art of spinal implant, such as fusion cages has become highly developed. Recent developments have been directed to various aspects of the cage design. For example, the U.S. Pat. No. 5,055,104 to Ray, issued Oct. 9, 1991, provides a method of surgically implanting threaded fusion cages between adjacent lower back vertebrae by an anterior approach. The device disclosed therein consists of a shape-retaining solid helix of wire that is hollow within the helix and has openings between adjacent turns of the cage.
The U.S. Pat. No. 4,011,602 to Rybicki et al. discloses an expandable device for attachment to bone tissue. The device includes an adjustable mechanism for expanding the body member against tissue in which it is implanted to an extent such as to provide a compressive stress capable of maintaining a snug and stable fit. However, once adjusted, the device is solid and fixed, just as the device disclosed in the Ray patent discussed above.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,489,308 to Kuslich et al., issued Feb. 6, 1996 also provides a spinal implant for use in spinal stabilization. The implant includes holes therethrough which are positioned to chip bone into the implant as the implant is rotated.
Each of the aforementioned patents, as well as many other patents in the art, address such issues as anterior approach, expansion and then fixation, and means for automatically positioning bone chips within the hollow space therein to promote fusion. However, there remains several issues of maximal importance which are not addressed by the prior art.
For example, fusion devices presently in use are cylindrical or rectangular devices which are large and bulky. Size is an extremely important factor in minimally invasive surgery wherein the device is placed inside the body using a cannula to minimize the incision size and therefore hospital recovery time. In this process, it is desirable to use as small of an incision as possible. A cannula is used to track the implant to its desired destination, the implant having to be smaller in size than the inner core of the cannula to allow insertion therethrough. Present spinal implants require a larger incision due to their large and bulky shape necessitated by their structure thereby not being directed at minimizing the incision.
Another problem with presently used implant cages is a complete lack of understanding of load sharing, Wolf's law, and fusion quality. The above cited patents, as well as others, provide a fixed device which is inserted between the vertebral end plates and filled with graft. It has been previously assumed that if the graft is placed properly, fusion will occur. However, bone quality is related to stress. Wolf's law states that bone grows along lines of stress. The aforementioned prior art cages hold the vertebral bodies apart and act merely as solid spacers. Therefore, the graft material inside the cage resorbs and is never stressed. Without stress, the graft material inside the cage does not effectively provide fusion quality. If a fusion takes place, which is difficult to determine at best in metal cages using X-rays or most other diagnostic techniques, the quality of fusion can be poor at best.
Secondly, as mentioned above, the size of the cage is an important issue. The future of spine surgery will be based upon minimally invasive surgical techniques as discussed above. The surgeon implants the cage or cages into the disc by use of a cannula. This allows for small skin incision to minimize soft tissue trauma and reduce recovery time and hospital stay. To properly relieve the pressure on the nerves and spinal cord, the collapsed disc space should be open to as close as possible to its precollapsed stage. With the present cage designs discussed above, the cage is designed to open the disc space to 16 mm, such cage requiring a cannula of 18 to 20 mm. Such a cannula requires a large incision. It would be desirable to provide a means to allow a 16 mm cage to go down a smaller cannula, such as a 12 mm or 14 mm cannula.
It is further desirable to allow the cage to share the stress with the surrounding bone. Such a dynamic would allow the cage to act not only as a required spacer, but also allow the bone to be stressed to improve fusion success and fusion quality.
It would further be desirable to provide the surgeon with a means of easily opening the disc space. Present day devices require instrumentation to open the disc space, which is often ineffective or difficult to do.


A fluorescent lamp includes a light-transmissive glass envelope having an inner surface, means for providing an electric discharge to the interior of the glass envelope, a phosphor layer within the interior of the glass envelope and a discharge-sustaining fill gas and a mercury dose sealed inside the light-transmissive glass envelope. The light-transmissive glass envelope can comprise a light-transmissive mixed alkali glass envelope and the phosphor layer can comprise a phosphor layer of approximately three mg/cm2. A barrier layer of approximately 0.3 mg/cm2 or less of alumina can be applied to the inner surface of the light-transmissive glass envelope. The mercury dose can be present in an amount to provide a saturated mercury vapor pressure within the light-transmissive glass envelope throughout substantially the entire life of the lamp. The lamp can have an end-of-life mercury consumption value of approximately 0.63 mg or less, including 0.44 mg or less, and a warm-up value in the range of approximately 40 to 50 seconds or less, including 30 seconds or less.

This invention relates generally to fluorescent lamps and more particularly to fluorescent lamps that have desirable properties related to the lamps' consumption of mercury and warm-up, or lumen run-up, times.
Fluorescent lamps have found widespread acceptability in the market place for a number of applications and are available in a variety of shapes and forms. For example, the lamps may be linear, curvilinear, U-bent and compact in shape as will be familiar to those having ordinary skill in the art. Typically, fluorescent lamps include a light-transmissive glass envelope with means such as electrodes, for example, for providing an electric discharge to the interior of the glass envelope. A phosphor layer typically applied to the inner surface of the glass envelope comprises the source of the light that the lamp emits. A rare gas and mercury are sealed within the glass envelope, and the mercury functions to excite the phosphors' electrons resulting in the production of light by the lamp in a manner familiar to those having ordinary skill in the art.
Disposing of fluorescent lamps after they have served their useful lives can be problematic because the mercury in the lamps can present environmental concerns. As a result, for reasons related to the environmentally safe disposal of the lamps, it can be useful to minimize the mercury dosages inserted into the glass envelopes during the manufacture of the lamps. A confounding factor in this regard is that the mercury in the fluorescent lamps can be consumed in one manner or another within the glass envelope during operation of the lamps, such as by being taken up by the components and surfaces within the glass envelope for example. Consequently, it is necessary to add sufficient mercury to the lamps during their manufacture to account for the consumption of the mercury so that an adequate amount of mercury will otherwise be available to support the proper operation of the lamps during their lifetimes. Thus, it would be desirable to have available fluorescent lamps wherein the consumption of mercury is such that the lamps can be dosed with a quantity of mercury that allows for the acceptable performance of the lamps throughout their lives while at the same time alleviates the environmental concerns that the mercury presents when the lamps are disposed.

Fluorescent lamps having desirable mercury consumption and lumen run-up times


A pin connector assembly comprising a socket (11) adapted to receive a cylindrical electrical plug (12), the plug having a central longitudinal bore (17), the socket being in the form of an insulated housing having a cylindrical receptacle (13) with a pin (14) located in the centre thereof, said pin (14) being adapted to be located in the bore (17) of the plug when the plug and the socket are in mating connection, the assembly further comprising an annular resilient collar (20) adapted to fit either over the pin (14) of the socket or within the bore (17) of the plug and which compresses radially inwards when the circumference of the bore and the pin are of essentially equal size and which remains in an expanded configuration when the circumference of the bore (17) is greater than the circumference of the pin (14), thus maintaining electrical contact between the electrical plug (12) and the socket (11).

Connectors for supplying direct current (DC) power are poorly standardised compared to domestic alternating current (AC) power plugs and sockets. A DC plug is a commonly used term for one type of cylindrical two-conductor plug available in a range of sizes and usually used to power small pieces of electronic equipment. The most common use of the DC plugs is on the cable connected to a power supply. The matching jack or socket is then mounted in the equipment to be powered. Several competing standards exist for DC plugs. In some cases, incompatible plugs can be fitted into sockets, possibly damaging equipment and leading to a poor current supply.
Cylindrical DC plugs generally have an insulated tip constructed to accept insertion of a pin into a bore within the plug. The outer body of the plug is one electrical contact, most often but not always the negative side of the supply. A pin mounted in the socket makes contact with the second internal contact when inserted into the bore of the plug. The outer plug contact is often called the sleeve and the inner the centre contact, although the tip itself it usually non-conductive. At least two different national standards exist, EIAG in Japan and DIN in Germany. As well as these standards, several conventions have been adopted by specific manufacturers to indicate voltage by plug size.
Contact ratings vary from less than 1 Amp up to 5 Amps with a 2 Amp current being typical. The voltage which can be supplied again varies and is usually under 100 Volts, with a 12 Volt power supply being typical.
The most common type of plug found in the art will have an approximate outside diameter (OD) of 5.5 mm and a length of 9.5 mm. However, two pin sizes are commonly used in the jacks for this size of plug body, 2.1 mm and 2.5 mm. For best electrical contact, the bore within the plug should match the diameter of the pin. However, the two sizes are very similar and can easily be confused even when seen together. The sizes are also not usually marked on either the plug or the socket.
One of the disadvantages of the conventional pin connector is the possibility of electric arcing between the pin and the bore of the inserted plug which surrounds the pin in a mating connection. The contact between the centre pin and the inserted plug relies on interference between the plug and the bore which surrounds it when the plug is inserted into the socket. In many cases, due to normal manufacturing tolerances, the dimensions between the mating parts of a socket and a plug are not precise and a bad connection is obtained as a result.
As noted above, it is difficult to distinguish a 2.5 mm DC plug from a 2.1 mm DC plug even when the plugs are seen together. The bore of a 2.1 mm DC plug is too small to fit a socket having a 2.5 mm pin. By contrast, a bore of 2.5 mm in a DC plug will fit a 2.1 mm pin, but may not make enough contact to work effectively and the contact interference between the pin and the bore may not be made sufficiently. In extreme cases, this will result in electric arcing which may product sufficient heat to induce burning. In other cases, no contact is made at all and no power supply is provided.
Various solutions have been proposed, including the provision of a locking DC connector which uses a threaded fitting to secure the connection between the plug and socket. However, such threaded systems are difficult to use with a wired DC plug. There is accordingly a need to solve the problems discussed above and to ensure that there is always a positive contact between the socket pin and the bore of the plug.
The present Applicants have now realised that by improving a socket connector to be more flexible to dimensional variations, all of the above-mentioned disadvantages can be overcome.


Apparatus and methods for stirring a molten metal are provided. The apparatus comprising: two or more discrete units, each unit including a core being provided with two or more teeth, the core being provided with at least one electrically conducting coils; in use, mounting a first discrete unit in proximity to the container at a first location; in use, mounting a second discrete unit in proximity to the container at a second location; electrical connections between the two or more discrete units and a common control unit, thereby providing an electromagnetic stirrer. The apparatus format allows the discrete units to be position between different pairs of elements or parts of furnaces and the like to allow retrofitting of electromagnetic stirring where access is restricted.

The present invention concerns improvements in and relating to electromagnetic stirring of molten metals, particularly apparatus for stirring and methods of stirring, particularly when applied to complex existing structures.
It is known to use electromagnets to generate moving magnetic fields within molten metal and as a consequence generate motion within the molten metal. The movement causes stirring of the molten metal within its container, with beneficial effects on heat transfer, material dispersion and the like.
In general, planar electromagnetic stirrers are deployed close to a planar wall of the container in which the molten metal is to be stirrer.
Whilst planar walls for containers are commonplace, there are situations in which such planar walls are not present or are not readily accessible for deployment of an electromagnetic stirrer.

Stirring of molten metals in complex structures


The present invention relates to an image pick-up lens, an image pick-up apparatus comprising the image pick-up lens and a producing method of the image pick-up lens, and the image pick-up lens comprising: a lens part to form an image point of an object point at predetermined distance; and a supporting part to support the lens part and integrally formed with the lens part in a tubular form extended from the periphery of the lens part along the optical axis of the lens part, and the tip end of the tubular form is included in an ideal plain surface perpendicular to the optical axis of the lens part, wherein the image point is located in the ideal plain surface.

In recent years, easy handling of digital image data has been realized by improved performance of the CPU and development of image processing technique. Especially the cellular phones and PDA (Personal Digital Assistance) provided with a display unit capable of image display have become available on the market and the drastic improvement in radio communication speed can be expected in the very near future. Accordingly, frequent transfer of image data is considered to be made among cellular phones and PDA.
At present, a subject is converted into an image data by a digital still camera or the like, and such an image data is then transferred via a personal computer or the like via the Internet. This method however requires both a digital still camera and a personal computer to be purchased in order to transfer image data. On the other hand, attempts have been made to mount such an image device as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) type image sensor on the cellular phone. Such an attempt will eliminate the need of purchasing a digital still camera and personal computer, and will provide easy means of sending an image to a counterpart device through a cellular phone which can be easily carried.
At present, however, the weight of a cellular phone will be increased if the cellular phone is equipped with the function of a large-sized digital still camera which is much larger than the cellular phone, with the result that the phone cannot be easily carried. In addition to this problem, the manufacturing cost will be increased that much.
Even if an image pick-up optical system and an image pick-up device as major components of the digital still camera, a photo-electric conversion unit of the image pick-up device must be properly set at the focusing position of the image pick-up optical system. This raises the problem of how to make this adjustment. For example, when the image pick-up device and image pick-up optical system are to be installed on one and the same base board, it can be said to be difficult to install the photo-electric conversion unit of the image pick-up device at the focusing position of the image pick-up optical system with high precision due to such factors as variations in the thickness of adherent used for mounting on the base board or variations in the dimensions of component parts. Accordingly, an advanced level of high precision installation technique is essential or a separate mechanism is necessary to adjust the focusing position, in order to improve the precision of mounting the photo-electric conversion unit of the image pick-up device at the focusing position of the image pick-up optical system. This will raise the manufacturing cost. The following cities an example to describe the problems involved in the prior art.
FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view representing an example of the image pick-up apparatus according to the prior art. An image pick-up device 110 is laid out on the base board PC made of glass epoxy, and is connected to the image processing IC circuit 111 provided on the back surface of the base board PC via multiple wires W leading from the stop surface of a terminal (not illustrated).
A first enclosure 101 is provided so as to cover the image pick-up device 110, and a second enclosure 102 is mounted thereon. They are locked together on the base board by means of bolts 103. An infrared ray cutoff filter is arranged between the first enclosure 101 and second enclosure 102.
The top of the second enclosure 102 is cylindrical, and the lens body tube 105 enclosing a lens 106 is mounted in such a way that the position of this body tube can be adjusted in the direction of optical axis with respect to the second enclosure 102 by meshing a male screw 105a with a female screw 102a formed inside the second enclosure 102. A lens aperture 105b is formed on the top of the lens body tube 105.
Such an image pick-up apparatus according to the prior art is a comparatively large-sized apparatus comprising multiple component parts. In addition to the above-mentioned high cost problems, this configuration will require a lot of time in assembling these parts, and the relative position between the image pick-up device 110 and lens 106 must be adjusted by rotating the lens body tube 105 at the time of assembling.
To solve these problems, an attempt has been made to provide the lens with a supporting part extended close to the focus position. This part is brought into direct contact with the image pick-up device, thereby configuring an image pick-up apparatus according to this attempt. This attempt allows an easy layout of the photo-electric conversion unit of the image pick-up device at the focusing position of the lens, with the result that a substantial amount of time and labor can be saved to assemble an image pick-up apparatus.
However, this method raises the problem of what profile the lens supporting part should have. For example, three or four legs are extended from the lens toward the image pick-up device. These legs, however, has a problem of being easily deformed by external force. If legs are deformed, a deviation is caused between the photo-electric conversion unit of the image pick-up device and lens focusing point, and this may deteriorate the image quality.
Another problem is how to manufacture an image pick-up lens where the periphery of a lens is extended in the direction of optical axis. If plastic is used as a material, a mass production of image pick-up lens of stable quality can be achieved by injection molding using a mold. If injection molding is used, however, burrs are likely to be formed on the split portion of the mold. When the gate is cut off, burrs are also likely to occur. Depending on the position of these burrs, the assembling precision may be deteriorated, with the result that function of the image pick-up device may not be fully performed.
A further problem is how to adjust the positional relationship between the surface formed by the tip of supporting part and lens surface in order to ensure precise layout of the photo-electric conversion unit of the image pick-up device.

Image pickup lens, image pickup apparatus and method for forming image pickup lens


A package assembly (10) that includes a strip (11) of flexible plastic material. Attached to the strip (11) at spaced positions longitudinally of the strip (11) are bags (12). The bags (12) are sealingly closed and include end sealed areas (13 and 14). Each bag (12) is attached to the strip (11) by a respective one of the end sealed areas (13). Each end sealed area (13) can be peeled from the strip (11) to enable removal of the bag (12). In an alternative embodiment, the bags (12) are arranged in sets (17). A machine (28) is adapted to form the package assembly (10).

Disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,433,060 is a flexible package assembly including a carrier strip to which there is attached a plurality of bags (typically containing a snack food). A purchaser of a bag removes the bag from the carrier strip.
In the above-mentioned US patent a machine is disclosed that produces packages (bags) that are removably attached to a carrier strip. In particular, the machine includes cooperating sealing jaws that not only close the bag but also attach the bag to the carrier strip. A purchaser of a bag removes the bag from the carrier strip. The sealing jaws include a slot through which the carrier strip passes so that when the sealing jaws engage the package to sealingly close the package, the sealed area of the bag is attached to the carrier strip. This sealed area provides a pealable attachment so that when a bag is to be removed the sealed area peels, allowing removal of the bag. Each bag is individually attached to the strip.
The above-described method and apparatus suffers from the disadvantage that only a single type of packaging assembly can be produced.

Package assembly and machine and method for manufacture thereof


A toepiece (10) for a binding device for securing a boot to a gliding board comprises a fixed part (11) which is intended to be secured to the gliding board, and a mobile part (12) which is mounted on the fixed part with a possibility of relative movement (T) with at least one transverse component and on which two jaws (13d, 13g) are mounted so as to pivot about a substantially longitudinal axis (Ag, Ad). The toepiece (10) comprises a lever (16) that is actuable from the outside of the toepiece (10) and takes up a blocking position in which blocking elements (25d, 25g) that are integral with the lever (16) prevent the jaws (13d, 13g) from tilting so as to keep the toepiece (10) in a closed configuration in which the jaws (13d, 13g) retain the boot.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a toepiece of a binding device for securing a boot to a gliding board. This toepiece is particularly suitable for ski touring. It also relates to a binding device for securing a boot to a gliding board and to a gliding board as such equipped with such a binding device and/or such a toepiece.
2. Related Art
The document EP-A1-2353673 describes a toepiece of a binding device for securing a boot to a touring ski. The front binding of the boot is based on two jaws of the toepiece that are articulated about longitudinal pivot axes with respect to a base of the toepiece that is intended to be fixed to the touring ski. Each jaw comprises retaining elements that are intended to engage with the touring ski boot. The two jaws are articulated by way of a spring system in order to take up a first stable position, known as the closed position, in which the retaining elements engage with corresponding hollow parts formed laterally in the anterior part of the touring ski boot, in order to fix the boot, only allowing it to move in rotation about a transverse axis with respect to the ski, and a second stable position, known as the open position, in which the jaws are spaced apart such that the retaining elements free the boot, which can be separated from the touring ski. The front part of the boot is secured to a touring ski equipped with such a toepiece by positioning the boot such that the two jaws take up the second, open position, then by pressing strongly with the heel of the boot on the spring-based system, thereby allowing the articulated jaws to move towards their first, closed position in which they move towards the boot in order to position the retaining elements within complementary hollow parts of the boot.
A drawback with such existing toepieces is their lack of safety in the case of the skier falling, in particular in the case of a twisting fall on the part of the skier in a downhill situation of the alpine skiing type, involving a twisting movement of the boot with respect to the ski, during which the boot remains trapped in the toepiece, thereby risking injury to the skier.
A known manner for automatically freeing the touring boot in order to prevent injury to the skier is to provide a heel piece which is associated with such existing toepieces, is intended to fix the rear part of the touring boot and is configured so as to be able to free the boot in the event of a fall, in particular as a result of twisting, but also as a result of a forward fall and/or a backward fall. However, such heel pieces are complex, resulting in higher costs and substantial weight, and are unable to comply with safety criteria dictated by the alpine standard ISO9462. This limits the safety imparted to the touring skier.
The document EP-B1-1393783 describes another type of toepiece comprising jaws that are likewise articulated about longitudinal axes on a transversely mobile part. The jaws are in contact with a tilter which prevents the jaws from tilting while the movement travel of the mobile part is less than a given travel. Next, the jaws tilt and free the boot. However, this solution is complex, bulky and heavy on account of the existence of the tilter.
The document EP-A1-2431080 describes a toepiece having a fixed part and a mobile part that rotates about a vertical axis. The mobile part comprises two jaws that are conventionally connected by a knuckle joint mechanism having a lever, said jaws being integral with the mobile part. The lever selectively changes between a lowered position in which the toepiece is placed in an open position in which the jaws are spaced apart to allow the boot to be fitted in the toepiece, a semi-raised position in which the jaws are moved towards one another in order to place the toepiece in a closed position suitable for downhill use and a raised position in which locking elements that are integral with the lever are in contact with a cam surface that is integral with the fixed part in order to prevent any possibility of the lever returning towards the semi-raised position and towards the lowered position, thereby making it possible to prevent any releasing of the jaws and freezing the toepiece in a walking position. In the closed position of the toepiece, which is taken up in the semi-raised position of the lever, the mobile part can pivot over a predetermined limited angular travel, this pivoting taking place counter to the action of a return spring for returning the mobile part towards a centred position. In the walking position of the toepiece, which is taken up in the raised position of the lever, the lever is placed between lateral arms that are integral with the fixed part, thereby preventing the mobile part from pivoting with respect to the fixed part. In the event of a fall, in a first phase the heel is released in the region of the heel piece. This allows the entire boot to move. During this movement, the boot rotates the mobile part with respect to the fixed part until it comes into abutment at the end of its predetermined travel. This thus results in the mobile part suddenly stopping. In a second phase, the continuation of the movement of the boot on account of the fall, while the mobile part is in angular abutment, causes one of the jaws to be pushed, thereby causing the jaws to open and the lever to pass into its lowered position, freeing the boot. Thus, releasing takes place in two phases: in the first phase, during the rotation of the mobile part, the jaws are blocked in the closed position and retain the boot in the toepiece, whereas in the second phase, which starts when the mobile part comes into angular abutment, the jaws begin to open under the action of the boot and place the lever in the lowered position. However, this solution is again complex, bulky and heavy. The safety imparted is somewhat unsatisfactory, since releasing requires a very large angular movement of the boot.

Toepiece which releases automatically as a result of twisting


A device for detecting an object with respect to a detection surface including:                a measurement electrode;        at least one guard electrode, at the same alternating potential as the measurement electrode;        at least one module for measuring a first signal with respect to the capacitance (Ceo), called electrode-object capacitance, formed between said measurement electrode and said object; andat least one electrode, called polarization electrode, placed opposite the object, and polarized at the ground potential (G) so as to polarize the object by capacitive coupling.

The present invention relates to a capacitive device for detecting an electrically floating object, or one in which the coupling with a reference potential such as a ground potential is insufficient or weak.
The field of the invention is, non-limitatively, that of interfaces for the capacitive detection of objects in order to detect objects in an environment or in contact with a detection surface.
Capacitive sensors currently existing make it possible to detect an object with respect to a detection surface, by measuring a signal representing the capacitance formed between a measurement electrode and the object.
These sensors comprise a series of measurement electrodes distributed in the plane of the detection surface. Each measurement electrode is guarded, by an electrode called guard electrode, polarized at an alternating potential, called guard potential, identical or substantially identical to the alternating potential of the measurement electrode at at least one working frequency, and different from a reference potential of the electronics, such as a ground potential. When the object is at a potential different from the guard potential, such as the ground potential, a capacitance, called electrode-object capacitance, forms between the measurement electrode and the object, representative of the distance between the detection surface and the object.
However, when the object to be detected is isolated from its environment, it is no longer linked to the ground potential and its electrical potential moves away from the ground potential. Furthermore, a coupling may then take place between the object and the measurement electrodes, so that the object is polarized with the guard potential and its potential moves even further away from the ground potential. In this case, the detection sensitivity and performance of the sensor are degraded. Such a situation can occur, for example, when the object is placed on the detection surface, such as a mattress or a table, and is electrically isolated from its environment or from the ground.
A purpose of the present invention is to overcome the abovementioned drawbacks.
Another purpose of the present invention is to propose a device for detection by capacitive effect making it possible to detect an object isolated from its environment, with greater accuracy, when the coupling of the object with the reference potential of the electronics or the ground potential is degraded.
Another purpose of the present invention is to propose a device for detection by capacitive effect making it possible to detect an object isolated from its environment, the detection sensitivity and performance of which are not degraded, when the coupling of the object with the reference potential of the electronics or the ground potential is degraded.

Capacitive device for detecting an electrically floating object